The Danger of a Big Data Episteme and the Need to Evolve GIS

Abstract

The emergence of "Big Data" as a dominant technology meme challenges Geography's technical underpinnings, found in GIS, while engaging the discipline in a conversation about the meme's impact on society. This allows scholars to engage collaboratively from both a computationally quantitative and critically qualitative perspective. For Geography there is an opportunity to point out these shortcomings through critical appraisals of "Big Data" and its reflection of society. Complimentarily this opens the door to developing methodologies that will allow for a more realistic interpretation of "Big Data" analysis in the context of an unfiltered societal view.