Tag: Final Project

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Stage 6- Marie Amelse to Evan Murphy

This storymap was on futbol/soccer stadiums in the United States and how different things impact their creation and continued use. The story map not only explains the locations of the stadiums but also different leagues that have existed in the country, and still do today such as the MLS, NSWL, and the USL. The map also included how these different leagues also would share geographical spaces, or in other cases be more spread out. In addition the story map explains United States culture around futbol but also how it fits into futbol culture around the world.

The use of several different maps to show physical location, change over time, and comparison was one of this maps strengths. In addition the way in which the story map told the story was a large assets The story of culture intertwined with organization is something that can not always be told linearly, but this story map did a great job of including enough information in the right sections, in a way that was not overwhelming. Another thing that was very impressive about this map was the use of different medias- images, timelines, even a video.

This map had many strengths and I felt it was a very effective story map, my only critique is that it might have been beneficial to use different types of maps, along with the maps that showed the physical locations of the stadiums. I enjoyed how culture was tied into so it might have been interesting to have seen a map to represent that in some way.

This story map is an excellent example of how storytelling and maps can work well in complimenting each other to show a more complete story.

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Gabe Murphy: Stage 6 – Review of Sam Ellerbeck

In the maps provided, and the project as a whole, Sam showed the history of redlining practices, medical facilities, and the ties to racial inequality. He even discussed the implications it had on COVID-19, which I thought was a great touch. Overall, Sam’s argument can be summed in one quote: “In Omaha, medical deserts are appearing in the areas in which redlining was once practiced – the locations of marginalized minority communities who have been disadvantaged by historically structured racial discrimination.”

There were many approaches, from differing points of view, and the mapping products themselves were great. In particular, I thought the 30-minute Walk was a great use of technology to highlight the medical desert that northern and southern Omaha are. To begin, who would want to walk 30 minutes to a hospital when you need to see a doctor? In many cases, that walk may even be impossible. Secondly, I estimate ~60% of the map’s area is not within a 30-minute walk of the nearest hospital. Without access to a car, how in the world may people get the treatment they need? This is a real issue that needs serious change. Another strength I noticed was acknowledging the opposing side of the argument, and providing evidence for why that side was incorrect. Instead of ignoring opposing viewpoints, they were acknowledged and proven wrong: great. I also really appreciated the different styles of mapping Sam used for the project: choropleth, dot-vectors, geo-referencing historical maps. In my project, I used the text more to argue my point; but Sam’s use of mapping as one of the primary sources for evidence made it easy to see his argument. 

Going back to the 30-minute Walk map, I think color-correlation would be something that could be changed. Many of the hospitals and 30-minute radius overlapped, so using different colors that each radius could correspond to the hospital point would make the overall viewing/analysis of the map much easier for the reader. My only other critique would be along the lines of color again: keeping a consistent theme. Some maps have orange, some have blue, some have red, some have yellow. That may be nit-picky, but I like to have a consistent feel and the different colors seemed a little jarring to me.

Great project overall! The use of maps was outstanding.

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Stage 6: Theresa Borkowski’s review of Leah Keith

I had the pleasure of reviewing Leah’s final project this semester. Leah’s project was titled, Campus Updates: 1950 – 1980, How Much Do You Know About the History of Your College? I found her deep map to be very impressive and thorough. The map focuses on the updates to Creighton University, specifically looking 20th to 30th street and Cumming Street to the 480 interstate. Leah made sure to give special credentials to the Creighton University Bulletins, which was a handbook that has an updated map every two years beginning in 1950. The Bulletin also documented the development of buildings, parking lots, roadways, and the land that Creighton owned. 

Leah was able to produce an interactive deep map that tells the story of Creighton University while also giving reference to the people those choices affected and the resources they needed. She ensured that the viewer would be able to understand who the university made the decisions that they did and whom those people would affect. An example of this that Leah gives is the construction of the North Freeway. When this freeway was proposed there was very little collaboration with North Omaha even though that would be whom it primarily effected. North Omaha was not consulted but repeatedly ignored when it came to the demolition of houses, schools, churches, and neighborhoods in preparation for the freeway. Leah references the Aerial Plat Book of Omaha to account for the amount of destruction and construction that was done. 

