Where I’m From Line

I am from the working too hard and the world travelers, from “Everything happens for a reason” and “Enjoy the time you have now”.

 

Visual Analysis of the London Underground

Here is my analysis of a map that shows the route system of the London Underground, London’s main subway system.

Map Analysis

Enjoy 🙂

Juxtaposition of Transportation

Here are two maps that show the routes of a subway system. The map on the left shows the London’s Underground system and the map on the right shows the New York Subway system. While the two maps are from two different countries, they have the same purpose; the maps show how to get a person around their respective city. By knowing the purpose of the two maps, it allows me open my eyes to the fact that both London and New York are not so different after all. Both cities have people who use mass transportation to get to and from a certain area in the city. Although the maps show how to get to and from a certain location, both do not show what the actual experience is like going through the system. Through personal experience, I can say that both underground systems are exciting and terrifying at the same time. The undergrounds are somewhat easy to navigate, but when you are in the system, there are so many people around you that you have to just trust your instincts and go for a route while hoping you pick the right train.

One thing that is different about the maps is the readability of the route system. For me, London’s Underground system is easier to read because the layout looks cleaner and the colored key is easier to understand. The background of the London map is faded so that when you are looking at the routes, you can clearly see the lines and the cities they associate with. New York on the other hand, is a little more difficult to understand because the key is a little hard to follow on the map. There is no clear color key so you have to hope that the color you pick goes with the route you want. Also, the map of New York has everything bolded; the colored lines are all thick and the black font tries to stand out more. With both the words and the lines so bolded, it is hard to concentrate on what to look at because it is so overpowering. The London Underground has some bolded lines and the words are lighter but easier to read. Either way, both maps are used to help a passenger get to where they need to go. The underground system has been going on for many years and hopefully mass transit continues to move forward.

Colors on a Map

 

Image found: http://www.artsman.com/Products/theatre.html 

This map shows the floor plan of audience seating in a theater. At first glance, one would think the purpose of the map would be to show a person buying tickets wear they could potentially sit. Upon further inspection, the map is actually not for audience members but for the people working on the actual show. Details such as the sound booth and follow spot booth show that the map is being used for most likely the stage manager who is planning the layout of all the technical aspects of the show.

This map uses colors for one specific purpose, to differentiate the sections of the audience. After reading the chapter on color in How to Lie with Maps, I began to critique the use of colors in the layout. Since the colors were most likely picked at random, the person designing the map was not paying attention to what the map could do if a person was looking at it for the first time. Fortunately, the creator of the map used mostly “cool” colors such as blues and purple to contrast the different seating areas. Since the colors work well together, a person looking at the map will not have difficulty reading the map compared to if the colors were unpleasantly different.

Oklahoma City Memorial Grounds Map

Image Found: http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/secondary.php?section=2&catid=30

This map is a layout of the Oklahoma City National Memorial. There are a few aspects on the map that are important to the subject of the memorial. The map shows all the different areas of the memorial such as the museum and the areas outside the museum. The map shows the full area and covers every part of the memorial. Lastly, the illustrations on the map correspond to what it represents in real life. For example, the reflecting pool is shaped in a rectangle like the one on the map. There is one aspect of the memorial that is not shown on the map. The Memorial is very significant to Oklahoma culture and it is hard to portray meanings and emotions on a map. The map of the memorial does have some generalizations though. The content of the map selections show only the important parts of the memorial, such as where everything is located, and takes out any irrelevant details that could confuse the person looking at the map. Also, the map uses classification through the illustrations to help the reader recognize where everything really is by making the map look similar to what the memorial actually looks like.

Intriguing Maps from Across the Pond

One of my favorite places to visit is London, England so I found a tourist map of the area around St. James’s Park. After reading about advertising and coloring in the book How to Lie with Maps, I realized that I could relate the reading to the map of the park. In the book, it states that maps with the goal of advertising a single-place focus also stimulates demand. The map shows the park itself, but also shows areas around the park where tourists can find a place to eat or use the restroom. The coloring of the map is also surprisingly well done and not misleading. The lake, grass, and buildings are appropriately colored so that it is easy to understand what is what and the coloring is not distracting. What I found interesting about the map was that it was simple/easy to understand, but had its own English flair. Notice the palace guard near the top left corner. 🙂

The Decision of College Students: A Socratic Experiment

This book cover sums up my experience in the socratic experiment…

Exploration #1

I decided to start from the beginning and do the first exploration in my book. My mission was to write down ten things about where I was sitting what I didn’t notice before I sat down. While doing this assignment, I realized that most of the “different” things I found were from me doing something and being too lazy to fix it. This exploration allowed me to pay attention to all the details that are around me. Plus, I also learned that I need to clean my room…

My Ten Things:

1. The can of Glade Air Freshener on top of my dresser is still “locked” stating that I have not used it.
2. My collection of headbands are scattered on the floor in the corner because I was in a rush this morning and forgot to put them up.
3. A Walmart bag is on my bed containing a DVD because I don’t know where to put it yet.
4.  There is a sticky not on my wall from a week ago that I have forgotten to take down.
5. My room smells nicer since I took out my trash – I guess I didn’t need the air freshener after all 😉
6. The flowers I received a few days ago are officially dead. Sad day.
7. The picture of my dog is in a different spot because I showed it to a friend and forgot to put it back in its original location.
8. The program from a show I saw last night is still on my bed.
9. One of the shelves in my dresser is slightly open because that drawer has WAY too much stuff in it.
10. My pillowpet (no shame) is at the end of my bed from when I was playing with it earlier.

 And now for your personal enjoyment, a picture of my pillowpet – Grant the Moose:

Oh the Irony

Situational Irony: A sharp contradiction between how things are and how they are supposed to be.

I came across this picture of a caution hot sign. We see these warnings in a lot of places warning people to not touch something because of its high temperature. What surprised me about this picture is that the warning sign also as grail below the words. I found the grail to be a huge contradiction to the warning. To read grail, one would have to touch the bumps along the surface. If someone was to try to touch the grail, then there would be a possibly of that person touching said hot glass. Isn’t the whole purpose of a caution hot sign to NOT come near the hot surface?

Creating a Memory Palace

I created a memory palace for Logos, Pathos, and Ethos using my parents’ apartment in Arizona.

Logos (Logic): The computer on my father’s desk. When I think of logos I think of the ways I receive knowledge. What better device than the computer to give me knowledge? Whether I’m looking at a news website or looking up entertainment articles, I am always learning something new which I am able to impart on anyone who will listen.

Ethos (Ethic): The TV. Ok, so the lessons of right and wrong should not be taught by television, but it is what the TV represents. Since there is only one TV in the apartment, the family always watches our shows together. From our family interaction, I learn the “ethics” of life from my parents. When something on TV seems simply inappropriate, my parents make it a point to state their opinion and what they think should have been done.

Pathos (Emotion): The couch. Long story short, the apartment in Arizona only has one bedroom so I sleep on the comfy couch. That is basically my room; I consider the couch to be my support and the blankets to be my protection. The couch has emotional significance to me. That is only the first reason why the couch is pathos. The second reason is my dog. The family dog, Sophie, is one of the most precious things in my life so of course I miss her like crazy. Every time my dad sends me a picture of Sophie, it is typically her laying out on the very same couch that I sleep on when I go to Arizona.

I really enjoyed creating my memory palace. I believe this assignment will help me remember the difference between logos, ethos, and pathos. As of right now it is in my head, but if I start adding more to it, I feel like I should draw my palace out. Then frame it 🙂

And now a cute picture of my dog…