Not only can GIS be used in the academic sector, but it can also be used in the real world very effectively. We have seen the rise of GPS apps, which have largely replaced traditional maps, apps that know your exact location, apps that can find a lost device or child, and so much more. By taking all of the topographical and statistical data that can be obtained, almost every sector in modern life has been or can be utilized for GIS data.
We can really see this from historical events; let's use the bubonic plague as an example. Unlike those in the past, we are armed with hindsight that is 20/20; we know that it was rats that spread the disease. Let's say we had all of the data that showcased the movement and travel information of the rats, which we could then have used to study their patterns and have a much more accurate description of where the plague started and how it traveled.
It doesn't stop there, since that is more on the academic approach as well. Let's say we want to track our own daily patterns within the last five years. We can use location data along with GIS to accurately depict our daily routine. We can move forward and also think about how we can use GIS to track our internet usage by creating a GIS specific for IP addresses that showcases how frequently and infrequently websites are accessed.
Then, there are video games; we can apply GIS to video games in a multitude of ways, from recreating terrain used in historic battle locations from all around the world, to creating a completely alien world from mixing GIS data from various planets and moons. But we could also use GIS to augment the reality around us by injecting GIS data into the camera to transform or recognize similar data from which it reads in real time.