Is GIS a Science?

Science is known to be a field of study that prioritises objective methodology and empirical data. The scientific method involves reducing human bias by carefully selecting methods for different studies and creating controlled environments to observe how changing one factor can affect another. Part of what makes a scientific study strong is that the methods and results are replicable. Multiple trials that lead to the same or similar conclusions further prove the result, and a lack of reproducability would imply that the results are unreliable. It also suggests that there could have been something wrong with the research process or method in itself.

As a student, I have only used QGIS as a tool to analyse data that has already been collected. In one sense, it is easier to claim that GIS is not a science in itself, because it only manipulates and visualizes data that has already been collected through various other scientific methods. Therefore, the possibilities through GIS may be limited to what data has been provided. GIS can also be used to build more analytical tools and rearrange data to investigate questions related to spatial distribution. It is possible that if used creatively, GIS could be used to predict or model how an election may turn out, or how a particular disease might spread, by creating maps that visualise the trends. However, I have only been able to use GIS to investigate things in the past to identify patterns. I would be curious to see how GIS grows the field of Geography in future years, and what Geographers may discover as they critically analyse the software in itself.