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2012 - 2011 - 2010 - 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 - 1999 - 1998 - 1997 - 1996
Note: links (over 500) are not maintained and may not work.
30 December, 2007 to 6 January, 2008
The US Census Bureau
The US Census Bureau is the archive of all the
data from hundreds of years of census-taking. To begin with, the top page
offers a US and World Population Clock -- refresh the page and watch the
data change. Then dig in to the site -- search by zip code, by town, by
state, or by the whole US, using all kinds of variables. You can see
historical data, and also read projections up to 2050. There's also a
special Section for
Teachers with teaching materials, reference brochures and reports, and
a special web site called "State Facts for Students".
6 to 13 January, 2008
The Perry-Castaneda
Library at Univ of Texas
The great map library. This is the place to go
for that map you can't find elsewhere -- cities, countries, regions,
modern and historical. An amazing resource, well organized and easy to
use, and with links to other map archives as well.
13 to 20 January, 2008
Growth of a Nation
This brilliant 10-minute presentation illustrates
the growth of the United States from the original 13 colonies to the 50
states of today. Make sure sound is on; you can play, pause, rewind.
If you roll your mouse over states you can see their names, or click on
individual states for more details. Click Rivers for their names. You
can also play with the timeline by dragging the pointer to look at
different periods more closely, or to expand the timeline decade by
decade. An expanded version is for sale for classroom use.
20 to 27 January, 2008
Who Has The Oil
From the archives of The Atlantic Monthly, this
simple cartogram that helps viewers contemplate and come to grips with the
world's oil reserves, and in which hands they are found.
27 January to 3 February, 2008
EWebGlobe
Software professional Naveen Gabrani has started a
nice geography website with information about different aspects of the
world; it is definitely a work in progress, as only 10 countries are
featured in the "countries" section, but there is a lot of other useful
information, and an expectation of more to come.
3 to 10 February, 2008
Bible/Map Interface
A really interesting google maps mashup; select a
version of the Bible (ESV or King James), then select a book and a
chapter, and after a few moments, you get a map of the locations mentioned
in that chapter. They suggest you begin by selecting Joshua 12, which has
dozens of locations, just to see the power of this tool. You don't have
to know anything about the Bible; it's a great tool for learning about the
geography of the Eastern Mediterranean.
10 to 17 February, 2008
The Truth About
Google Earth
A funny little video about Google Earth from
Francois Grandjacques; a Parisian discovers one unexpected truth about
Google Earth. Posted in taistoidonc.com/blog
17 to 24 February, 2008
Our Dumb World
The Onion's new Atlas, "Our Dumb World", contains
distorted stories and exaggerations about countries of the world; some of
the distortions are funny because of the grains of truth they contain. The
Atlas has now been posted on The Onion website, using a google mashup, and
so you can explore the world through The Onion's eyes.
24 February to 2 March, 2008
Debunking Myths about
the "third world"
In this lecture (it will take you 20 minutes to
watch it on youtube, but you'll be glad you did), Hans Roslong, professor
at Karolinsks Institute of Stockholm, gives an AMAZING presentation about
how the world has changed in the last 40 years.
2 to 9 March, 2008
The Night Sky In
The World
This Italian site tracks satellite monitoring of
the artificial brightness of the night sky -- and therefore the visibility
of the stars -- around the world. Though definitely Eurocentric, you can
get to US maps as well. Also very powerful are the images of Earth Lights
at night around the world, because of what these images tell the viewer
about populations, about population density, and -- perhaps less
intuitively -- about those places where people live with no lights, or
minimal lights, at night.
9 to 16 March, 2008
FedEx Geography
Ad
I'm not sure this is as funny as it's supposed to
be, since it seems to say "it's ok to be geographically ignorant, because
FedEx isn't", but at the same time, it says a lot about the present state
of geography knowledge among adults. And it is pretty funny.
