Waldo R. Tobler facts for kids
Waldo Rudolph Tobler (born November 16, 1930 – died February 20, 2018) was an American-Swiss geographer and mapmaker. He is famous for his idea that "Everything is related to everything else, but near things are more related than distant things." This important idea is called the "first law of geography." He also suggested a "second law": "What happens outside an area affects what goes on inside." Tobler was a professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara until he passed away.
Learning and Teaching
Waldo Tobler earned his highest degree, a Ph.D., in 1961. He studied in the Geography Department at the University of Washington in Seattle. While there, he was part of a big change in geography. This change, led by William Garrison, focused on using numbers and math in geography.
After finishing his studies in 1961, Tobler became a professor. He taught at the University of Michigan for many years. Later, in 1977, he moved to the University of California, Santa Barbara. There, he was a professor of Geography and Statistics. In 1988, the University of Zurich in Switzerland gave him an honorary doctorate. This is a special award for his achievements.
Amazing Discoveries and Work
Tobler was a lead scientist at the National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis. This center was supported by the National Science Foundation. His work greatly changed the field of geography. Many people believe he was one of the most important geographers of the last century.
Even as a student, he started using computers to make maps. This was very new and exciting at the time. His 1959 paper, "Automation and Cartography," was a big step. This early work was very important for creating Geographic Information Systems (GIS). GIS are computer systems that help us understand and use maps and location data.
Later, Tobler focused on using math to understand geography. He also worked on making better maps. In 1970, he came up with the "first law of geography" while making a computer movie about Detroit. He also invented new and unusual ways to make map projections. These are different ways to show the Earth's curved surface on a flat map. He even found a way to smoothly move data around on maps while keeping its total amount correct. In 1989, the American Geographical Society gave him the Osborn Maitland Miller Medal for his work.
Tobler also helped build a worldwide map of population information. This map was much more detailed than anything before it. He also looked at how things move from one place to another. In 1999, he gave a main speech called "The World is Shriveling as it Shrinks." This was at the ESRI International User Conference. ESRI also gave him a Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in GIS. He also wrote a book about map projections with other experts.
Tobler was very interested in showing how things flow or move. In 2003, he released a free computer program called Flow Mapper. This program helped people see and understand movement on maps. Later, in 2005, a new version of Flow Mapper was made for ESRI ArcGIS. This version was inspired by Tobler's original work.
Awards and Contributions
Waldo Tobler received many honors for his important work:
- Member of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States.
- Honorary Fellow, American Geographical Society.
- Osborn Maitland Miller Medal, American Geographical Society, 1989.
- Meritorious Contributor Medallion, Association of American Geographers, 1971.
- Andrew McNally Award, 1986.
- ESRI Lifetime Achievement Award, 1999.
- AAG Microcomputer Specialty Award, 1993.
- GIS Hall of Fame Inductee, URISA (Urban and Regional Information Systems Association), 2016.
- Member of special honor societies like Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, and Phi Kappa Phi.
Tobler also served on the United States National Research Council's Board on Earth Sciences. He was on the editing team for several important journals. These included The American Cartographer and International Journal of Geographical Information Systems. He was a founding member of the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association. He also represented the United States in the International Geographical Union. Until he retired, he was a member of the Royal Geographical Society of Great Britain.
See also
- Tobler's first law of geography
- Tobler's second law of geography
- Tobler's hiking function
- Tobler hyperelliptical projection
