Wednesday, July 13, 2011

The Right to Knowledge... Maps

We are a vision-oriented species­­‑‑our sense of vision is our primary sense. 
So maps are a great tool that give us the visual portrait of a place

A map gives a person an idea of the bigger picture,
a mental picture of the whole space.
Paradoxically, maps also show us the details of a place,
such as physical characteristics like elevation, climate, and flora and fauna. 

Now, we are in the age of satellite imaging
and GPS (stands for Global Positioning System),
so there has been a shift in the ways we read maps---
our own physical body now has a real-time place within them.
In fact, we call this an image rather than map.

A new kind of map is the genetic map, with thousands of markers.

There is also the mind map, which arranges concepts,
classifying them into groupings, branches, or areas.

Lumeta Corporation maps Internet users.
The SDSS-III Collaboration is mapping the Milky Way and extrasolar planets.


Infrared map of the whole Galaxy showing the plane and bulge of the Galaxy full of stars and dust.
Courtesy SDSS-III

Here on Earth,
 Map Action is a non-governmental organization that maps people in need
during a major humanitarian crisis. It provides daily maps
that show relief agencies where to go to provide help,
such as after a natural disaster.
Their website states that their maps answer questions such as:
"where are displaced people moving to?"
or "what logistics capacity is needed to reach them?"

I declare the Right to Maps,
 upholding our Right to Knowledge,
and in spite of our Right to Privacy,
as long as one's Right to Security is not breached.
In the future, maps may become a potential, supportive tool
a real possibility.

32 comments:

Anonymous said...

Lots of people over-look the importance of maps, most of them are zombied out with the new technologies and they just follow what their GPS tells them. Myself working in the interstate transportation industry am very dependent on maps, without them my job would be chaos because a lot of number and rates are calculated by the location of places.The earliest known maps are of the heavens, not the earth; Anaximander of Miletus was the first ancient Greek to draw a map of the known world around the year 1434 A.D. The history of Cartography is very interesting without it we would still think the world is flat.


Carlos G.

Anonymous said...

I agree in the right to maps, because without them who knows what discoveries we never would have made. Maps are essential to us.
L.A.R.

Anonymous said...

As our society because more advance people rely more and more on maps I believe that it can hinder our ability to navigate on our own. I frequently us my GPS, and my Iphone to help me get to places. I do this so much that I feel without them I am lost. Recently I took a trip through Italy without a map. I did use a map to determine where I wanted to go but once on the road I was on my own. Because of the language barrier I was frequently lost, however through this experience I learned a little Italian by asking directions, I saw cities and small towns I would have never seen, and I felt free relating to time as I had the attitude, I get there when I get there.
PoPcOrN

Anonymous said...

People all over the word use maps on everyday activities, we do mental maps to go to work. We map our days to program what is the best way to go during the day. Maps are necessary to find treasures and to find missing persons. Maps guide every movement we do. Our whole universe is mapped. I agree with the right to maps.

Anonymous said...

The preceding comment is from A.L.

Anonymous said...

GPS maps are great inventions. While traveling, using a GPS in one of the easiest things that help you find your way. SJB

MSM15 said...

Maps really help us to find places that we do not know. They are a helpful tool to avoid being lost. Also, this right will help us to learn areas and explore more secured. I agree with the right to maps without violating our privacy. For example, I use GPS in my job when I am doing deliveries. I look every street around me and now I have learned most of the sectors. Maps are very important to me.
-MSM15

Anonymous said...

I believe maps are an important tool; however, they also remove a sense of adventure. I personally find a bit of exitement in getting lost on a long trip to anywhere. Theres the danger of not knowing where you are, and the beauty of finding a new place you might have not encountered before.


Monica C

Anonymous said...

Everyone should have the right to maps. Without maps we would always get lost. A map guides you to all the right places. You just pick where you want to go and you just follow the map as indicated.

P.Picone

Anonymous said...

Maps are very important and every human should have the right to maps. Maps are very helpful when you are lost, even if you're at the mall. Everyone no matter where they are from should be allowed to have a map. To know where they live, to see where everything is located. To see where South America is, Central America and so many other things that maps teach us. -MV

Anonymous said...

GPS is a great innovation, however, it does have it's bad qualities. The worst is that humans begin to rely on this new technology too much. Instead of learning how to navigate a map, humans now follow this technology blindly. Which leads them unable to navigate on their own if they were to become lost without this device.
J.F.

Anonymous said...

I agree with the right to maps. Maps are very important; they help guide us on the right path so that we do not get lost, maps also encourage us to explore which helps us learn more about our environment and also with survival skills. Maps also provide us with history which helps us in many ways.
Chelsea M.

Anonymous said...

