CartoBlog

History of Map-Making

2012-01-07T05:48:00.001-08:00

Welcome to Cartography 2012!
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xmn7c7_the-map-makers-1of3-discovery-the-waldseemuller-map-1507_creation

The best use of colour in cartography

2011-02-06T13:01:00.000-08:00

In class on Monday, Feb. 7 we will be talking about some important conventions for the use of colour in cartography. More challenging are those "grey areas" (well, not literally grey), where you can choose from any number of colour choices. How to pick?!

We will be going over a few online tools that help you to make up your mind, such as ColorBrewer and Color Your Map: fun to play around with and very helpful in assisting you to make wise colour selections.

UPDATE: SMU is closed as of 11:30am today (Feb. 2)

2011-02-02T06:45:00.000-08:00

There will NOT be a lab this afternoon due to the school closure from 11:30 through to at least 7pm tonight. Please see the previous post for ways that you will be able to work on this lab....

Class CANCELLED: Wednesday, Sept. 2

2011-02-02T03:52:00.000-08:00

GEOG 2336 lecture will be cancelled today.
I will be posting content related to the theme of "colour" choices in Cartography within the next day. So make sure to come back to this site to read what I post. I will post your next lecture on the p:drive before Monday's class.

For those of you in Lab B:
Please continue to watch the SMU web site "weather watch" section to monitor if the University will be open this afternoon. If the University remains open, the lab will be held (for those who want to attend or live close to campus). If you do not live close to campus and can not attend the lab, you can work on it on your own time through the week. In addition, the Lab A TA has offered for you to be able to drop in on the Monday lab for some extra assistance if necessary. As well, Emma has offered to assist anyone in the lab next week when she is around.
Your lab will be due next Thursday, February 9, to give you the extra lab day should you need it to complete this assignment.
Stay safe and stay tuned!

Font Humour.....yes, it exists...

2011-01-30T09:57:00.000-08:00

Watch it here...and maybe you'll be as amused as I was....

What's in a surname?

2011-01-30T09:33:00.000-08:00

We are going to be talking about typography in class on Monday (Jan. 31), but first I wanted to share a recent map from National Geographic with you (Feb. 2011 issue). The map illustrates the US with text showing predominant surnames. Some immediate patterns emerge from the combination of the text for the names themselves (e.g. Smith in New England and Garcia in southern California), from a proportional font size (larger fonts for more predominant last names) and colour (e.g. grey font for surnames originating in England versus red font for surnames originating in Spain). This map is fascinating for its subject matter and use of text (typography), but also because of the way that so many map techniques are being employed on one map.

Perhaps even more fascinating from the subject matter point of view, is this site: where you can type in your surname and see the global distribution of your particular name. Fun!

Cartastrophe and Mapping Profanity...

2011-01-26T06:42:00.001-08:00

This site is fantastic! Thanks Will, for bringing it to my attention!
From the "About"...

"There are a lot of bad maps out there. They lurk in brochures, on company websites, and in magazines. They confuse, they miscommunicate, and they make it hard to learn anything about the world. Sometimes they leave off Sicily. They’re made by people who have to rush against tight deadlines, by people who are pressured by their bosses or clients to make bad design choices because it “looks cool,” and by people who were thrust into map-making jobs without any training."

Take a look at this map: a map of the distribution of profane words as uttered in "tweets" in the US...the cartographer has asked for critiques...what do you think?

The origin (and importance of!) early spatial skills...

2011-01-18T16:44:00.000-08:00

Did you know?....Cartography is more than "just" maps...it also deals with the fascinating topic of so-called spatial skills.

Spatial concepts (a category of basic concepts) define the relationship between us and objects, as well as the relationships of objects to each other. As our language begins to develop, early spatial concepts such as in front of, behind, top, bottom, over, under, last, between, farthest, backward, in, on, etc., help us understand directions more precisely, ask detailed questions, and express our ideas to others. For preschoolers and young students, an awareness or understanding of spatial concepts and relationships usually predicts later success in math, reading, and following directions.

Take a look at this short article on "Spatial Visualization".

Welcome to Cartography: Winter, 2011!

