1. 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

2. 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.

3. 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.

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

5. 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.

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

7. 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.

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

9. Data type
Nominal
Ordinal
Interval
ratio

10. To standardize the data or not to standardize the data
That is the question.
Why? Why not?
Examples.

11. 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.

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

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

14. 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.

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

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

17. Map abstraction

19. Map abstraction Selection Simplification
Classification and Symbolization

20. Selection
From Making Maps, by Krygier and Wood

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

22. Beauty in simplicity
Joshua Tree Park map with shaded relief -

23. Simplification
From Making Maps, by Krygier and Wood

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

25. Simplification for speed

26. Simplification often requires processing by GIS software

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