In this section, we examine the techniques, representational choices, and stylistic approaches that mapmakers use to simplify and symbolize the world. These maps ask us to investigate the visual language of cartography and data, and to think about the communicative power of features like color, shape, illustration, and labeling. This section also looks into the complicated nature of data itself, and investigates the choices and assumptions that are inherent in every form of classification and quantification. All of the techniques that go into collecting data and making maps are ones that citizens can also learn, and by learning the language of visual communication you can take the power of maps into your own hands.
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