A general framework for error analysis in measurement-based GIS

In science generally, the analysis of the errors inherent in continuous-scaled measurements of quantities is well developed, and numerous textbooks are available (e.g., Taylor, 1982). It is possible, for example, to predict the errors that result when individual measurements are combined arithmetically, based on differentiation of the combination equation with respect to the measurements, and based on knowledge of the error distributions of the measurements. The Gaussian distribution is frequently assumed as the error distribution of measurements, based on sound theory.