A Formal Theory of Objects and Fields

Antony Galton

In Daniel R. Montello (ed.) Spatial Information Theory: Foundations of Geographic Information Science (Proceedings of International Conference COSIT 2001, Morro Bay, CA, USA, September 2001), Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Science 2205, 2001, pages 458-473.
ISBN 3-540-42613-2

Abstract

The distinction between object-based and field-based conceptions of geographical reality has become well-known in recent years. It replicates at a conceptual level the distinction between vector-based and raster-based implementation methods for GIS. In this paper I endeavour to lay the groundwork for a careful, mathematically rigorous development of the relevant ideas at the conceptual level. The notions of object and field are given precise mathematical definitions, and an appropriate formal apparatus is constructed by which to address such issues as the interconvertibility of the object-based and field-based paradigms, and their relative adequacy for different representational problems.

Antony Galton

Last modified: Wed Aug 6 17:06:08 BST 2003