GIS (Geographic Information System) merges cartography, statistical analysis, and database technology with the purpose of storing, analyzing, and displaying geographic information to inform decision-making. Because of the demands of interdisciplinary research applications, Academia Sinica, Taiwan’s premier academic institution, has constructed an integrated GIS-based application infrastructure within the spatial extent of China, in the timeframe of Chinese history, and with the contents of Chinese civilization. Speaking from his extensive experience with this project, Dr. I-chun Fan will discuss the connection between GIS and Interdisciplinary research.

Presenter:

Dr. I-chun Fan is a Research Fellow, at the Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica, Taiwan as well as the Executive Director of the Center for Geographic Information Science, Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences. His areas of expertise include Chinese Economic History and the Historical Geographic Information System (GIS). He received his PhD in History from Stanford University.

Host Center:

Through its Taiwan e-Learning and Digital Archives Program (TELDAP), Academia Sinica is collaborating with the Vis Center to preserve ancient documents while unlocking the knowledge contained in them. Combining the technical strengths of the Vis Center team with the cultural knowledge and goals of Academia Sinica creates the opportunity to preserve history while at the same time developing new technology that is pushing the boundaries of existing digitization techniques.