A conceptual information system for environmental analysis

Abstract

This thesis suggests the rudiments of a possible conceptual information system. Much of what is utilized in this effort is drawn from work completed and in progress. The system proposed is a synthesis and integration of divergent areas, in hopes of providing a better mode of comprehending the environmental process.

The purpose of the thesis is to develop a system for handling data pertinent to environmental analysis within a conceptual framework. The thesis focuses on the initial conceptual information system analysis, which delineates the basic structure of the system. A conceptual framework proposed by Donald Foley is utilized as the beginning of the system. The conceptual framework consists of three levels (normative, functional-organizational, and physical), in which a further division is made by considering each level spatially and aspatially. Data is then stored within one of the six cells. A standard computer card format is suggested for data elements, and it is applicable to many varying situations.

What is presented is not an all-inclusive system, but a basic framework that can receive additional increments of knowledge as they become available through time.

Sample problems are injected to show how the system functions at various levels of concern. The passage of a sample problem through various components of the system by various agencies exhibits the system's ability to evaluate environmental phenomena.