Cartophilia: Maps and Map Memorabilia

Interactive Ship Traffic Map

2009-11-06T08:19:00.003-05:00

Since 2004, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has required vessels to carry an AIS (Automatic Identification System) transponder on board, which transmits their position, speed and course, among some other static information, such as vessel’s name, dimensions and voyage details. All this data has been pulled together into an academic, open, community-based project: MarineTraffic.com

Here we see ships "squeezing" through the Straits of Gibraltar.

The data is uploaded in the database in real time, and the positions on the map are correct to within one hour.

The project is currently hosted by the Department of Product and Systems Design Engineering, University of the Aegean, Greece. While the system is not intended as a method to enhance safety at sea (in other words, don't use this tool to avoid collisions), the creators intend this data to be used as research to simulate vessel movements in order to contribute to the safety of navigation as well as provide design models for the spotting of the origin of pollution and creating efficient algorithms for sea path evaluation and for determining the estimated time of ship arrivals.

It is also just fun to watch the ships moving about.

My first fear about this tool, was that it might be used for evil purposes. Couldn't pirates use this tool to plan their next attack? Fortunately, the mapping tool does not extend to the Horn of Africa waters near Somalia.

Via Coming Anarchy

AT&T Sues Verizon Over Coverage Map

2009-11-05T09:17:00.002-05:00

For several weeks, the Verizon Wireless commercial mocking AT&T for their coverage has caught my eye:

I thought at the time that there had to be something wrong with those maps. I could not believe that AT&T customers were that limited...

It turns out, AT&T agrees. They have filed a lawsuit, claiming that Verizon is misleading "consumers into believing that AT&T doesn't offer ANY wireless service in the vast majority of the country."

So, what the map really shows is 3G coverage, whatever that is. AT&T apparently offers less 3G coverage, but most of the country is covered for standard cell phone service.

Full disclosure: I am a Verizon Wireless customer, but sadly, I have not received any sort of considerations from them. Hey! I'm easy. For a significant discount on my cell phone service, I could become a shill for Verizon. Can you hear me now?

Calendria

2009-11-03T05:00:00.001-05:00

Electrofork designer and illustrator Elizabeth Daggar sent to me a copy of her "timely" 2010 calendar/poster, Calendria:

The twelve nations of Calendria take their names from months on the calendar: Decembreland, Januarria, Octsburg, etc. Included with each month is a history of its nation, with notes on its geography and culture.

But take a closer look at the map... so much seems familiar. In a special section of her website, she gives a detailed, step-by-step guide to how she created her world:

THE PROCESS
How to design a world? (It begins with a love of cartography.)

I really just wanted to design a map. The reemergence of Electrofork's annual calendar seemed a perfect excuse– to create a world that felt familiar, at least at first glance. Maybe a kind of Pangaea. The point of departure: screen shots of the two hemispheres of earth; one containing North and Central America, the other displaying Europe, the Near East and the Northern portion of Africa. This afforded both the scale and a motley of shapes to reference.

This cartographic flight of fancy should provide entertainment year-round. Available via Etsy.

Movie Characters in Narrative Chart

2009-11-02T10:21:00.003-05:00

xkcd, the "webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language", offers these charts that show movie character interactions:

The Lord of the Rings chart is also "geographic" in its presentation.

#490

Olympic Torch -- Family Circus Style

2009-10-30T13:43:00.000-04:00

The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games website has created an interactive map of the path the torch will take on its trek across Canada:

Now, of course I understand why an Olympic Committee would choose a path that squiggles to and fro across the country. They want to hit all the provinces and major population centers, to build community and excitement about the games. However, upon seeing this map, the first thought that came to my mind was one of Billy's meandering path maps from the Family Circus comic strip:

While digging up the two map/strips above, I found another Family Circus map...

My apologies...

Olympic map via that fine Canadian map blogger, The Map Room

The Onion: World Map Rearranged To Accommodate Poor Geography Skills Of Americans

2009-10-29T12:01:00.000-04:00

From The Onion:

World Map Rearranged To Accommodate Poor Geography Skills Of Americans — Nations Ordered Alphabetically

Franken Adds Alaska and Hawaii

2009-10-26T07:37:00.000-04:00

For those of you who were suitably impressed by Al Franken's Stupid Human Trick... Good news! It gets even better!