Leah also has a separate section of her map labeled Chronology Collection where she has pictures of what Creighton used to look like and the dates oof each photo as well. When looking at these photos one can really begin to tell when the development of Creighton took off and it was a very nice addition. 

Leah did very well at giving the viewer an overall look into the campus. The map takes you through time but also through a story because you are able to see and read about the progression of the campus. The only thing I would have enjoyed more of would be the mention of architecture. While this might not have been the route that Leah was going for, I think it could have been an interesting direction to take. Even now we can see all of the changing buildings going from old brick to newer sleek buildings with its of windows and sharp edges. It could be an interesting feature to add!

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Erin Buglewicz, Stage 6: Review of Maddey King’s Final Project

This story map provided a detailed explanation of school access and race in Omaha. The project established the history of redlining and white flight, which created a form of unofficial segregation in schools, especially in North and South Omaha. It also explored how private schools enabled parents to avoid placing their children in integrated schools until it was declared unconstitutional in 1976. Finally, the story map delineated different eras in Omaha, such as when integration was ordered and some students were bussed to schools outside of their neighborhoods in an attempt to correct racial imbalance and also after mandatory integration ended in 1999.

This story map had many strengths. At the beginning, it acknowledged the limits of data collection, which is important to understand, and the timeline that was included allowed me to understand the different eras that the story map would discuss. Throughout, there was also a nice inclusion of brief videos that discussed topics such as the difficulties of desegregating after the Brown v. Board of Education decision as well as an explanation of Runyon v. McCrary. The maps themselves were generally clear and effective. Plus, in particular, it is important to note that the maps that referred to different races were made in an ethical manner by not using colors like white and black to represent them. 

Although effective, there are still some areas where the story map could be improved. For example, in the introduction, I did not find a clear thesis statement or a specific historical question that the story map addressed. Although the story map presents a strong argument for the intersection between race and schools in Omaha, it seems that a thesis statement that presents a claim about this topic is present in the conclusion. Another area of improvement is in the maps themselves. I think that a few of the maps could have been layered together to create a stronger argument. For instance, using the choropleth of race in Omaha with a map of top and bottom performing schools could have more effectively conveyed the argument that schools with worse performance rates are in areas with that have larger populations of African Americans. Moreover, it would also be helpful to see separate maps for elementary and high schools rather than have them included together.

Overall though, this was still an effective story map with well-supported claims.

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Stage 6 – Michael to Wyatt

Wyatt Greco’s “Deindustrialization and Demographics” of Michigan and West Virginia presents a convincing argument of the deindustrialization linked to an area’s core industry; In this case being the automobile, and coal industry. The time period he is studying is the 1940s to 80s and from 1980 to, 2020. During this time, Greco could link the deindustrialization of Michigan and West Virginia to the decline in population density. This is shown through the two maps he has created, with red being the decline in population as mines and factories are shut down. Greco concludes that while there is a correlation between deindustrialization and the decreasing population density, that is not the only factor that is at play here. Public policy and other economic factors have also led to the decrease in population density.

Greco’s maps are clear and to the point. They provide a good basis for his argument and show a great understanding of his topic. The instructions were clear and accurate, with the sources clearly labelled and cited. Greco provides a convincing argument on how deindustrialization has affected these areas.

Greco’s methodology is sound; however, he does not explain why he is using density rather than a percentage change in population. Maps are clear, with points of interest clearly labelled, but a legend would be nice to help the reader along with the assumption that density has increased, particularly if we are not interested in reading over the methodology.

Overall, Greco did a superb job in summarizing and presenting his argument. None of his claims are unsupported and his argument is presented eloquently and to the point.

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Stage 6 – Wyatt Greco to Michael Lau

Michael Lau’s “Asbestos Mines in the United States” studies the potential effect of decreased asbestos demand (due to health revelations and government bans) on U.S. populations near asbestos mines. To study the relationship between asbestos mine closure and population change, Lau created two interactive products. The first contains two maps of asbestos extraction sites, with one showing population change from 1970-1980 (when asbestos mining peaked) and the other covering 1980-1990 (following the publication of a landmark federal study). For his second interactive, Lau maps population change in comparison to former asbestos mines in a single locale (Aston Township), illustrating that the presence of former mines did not necessarily hinder population growth. Ultimately, Lau concludes that census-tract-level analysis reveals no strong correlation between population decline and changes to the asbestos industry.

