Intro to Cartography, Map abstraction, and Choices made by map makers Geog 301 Intro to Cartography, Map abstraction, and Choices made by map makers Some swiped from Sterling

But first A long description of the various file types used by ArcGIS Shapefiles Coverages Geodatabases .e00 Some of the other files you commonly use: jpg, pdf, tif, img And how you WILL learn to love ArcCatalog. Seriously, ALWAYS use ArcCatalog to copy/paste/move GIS files.

Cartography The art, science, and technology of making maps They study of maps and map making A “map” is an artifact which serves as a storehouse of spatial information.

Cartography has evolved into a graphical language designed to communicate spatial relationships. Traditional maps Molecular mapping Genomes crystals, MRI/xrays, etc..

Like any language… It has rules, syntax, conventions, etc. Which we will be talking about all quarter! In fact, a major part of this class is to get you proficient in this language.

A little about how we thin Finish the statement…..

Cartographic design process Think about the real-world distribution, etc. Have some clue what’s happening Think about the purpose and audience of your map Collect data Design and construct map Test – to see if it works for the purpose and audience. Note, this is not a linear process. Changes at any level cascade, so think of this as a whole lot of loops.

Types of maps General Purpose Thematic (go online for examples of each) Choropleth Dot density Flow Cartograms Graduated circles Animated Etc.

Data type Nominal Ordinal Interval ratio

To standardize the data or not to standardize the data That is the question. Why? Why not? Examples. http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/mapping/6415

Classification Splitting data into groups to make it easier to understand. Full lecture on this at a later time. And a lab. The excitement that will be generated cannot be underestimated.

Now, what can a user get from a map? Locational information (where). Ie. roads Info about items (what). Ie. road type Spatial relationships.

Map design The what and where of putting stuff on a map.

Map elements The map itself Title Legend N arrow Scale Name, date, citations, data source, etc Projection (if relevant) Neatlines. Yeah neatlines. Dr. Hickey freaking loves them. So, you will too.

Must consider Map purpose Audience Viewing medium and distance Output quality Layout (balance, importance, hierarchy) Selection (what to include, and what to nuke)

Graphic elements Color (and/or shading) Value Size Shape Spacing Orientation Location Font/text

Map abstraction

Map abstraction Selection Simplification Classification and Symbolization

Selection From Making Maps, by Krygier and Wood

Avoid visual clutter American English Dialects by Rick Aschmann - ttp://aschmann.net/AmEng/#LargeMap

Beauty in simplicity Joshua Tree Park map with shaded relief - http://www.nps.gov/jotr/planyourvisit/maps.htm

Simplification From Making Maps, by Krygier and Wood

Sometimes simplification involves a dimension change From Making Maps, by Krygier and Wood

Simplification for speed http://blogs.esri.com/esri/arcgis/2011/06/23/determining-limits-for-map-graphics/

Simplification often requires processing by GIS software

Selectively adding detail can also help convey a message From Making Maps, by Krygier and Wood