Wondering where geospatial science fits into your life?
It puts gaming on the map
Did you know geospatial science is at the heart of some of the biggest gaming phenomenons around?
Yep, geospatial science technology is helping people get game all over the world. Pokemon Go is one of the biggest examples of a game that relies on geographic information systems to work. It’s a radical new usage of mapping technology.
There are also virtual war games that recreate war environments as a kind of immersion therapy for veterans suffering from PTSD.
Geospatial science even allows us to gamify storytelling. Apps like Story City ties narrative storytelling experiences to your physical location – so you can only unlock the next part of a narrative when you are in right location. Your phone’s geographic data holds the key to how the story is told!
It keeps us connected online
With the internet continuing to bring us closer together and making it easier to start online conversations, social media brands show no sign of disappearing.
In fact, it’s the opposite – more of them are popping up all the time!
Increasingly, social media giants like Facebook and Instagram are letting users tag themselves in cities, suburbs or even specific locations like businesses or social hubs. These apps use your mobile phone’s geographic data to assess things like altitude, bearing, distance, latitude and longitude.
Social media users geotag videos, photos, posts and more. On Facebook, there is even a feature that allows you to see which of your friends are nearby.
It shows us where to go
Much of the technology that the geospatial scientist relies on – such as global positioning systems and internet mapping technologies – allow us to get around in our day-to-day lives.
The world is only moving faster, and how we get from A to B is changing to keep up with it. SatNav gives us directions. Google Streetview shows us where we are going before we get there.
A big part of the reason that modern mapping and navigation technologies work so well is that surveyors have done the hard yards measuring, recording and calculating geographic data. That data is fed into geographic information systems which in turn drives the tech.
Speaking of driving, ever heard of Uber? Yep, your driver can find your pickup location thanks to GPS tech and geographic data.
It’s always at your service
Your phone is packed with apps built on geospatial science, making everyday services easier to access.
For instance, you can identify the nearest location of just about anything! Find restaurants closest to your phone with Zomato, or your nearest cinema with IMDB. There are even concert discovery apps like Bands In Town, which tell you which musicians are coming to the music venues closest to you.
Mobile banking systems ensure a secure and safe service in part by capturing location data for transactions. And then there are bold experiments like Amazon Prime Air. It’s a conceptual system still in development, but it is not far off – and when it’s ready, it will home deliver your Amazon orders utilising drone technology, one of the favourite tools of geospatial scientists and surveyors.
Now that’s what we call service!
Wondering if geospatial science is for you?
Click through to learn all about what you could achieve as a geospatial scientist.