The Geological Society of America GSA Today science article, April-May 2010.

The digital revolution in geologic mapping

By Steven J. Whitmeyer, Jeremy Nicoletti, James Madison University, Dept. of Geology & Environmental Science, MSC 6903, Harrisonburg, Virginia 22807, USA; and Declan G. De Paor, Old Dominion University, Dept. of Physics, Norfolk, Virginia 23529, USA

Geologic field data collection, analysis, and map compilation are undergoing a revolution in methods, largely precipitated by global positioning system (GPS) and geographic information system (GIS) equipped mobile computers paired with virtual globe visualizations. Modern, ruggedized personal digital assistants (PDAs) and tablet PCs can record a wide spectrum of geologic data and facilitate iterative geologic map construction and evaluation on location in the field

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