2011-01-12T04:10:00.000-08:00

A new year of Cartography officially begins with this post. I hope that you will find some interesting resources and articles, interactive maps, and many things related to cartography within this site.

In the meantime, as a matter of logistics, our class will be held today at 11:30-12:20 in B205. The snow is supposed to begin in earnest later this afternoon, so stay tuned for those who are in Lab B. As things stand now, the lab is a go. If you need to leave due to the bad weather conditions later this afternoon, the lab tutorial is on the p:drive and you do have one week to complete it.

Hate Map Mash-ups

2010-04-21T04:28:00.000-07:00

The "Southern Poverty Law Center" in the US has a site that maps out hate groups by state and individuals who are "standing strong" against hate. It is a fascinating site: check it out.

Mapping the Haiti Earthquake on Crisis Commons

2010-01-18T14:40:00.000-08:00

Take a look at this map.
There are more ways to view the Haiti Earthquake, including Flickr and many links from The Maproom blog.

About Ushahidi

2010-01-18T14:36:00.001-08:00

What is Ushahidi? from Ushahidi on Vimeo.

Mapping the Haiti Earthquake

2010-01-18T14:31:00.000-08:00

Take a look at this site: an application for the cellphone/mapping platform "Ushahidi" has been developed for Haiti. We will briefly take a look at this in class on Janaury 19.

Winter, 2010

2010-01-04T05:31:00.001-08:00

Welcome to Cartography GEOG 2336.2
This blog will be used to post items of interest and relevance throughout the semester. Stay tuned!....

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

2009-04-06T11:22:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone!
There will not be a formal lecture today: your map critique projects are due, and your final map projects are due by Tuesday, March 14th. I have already started to receive some final map projects and am really impressed with the quality of your work.

I am marking your second tests now and will be getting your grades back to you soon. I should have your final grades posted on banner by Friday, April 17th.

Let me know if you have any questions!
-Cathy

Test 2 Review

2009-03-31T05:49:00.000-07:00

Your Test 2 will be written this Thursday, April 2 from 11:30-12:30.

The format will be 2 short essays. You do not need to study the power point lecture notes for this test. The 2 questions will involve the two pdf readings that are on the class p:drive. You should read these before Thursday and be prepared to answer the following questions (no aids are allowed in the test):

1. Using the pdf document of the same name on the p: drive, briefly outline some of the key "milestones in the history of data visualization".

2. Using the cartographic journal article "More mapping, Less Cartography: Tackling the Challenge", describe the "challenge" that is being proposed by Cassettari.

Tuesday, March 31st

2009-03-30T17:23:00.000-07:00

Apologies folks, but there won't be class today...I am recovering from a mishap that involved my face and the pavement while I was in Toronto. I will be posting the review content for your test here by mid-day Tuesday. The test will still go ahead this Thursday, April 2.
E-mail me if you have any questions or concerns.
-Cathy

Monday, March 23

2009-03-23T06:11:00.000-07:00

The GEOG 2336 GIS Lab Tutorial is CANCELLED today: it has been rescheduled for Monday, March 30.

New and interesting sites and blogts

2009-03-02T18:22:00.001-08:00

I just came across this blog tonight: it deals with interesting items related to Google Earth, including interactive maps, which we will be discussing in some detail in a future class.

I also discovered Geocommons, which could come in handy with some of your cartography projects. Watch out, this one is addictive (to a Geography Professor, anyway).

And finally, a blog called Off the Map is really well done and fantastic to browse through.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

2009-02-03T02:28:00.000-08:00

Class WILL be held today, although I know we are expecting bad weather into the day today and schools are cancelled. I will end class promptly by 12:20, as some of you may want to leave earlier than usual today.

Related to the weather, I follow Accuweather's Canadian weather blogger, who is a well-respected meteorologist: he often posts snow accumulation forecast maps, and his map for this event is rather interesting, showing much less in the way of accumulations for many areas than Environment Canada is saying. Only time will tell, and sometimes it doesn't take much to make a mess.

