48 
Teodor J. 
Blachut 
SENSE AND NONSENSE IN OUR DISCIPLINE AND PROFESSION 
presented at 
The Rhodos Symposium of ISPRS Commission VI 
13 - 1ô September 1990 
Commission VI of the International Society for 
Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing has specific areas of 
responsibility that are outlined in various pronouncements of the 
Society. These include such concerns as education in the 
discipline, terminology, the world status of surveying and 
mapping, the history of photogrammetry, and so on. These are 
important aspects of our discipline. In this present address, 
however, I would like to turn your attention to a broader 
question which has an obvious bearing not only on the fields'of 
study of our Commission bur on the whole discipline and 
profession of photogrammetry. 
I would mention at the outset that it is not my intention - 
to establish a "catalogue of sins" in cur field, but rather to 
argue that because we are concentrating on problems of detail and 
techniques we are losing sight of the real scope of our 
discipline. As the saying goes, "We cannot see the forest for 
the trees" . 
As I see it, the problem is as follows. The main 
responsibility of surveying and mapping, of which photogrammetry 
is an essential part, is to provide reliable information on the 
terrain, in sufficient detail and precision for use by society 
at large for administration, planning and land development. By 
far the largest surveying and mapping activity is in property 
surveying. This can be in the form of cadastral surveying or 
legal surveying. As these terms may mean different things in 
different countries and in different languages, I would like to 
give you my definition for the purpose of this talk. * 
*T.J. Blachut, Dr.Sc.Techn., Dr.h.c., Fellow, Academy of Sciences 
of the Royal Society of Canada; retired head of 
the Fhotogrammetiric Research of the National 
Research Council of Canada, wnere number of novel 
concepts, methods and instrument systems 
originated. Among them the Analytical Plotter and 
the Stereo-Orthophoto system. 
Address: 61 Rothwell Dr., 0 t t a w a, K1J 7C.7, CANADA.