Week 3 Lab

Zheng He to the Western Ocean

Zheng He was a 14th century eunuch, mariner, explorer, diplomat, and admiral of one of the largest and most impressive naval fleets ever assembled. This Muslim Chinese navigator is an obscure figure outside Asia. Nevertheless, he is renowned as one of the greatest mariners in Chinese history and whose deeds on the high seas still resonate today.

In this map, I wish to make a simple chart of some of the places he visited during his seven voyages to Southeast Asia, South Asia, and East Africa along with tidbit information to accompany each place.


View Zheng He to the Western Ocean in a larger map

Also, write a commentary (two paragraph minimum) about the pitfalls, potential and consequences of neogeography.

Before, refined map-making, or also known as cartography, was a professional undertaking, a branch of the refined scientific discipline that is geography. But the rapid development of new geographical technologies and the advent of Web 2.0 has given lay people the user-friendly tools and ability to create more sophisticated and more interactive maps than ever before. The blurring of the distinction between specialists and amateurs in the realm of geography has led to the term "neogeography," which literally means new geography. According to Turner, neogeography allows people to use and create "their own maps, on their own terms and by combining elements of an existing tool set."

The pitfall of neogeography is in its name, which might mislead people into thinking that neogeography is a modern replacement of the age old study of geography. Neogeography is merely merely a user-friendly offshoot of geography, kind of like how popular science is a relatively fun and accessible form of denser scientific knowledge. The application of neogeography is neither formal nor analytical like geography nor does it encompass the culmination of geographic knowledge--the closest would probably be GIS. And unlike the complicated but flexibly tools used for GIS like ArcGIS and its typically more professionally generated content, neogeography depends on easy to use but constraining tools like Google Maps and its user-generated content is usually more suspect. In other words, GIS is a serious discipline that aims for precision and accuracy just like geography; neogeography, however, is informal.

Nevertheless, despite its misleading name, neogeography encompasses an exciting new "democratic" method of applying accessible mapping tools and other Web 2.0 services to making life more convenient. For one, neogeography will make learning easier, more interactive, and more fun. For example, instead of churning a boring block after block of text, also known as a history report, with Microsoft Word on the travels of someone as dynamic and interesting as Zheng He, people could just as easily create a crude but interactive account of Zheng He's voyages using Google Map. And all the while, the learning coming out of the process will be more personal because people are creating something more engaging and visually appealing. But of course, learning is not strictly academia. Real estate websites can provide simple map tools that add to the experience of finding the perfect home. Store websites can provide both visual and textual directions to their stores. The number of convicted pedophiles can be track with a tracking map to make sure your kids would be safe in a certain neighborhood. Essentially, the opportunities for neogeography are boundless and its consequences can beneficial to improving the quality of lives.

Week 2 Lab

1. What is the name of the quadrangle?

Beverly Hills Quadrangle

2. What are the names of the adjacent quadrangles?

1 Canoga Park
2 Van Nuys
3 Burbank
4 Topanga
5 Hollywood
6 None
7 Venice
8 Inglewood

3. When was the quadrangle first created?

1966

4. What datum was used to create your map?

North American Datum of 1927 (NAD 27)
North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83)

5. What is the scale of the map?

1:24,000

6. At the above scale, answer the following:
a) 5 centimeters on the map is equivalent to how many meters on the ground?

1200 meters on the ground

b) 5 inches on the map is equivalent to how many miles on the ground?

1.89 miles on the ground

c) one mile on the ground is equivalent to how many inches on the map?

2.64 inches on the map

d) three kilometers on the ground is equivalent to how many centimeters on the map?

12.5 centimeters on the map

7. What is the contour interval on your map?

20 feet

8. What are the approximate geographic coordinates in both degrees/minutes/seconds and decimal degrees of:

a) the Public Affairs Building;

degrees/minutes/seconds: 34°04’12” N, -118°25’48” W
decimal degrees: 34.07° N, -118.43° W;

b) the tip of Santa Monica pier;

degrees/minutes/seconds: 34°0’28” N, -118°30’60” W
decimal degrees: 34.00° N, -118.50° W;

c) the Upper Franklin Canyon Reservoir;

degrees/minutes/seconds: 34°7’12” N, -118°24’36” W
decimal degrees: 34.12° N, -118.41° W;

9. What is the approximate elevation in both feet and meters of:
a) Greystone Mansion (in Greystone Park);

540 feet
164.59 meters

b) Woodlawn Cemetery;

140 feet
42.67 meters

c) Crestwood Hills Park;

700 feet
213.36 meters

10. What is the UTM zone of the map?

UTM Zone 11

11. What are the UTM coordinates for the lower left corner of your map?

3763000 meters UTM north
361500 meters UTM east

12. How many square meters are contained within each cell (square) of the UTM gridlines?

1,000,000 square meters

13. Obtain elevation measurements, from west to east along the UTM northing 3771000, where the eastings of the UTM grid intersect the northing. Create an elevation profile using these measurements in Excel (hint: create a line chart). Figure out how to label the elevation values to the two measurements on campus. Insert your elevation profile as a graphic in your blog.












14. What is the magnetic declination of the map?

positive 14 degrees

15. In which direction does water flow in the intermittent stream between the 405 freeway and Stone Canyon Reservoir?

From north to south

16. Crop out (i.e., cut and paste) UCLA from the map and include it as a graphic on your blog.

Week 1 Lab

http://www.princeton.edu/~rvdb/JAVA/election2004/

This map was made by Robert J. Vanderbei, a professor at Princeton University . It shows the population density of the US, based on data from the US census, by equating one white dot to 7,500 people. Dark areas are either devoid of people or have a population density of less than 7,500. I find this map interesting because the black and white contrast dramatically highlights the population and population density differences of different regions. In general, the eastern half of the country is markedly more populated than the western half.



















http://www.smvrr.com/

This map comes from the Santa Maria Valley Railroad website. The map colorfully illustrates the various railroad lines of North America by assigning different colors to different railroad lines. The map also shows that railroads appear to be especially prevalent in the eastern half of the US and the southwestern portion of Canada. Railroad prevalence drops markedly in the western half of the US, the rest of Canada, and the Latin countries. I find this map interesting mainly because of the significant difference in one form of public transportation, the railroads, between eastern and western US. Although California is the most populated state in the US, California lacks the extensive railroad networks that crisscrosses much of the eastern US.

















http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2009/10/22/los-angeles-has-big-transit-ambitions-but-which-project-comes-first/

This map comes from the article "Los Angeles Has Big Transit Ambitions, But Which Project Comes First?." The map shows Los Angeles's various existing public transportation networks--railroads, streetcars, subways, and bus routes--and proposed ones. I find the map interesting because it shows that Los Angeles, though a very car centric city, does provide varied public transportation options no matter how meager it is. Nonetheless, the map is optimistic because it shows that public transportation development in Los Angeles is not stymied and poised for considerable growth. For example, the subway line along Wilshire street, the purple line, will be extended by more than half, passing through Westwood. This means that UCLA students will be able to travel to popular areas like downtown LA and Santa Monica beach by way of the efficient subway system alone, bypassing dreary buses or avoiding hopping from one transportation system to another.