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| Google Maps can be used for dropping pins and creating itineraries through directions. |
A geographic information system, or GIS for short, utilizes computer imaging to visualize geographical data for researchers to analyze, interpret and understand it. This can be useful for academics and students alike to reveal geospatial relationships, patterns and trends.
GIS is an increasingly important tool being used in Digital Humanities work. At the recent Renaissance Society of America Annual Meeting in New York, one of the plenary speakers, Nicholas A. Eckstein of the University of Sydney, spoke about projects used in History to build interactive maps of Florence based on texts. Additionally, Cameron Butt of the University of Waterloo gave a presentation on “Geography, Performance, Technology, and Spectatorship in The Merry Wives of Windsor,” which utilized The Map of Early Modern London (MoEML) to visualize stage and city landscapes, to explore space and place in Renaissance playtexts.
There are also mainstream applications of this technology. PBS uses Interactive Maps as part of their Rise and Fall of Jim Crow project. New York City has a practical map, NYCityMap, for its residents and visitors to look up information geographically. Other historic applications include SepiaTown, which users can contribute vintage images to in order to show old photographs in their original locations on the map.
GIS can be used effectively in scholarship, particularly during talks about topics with a geographic component, as well as part of an undergraduate assignment.
Here are some free tools to get you started: (Click on images to make them bigger!)
Roadtrippers is similar to Google Maps, but, as the name implies, is geared to road trippers! This can be great for educational trips students may take, to plot their itineraries, or can be used for historical or literary plotting, especially for those taken in recent history. Here is a map I made based on an itinerary provided in Jack Kerouac’s diary, taken from July to October 1947, and an inspiration for his seminal work, On the Road:
National Geographic Education also has a simple-to-use MapMaker Interactive tool that allows users to select for Physical, Environmental and Human Systems in order to explore the contemporary planet. This can be equally useful to both science and humanities disciplines. Here is a map generated with this tool that looks at Ocean Surface Currents, Sea Surface Winter Temperatures, Volcanic Eruptions and Major Religions in South America, to show you the breadth of uses available:
Pinterest, which I’ve included in a previous assignment post, can generate pin boards with maps (by selecting “Yes” to the “Add a map?” question when creating a new board). Users can pin their own images or link relevant websites to the map, which uses Foursquare to accurately map pins. I find this option to be very aesthetically pleasing. As an example, here is a board I made that showcases sites and artifacts related to Lewis Carrol’s Alice books that are in England today:
For more advanced users, especially those looking to incorporate interactive JavaScript-based maps into their web projects, there are a number of open-source tools available, that you can also contribute to. Modest Maps is a small and free library in JavaScript (there are also other implementations) made for designers and developers. Kartograph is another simple and lightweight framework, created with designers and data journalists in mind, available in both JavaScript and Python. Maphub, with its entire code on GitHub, is based on historic maps, which used to also keep up a Web application for casual users to work with and annotate historic maps, though this does not appear to be live at this time.
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| Map Projections, a Kartograph project |
If you will be using a GIS-based assignment in your college classroom, it may also be worthwhile to discuss some of the ways in which mapping can be problematic.
GIS: Digital Humanities & Classroom Applications
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