Where I come from...

I am a new UCLA undergraduate student who has little to no clue of what he is trying to do with his life. I am a native to Washington Dc and am disappointed that now that I have left, all of our sports teams have actually improved. Below are some interesting maps that I connect with from my own home town and others I find interesting.

Link:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/images/metromap_021605.gif
Creator: Washington Dc Metro Transit System

This map is a representation of the Washington area metro region and with the different metro lines that run under the city. The map come from  and serves the purpose of informing the public on the connections between the different metro lines in DC and was created by the Washington Dc Metro Board. Although the map includes some natural features such as the Potomac River it does not accurately represent the geographic direction of routes and distances between stations. The map simplifies the other transportation options in the area such as the beltway and only includes a few county and state lines making it easily usable by tourists and other groups that are new to the Washington Dc region. Memorials and other points of interest that are associated with DC give people who are unfamiliar with the area focal points.

Link: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Washington_DC_Metro_Map_%28To_Scale%29.svg
Creator: Washington Dc Metro Transit System/For use in education

This next map is similar to the map above as it depicts the Washington DC metro transit system but to scale. In comparison to the earlier map, this one has all of the different metro lines and the locations where the lines run on the same track. It lacks, however, all of the geographic and monumental land marks that are present in and around the DC area. For an outsider arriving in Washington, it would be difficult to get his or her bearings. The strength of this map is in its representation of relative distances between stations. One can easily see that a few station on the orange line (left side) are grouped together, showing proximity, where as the last few stations are spread out farther west into the Virgina country side. On the previous map, all orange line stations are equally spaced and it is impossible to discern how long a trip, between seemingly close stations, will take.

 Link:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/Chicago_violent_crime_map.png
Origin: 2005 Chicago Police Department

This map breaks up the Chicago metropolitan region into neighborhoods and then identifies the amount of reported violent crimes that have been committed. The map is useful for identifying high risk areas in the city where individuals need to be cautious of there surroundings. Although not specific in the exact location of the events, by grouping areas together the user can identify dangerous areas, and hopefully avoid them. The pattern of yellow and red that makes a line near the top of the map stands out because usually lake shore property is the most affluent but for some reason that area and westward has many crimes. The intensity of crimes is centered around the inner part of the city and generally gets safer further away from downtown.