Documentation
Glossary | LWSWG
This glossary provides definitions for key terms and concepts used throughout the Leisure Walking Systems Working Group's documentation. It is intended to serve as a reference for researchers, developers, designers, and anyone interested in the technical and theoretical foundations of walking systems.
Jump to section: A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W
A
- A/B Testing
- A research method where two variants of a system (A and B) are compared to determine which one performs better against a specific metric.
- Accessibility
- The design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities or specific access needs. In walking systems, this includes features for wheelchair users, visually impaired individuals, and others.
- Accuracy
- A measure of how close a measurement is to the true value. In geospatial contexts, it refers to the degree to which location data corresponds to the real-world position.
- Affordance
- A property of an object or environment that indicates how it can be used. For example, a pavement affords walking.
- API (Application Programming Interface)
- A set of rules and protocols that allows different software applications to communicate with each other.
- Augmented Reality (AR)
- An interactive experience where computer-generated information is overlaid onto the real world.
B
- Basemap
- A background map layer that provides geographical context, such as satellite imagery, street maps, or terrain.
- Beacon
- A small, low-energy Bluetooth device used for indoor positioning and proximity-based notifications.
- Bidirectional Search
- A route-finding algorithm that searches simultaneously from the start and end points to find a path more efficiently.
- Buffering
- A GIS operation that creates a zone around a geographic feature at a specified distance.
C
- Caching
- Storing data locally to reduce the need to fetch it from a remote source, improving performance and reducing latency.
- Cartography
- The science and art of map-making.
- Cognitive Mapping
- The mental process of acquiring, storing, and recalling information about spatial environments.
- Collaborative Filtering
- A recommendation system technique that makes predictions about a user's interests by collecting preferences from many users.
- Content Delivery Network (CDN)
- A distributed network of servers that delivers web content to users based on their geographic location, improving speed and reliability.
- Coordinate Reference System (CRS)
- A framework used to define the position of points in space. Examples include WGS84 and British National Grid.
- Crowdsourcing
- Obtaining information or input for a task by enlisting the services of a large number of people, typically via the internet.
D
- Data Model
- An abstract model that organises elements of data and standardises how they relate to one another and to the properties of real-world entities.
- Data Pipeline
- A series of data processing steps where the output of one step is the input of the next, used for ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) operations.
- Dead Reckoning
- A method of estimating a current position based on a previously determined position, speed, and course over elapsed time.
- Differential Privacy
- A system for publicly sharing information about a dataset by describing the patterns of groups within the dataset while withholding information about individuals.
- Digital Twin
- A virtual model of a physical object or system, used for simulation and analysis.
- Dijkstra's Algorithm
- An algorithm for finding the shortest paths between nodes in a graph, which may represent, for example, road networks.
E
- Elevation
- The height of a geographic location above a fixed reference point, usually mean sea level.
- ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)
- A data integration process that combines data from multiple sources into a single, consistent data store.
- Event-Driven Architecture
- A software architecture paradigm promoting the production, detection, consumption of, and reaction to events.
- Experience Sampling Method (ESM)
- A research methodology that asks participants to report on their thoughts, feelings, and environment on multiple occasions over time.
F
- FAIR Principles
- A set of guiding principles for scientific data management and stewardship, ensuring data is Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable.
- Federated Learning
- A machine learning technique that trains an algorithm across multiple decentralised devices or servers holding local data samples, without exchanging them.
- Folksonomy
- A classification system created by users through the process of social tagging.
G
- Geocoding
- The process of converting addresses into geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude).
- Geofencing
- A virtual perimeter for a real-world geographic area. A geofence can trigger an action when a device enters or leaves the area.
- GeoJSON
- An open standard format for representing simple geographic features, along with their non-spatial attributes.
- Geospatial
- Relating to data that has a geographic component, meaning it is associated with a specific location on Earth.
- GIS (Geographic Information System)
- A system designed to capture, store, manipulate, analyse, manage, and present all types of geographical data.
- GPS (Global Positioning System)
- A satellite-based navigation system providing location and time information in all weather conditions, anywhere on or near the Earth.
- Graph Database
- A database that uses graph structures for semantic queries with nodes, edges, and properties to represent and store data.
H
- H3
- A hexagonal hierarchical geospatial indexing system developed by Uber. It partitions the Earth into hexagonal cells at different resolutions, useful for aggregating and analysing spatial data.
- Haptic Feedback
- The use of touch sensation in a user interface, such as vibrations, to provide information to the user.
- Heuristic Evaluation
- A usability inspection method that helps to identify usability problems in a user interface design.
- Humanistic Geography
- A branch of geography that focuses on the subjective human experience of place, space, and environment.
I
- IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit)
- An electronic device that measures and reports a body's specific force, angular rate, and sometimes orientation, using accelerometers and gyroscopes.
- Inclusive Design
- The practice of designing products and services to be accessible to and usable by as many people as reasonably possible without the need for special adaptation.
- Interoperability
- The ability of different information systems, devices and applications to access, exchange, integrate and cooperatively use data in a coordinated manner.
- ISO 19115
- An international standard for geographic information metadata, defining the schema for describing geographic information and services.
J
- JSON (JavaScript Object Notation)
- A lightweight data-interchange format that is easy for humans to read and write and easy for machines to parse and generate.
K
- KML (Keyhole Markup Language)
- An XML-based file format for representing geographic data in an Earth browser such as Google Earth.