Lau effectively sets the stage for his project; the timeline of asbestos production and banning explored in the background section well justifies the time period of his study. Despite the rather large scale of the first interactive (that scale being the entire United States), the number of features is not overwhelming to the eye. Types of asbestos extraction sites are clearly distinguishable from one another, and the slide function allows for the user to easily identify changing census tracts. For both interactives (national and local), the choropleth color scale easily distinguishes between increasing and decreasing percent change in population (as well as the relative amount of that change in either direction for each tract with data). Finally, by acknowledging the limitations of census-level data and analysis, Lau does not make any claims which his data does not support.

If Lau were to continue developing his project, he might consider adjusting pop-ups (which appear when any feature is selected) to show only the most relevant information, such as population change in a particular census tract or the closure date of a particular mine. Lau could also consider narrowing the scale of his mapping to only one or two regions with asbestos mines. This would focus the project and reinforce its primary argument. Additionally, if these focus regions are rural, county-level data could be used in lieu of census tract data. Then again, counties can be large and not as descriptive of particular settlements as census tracts. Lau is certainly correct in pointing out the challenges of gathering data on rural areas and niche (but potentially impactful) local industries.

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Stage 6 – Peer Review by Payton Mlakar of “The Growth of California During the Gold Rush” by Isabel Blackford

This project details the population growth in California that resulted from the California Gold Rush in the mid-to-late 1800s. The project begins by exploring two case studies of mining towns established during the California Gold Rush, contrasting the different fates of Nevada City and Bodie. The project then explores population growth and contraction before, during, and after the gold rush. In its final section, the project describes Chinese migration, settlement, and discrimination in California during and after the gold rush. The crux of this project’s argument is that the California Gold Rush transformed California from a sparsely-populated, rural region, to a state full of bustling metropolises and thriving industry. This growth was sustained by California’s connection to the East Coast via the Trans-Continental Railroad which Chinese immigrants built while facing constant discrimination.

The greatest strength of this project’s maps are their readability. Each map in this project has superb color contrast, color gradients, and easy-to-see vector features. Their readability makes these maps easy-to-use and appealing to the reader. Anywhere they were included in the project they added to my understanding of the project’s themes and supported the project’s historical argument. One map I found particularly useful and informative was the “Heat map of Gold Rush settlements.” This map helped me visualize where gold rush settlements were and how the epicenter of the gold rush coincided with areas with the greatest population growth and contraction.

One facet of this project that could be improved is using GIS maps in the sections on Nevada City and Bodie to highlight where these two mining towns were in relation to other mining settlements in California. Contrasting the stories of Nevada City and Bodie is a superb part of this project that does a great job of introducing readers to the California Gold Rush. However, these two case studies could benefit from having their own respective maps that highlight where these two towns are located in California. These maps could even include popups that could provide population graphs and other helpful information. Another improvement that could make the maps in this project even more readable would be to include a legend on them, particularly the choropleths. Including a legend on these maps would ensure the reader understands each map and its argument accurately.

Overall, this was an excellent and informative project that clearly drew on class instruction on mapping conventions, best practices, and GIS methods.

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Stage 6 – Declan Dunham to Emma Reed

Overall, I think your project was excellent! The German refugee crisis is still an ongoing issue today. I believe you did a good job explaining the causes of this crisis, as well as, the effects of this crisis. However, there is a clear topic for this project, but not a clear thesis. You state that you are examining the refugee crisis and its relationship with the unemployment rate. What about the relationship? Here, I do not see a clear argument. 

It was very helpful to give the audience an understanding of this crisis. Your timeline was excellent and provided very important background information. Your first map offers a great insight into the exact amount of refugees coming into Europe. It is also a great way of showing exactly how many more refugees are coming into Germany. 

In your unemployment section, you did a good job of explaining the unemployment rate in Germany. The map you used to show the relationship between the foreign-born population and the unemployment rate worked very well. As the reader, you can clearly see the correlation between the two. 

As this is a History class, it would have been advantageous if you added a Historiography section to your project. This would allow me to see what perspective you are researching this from. It would also allow me to see any of the biases you may have implemented. 

Again, I thought this project was very thought-provoking as it would allow for the continued discourse on this topic. 

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