16 to 23 March, 2008
Lufthansa Virtual Pilot Game
The object of this game, found on the Lufthansa
corporate site, is to land the jet in the specified city in Europe. In
the first round, you are shown a name, and you have 8 seconds to click on
the map, which has country borders and dots for cities. In the second
round, no cities are shown, just national borders, and you have only 6
seconds. In the final round, only the European land mass is shown, and
you have only 5 seconds. The first round is fun; the other two require
speed, good mousing skills, and excellent geographic knowledge.
23 to 30 March, 2008
Bugaboo Daytrips
Bugaboo is a company that manufactures high-tech
modern strollers for parents with young children; this site, which they
sponsor, has interesting day trips in a variety of cities. Click on the
city, read the details of one or more day trips around the city. Right
now there are 19 cities, with up to 6 trips in each one. I examined the
trips in the cities I know, and they look like interesting,
well-thought-out trips.
30 March to 6 April, 2008
Gigapan
A powerful and dramatic method for viewing scenes
in incredible detail, with unbelievably high-resolution photos. From
their website: "GigaPan is the newest development of the Global Connection
Project, which aims to help us meet our neighbors across the globe, and
learn about our planet itself. GigaPan will help bring distant communities
and peoples together through images that have so much detail that they
are, themselves, the objects of exploration, discovery and wonder. We
believe that enabling people to explore, experience, and share each
other's worlds can be a transforming experience. Our mission is to make
all aspects of the GigaPan experience accessible and affordable to the
broadest possible community."
6 to 13 April, 2008
U.S.
Atlas of Renewable Resources
The National Renewable Energy Lab is developing
this dandy little web application that can give you distribution of wind,
biomass, solar, and geothermal resources across the U.S., searchable by
lat/long or by zip code.
13 to 20 April, 2008
Interactive World Map
A fun, interactive Physical Map of the World; the
map uses Zoomify to allow users to scan, zoom in, examine details more
closely, etc. The same creator, Tom Patterson of the U.S. National Park
Service, has created a similar map of
the conterminous U.S. states
20 to 27 April, 2008
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Interactive Atlas
A student project at the University of Wisconsin;
this interactive map/atlas gives users an introduction to the ANWR, and
then offers the opportunity to explore several categories, including
Wildlife, landcover, people, and geography. Fascinating, perhaps best
suited to younger explorers, since one of the options is to click on a
"sound" symbol and hear the sound of different ANWR animals. This site was
the 2007 winner of the North American Cartographic Information Society
competition.
27 April to 4 May, 2008
The World Freedom Atlas
A project from course work at the University of
Wisconsin, the World Freedom Atlas uses over 300 variables concerned with
human rights, democracy, and good governance, and presents them in what
they call a geovisualization tool. It covers a 16-year range, starting in
1990.
4 to 11 May, 2008
Shaded Relief
This site is designed for practicing
cartographers,
but there is a lot of material here for teachers, students, and any other
interested visitors. The theoretical underpinning is that the
presentation of topography can be clear, intuitive, and even attractive.
Also see www.reliefshading.com.
11 to 18 May, 2008
New Jersey State Atlas
John J. Reiser is an employee of the State of New
Jersey, and decided that he wanted to play with Google Maps and Mapserver
and see whether he could make the public data accessible and easy to use
online. The result is powerful and fascinating.
18 to 25 May, 2008
Map
of US Per-Capita CO2 Emissions
Purdue scientists have released to wired.com a
view of American carbon emissions that shows the release of carbon dioxide
in an area, divided by the number of people who live in that area. You
can see a low-res version online, or download a very hig-res version.
There is an interesting discussion of what the map means.
25 May to 1 June, 2008
Why are online
maps so often wrong?
An interesting discussion of why maps found online
may not be correct; it's not necessarily laziness or bad cartography, but
various systems to make the final maps more correct may lead to the errors
we've all seen -- houses on the wrong side of the road, houses or stores
located incorrectly on a street, and so on. This may help readers
understand how to be a better-informed consumer of online maps.
1 to 8 June, 2008
Map Projections
Paul B. Anderson, a member of the International
Cartographic Association's Commission on Map Projections, maintains this
remarkable collection of 324 different map projections, sorted by type.
