BOLTSS - Mapping Geography

BOLTSS
Mapping Geography

Acronym: BOLTSS
Border - Orientation - Legend - Title -- Scale - Source
Six (6) essential features of a MAP.

2. MAP
mapemonde
(map of the world)
Middle French
mapemounde
(map of the world)
Middle English
MAPPA
(Napkin, cloth)
(on which maps were drawn)
MUNDI
(of the world)
(from MUNDUS(universe, world))
Online Etymology Dictionary: Map (1520's)
Stemming from the Latin
MAPPA MUNDI
(map of the world)

3. Amapisdefinedasarepresentation,usuallyonaflatsurface,ofawholeorpartofan
area.Thejobofamapistodescribespatialrelationshipsofspecificfeaturesthatthemap
aimstorepresent.Therearemanydifferenttypesofmapsthatattempttorepresent
specificthings.Mapscandisplaypoliticalboundaries,population,physicalfeatures,natural
resources,roads,climates,elevation(topography),andeconomicactivities.
About.com: Geography: What is a Map?
TheGeographer’smostimportanttool
isthemap.
AMAPisasimplifiedplanofaplace
seenfromdirectlyabove.Mapsplaya
veryimportantpartinGeography.We
usemapstofindoutwhereplacesare
andwhatexistsondifferentpartsof
theEarth’ssurface.
Jacaranda -Humanities
Adiagrammaticrepresentationofan
areaoflandorseashowingphysical
features,cities,roads,etc:"astreet
map".
Google it: What is a Map?
Sowhatisamap?Amapistext.JohnPickles,a
geographerwithinterestsinsocialpowerand
maps,suggests:
“mapshavethecharacterofbeingtextualin
thattheyhavewordsassociatedwiththem,that
theyemployasystemofsymbolswithintheir
ownsyntax,thattheyfunctionasaformof
writing(inscription),andthattheyare
discursivelyembeddedwithinbroadercontexts
ofsocialactionandpower.
History Matters: What is a Map?

4. Therearesix(6)essentialfeaturestomaps.
ByusingtheacronymBOLTSSweareableto
rememberthesesix(6)essentialfeatures.
Acronymis:
Awordformedfromthefirstlettersofotherwords.
Source
origin
Scale
size
Title
name
Legend
key
Border
frame
Orientation
direction

5. Theedgesofthemapshouldbeclearlyshown.Acommonwaytoshowtheborderis
withaboxaroundtheedgesofthemap.Thebordershouldberuledandstandout
clearlyfromothertextorillustrationsthatsurroundthemap.



6. Directionmustbeshownonmaps.ThisisdonebyplacingaCOMPASSROSEoranorth
arrowonthemap.MostmapshaveNORTHtowardsthetopofthemap.
Sometimes,however,mapsareturnedsothatnorthisnottowardsthetopofthepage.


7. Alegendmayalsobecalledakey.
Itisanexplanationofthemeaningofallthesymbols,coloursandsignsusedtoshow
featuresonamap,inalistformat.


8. Thetitleofthemapshouldtellussomethingaboutthemap.


9. ItwouldbeimpossibletodrawpartsoftheEarthtotheiractualsize.Somapsaredrawn
toasmallersize,withtheshapeofthefeaturesremainingthesame.Scalecanbeshown
inthreeways:inlinearform;asaratio[1:100000]andasastatementforexample‘one
centimetrerepresentsonekilometre’.(Findoutmoreabout:SCALESINMAPPING)


10. Agoodmapwillstatewheretheinformationusedtomakethemap,hascomefrom,
particularlythedate.
Thisenablestheusertoupdatethedatashown,orobtainsimilarinformation.


11. Alphanumeric grid referenceA combination of letters and numbers that locate points on a map.
Bearing An angle given in degrees and measured clockwise from north.
Cardinal points
The four main points on a compass which are used to give direction. I.e.,
North, South, East and West.
Cartographer A person who draws maps.
Cartography
The science or practice of drawing maps.
1843, from Frenchcartographie, from Medieval Latincarta+ French-
graphie, from Greek-graphein"to write, to draw".
Conventional symbols Standard symbols that are commonly used in maps.
Distance The space between different locations.
Distribution The general pattern shown by different things on the Earth’s surface.
Geospatial skills
The ability to identify, interpret and explain features and patterns in the
environment and on different kinds of maps, photographs, satellite
images and statistical data.
Location Where something is found on the Earth’s surface.
Magnetic compass An instrument which shows the direction of magnetic north.
Mental maps and mud maps
An image or idea in your head which locates the main features of a place
with which you are familiar.