Maps give a miniature picture of a very large space. It serves as a guide to a space you have not encountered before. With a map, one does not have to depend on local directions. For a small price, it is a direction finder and a dependable way to travel.
-Ana DM

Anonymous said...

Maps are great tools. I will not dispute that. They help us find our way at times with pinpoint accuracy. However, I have noticed that very few can accomplish simple tasks without them. Are we being hindered by our dependency on our inventions?

Sheeda M.

Anonymous said...

Maps have always been a great benefit of mankind. Just think of all the places and treasures of our past that have been discovered. Essentially maps are the tools used to help guide us to find more information about our past and our future as well. Without maps we would literally be lost.
-D.E.C.

Anonymous said...

Yes maps are a must, without mapping in any way possible shape or form we would be lost. Lost with our lives, lost in the world, even lost spiritually. Maps are a way to give us a direction to do something, go somewhere or achieve something. It is our right to create maps and help others or even ourselves to a certain extent, basically the right to freedom is involved to a certain extent with the right to maps. -J.J.V.

Anonymous said...

Maps are a humbling reminder of how insignificant our planet is in comparison with the universe. When we see maps of our galaxy, it is a reminder to us of how short our lives are and how much we do not know.
-A.B.

Anonymous said...

Without maps in the world (in both life and our day to day operations), as simple as driving from point A to point B, we will forever be lost.

Dan Waitley, once said, "Rather than being like a ship without a rudder, drifting until we end up on the rocks, we can discipline ourselves where we want to go. We can chart a course and sail straight and far, reaching one port after another. We accomplish more in just a few years, than some people do in a lifetime."

This concept is also applied to our daily operations of life, as well. Maps of all kinds, navigate us to be more efficient to reach our destinations in a world - where time is of essence. ~ F.G.

Anonymous said...

The right to maps is very important to us. Maps give us a better understanding of where we stand. They can also be used to comprehend a place where you may not be at the time. Maps describe altitude, terrain (mountains), and even directions. Maps are very useful and gain more importance as time goes on.
ACA

Anonymous said...

Maps are such a great tool. They can be used in so many ways. They guide us and help us to find cities, if we are at the mall they show us where we are, they also indicate us where the countries in the world are. I declare the right to maps. (LCL)

Anonymous said...

Technology has incredibly revolutionized the way we see and use maps nowadays. For me, one of the greatest technological advances was the invention of the GPS. But has this great invention instigated humans' dependency on technology?

Shani A.

Anonymous said...

We are currently living in a world that is constantly changing around us and maps provide us with the necessary tools to understand the space in which we move ourselves in. It is fascinating to read that there are organizations out there that use maps to assist people that are going through rough times. Furthermore, It is also amazing to observe how humans have made maps available in the form of GPS systems that simplify the way in which we use maps. D.C.R

Anonymous said...

Maps bring the orientation to us when we want to know where we are or where we are going to go, to travel or to move somewhere. Without this valuable tool we would not have direction or point of reference of where we stand and where we want to go. O.V.

Anonymous said...

Like that humanitarian society, if those maps (images) are used for emergency purposes, then they are a great achievement in our society as long as it doesn't interfere with our right to privacy. It's incredible what technology can do nowadays. Etel

Anonymous said...

Without maps we would all be lost! And no one would know how to get anywhere, and we as humans would not be able to experience the varieties of our world.
J.M.

D.Zabala said...

I believe in the right to maps. Maps help us get to places we want to go and show us places we never knew existed. Just imagine living in Florida and having no idea wear it sits in the world.

Anonymous said...

I believe in the rights to maps because it has passed on navigational information for decades. Helping our species advance geographically.
CR

Anonymous said...

I agree with the right to maps. Maps are an essential tool to our society. With maps we get to have a generalized or specific knowledge of different places, situations, resources, economy, dimensions, changes in a territory or people even animals and many others.
MVHT

Anonymous said...

A map is a visual representation of an area—a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions, and themes. A map guides us to the ocean, rivers, mountains, and many other important resources that are necessary for our existences. By: L.J.B.R.

Anonymous said...

The right to mapping is like the right to explore. The need to bring forth the great beyond and find what has not been discovered before. Us the humans we are, we have a need to spread and manifest in all parts of the world. With our conquering nature having the right to map just goes hand in hand with us.
AG

Anonymous said...

Maps are important because it makes everything easy to find, the location, and where places and countries are located. A lot of people rely on maps especially with the gas prices you wouldn't want to be driving around.

HM

Anonymous said...

Maps are great. Reading a map and planning a trip is exciting. Exploring place you have never visited. Now with GPS devices, reading digital maps are even better. I use my Google maps when I travel and you can see an actual satellite image. The right to maps is important because they help us learn our environment. LV