Marking time on maps
Putting “Swim for the reef” on the map
The Queensland Environmental Defenders Office should be pleased with its Swim for the Reef fundraiser on 23 January 2016. Teams of swimmers clocked up 5,700 laps (285 km)—that’s about a tenth of the length of the Great Barrier Reef itself.
Swimming for the reef
The Environmental Defenders Office is an independent community legal centre in Queensland. It does stalwart work to protect the environment. Among its many other activities, the EDO recently represented conservation groups in court cases about dredging and dumping of spoil in the Great Barrier Reef.
The EDO depends on community support to operate. Its latest fund-raiser is Swim for the Reef—an event in which teams of supporters swim as far as they can (in a swimming pool) between midday and midnight on 23 January 2016. I encourage you to sign up as a swimmer, and/or donate to the cause.
Britannica landscape
Here’s something delightful—24 volumes of an Encyclopaedia Britannica transformed into a mountain landscape by the artist Guy Laramée. I have already admitted to a liking for the printed Britannica, but I know that’s outmoded. Thanks to the blog Colossal for revealing this work to me.
Street numbers
Florence has a confusing dual address system. Each street has a double set of numbers: a red number indicates a shop, restaurant or business, while a blue or black number refers to a hotel or domestic residence. When writing to a business, insert an “r” after the number to distinguish it from a residential address. Each set of numbers has its own sequence, so business premises at, say No. 10r may well be next to a residential address at No. 23. [Eyewitness travel: Florence & Tuscany (Dorling Kindersley, 2007) p. 298.]»more»
Diagramming Rex
The new website I have been building for Rex Addison is now live.
»more»Mapping lighthouses
All the lighthouses I have recently inspected are displayed on this Google map. If you have Google Earth installed, try this link.
»more»Mapping political donations
Another map of New York City (enough, already!). This one plots 2004 presidential campaign donations, building-by-building along the streets of the city. The size of each dot indicates the amount given by occupants of each building. The blue dots are Democrat supporters (770 Park Avenue gave $50,000). The red dots are Republicans (top score: 85 Broad Street, $29,000).
»more»Mapping MPs’ votes
The Public Whip is a UK website that follows the voting behaviour of members of parliament. The site has a clever vote map to represent the historical pattern of voting. Each MP is represented by a dot (red for Labour, blue for Tory, yellow for Liberal Democrat, green for others). The dots of MPs who voted similarly in the past are clustered close together. You can zoom into the map to see more detail, and you can select particular MPs for closer inspection.
Scaling the underground
Thanks to Jason Kottke for pointing out a collection of maps of subway systems of the world, presented on the same scale.
»more»New York bohemians
Here’s a sequel to my reference to New York rats: a feature in the Morning News which maps the haunts of New York bohemians.
»more»New York rats
City Councilor Bill Perkins is campaigning against the rodents of New York. He has written a piece in the Gotham Gazette:
»more»Baghdad blogger
Salam Pax (not his real name, surely) writes a weblog from Baghdad. It’s a gripping account of daily life in a city waiting for the onslaught.
Mapping Iraq
The BBC website has an interactive map called Iraq navigator. It might be a handy reference in the coming weeks, as collateral damage and other spin words are dropped on us.
»more»Ed Hamrick Fan Club
Ed Hamrick is a one-man-band software developer and the author of vuescan. When I want to squeeze the last ounce from a negative, this is the tool I reach for. The program just gets better and better. I don’t know any software vendor as helpful and responsive. Ed is a legend.
»more»The earth at night
See the earth at night by the light of its cities. The image is a composite of hundreds of pictures made by US Defense Meteorological Satellites.
»more»i-See
The Institute for Applied Autonomy has developed i-See:
a web-based application charting the locations of closed-circuit television (CCTV) surveillance cameras in urban environments. With i-See, users can find routes that avoid these cameras — paths of least surveillance — allowing them to walk around their cities without fear of being “caught on tape” by unregulated security monitors.»more»
Australian word map
Word Map is an interactive website mapping Australian regionalisms—words, phrases or expressions used by particular language groups. Add your regionalism or search to see what others have contributed.
ArtandCulture.com
ArtandCulture.com presents an interconnected guide to all the arts, offering information about artists and movements in the Design Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Performing Arts, and Visual Arts. Learn more than about that individual artist or movement; learn about the relation to other artists and movements across the disciplines.»more»