Intro duction to Maps
Essential Question: What information is presented in different types
of maps, and how do those maps show spatial patterns, the power of
geographic data, and relationships among places?
Cleographers emphasize spatial patterns, which are the general arrangements
of things being studied and the repeated sequences of events, or processes,
that create them. Learning to recognize and use geographical patterns is a
fundamental skill in understanding the discipline.One of the most important
tools of geographers are maps. Improvements in geospatial and computer
technologies have dramatically increased the quality of maps, the accuracy of
data, and the variety of maps available to study and use. Maps and geospatial
data now influence everyday life with the use of smartphones and apps that
allow us to not only view maps but interact modify, and show our own location
within the map.
Maps
Maps are the most important tool of a geographer and help to organize complex
information. No tool communicates spatial information more effectively than a
map. Maps are essential in highlighting and analyzing patterns. There are two
broad categories of maps:reference maps and thematic maps:
