Week 6: Choropleth

The above maps were produced for the week 6 choropleth lab. They show the percentage change in population for the U.S. by state and census divisions for 1990-2000. I decided to round the numbers for each class. I thought this would be easier for a map user to read. I was not pleased with my Hawaii scale bar. I deleted part of it before I scaled the state thinking it would look better than a big bar. I then figured out how to scale down the numbers and bars without disturbing the length of the bars. If I could go back I would change that. I found the easiest way to change the states to grayscale was to calculate my classes first, then create the legend. Once I had the colors for the legend, I just clicked on each stated and hit the appropriate legend color with the eyedropper tool. The hardest part of the lab was dividing the data in excel. I found the best way was to give each state a division code then sort that way, as someone suggested in the discussions. I think this step had the most potential for human error. I had to double check this and indeed had to correct some errors.

Week 5: Map Composition

The above map is the lab assignment for week five. It shows the percentage of Hispanic population in southern Florida by county. I decided to change the color of the choropleth map to the same family of colors only different shades to better visually communicate the changes in Hispanic population from county to county. The lighter to darker shades work well with increasing population percentage. I removed some of the scale bar. I found it bigger than the map user would need. After centering the main map showing the percentage of Hispanics, I decided the legend and north arrow should go on the bottom making the map bottom heavy. I then chose the best available space for the United States and Florida maps showing the location of the main map. The problems I faced in this assignment was having so many options to choose from. (colors, layout options, etc.) I'm getting better with Illustrator but i definitely need more practice.

Week 4: Florida Keys

The map above shows a portion of the Florida Keys. It includes cities, key names, harbors and some points of interest such as airports and state parks. I found using Adobe Illustrator extremely difficult. I think this was do to me being on the road and having to use a laptop with no mouse. The dragging and scaling of objects was nearly impossible. I enjoyed picking out different fonts for label this map. I utilized existing symbols to enhance the labeling such as circles and airplane symbols.

Week 3: Data Classification Lab

The above maps show the percentage African American population of Escambia County, Florida using census data from the year 2000. Each of the four maps uses a different type of data classification.

I chose the equal interval map as the best map to display this data. The evenly distributed breaks make it easy for the map user to identify and easily compare different areas of the black population. The quantile and natural break classification maps contain uneven breaks that make it difficult to compare different areas on the maps. The standard deviation classification map's breaks make it very hard for any map user, much less a novice to understand what each color actually represents.

Module 1 Lab Assignment

I chose the above map as an example of a bad map. This map was an attempt to represent North American cities with Swiss Airline flight destinations and cities that held partner airline operations. What makes this a bad map is the errors in geographic location for most major cities. For example Little Rock, Arkansas is located far north of it's actual location and Sacramento, California is depicted east of it's correct location. I would hope the Swiss Airline pilots do not use flight maps created by the same individual.

The map above is my choice for a good map. This map represents religion as it relates to regions in the United States. This map is labeled in a clear and detailed manner. The data is conveyed simplistically, with the use of different colors to represent the leading religious bodies in each county. The user is given all relevant information at the base of the map that they would need to effectively understand the data the map communicates.