Vacation Post 2020

I am on vacation this week so I don't really have anything except this important puzzle I'm working on.

Here it is in situ.

The dog is whining so I better take him down to the water. See you next week!

Soviet Map Symbols

National Geographic shows some great 1968 posters from the Soviet Union's United States mapping project. They beautifully illustrate how cartographic symbols translate to their real world features. For example there are numerous bridge types shown with their symbols below. Because this is copyright material, the only way I can legally show this is through Twitter - though that hasn't stopped others from posting these.

Secret Soviet Posters Demystify Map Symbols https://t.co/UueIoRIWGu via @NatGeo

— 🌏Map of the Week (@MapOfTheWeek) July 8, 2020

If you view their article's slide show you can see how different types of highways, railroads, power plants and buildings are represented.

Images from The Red Atlas: How the Soviet Union Secretly Mapped America, by John Davies and Alexander J. Kent, published by the University of Chicago Press

Sea Level Rise-Coming to a City Near You

Conspiracy of Cartographers has a series of maps showing what will be underwater in various cities after 215 feet (66 meters) of sea level rise. Keep in mind that this is "end point" sea level rise and not anything we would see in our lifetimes. A recent page highlights new maps of Philadelphia,

and Washington, DC.

Both maps show similar patterns with the central cities completely flooded and the land being mostly peninsulas in the hilly north and western suburbs. There are also some nice puns.

In Philadelphia, Hunting Park becomes Fishing Park, University City becomes Irreversibly Pity, Wayne Junction, Drain Junction, and Northern Liberties is now Northern Fisheries.

Other maps have been done for cities in the U.S., Australia and England as well as a few larger regions. Here are Cascadia,

 The Palm Springs-Coachella area of California,

an almost completely waterlogged Brisbane,

and Los Angeles, featuring one of my favorite puns- the Ex-LAX airport.

Topological Map of the World

Here is an interesting map from the Map Porn Reddit (yes that is a thing). It shows the world from a standpoint of topology-meaning that relationships between countries (specifically boundaries) are emphasized. The shapes of countries are disregarded.

It is designed to look like the T-O maps of medieval times with the round shape, the seas looking like rivers and "oriented" with east at the top.

A T-O map via Wikipedia

There's a lot to pick apart as commenters have gleefully done such as non-existent borders (Chile-Paraguay) and misspellings (Nicaragua). You can get into heated debates about boundary politics or whether Lithuania borders Russia or not (technically it does) if that's your thing. I prefer to focus on the interesting perspective provided. I also like the way the island nations surround the map-though they do get a bit out of sequence.

You can click the top map to see higher resolution or visit the Reddit post to see the comments.

The Greenwood Massacre

The 1921 Greenwood Massacre in Tulsa is one of the most horrifying incidents in US race relations. This map via Tulsa World details the significant events that took place there.

You can click above for a more readable version. Here is a detail to get a feel.

There is a locator map in the corner but it shows the city pre-expressways and if you don't know the city very well it is hard to see where this is. Here is the Google Maps view. It looks like much of the neighborhood has been sacrificed for highways, a stadium and a university, a common fate for many African-American neighborhoods.

Mapping the Locust Swarms

Locusts have been deviating crops in Africa and South Asia in the worst attack in decades. This map, via Business Insider India shows where the swarms are and where they are heading.

The article is full of disturbing photos (if you don't like locusts) and details some interesting efforts to drive them away such as beating thalis (small hand drums) or playing loud music. A silver lining is offered in that these locusts are a healthy food option for birds and fish (people not mentioned) and can be profitable to those who catch them.

Mapping Police Violence

Mapping Police Violence is a research collaborative that tracks police shootings in the United States. Here is an interactive map of incidents during 2019,

 along with clickable information for each incident.

The site also includes some other useful graphics.

It is not all negativity. Here is a chart showing proven solutions.

More info here - you can donate to the cause here.