Snowfall Key:

Red: trace to 2 cm with more rain than wet snow

Gold: 2-8 cm

Green: 8-15 cm

Blue: 15-30 cm

The blue line: to the east will have a mix of snow and rain, with strictly snow to the west

CLASS CANCELLED TODAY

2009-01-29T04:47:00.000-08:00

Thursday, January 29, 2009
The 11:30-12:20 Cartography class is cancelled today: please send me an e-mail if you have any questions on anything related to the course: your Map Project Proposals can be submitted to me via e-mail at cconrad@smu.ca

Green Mapping

2009-01-26T16:33:00.000-08:00

Although this is not a topic specifically mentioned in the course syllabus, we have the time to review what is meant by so-called "Green Mapping" and it is something that I work on in my own research. If you get a chance, it is worthwhile to take a quick look through the green mapping web site.

A Google Mashup of the Cold

2009-01-17T12:53:00.000-08:00

A meteorologist at Environment Canada put a map together with the low temps posted across this region: notice that Google Maps was used for this. Take a look at it here.

Weather Maps

2009-01-13T16:59:00.000-08:00

Given that we are getting some bad weather tonight (although I don't think it will be as bad as initially thought, but only tomorrow will tell), I thought I would post a map of the forecast for snowfall accumulation from one of the weather models. Based on this model, the Halifax area would only receive approximately 5 cm, although these models often underestimate the total accumulation. If you were to critique this map, you might find it confusing, ineffective in providing a quick interpretation and poor graphic display. The audience for this map must be kept in mind and that would primarily include meteorologists, who are not looking for the generalized map: these cluttered details will provide them with the tools to assist in a more accurate forecast. So even if the map appearance may be flawed to the cartographer's eye, that alone doesn't necessarily warrant a critique of the product.

21st Century Directions

2009-01-07T16:26:00.000-08:00

Is society slowly losing it's spatial orientation capacity? Are we becoming too reliant on computers, GPS units and other technical devices to tell us where to go and how to get there? Do we run the risk of things like this becoming increasingly frequent? Obviously I am being facetious, but one does wonder what is happening to our map reading skills and the role of the cartographer in society is evolving rapidly.

Cartography Class Map

2009-01-06T11:10:00.000-08:00

Where are you from?(in red push-pins)
Where would you rather be? (in green push-pins).
View the map here.

Cartography Winter 2009

2009-01-06T07:06:00.001-08:00

Welcome to a new year of Cartography: GEOG 2336.2

I will periodically use this blog to post relevant articles and items related to the course content. Sometimes I will draw your attention to this in class and sometimes I won't. You might want to get in the habit of periodically checking this space.

While we begin the first weeks of the course, you might want to start using Google Maps. In order to create your own maps, you will need to create a user name and password.

We will be using Adobe Illustrator in the labs, which begin the week of January 12. Some students prefer to purchase the software (particularly since there isn't a cost for a course textbook). You can access the Adobe web site for educational software discounts here. Before you go ahead and purchase it, you might want to shop around a bit to see if it can be found cheaper elsewhere. If you plan to solely work in the Geography Department computer lab there is no need to purchase the software: it is on all of the lab computers. It is not on any other campus computers, however. You may also prefer to spend more time working on the labs from home or on your personal laptop computer. There are many online tutorials that you might want to make use of: here is one. The first lab will quide you through one such tutorial.

Green Mapping Jerusalem

2007-10-08T17:50:00.001-07:00

One way to look at life in LA...

2007-10-08T17:38:00.000-07:00

For an explanation of this map, go here.

Just for Fun...

2007-10-01T06:46:00.000-07:00

So begins the SMU Map...

2007-09-17T16:50:00.000-07:00

View Larger Map

History of Cartography

2007-09-13T11:12:00.000-07:00

You might just find everything you possibly ever wanted or needed to know about the History of Cartography at this site. I will do my best to summarize it all for you in the Tuesday, September 18 lecture.

A Google Mymap of SMU campus...

2007-09-10T17:36:00.000-07:00

Let's investigate Google MyMaps...

Welcome

2007-07-17T08:36:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the class blog for GEOG 2336. I hope you enjoy the course and have a great semester!