Map of the Week

On Saturday February 27, 2010, a magnitude 8.8 earthquake hit near Maule, Chile. This is a map of the estimated tsunami wave heights at various hours after the quake struck.

Lab 3 Map

Classification Maps

Before :


After :

This map uses 2000 census data to look at the number of households owned by American Indians or Alaska Natives and uses four different classification methods (natural breaks, equal interval, quantiles, and optimal) to look at the data. In the revised map, all of the numbers were changed from ratios to percentages and a title and subtitle were added to each legend to tell the audience what the numbers meant and what classification method was used. Boundary lines around the state were deleted and a neatline was placed around the whole page. The map title was moved to the top of the page and placed all on one line and a map subtitle was added to give a little more explanation. A boundary line was placed around both title and subtitle to make them stand out a bit more. Information about the map’s creation was added to the projection and data source information.

Lab 2 Map

Freehand Map

Before :

After :

This map shows many things found in Boulder County, Colorado. A few of the major roads and rivers are shown and labeled. Populated areas, part of a national park, and part of a wilderness area are also labeled. Only a few changes were made to the original map. The extra lines on the page were removed and the area of interest (just the county) was focused on. All of the wilderness area was colored in and labeled. Since the label for Lafayette crossed a road, an inline was added to it to make it stand out; all other community/town labels were then inlined to keep things uniform. Additional information about the map data was added.

Lab 1 Maps

Qualitative Map
Before :

After :

This map shows the 2000 census tracts for the Buffalo area and displays the dominant race for each tract. In the second map, I aligned the north arrow, legend, and scale bar and added the coordinate system information. The legend title was deleted as I didn’t think it was necessary. I also changed the colors in the second to more saturated colors so that the map doesn’t appear dull.


Quantitative Map
Before :

After :

This map shows the 2000 census tracts for the Buffalo area and displays the percent of the population in each tract that is between the ages of 5 and 17, or school age children. In the revised map, I used more saturated colors and darker boundary lines. I lined up the north arrow, legend and scale bar and added the coordinate system information. The legend title was deleted and a legend subtitle, stating the classification method, was added.


Nez Perce Map
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After :

This map shows how the lands of the Nez Perce tribe have shrunk over the years, beginning with their original land, then the land appointed them in 1855 and 1863. It also shows where all lands owned by Nez Perce in 2006 are. I only made a few revisions to this map. First, I deleted the legend title and moved the legend to center it more in the white space. Around all of the major town labels and the reservation line dates, I added a halo to make them more visible. I also moved to labels around to better positions. The north arrow was moved to give the legend more space.


Generalization Map
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After :

The purpose of this map is to show the differences between 2 generalization methods. The first method is ‘Simplify Line’, a tool used in ArcGIS 9.3. The second method is from a website called MapShaper, where I chose the Douglas-Peucker algorithm to generalize the data. Only a small section of the original map was chosen to show how the two differ from the original. In the revised map, I marked out where the example section was in the original data. Scale bars were added for all the views and a north arrow was placed on the map. A legend was added since the river lines in each example were different colors. A subtitle was added to try to make the purpose of the map clearer. Information about the map, such as date of creation and where the data came from, was added.

The Beginning

If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear.
And this weak and idle theme,
No more yielding but a dream,
Gentles, do not reprehend:
if you pardon, we will mend:
And, as I am an honest Puck,
If we have unearned luck
Now to 'scape the serpent's tongue,
We will make amends ere long;
Else the Puck a liar call;
So, good night unto you all.
Give me your hands, if we be friends,
And Robin shall restore amends.

- Puck