Begich begs, so Franken adds Alaska, Hawaii to his freehand map of the USA

The Map Realm: The Fictional Road Maps of Adrian Leskiw

2009-10-23T07:00:00.000-04:00

Adrian Leskiw is a self-described "avid map collector and roadgeek". He loves road maps so much, he can't get enough of them, so he creates his own road maps of imaginary places:

The island nation of Breda is:

...located somewhere in the south Pacific and was most likely a British colony at one time and consequently roundabouts and European interchange designs are prevalent. The nation's roads are divided into five classes and each one is identified by it's own unique color-coded signage. Motorways are blue, primary highways are green, secondary highways are red, regional roads are yellow, and local roads are white. Motorways are identified by the label Mx beside the international symbol for limited-access highways, primary and secondary highways are identified by a black on yellow Australian-style shield affixed on the appropriate background color, and regional and local roads are referred to by name or primary destinations...

...etc.

I love these maps. I'll be planning my next holiday in Breda...

Via The Geo Lounge

The World According to Ronald Reagan

2009-10-21T10:00:00.001-04:00

A little Cold War humor:

Via Kelso’s Corner

#485

Mo Rocca

2009-10-19T07:00:00.000-04:00

Mo Rocca (Maurice Rocca), is a writer, comedian and political satirist. He is perhaps best known as a regular panelist on the NPR news quiz radio show, Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me. He is also on Twitter:

I wish I had a name that could be easily punned into the name of a country.

Google Street View Guys

2009-10-15T15:45:00.004-04:00

I've always wondered what it would be like to be a Google Street View camera car driver...

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Cartograms as Tumoresque Insects

2009-10-15T07:00:00.000-04:00

FastCompany.com's Infographic of the Day highlights Ballooning Population Maps:

Cartograms are often used to illustrate population density vs the area of a geographical entity. The BBC asks:

Conventional maps show the shape of a country according to its land mass. But what if you drew a map according to where people lived?

Visit People Powered Maps to see nations inflate around their population centers.

Thanks to geoparigm who asks, "Does anyone else think Cartograms look like tumoresque insects?"

Handy Maps

2009-10-14T07:00:00.000-04:00

Two map illustrations sent to me by Hunter:

A Long Way to Shiloh is a crime thriller novel written by Lionel Davidson (1966). Among its many editions, this Penguin paperback gets my attention.

Below is an illustration from PickTheBrain, 15 Web Tools to Enhance Language Learning.

Happy Blogiversary!

2009-10-13T14:43:00.002-04:00

Happy Second Birthday to TheElectoralMap.com! My favorite political geography blog.

Reading about Patrick's anniversary reminds me that I completely forgot to note my own second anniversary last month: September 4. (Perhaps because September 4 is also the anniversary of a failed marriage, it remains obscured in my mind.)

Last year, I noted my first blogiversary here. Perhaps I'll do something special for post #500 which should be coming up soon...

This is post #480

Leviathan

2009-10-13T07:00:00.001-04:00

Leviathan, by Scott Westerfeld, is a young adult steampunk novel set in an alternate-history Europe. The Great War is coming, but instead of the Allies vs Central Powers, it is the Clankers vs Darwinists. The Clankers have developed great steam powered machines, and the Darwinists have bred giant beasts as their weapons.

The map illustration is intentionally reminiscent of the "allegorical maps" of the period.

Via boing boing

Cardboard World

2009-10-11T22:18:00.002-04:00

Driving around town this weekend, I had to pull over and take a picture of this company's sign:

Cardboardy Earth goodness.

ACORN Conspiracy

2009-10-06T10:55:00.006-04:00

In Salon.com today, the comic strip This Modern World by Tom Tomorrow, has a little fun mocking Fox News personality, Glenn Beck. In the process, he created a new logo for A.C.O.R.N., the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now.

I love the tentacles squeezing the globe of the Earth.

Dr. Evil would give ONE MILLION DOLLARS for a logo so cool.

Cracking Cheese, Gromit!

2009-10-05T09:06:00.004-04:00

It's British Food Fortnight! And when it comes to British food, who doesn't love a good cheese? Cheddar, Cheshire, Cotswold, Stilton, and of course, Wensleydale.

Mark Easton, at the BBC, offers his Map of the Week: Cheese

This map was taken from the World Cheese Book, by Juliet Harbutt.

