American Geography According to Twitter 

via @jsznaider @twitaholic

“66% of Twitter’s users don’t provide an actual city as their location, says inboxQ, but thanks to geo-tagged tweets, they were able to figure out where those users actually live.

The resulting image is a map of America as it would appear if Twitter users were allowed to rename the country’s cities.”

Today’s theme is historical maps…European Exploration and Settlement in the United States, 1513-1779 #history #map #geography 

alltheworldunited:

European Exploration and Settlement in the United States, 1513-1779

Maps of earthquake shaking hazards are used to create and update building codes in the U.S.

Is the United States all about the money?

Historic map of the United States probably drafted in the 19th century???

Nice animated map of the United States and its states boundaries 1650 to 1907 #history #unitedstates

Good looking map of the United States.

A view of the United States from a bat’s point-of-view.

All:  If you live in the United States, please take this survey sponsored by the American Geographic Society.  You do not have to like geography to take it :)

Twitter’s Early Growth Relied On Geographic Proximity via @RWW #twitter #map

Each circle represents a U.S. city containing Twitter users. Circles grow in size as more users sign up in that location over time. When a location has reached a “critical mass” of users, or 13.5% of all eventual users have signed up, the location turns red. The line being drawn across the center of the screen is a time series of the number of new users that signed up across the whole country in a given week.

Spatial distribution of college football bowl games @APHumanGeog #football #map

Twitter Language Visualization Part 3: North America.

“In today’s globalized world, nationality, as the traditional definition of identity, is becoming increasingly irrelevant. What, therefore, still separates us?

Modern communications technology means that physical space is no longer a real barrier; online, we can speak directly with someone thousands of miles away, watch events in far-flung corners of the world as they unfold, and spread revolutions using only social networks. The Occupy movement is a prime example of this: its followers largely belong to the young, connected, globalized generation and the movement’s message has therefore transcended national boundaries to gain support across the globe.

What, therefore, still separates us? With national borders becoming increasingly fuzzy, one of the very few remaining barriers to an entirely globalized world is language. Language, as a shared heritage, connects us with strangers; and language, as an impenetrable barrier, separates us from the rest of the world. To learn a foreign language is to gain access into a new community, and gradually to improve, to feel the fog of confusion lift as you begin to understand what is going on around you, is one of the most rewarding experiences possible.

The role of language in the world has been brilliantly and very beautifully demonstrated by the artist and cartographer Eric Fischer. Using the Twitter API and language recognition software, Fischer has mapped the global use of languages on Twitter. This fascinating map paints a different picture to the standard global map: language boundaries are blurred, and more permeable than political boundaries. For instance, spots of Spanish-speaking pink leap across the US-Mexico border with an ease many people in the physical world dream of, demonstrating the strength of the Spanish language in the Southern states, especially Texas.”

http://www.institutohemingway.com/Language-the-final-frontier-10291.html

“Fischer made English gray, and so a dull glow pervades the continent. A sprinkling of Spanish-tweeting pockets, are shown in pink, in states like Texas and Arizona, and the pinkness deepens south of the border. The Caribbean islands show up as a colorful hodgepodge of gray, pink, and purple (French). And notice the vein of purple along the Saint Lawrence River in Canada, denoting the French-tweeting Quebecois.”

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/global/2011/11/worlds-languages-according-twitter/44690/

A map of the United States showing the regional areas from one point-of-view.  #geographyteacher

This map depicts the regions of the United States according to Andrew Shears, an Assistant Professor of Geography at the University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley in Menasha, Wisconsin.. 

Personally, I see the country’s regions very similar to this as well.  I grew up in New York and see the country’s regions from a northeastern perspective.  Questions that people sometimes have where I am from are where does the South begin?  Is Florida part of the South?  What states encompass the midwest?  The opinions across the country vary greatly on this such topic.  How many of you agree with this depiction of regions? 

A few years ago, I took a geography class where the teacher handed us a state map of the U.S. and then had us draw the areas of the countries based on what we thought was where the regional boundaries lie (similar to this map).  I only remember that culture and economics usually played a role where we all drew the boundaries.  Usually, this ended up being all relative to the area we grew up in and very few of the student’s maps matched exactly especially regarding the imaginary borders of the midwest: some people included western Pennsylvania while other included Minnesota.  It is interesting to see different views of people across the country.

The following descriptions are from Andrew Shears’ website:

“Appalachia- Hills, hills and more hills.  Appalachian landforms contribute to landscapes of isolation, and really cool meandering settlement patterns that I always find fascinating when driving through or when flying over.  Isolation, though, has brought tremendous poverty and really, really good music (and by this, I am talking about bluegrass).