12. Movement The change in location of things across the Earth’s surface.
Oblique view A view from an angle.
Orthophotomap
This map is a corrected aerial photograph. Man-made and other features
that are not clear are labelled on the orthophoto.
Plan view The view from directly above.
Region An area that has one or a number of distinctive characteristics.
Satellite image Image of the Earth’s surface transmitted from an orbiting satellite.
Spatial Relating to the distribution of features on the Earth’s surface.
Spatial association
The relationship between the distribution of two or more features in a
selected region.
Spatial change over time
How the distribution of a feature has changed has changed from the past
and how it is likely to change in the future.
Spatial concepts
Key geographic ideas used by geographers to describe the world around
them.
Spatial intersection
How different features and processes affect each other and how they
influence patterns.
Spatial perspective
A view of the physical world made up spatial and other information
available to describe and explain patterns at or near the earth’s surface.
Topographic map
This map is a way to show mountains, valleys and aspects of a landscape
by means of contour lines and intervals.

13. •About.com -Geography: What is a Map?
•Jacaranda Humanities: Chapter 6.3
•Map Scales and Types of Scales
•Scales Methods
•The Compass and other Magnetic Innovations
•Three Types of Scale

14. Predecessortothemagneticcompass:
‘TheMagneticCompass’wasplacedover
‘TheWindRose’toshowNORTH.
TheMAGNETICCOMPASSwasdiscoveredby
theChinesein200BC,duringtheQin
Dynasty.Itisconsideredasthefirst
documentedself-registeringinstrument
createdbymankindthatcouldbereadusing
aprecisescale.TheCOMPASSROSE(asthe
WINDROSEwasknownonearlynavigation
charts)appearedonchartsandmaps
beginningaroundthe14
th
Century.
Elaborate‘windroses’had32points,that
keptwiththetraditionofthe32classically
namedwinds.
ItisthoughtthatthePortugueseimproved
the‘windrose’toasixteen-point‘wind
rose’.
ReturntoORIENTATIONShowCompassPoints

15. Predecessortothemagneticcompass:
‘TheMagneticCompass’wasplacedover
‘TheWindRose’toshowNORTH.
ReturntoORIENTATIONShowtextInformation

16. MapScales
Thescaletowhichamapisdrawnrepresentstheratioofthedistancebetweentwopoints
ontheearthandthedistancebetweenthetwocorrespondingpointsonthemap.
Map Scales =
Map Distance
Scale Distance
LinearScale(alsoknownas:VisualScale,GraphicScaleandBarScale]
Almosteverymaphasalinearscalethatcanbeusedformeasuring.Itshowsgraphically
therelationshipbetweenmapdistanceandgrounddistance.
ALinearScaledepictsscaleusingaline,withseparationsmarkedbysmallerintersecting
lines,similartoaruler.Onesideofthescalerepresentsthedistanceonthemap,while
theothersiderepresentsthetruedistancesofobjectsinreallife.Bymeasuringthe
distancebetweentwoobjectsonamapandthenreferringtothegraphicscale,itiseasy
tocalculatetheactualdistancebetweenthosesameobjects.
More on SCALES ReturntoSCALE

17. RatioScales(alsoknownasRepresentativeFraction(RF)andFractionalMethod
Itisexpressedasanumericalratioofmapdistancetogrounddistance;itisusuallywritten
as1/50,000or1:50,000,meaningthatoneunitofmeasurementonthemaprepresents
50,000ofthesameunitsontheground.
Thefractionalmethodforportrayingthescaleofamapusesarepresentativefractionto
describetheratiobetweenthemapandtherealworld.Thiscanbeshownas1:50,000or
1/50,000.
Intheexamplesbelow:
•Oneinchequalsonemiletherefore,oneinchequals62,500inchesonthemap;thatin
turnequalsonemileintherealworld.
•Onecentimetreequalsonekilometretherefore,onecentimetreequals100,000
centimetresonthemap;thatinturnsequalsonekilometreintherealworld.
More on SCALES ReturntoSCALE

18. StatementScale(alsoknownasVerbalScale,DirectStatementandVerbalMethod)
WhenascaleisexpressedinwordsthisisaStatementScale(VerbalorDirect):
1cm = 100km
Calculatingscaleonamapusingthistypeofscaleiseasy.Simplymeasurethedistanceon
themapandthenfollowthedirectionstocalculatetheactualdistance.
NOTE:ChangingScales
Themapsshowtheeffectsofscalechangesmoving"closerto"or"fartherfrom"the
earth.
•Alargescalemapshowsasmallareawithalargeamountofdetail.
•Asmallscalemapshowsalargeareawithasmallamountofdetail.
Return to SCALE 