Week 3: Neogeography Map

View Places I Want To Travel To in a larger map

Neography is a new phenomena of people taking the process of creating maps and geographic information in their own hands. People have a new geospatial awareness with access to technologies like the Internet and GPS devices that come standard with their cellular phones. With these new tools available to them, anybody can create their own Google Map documenting sites of the American Civil War instead of referring to a textbook.

However, neogeography is not subject to the same academic and scientific standards geography is. The maps created by cartographers are subject to criteria and will be criticized harshly for any weaknesses. Accuracy is of the utmost importance for maps, as they are used by pilots when they fly, or the military when they determine how far their missiles have to travel. Maps created by neographers have no standards at all except for the whimsy of their creator. For example, when Geraldo Rivera drew the map of the US Army's forces in Iraq in the sand, he was criticized for giving away state secrets, something a professional cartographer would not have done. Yet, he is an amateur and not subject to the same standards.

Neogeography also relies on imperfect data, not the same data given to professional geographers and cartographers. Basic maps with lines as borders are satisfying for neographers, but leave much to be desired for the cartographer. They are also incomplete in terms of showing this data, and typically only display one subset of information as opposed to the many layers GIS can.