Down South- A sort of compilation of the leftovers of the old Confederate States of America, once you surgically remove Appalachia’s southern reaches, and then hack off Texas, the Gulf Coast and Florida.  Is this assumption outdated? Sure, I have no doubt.  It’s kind of a catch-all region for places with a broadly shared cultural identity.  At the risk of insulting the technological center in the Triangle of North Carolina and the tourist areas of the coast, my mind still lumps this all together even though I know better.  To the old CSA, I’ve added part of Kentucky and the southern portions of Missouri, Indiana and Ohio, where many people are seemingly still proud to fly Dixie’s flags.

East Coast- I know, tiniest region ever, right?  And not terribly accurate in its description.  In my mind, most of that Acela corridor fits together, with the urban areas of NYC, Philly, DC and Baltimore.  It’s mostly urbanized, and this region is probably the urban epicenter of the country.  Then again, when you go north of suburban Connecticut, to me it seems more a part of the “Northeast.”

Florida- Most of peninsular Florida has managed to distinguish itself culturally, in my mind, from the remainder of the south. Any Floridian will tell you that Florida’s two coasts have drastically different characteristics.  I’ve grouped most of Florida with the Atlantic coast, because I feel like the character of Florida’s gulf coast is far more similar to neighboring areas in Alabama and Mississippi.

Great Plains- On a clear day in Topeka, you can see the Rockies, right?  Well, not really, but it sure seems like it should be true if you’ve ever taken I-70 west of the Kansas state capital to Denver.  In some ways, the Great Plains are one of the most breathtaking regions in the United States in terms of physiography, simply because of their vastness.   The region’s largely flat in topography, semi-arid in climate, and primary sector (agriculture and petroleum) in economy.  Settlement is sparse, to where tiny tiny towns have an incredible level of importance and provide many more services than a town of similar population back east.

Gulf Coast - The Gulf Coast, from the Everglades through the Texas border, are far more marshy than the Atlantic coast.  Waves are (typically) calmer, and the resort communities seem to be a slower pace.  Mobile’s a nice city, and New Orleans is unique to the world.

Midwest- A lot of people debate over where the midwest is.  To me, it has one major thing in common, and that’s an agricultural landscape. Sure, there are cities there, and many of these cities have significant industrial capacities. By and large, though, this is a predominantly rural area with active farming, including dairy, livestock, grain and fruit. Farm sizes aren’t nearly as large as the big wheat farms and ranches of the plains, though they may approach 600 acres in the midwest.  This is my homeland, and driving there from NE Ohio to see my parents, I always get a little bit of warmth in my belly when we pass Mansfield, the land flattens out, and the trees disappear in favor of farm fields.

SoCal- California’s diverse enough that you could split it into seven regions or twenty and maybe still fail to do it justice.  It’s an amazing place.  One region of that state that must be set aside is SoCal (Southern California) because of its distinct Mediterranean style climate, it’s unique style of sprawling urbanism, its many cultural influences, and its rich economic engines.

Southwest- Dry, hot, beautiful in its sparseness, and large influences from Hispanic and Native American cultures. I’ll never forget camping at a teacher’s property on the Hopi reservation, using the world’s most decrepit outhouse in the middle of the night and having a cool desert breeze blow the door open (the latch was broken) as I sat there pooping, treating me to one of the most glorious views of a starry night sky I’ve ever seen in my life, all dimly illuminating the second mesa in the distance.

Texas- Texans firmly believe that they live in their own country.  In some weird ways, Texas seems a lot like Canada… basically America but with their own way of doing those American-style things.  In Canada, that means universal healthcare.  In Texas, that means giant 4,000 square foot houses with Texas-shaped swimming pools in the back yard, all selling for $150,000.  Oh, and guns… lots of guns.  The lesson here is clear: Don’t Mess with Texas.

Up North- Lots of conifer trees and cold-ass winters.  People seem to only come up here if they like hunting or fishing, snowmobiling or other winter activities.  Beautiful place, and maybe one of the last true wildernesses in the eastern half of the US, but lonely and very, very cold.

West Coast- Rainy, foggy, mild, progressive and absolutely beautiful.  Three great metropolises — San Francisco, Portland and Seattle — that rival those in any other region.  The coast of northern California through Seattle may be some of the most glorious coastline ever to exist.”

Google Directions…Well if you are afraid of flying, this is a good alternative :)

hussofbrows:

Did you know if you set a destination from the United States (or at least California) to Japan in will instruct you to kayak across the Pacific Ocean. Occasionally for shorter distances, Google Maps will also require you to jet ski to your location