There is also a very thoughtful collection of reference articles.
8 to 15 June, 2008
All Streets
Ben Fry has taken 26 million individual segments
of the US map, showing only roads, and put them together. In his words:
"No other features (such as outlines or geographic features) have been
added to this image, however they emerge as roads avoid mountains, and
sparse areas convey low population. This began as an example I created for
a student in the fall of 2006, and I just recently got a chance to
document it properly." A remarkable and fun and informative piece of
work.
15 to 22 June, 2008
Cities at
Night: The View From Space
A NASA archive of views of Earth's cities taken
from space by astronauts. "By day, cities viewed from space can blend
into the countryside, or appear as gray smudges, depending on the style of
development and size of the urban area. At night however, city lights
present the space observer spectacular evidence of our existence, our
distribution, and our ability to change our environment." Also included on
this page is a link to the NASA/NOAA "World Map of Nighttime Earth".
22 to 29 June, 2008
24 Hours On Planet
Earth
A London-based site focused on a unique and quite
interesting way to help eliminate plastic, and plastic bags in particular,
from the landscape. The aim is to collect nominations for the most moving
music on Earth, and assemble a CD, the proceeds from which would be used
to create a charitable trust to pay localities for the plastic rubbish
they collect and turn over to the folks at "24 Hours", who will undertake
to remove, reuse, or recycle.
29 June to 6 July, 2008
2008 Statistical
Abstract of the US
The authority on US statistics -- social,
political, economic. This site allows you to browse sections and download
tables you're interested in -- everything from Electricity Generation by
Sectors to Students who Reported Carrying a Weapon to School. You can
also open databooks for States, Counties, Cities and more, and read
sections of historical tables. An amazing resource.
6 to 13 July, 2008
The Road to
Copenhagen
An interactive website intended for all interested
parties -- governments, businesses, members of Parliament, NGO's, and
ordinary citizens -- to have input to the development of a statement to be
given to the lead negotiators at the 2009 Copenhagen Conference on Climate
Change. The site is hosted by Margot Wallstrom, EU Vice President, by Gro
Harlem Brundtland, former prime minister of Norway and now UN Special
Envoy on Climate Change, and by Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland
-- important people, trying to get input on an important and historic
document.
13 to 20 July, 2008
American
Memory Timeline
A page developed by the US Library of Congress, as
part of the American Memory materials. Sets of primary sources on many
topics are linked from this page by time period. A very useful and
easy-to-use resource.
20 to 27 July, 2008
The Eggcorn Database
For people who love the oddities of the English
language, a site devoted to phrases called "Eggcorns", which are words or
phrases that are heard incorrectly, and thus spelled as though they were
something other than what they actually are. Examples include such things
as "Wreckless driving", "mindgrain" headaches, or standing "stalk-still".
There are nearly 600 examples in the database.
27 July to 3 August, 2008
Leventhal Map Center
For years, Norman Leventhal has collected antique
maps and other resources, and the only people who could see them on
display were guests at his Boston Harbor Hotel. A few years ago, he
donated the collection to the Boston Public Library, and the BPL now hosts
the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center. The online site has been recently
updated, with an improved "View Collection" feature, improved teacher
resources, current event maps, and some fascinating "virtual tours".
3 to 10 August, 2008
Malaria Atlas Project
The Malaria Atlas Project website has two goals:
to enable speedy communication between and among people working on the
control of malaria, and to enable viewers to browse the malaria data that
has been collected. The Data page includes links to all kinds of maps
showing the ranges of malarial risk, and the Links page helps visitors get
to other sources of all kinds of disease information. A site worth a
visit.
10 to 17 August, 2008
The History of Cartography In A Nutshell
About five years ago Professor Valdimiro Valerio
was asked to prepare a short article on the history of cartography for a
multimedia presentation by the Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza of
Florence. He was astounded to learn that his article could only be
thirteen lines long, but he nonetheless complied. This *is* a very short
history of cartography, but still very comprehensive, and with footnotes
and links to illustrations, it's very informative.
