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Geography 12: Maps and Mapping

Lecture 22: Thematic and Special Purpose Maps

Special purpose maps

• Cartograms• Highway maps and Atlases• Weather and Climate• Geological maps• Historical maps vs. History Maps• Extra-terrestrial mapping• Journalistic maps• Tactual maps

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Automated algorithm: Congressional Districts

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Iterative generation

Chernoff faces

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Abstract cartogram

Extraterrestrial mapping

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The glove compartment

Highway maps

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Climate change

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Temperature and precipitation

The weather

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Radar

Weather satellites

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GOES NOAA

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Geological map

Specialized Symbols

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Martin Waldseemueller 1507

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History maps vs. historical maps

The sky as globe/map

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X-ray surveys

Newspapers and magazines

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Television

Tactile maps

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Summary

• Many special purpose thematic maps• Cartograms especially powerful• Specialty maps for different applications

and disciplines, e.g. weather, geology, travel

• Many different media: books, magazines, newspapers, TV, internet

• Once uncommon, now part of the everyday fabric of life