The first part of this post was not required so it can be skipped and readers can begin reading at My Maps.
When I was told to complete this assignment I was confused on how the Lab 2 post would relate to mapping but that is where I first went wrong. It is not about what I wrote but it was about the questions asked in the lab and the things I learned about mapping. Before I get into the specific things I learned about the websites I covered I want to go over what I learned about mapping.
Mapping:
What is mapping:
Mapping is the process of creating a visual representation of a geographic area. It involves the use of cartographic techniques to represent the spatial relationships between objects and features in a given area.
The Purpose:
Maps can be used for a wide range of purposes, including navigation, planning, and analysis. They are an essential tool for understanding and interacting with the world around us, and they have been used for thousands of years to represent and organize information about the earth’s surface.
Maps can be used to help planners and policy makers understand the spatial patterns and characteristics of a particular region. This can be useful for identifying trends and patterns, and for making informed decisions about the allocation of resources and the development of infrastructure. Maps can be used to help analysts and researchers understand the spatial patterns and relationships between different phenomena. This can be useful for identifying correlations and trends, and for drawing conclusions about the causes and effects of various phenomena.Maps are often used to communicate information to a wide audience. They can be used to present complex information in a visual and easily understandable format, which can make it easier for people to understand and interpret the information.
The Different Types:
There are many different types of maps, and the best type to use will depend on the specific purpose of the map and the information that needs to be represented. Some common types of maps include: Political, Physical, Thematic, and Road.
The Two Maps I looked at were Political and Thematic.
- Political maps: These maps show the boundaries and names of political units such as countries, states, and provinces. They are often used to show the distribution of political power and to represent the territorial extent of different countries and regions.
- Thematic maps: These maps show the spatial distribution of a particular theme or variable. They are often used to represent the distribution of population, income, or other socio-economic variables.
My Maps:
The two maps I looked at were Counties Blue and Red, Moving Right and Left and Mapping Poverty in America.
I will start with Counties Blue and Red, Moving Right and Left. This map was created by Mike Bostock and Shan Carter; Michael Bostock is an American computer scientist and data-visualisation specialist and Shan Carter who makes interactive graphics for New York Times. the processes of this project are how is this country moving in terms of votes and why, which states are moving and why, and how will this effect the upcoming elections. The presentation of this project is through a political map with special effects showing an either red wave or blue wave showing where those voters are flowing to.
The goal of this project is to show the American people which way votes are trending and why so they can be informed why certain stats have much different votes compared to the past elections. The history this map is getting into is previous voting. For many on Election Day ,massive surprises come up but this site is attempting to explain why these surprises happened. The target audience are the people confused, the election is never simple and can cause frustrations where this site can help explain these confusing shifts in the American people. This is a very specific type of data where it does not show the amount of votes shifted but just the votes shifted in certain states. I wish they could provide certain numbers to make it more Clea on just how big certain states shifted.
After reviewing this map it provided me with a lot of new information especially because it was from an old election.Many would have been shocked when President Trump won the election in 2016 and with good reason. This map gave an insight that many states were slowly turning republican before he ever ran into office. It provided details that states where Hispanic growth toward the right was strong, suburbs growing stronger right, and large population growing states growing right. While I am not saying this explain why True became president it gave an insight on how voters were starting to shift. I will end with if a map was made today of the exact same style how would states have shifted and why?
The next map I covered was mapping poverty in America. Many may see this as a political map however I feel it is a thematic map because it Is covering the distribution of population, income, or other socio-economic variables which I found to be the definition of a thematic map. This site was created by Matthew Bloch, Matthew Ericson and Tom Girltikanon. Matthew Bloch is a graphic editor for the New York Times who has a history of map making. Matthew Ericson is an assistant managing editor and Tom Girltikanon is a famous journalism who recently returned to the NYT with the goal of interactive journalism. The processes of this project is understand where poverty is in America and making it very clear which areas are areas struggling in the United States. It is presented with a thematic map allowing the audience to focus on certain states and small cities seeing what the poverty percentage is and the total population.
The goal of this project is for fellow Americans to understand where poverty is and Jost how many people in America are struggling. It is called the land of the free but so many are dealing with such brutal living implications. The method used is data, they provide clear data with a color presentation making it clear on who is struggling and where. The data in this site is much more helpful then the last due to how specific it is. It provides details on states and cities making it very easy for the audience to understand.
The insight I gained from reading this map is how scary America truly can be. I decided to check out where I live which is San Francisco. I knew there was a massive homeless problem but to reads there are 120,000 people that are struggling was shocking to me and made me realize just how difficult life can truly be. Another insight I took away was the effectiveness of numbers. In the first map you could not truly tell just how much a star was swinging because no numbers are used, in this map when you see 120,000 people are struggling in a city you live in it truly has an effect on the reader. I will leave you with the question of how can you make a reader feel effected without numbers?