Cheese is good!

HT to Gail Townsley

Parag Khanna maps the future of countries

2009-10-02T09:34:00.006-04:00

TED is a small nonprofit devoted to "Ideas Worth Spreading". On their site you can find videos of speakers on technology, entertainment, design, business, science and global issues. In this episode, Parag Khanna discusses geopolitics:

Many people think the lines on the map no longer matter, but Parag Khanna says they do. Using maps of the past and present, he explains the root causes of border conflicts worldwide and proposes simple yet cunning solutions for each.

Interesting overview of border troubles around the world. Some of his ideas about redrawing the Middle East have been discussed here.

He also discussed a trend in population movement in the Far East of which I was not aware. As Russians depopulate Siberia, Chinese are moving in to take advantage of the abundant resources.

In addition, some discussion of China as the center of a new Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. Not built through conquest, as attempted by the Japanese, but through trade and interdependence.

Thanks to Atlas(t) for the heads up!

#475

Dayton Music Fest

2009-09-30T07:45:00.002-04:00

The Fifth Annual Dayton Music Fest, a showcase of the Dayton Indie Rock scene, is this Saturday. I love the poster this year:

McUSA

2009-09-25T07:00:00.003-04:00

Stephen Von Worley, at Weather Sealed, asks the question, "Just how far away can you get from our world of generic convenience?" How far can you get from a McDonald's restaurant?

So, he created a map:

He created "a visualization of the contiguous United States, colored by distance to the nearest domestic McDonald’s!" Not too surprising, the Golden Arches® are never far from the horizon.

The answer to the question, by the way, is in South Dakota.

Don't get me wrong. I'm no McDonald's hater. Every few weeks, I treat myself to my favorite breakfast fast-food sandwich, the Sausage Egg & Cheese McGriddle®. MMMMmmmm sweet savory greasy goodness. However, when looking at the map at full resolution, it is hard to not think of the fat globules clogging my arteries:

Via The Map Room

The Onion: Andorra Not In Africa

2009-09-23T10:25:00.003-04:00

Nation Of Andorra Not In Africa, Shocked U.S. State Dept. Reports

Meanwhile:

Breaking News: Series Of Concentric Circles Emanating From Glowing Red Dot

Maps of the Peace Corps

2009-09-23T10:00:00.001-04:00

"Maps of the Peace Corps" is a showcase of maps made by Peace Corps Volunteers from five decades of volunteer service around the world.

Two of the hand drawn maps from the collection:

Location: Quimbaya, Colombia
Volunteer: Larry Larrichio
Decade: 1960s

Location: Koyena, Mali
Volunteer: Judy Mead
Decade: 1990s

Just Can't Stop Talkin' `Bout Secesh!

2009-09-21T07:00:00.003-04:00

Unhappy people around the world and in the United States just can't stop talking about secession. As long as they keep providing interesting maps and illustrations, I'll keep covering them here.

Two from last month:

What would California look like broken in three? Or a Republic of New England? With the federal government reaching for ever more power, redrawing the map is enticing, says Paul Starobin.

"Divided We Stand", by Paul Starobin, Wall Street Journal.

In the American end times, our government will take one of two forms. One possibility is that federalism will give way to an all-powerful central government... The other option is decentralization—in the absence of a unifying national interest, the United States of America will fragment and be supplanted by regional governance.

"Who's most likely to secede?" by Josh Levin, Slate.

#470

Little Miami Scenic Trail - The Last Bit

2009-09-19T16:11:00.002-04:00

So, I neglected to mention here that last weekend Mrs. Cartophiliac and I completed the last leg of the Little Miami Scenic Bicycle Trail, Morrow to the Trail Head near Newtown:

This was also our longest ride; around twenty-five miles. We used two automobiles, so we could leave one at the trail head. All together, I suspect we spent more time in the car than on the trail...

Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four

Highlights (and low-lights) of the trail:

Drove past Kings Island Amusement Park (no roller coasters this time).
Stopped for lunch at an Art Festival in Loveland
Delicious Curry Humus Wrap from the Veg Head
Run in with Speedy McBikepants, very rude bicyclist who was pissed off because I didn't give him the right of way, when he had a stop sign. Why is it, the more expensive your bike and gear, the more obnoxious they are?

We will probably stick a little closer to home for a while...