This week’s maps are prime examples of how maps can track events in human history while still displaying things like geography, natural landmarks, and artificial structures. Maps can be used to illustrate data or debunk false theories.
This map, created by John Snow in 1855, demonstrates the impact of the cholera epidemic in London. The accepted theory then concluded that sewers and open-air waste were to blame for the health crisis. John Snow used data regarding concentrated deaths by city block and relative location from a certain water pump to conclude that the London water system caused the epidemic. Map’s intentions are sometimes more obvious, like this one. A theory was proved and used to save lives and prevent further tragedy.
In Alexander Johnston’s map, the message is very clear. The comparison of British exploration across the Atlantic and the spread of deadly diseases in the new world is fully displayed. The map also brings up the different types of diseases and their survivability in certain climates. This map is an early form of virology. This map is a long study of what diseases can survive in what temperatures and their effects on the local population. The intent of this map is to educate the audience that the old world’s diseases were responsible for the devastation of the local population at the time. It is also a study on the capabilities of diseases in certain environments.
http://kora.matrix.msu.edu/files/21/121/15-79-54-30-johnsnow-a0a1d5-a_16430.jpg
Johnson, Steven. The Ghost Map: The Story of London’s Most Terrifying Epidemic — and How it Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World, 10.
Don’t forget to categorize.
But is the second map “virology”? What does the second map argue is the CAUSE of disease? A bit thin on interpretation in this blog…