L
- Landmark
- A recognisable natural or artificial feature used for navigation; a key component in human spatial cognition.
- Layered Architecture
- A software architecture pattern that organises components into horizontal layers, such as presentation, application, and data layers.
- Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging)
- A remote sensing method that uses light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure ranges (variable distances) to the Earth.
- Longitudinal Study
- A research design that involves repeated observations of the same variables over long periods of time.
M
- Machine Learning
- The scientific study of algorithms and statistical models that computer systems use to perform a specific task without using explicit instructions, relying on patterns and inference instead.
- Metadata
- Data that provides information about other data. For example, metadata for a photograph may include the date it was taken and the camera settings.
- Microservices Architecture
- An architectural style that structures an application as a collection of loosely coupled, independently deployable services.
- Mixed-Methods Research
- A research approach that combines both quantitative and qualitative research methods.
- Multi-Criteria Route Optimisation
- The process of finding a route that balances multiple objectives, such as shortest distance, lowest elevation gain, and highest scenic value.
N
- Natural Language Processing (NLP)
- A field of artificial intelligence that enables computers to understand, interpret, and manipulate human language.
- NDCG (Normalized Discounted Cumulative Gain)
- A measure of ranking quality used in information retrieval to evaluate the effectiveness of a recommendation or search result list.
- Network Analysis
- A set of GIS operations used to analyse networks, such as road networks, to find shortest paths or service areas.
O
- Ontology
- A formal, explicit specification of a shared conceptualisation. In information science, it is a way of representing knowledge and relationships between concepts.
- Open Data
- Data that can be freely used, re-used and redistributed by anyone - subject only, at most, to the requirement to attribute and sharealike.
- OpenStreetMap (OSM)
- A collaborative project to create a free, editable map of the world.
- Optimisation
- The process of making something (such as a design, system, or decision) as fully perfect, functional, or effective as possible.
P
- Participatory Design
- An approach to design that attempts to actively involve all stakeholders (e.g., employees, partners, customers, citizens, end users) in the design process.
- Pedestrian Dead Reckoning (PDR)
- A technique for estimating a pedestrian's location by tracking their steps and heading using sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes.
- Phenomenology
- A philosophical approach that focuses on the study of subjective, lived experience.
- Place
- A location imbued with human meaning, memory, and social significance, distinct from the abstract, geometric concept of space.
- Point of Interest (POI)
- A specific point location that someone may find useful or interesting.
- PostGIS
- A spatial database extender for PostgreSQL object-relational database. It adds support for geographic objects allowing location queries to be run in SQL.
- Precision
- A measure of a model's performance that quantifies the proportion of positive identifications that were actually correct.
- Progressive Web App (PWA)
- A type of application software delivered through the web, built using common web technologies including HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
Q
- Qualitative Data
- Data that is descriptive and conceptual, collected through methods such as interviews, observations, and focus groups.
- Quantitative Data
- Data that can be counted, measured, and expressed using numbers.
R
- Raster Data
- A type of spatial data that consists of a matrix of cells (or pixels) organised into rows and columns where each cell contains a value representing information.
- Recall
- A measure of a model's performance that quantifies the proportion of actual positives that were identified correctly.
- Recommendation System
- A subclass of information filtering system that seeks to predict the "rating" or "preference" a user would give to an item.
- REST (Representational State Transfer)
- An architectural style for designing networked applications, often used for creating web APIs.
- Reverse Geocoding
- The process of converting geographic coordinates into a human-readable address.
S
- Schema
- The structure or organisation of a database or data model.
- Semantic Annotation
- The process of adding metadata to data to describe its meaning, making it more understandable to machines.
- Sense of Place
- The subjective and emotional attachment people have to a location.
- Serendipity
- In recommendation systems, the quality of providing recommendations that are surprising yet relevant and useful to the user.
- Spatial Cognition
- How people acquire and use knowledge about their spatial environment to navigate it.
- Spatial Indexing
- A data structure that allows for efficient querying of spatial data, such as finding all points within a certain distance of another point.
- SQL (Structured Query Language)
- A standard language for storing, manipulating and retrieving data in databases.
T
- Taxonomy
- A hierarchical classification of entities of interest.
- Temporal Data
- Data that represents a state in time, such as the opening hours of a shop or historical weather patterns.
- Think-Aloud Protocol
- A usability testing method where participants verbalise their thoughts as they interact with a system, providing insights into their mental processes and reasoning.
- Topology
- In GIS, the spatial relationships between adjacent or connected features, such as how roads connect at intersections.
- Topophilia
- Coined by Yi-Fu Tuan, it refers to the love of or emotional connection to a place.
U
- UI (User Interface)
- The point of human-computer interaction and communication in a device.
- Usability
- The ease of use and learnability of a human-made object such as a tool or device.
- User-Centred Design (UCD)
- A design philosophy that places the user's needs, wants, and limitations at the centre of the design process.
- UX (User Experience)
- A person's perceptions and responses that result from the use or anticipated use of a product, system or service.
V
- Vector Data
- A type of spatial data that represents geographic features as points, lines, and polygons.
- Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI)
- Geographic information generated voluntarily by individuals, often through crowdsourcing projects like OpenStreetMap.
W
- Wayfinding
- The cognitive processes involved in navigating through an environment.
- Web Mercator
- A widely used projection for web mapping, notable for its preservation of shape and angles but significant distortion of area at high latitudes.
- WGS84 (World Geodetic System 1984)
- A standard for use in cartography, geodesy, and satellite navigation including GPS.