17 to 24 August, 2008
The Manahatta Project
From the site: "The aim of the Mannahatta Project
is to reconstruct the ecology of Manhattan when Henry Hudson first sailed
by in 1609 and compare it to what we know of the island today. The
Mannahatta Project will help us to understand, down to the level of one
city block, where in Manhattan streams once flowed or where American
Chestnuts may have grown, where black bears once marked territories, and
where the Lenape fished and hunted. Most history books dispense of the
pre-European history of New York in only a few pages. However, with new
methods in geographic analysis and the help of a remarkable 18th-century
map, we will discover a new aspect of New York culture, the environmental
foundation of the city."
24 to 31 August, 2008
GeoBC: BC's Geographic
Gateway
The Province of BC has made available online what
they call "a window to data and information sources provided by various
ministries and agencies". There are interactive maps, including a
tutorial, as well as all kinds of geographic information. A variety of
search structures have been provided -- finding data, seeing how data is
distributed, and more. Categories for browsing include archaeology and
culture, fish, wildlife, and plants, forest, grasslands, and wetlands,
fresh water and marine, land ownership and land use plans, and more.
31 August to 7 September, 2008
SatBeams
SatBeams is a lovely mashup of Google Maps with
data from Earth Satellites and the entities, private and public, that
sponsor them, allowing visitors to examine the Earth footprints of each of
226 satellites -- as they say in the "about" page, "everyone can find home
on the map, and match its location with (satellite) coverage zones." The
site includes news, an extensive FAQ, and useful links.
7 to 14 September, 2008
Toronto Star Map Of
The Week Blog
The Toronto Star recently started this blog, "Map
of the Week", and it's fascinating, useful, topical, interesting, fun.
Maps so far have included historic maps, maps that show "things you can't
see on google maps", such as military installations and factories, maps of
fatal accidents, urban bees, and much more. Worth bookmarking.
14 to 21 September, 2008
Mapping Globalization
A site worth digging into; very rich, and
multi-dimensional information about globalization. From their
self-description: "The Mapping Globalization website is intended for
everyone interested in globalization. The main goal... is to make
empirical work on globalization as widely accessible as possible.... We
are especially interested in raw data and in the visualization of such
data, including maps and animations".
21 to 28 September, 2008
Center For Studies in
Demography and Ecology
The Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology
at the University of Washington is a regional center that allows access to
a wide range of demographic studies; their web site links all kinds of
disciplines in interesting ways. At the moment, five "Signature Research
Themes" are highlighted: Methods, Family Demography, Population Health,
Migrants and Minorities, and Population-Environment Dynamics. The site is
very densely packed with useful information.
28 September to 5 October, 2008
Peter Reynolds
A stellar author, illustrator, bookshop owner, and
advocate for creativity in children of all ages, Peter Reynolds is the
founder of Fablevision, a media
company that does lots of original, whimsical, and life-affirming work; he
is also owner of The Blue
Bunny, a children's bookstore in Dedham, MA. Finally, he invites
everyone to share his blog where he describes himself, accurately, as Author/Illustrator and Artful
Educator. Spend some time with Peter and his work.
5 to 12 October, 2008
InLET
InLET is the Internet-Based Loss Estimation
Tool, a web-based platform to evaluate the effects of disasters (the
default disaster is a southern-California earthquake), and in particular
to measure whether IT might be helpful in reducing the impact of
disasters on transportation systems. Fascinating scenarios are
possible, and the results very interesting.
12 to 19 October, 2008
InterRail
Maps of Europe
InterRail is an organization created from the
European Railway Union, dedicated to the rail needs of young people.
They are the creators of all kinds of European rail passes -- across all
of Europe, or one country at a time. Europe's dense railway network has
over 40,000 stations; this page will take you to their map of Europe's
entire rail network, and a selection of other maps, all in pdf.
19 to 26 October, 2008
Fantasy Cartography
A really fascinating blog, based on maps of
places found only in various forms of fiction. Here's what they say
about themselves: "It happens all the time. You're reading one of your
favorite novels, and you wish you had a good map to use as a reference.
