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Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a
very persistent one.
Albert Einstein
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Is the world we see the world we are
toldto see?
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Are maps created without bias?
Definition: Bias
A partiality that prevents objective
consideration of
an issue
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Are maps created without bias?
The Peters Map and the Mercator Map
“Which is bigger, Greenland or China? With the traditional Mercator map (circa 1569, and still in use in many schoolrooms and boardrooms today), Greenland and China look the same size. But in reality China is almost 4 times larger! In response to such discrepancies, Dr. Arno Peters created a new world map that dramatically improves the accuracy of how we see the Earth.”
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A cartographer sees the worldthrough the lens of her ownconsciousness.
Will the cartographer’sperspective influence
the design of the map?
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Medieval European T-O map
This mappae mundi was popular in Medieval Europe. This T-O image comes from the encyclopediaof knowledge produced by Isidore, Bishop of Seville, in 630 A.D., and was printed in Augsburg in 1472.
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A 1482 C.E. world map based
on Ptolemy’sGeography (150 C.E.)
The Indian Ocean appears as a lake and the cities of
theMiddle East are the center of
the map.
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A portolan mapwas used by
sailors. The firstknown portolanmap was made
around 1270.
A portolan map was focused on the seas, ports, coves, and sailing distances.It was primarily used for sea navigation.Therefore, it did not focus on interiorfeatures.
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In the case of a portolan map,the needs of the sailor wereparamount in determining whatwas placed and emphasized onthe map.
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Of course, the compass, a Chinese invention of its golden age, entered
Western Europe in the 1200s. Itincreased European opportunities
for exploration.
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The compass revolutionized sea travel.Since its needle always pointed in thesame direction, a navigator could keep
his course without consulting the position of the sun or stars.
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Of course, the Europeans were not theworld’s first explorers of the oceans.Zheng He traveled throughout Asia
and to East Africa.
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Zheng He was an explorer during China’s Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 C.E.)
As a eunuch in the emperor’sservice, he rose to prominence.
Although he traveled extensively, a new emperor ended his travels,
pursuing an increasingly isolationistpolicy in China.
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Gerhardus Mercator created a map in 1569 that included a new projection thatallowed navigators to understand thecoasts of the Americas.
But exploration was not dead. With the European Age of Exploration, maps continuedto be made.
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• Columbus’ accidental arrival in theCaribbean in 1492 revolutionized Western European understandings of the world.
• The Americas were opened to theEuropeans and subsequently Africaand Asia.
• This would prove disastrous for theindigenous peoples of the Americas andAfrica due to the Atlantic Slave Tradewhile profitable for the Europeans.
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And maps continued to be made and changed.In Miller’s cylindrical projection map, theworld is set on a grid. This decreasesthe amount of distortion in the highlatitudes.
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•If Miller’s cylindrical projection map iscut to place the Prime Meridian in thecenter, the result is a Eurocentric map.
•This raises an important question:What is the center of a map?
•Dynastic China referred to itself as the “Middle Kingdom.” Of course,to refer to a kingdom as “Middle Kingdom”is ethnocentric.
•Can a map be ethnocentric?
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Of course, depending on where aMiller World Map is centered willdetermine what nation is most
prominent (like this Miller World Mapcentered at the 90th West Meridian).
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•So, when viewing a map, consider theperspective of the mapmaker:
•What continent or nation is displayedin the map’s center?
•What is the mapmaker emphasizing?-location-comparative sizes of regions-a particular nation-specific aspects of regions
(Consider some of the following maps.)
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A Robinson Projection Map
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Arthur H. Robinson in 1963 created the Robinson Projection Map. It is also called the Orthophanic projection, which means right appearing.
Scale is true along the 38º parallels and is constant along any parallel or between any pair of parallels equidistant from the Equator. Distortion is very low within about 45º of the center and along the Equator.
This projection is not equal-area, conformal, or
equidistant; however, it is considered to look right for world maps, and is widely used by Rand McNally, the National Geographic Society, and others.
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In 1974, Arno Peters created the PetersProjection Map so that one square inchanywhere on the map represents an equalnumber of square miles of the earth’ssurface.
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And still, there are political maps.
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And there are physical maps.
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•And there are all of these different“containers” we use to make sense ofthe world.
•But always, we must remember thatthese containers are mental constructsand as such, imperfect and subjectto bias.
•While many individuals considerEurope and Asia to be separatecontinents, are they really?
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And if maps have bias, what abouthistorical periodization.
1. Foundations 2. The Classical Period (1000 BCE - 500BCE)3. The Postclassical Period (500-1500CE)4. The Early Modern Era (1500-1750)5. The Long Nineteenth Century(1750-1914)6. The Twentieth Century
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To understand the world, individualscreate categories and containers butmust always remember that mentalconstructs are not the same as thereal thing.
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Questions:• What is bias?• From where does bias originate?• How does bias influence the creation of maps?• Explain several turning points in the history of mapmaking.• Why is it important to examine the mapmaker’s perspective?• Define Eurocentric and Ethnocentric.• Can bias be avoided?• What can individuals do to reduce bias?• Is the world we see the world we have been told to see?• What is culture and how does culture create a worldview that can contribute to bias?
