Lab 1: Maps

Map 1: World Ethnographic Map (1852)

This 19th century map shows divisions of the world by ethnographic groups. The races listed on here include Indo-European, Mixed Indo-European, American, Syro Arabian, Mongolian, Negro, Papuan-Negro, Mongolian, Malay, and Australian. It is also shows an enlarged map of Europe, separating the continent by subgroups of the Indo-European ethnographic group. This map has lines north and south throughout that are called 'limits of permanent habitation', which isolate the uninhabited Antarctic and Arctic regions. I found  the divisions of ethnographic groups in South America interesting because of the distinction between Americans and other ethnographic groups located on the coasts. This map shows that Central America was primarily inhabited by Americans however there are separate distinct, non-American groups on the coast of Colombia, Peru and Brazil. I like this map because it is an older map and it shows how classifications of race in this time period were a lot more specific and formal than they are today.

Source: 

Blackwood, William . Natural History World Ethnographic Map. 1852. Photograph. Hipkiss, Edinburgh & London. Web. 2 Oct 2012. <http://www.hipkiss.org/data/maps/blackwood-and-sons_keith-johnsons-physical-school-atlas_1852_natural-history-world-ethnographic-map_3029_2348_600.jpg>. 

Map 2: Physical Map of Argentina (2009)

This map of Argentina shows its borders, physical attributes and oceans. It shows that Argentina borders Chile,Paraguay,Uruguay, Brazil, the Southwest Atlantic Ocean, and even shows the relative depth of the water by color. The map also shows major cities such as Cordoba, Buenos Aires, and Mendoza. The main attribute of this map is that it separates Argentina's regions, showing that it has diverse landscapes. In the West, Argentina shares the Andes mountains with Chile, to the South is Patagonia, a very cold mountainous terrain near the Antarctic region, and the northwestern part of the country is pampa landscape. I find this interesting because typically people think Argentina is mostly flat, pampa landscape but it also has mountainous regions that are a major part of the country. I find it interesting to think about Argentina as a place with diverse land, which further indicates diversity with their people and ways of living.

Source:

Argentina Map-Physical Map of Argentina. 2009. Photograph. Ezilon MapsWeb. 2 Oct 2012. <http://www.ezilon.com/maps/south-america/argentina-physical-maps.html>. 

Map 3: Senate District Map of Southern California

 My third map is the senate district map of Southern California. It stretches from Ventura to San Diego, and includes two of the Channel Islands (Santa Catalina and San Clemente.) It shows colored areas for each district. I find this map interesting because it shows how district lines are divided and are in very odd shapes. I also like this map because it shows my district in Oxnard. Interestingly, it does not include Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and other areas that are primarily Republican. It is intriguing to me to see how my district is a very thin stretch of the coast which demonstrates how distorted and manipulated district lines have come to be. 

Source: 

Senate Districts Southern California Area Detail. N.d. Photograph. California State LegislatureWeb. 2 Oct 2012. <http://www.legislature.ca.gov/legislators_and_districts/districts/assemblydistricts_LA1.html>.