Here you will find a collection of maps from various fantasy and science
fiction works for your viewing. I might also include other goodies from
literature, the Bible (not fiction), or television programs, movies, and
video games."
26 October to 2 November, 2008
Free Vector Maps of the World
Download fully editable, royalty-free world
maps, in Illustrator or editable-PDF versions. They are only available
in two projections, but so what! These are dandy tools.
2 to 9 November, 2008
Maps That Matter
A fascinating and useful blog that seeks to
offer views and links to maps that have a significant impact on
geographical practice or knowledge, that have enduring value, elegance,
and simplicity, and that are original and are cited and copied by
others.
9 to 16 November, 2008
World Names
Search for a family name, and view a world map
showing the distribution and frequency of the name, and various
statistics, such as Top Countries, Top Regions, Top Cities, and Top
Forenames. Fascinating to play with.
16 to 23 November, 2008
Find That Place
The link here will take you to the main page of
The Times World Atlases. In the Nav Bar at the top, click "Find That
Place". This wonderful little mashup allows you to find a place you are
interested in, anywhere in the world. Put in a place with a unique
name, for example 'Cuttyhunk', and you get the island off the coast of
Massachusetts; enter a name which appears many times around the world,
and you may be surprised -- 'Lincoln' returns 72 entries, 'Washington'
75 entries, 'Cambridge' 29 entries, and even 'Vancouver' returns 5
entries. Best of all, click on the entry that you want to see more
closely, and you get a closeup from the Collinsworld world atlas,
showing the entry on a navigable, zoomable page.
23 to 30 November, 2008
The
Box -- BBC Tracks a Container
BBC News is following a container around world
for a year to tell the story of globalisation and the world economy. A
satellite tracking unit is being used to plot the container's route on a
live updating map. The box started out with a cargo of Whisky from
Scotland, destined for China, but its contents will change from port to
port as it moves around the world.
30 November to 7 December, 2008
Electoral College Maps Through
History
In addition to 2008, this site has electoral
college maps for every presidential election since 1789. Some are very
surprising; all are very informative, interesting both for the political
stories they tell and also for the geographic stories.
7 to 14 December, 2008
How Globes
Are Made
The Chicago History Museum's "Mapping Chicago:
The Past and the Possible" exhibition also looks at Replogle Globes,
Inc., which has been turning maps into globes in Chicago for over 77
years. Replogle is the world's largest globe manufacturer. This video,
not quite 5 minutes long, show how globes are made at Replogle. Note
especially at the very end the many different languages shown.
14 to 21 December, 2008
U.S. Navy Time Service
Department
The Time Service Department is the Official
Source of correct time for the U.S. Department of Defense, for worldwide
Global Positioning Systems (GPS), and for U.S. Standard time. The
website has all kinds of time-related features, including, of course,
the correct time. There are features on GPS, on various systems of
time, and even on "Leap Seconds", the extra second that is periodically
added to world time to bring it into alignment with the actual transit
of the Earth around the Sun. Interesting links include travel
directions, the sky this week, and tracking Sun rise and Sun set.
21 to 28 December, 2008
Wandering Educators
Their main page says it all: "A Global Community
of Educators, Sharing Travel Experiences". Good photos and stories,
links to all kinds of travel services, a huge potential for people
working with like-minded people around ideas and issues related to
travel.
28 December, 2008 to 4 January, 2009
New York City
CityMap
From the New York Times's review by Verlyn
Klinkenborg: "At first, NYCityMap feels a little clunky, especially if
you're used to navigating in Google Maps. But what's interesting are its
hidden dimensions. With a few clicks, you can pull up an unbelievable
wealth of information about any address or neighborhood. You can find
the nearest greenmarket, the year of construction on almost any
building, the record of restaurant inspections in the neighboring
blocks, etc. In other words, the surface map is really a map to all the
maps hidden within it. It is an extensive municipal guide to New York
City, organized geographically."
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