- Which map (title and number) you are discussing;
- The emotion(s) it evoked;
- What your response reveals about your perspective as a knower.
Friday, September 19, 2014
Feel Your Way Around the World
As we begin to consider emotion as a Way of Knowing, I'd like to ground us in the earth. Take a thoughtful look through these maps. Consider the perspectives they represent and the assumptions that they challenge. Identify two to which you have emotional responses. For each, share the following in your post:
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The first map I am picking is map #36, a.k.a. "Area codes in which Ludacris Claims to have H*es." My first initial reaction/emotion to this title was confusion. I did not understand what this map was implying. After looking at the map and the red spots that marks what area codes Ludacris refers to in his songs, I laughed out loud. It was funny to see all the are codes Ludacris claims to contain H*es, and the fact that someone actually took the time and/or wasted their time to come up with such a map. The second map I am choosing is map #39, a.k.a. " Map of Europe Showing Literal
ReplyDeleteChinese Translations for Country Names" I thought this map was very funny as well, but also really interesting. Although I went from initially thinking "Ha-ha Italy translates to 'meaning Big Profit'" I transitioned to being genuinely curious about how China came to these conclusions for the names of the countries, and what influenced them to think of them in a certain way. Finally, my response to these pictures shows me that I am more drawn to things with humor. But while looking at these maps, I realized that I wasn't emotionally feeling too much in general. Besides humor at the funny maps, I did not feel emotions to the maps with the serious statistics. I had the emotion that I should have been feeling an emotion. I had thoughts like "This map should make me angry", "this map should make me annoyed", "this map should have made me feel sympathy." but for some reason I did not feel it at all. I think that when looking at things on the web, a person sometimes becomes numb to emotion after scrolling endlessly through things. One emotion that seems to stay though, is humor. There is always a funny video going around, a funny article, a funny story. Maybe this is because sometimes technology is an escape from the real world and sometimes to escape you just need a good laugh. Even though this may not be true for everyone, I think it is sometimes true for me. In the end, these maps were all very interesting and cool overall, and I enjoyed looking at them.
The first map I had a very strong emotional response to was # 6 entitled "Paid Maternal Leave Around the World." My eye was initially drawn to this map because I feminist and believe in justice for women, and I know that mothers (especially lower income mothers and single mothers) receiving time off and a steady income in order to take care of their newborn is incredibly important. In fact, it should be a basic human right. Therefore, I was outraged and furious when I saw that the USA is one of the few countries without paid leave. My emotional response turned further to disgust and disdain when I thought about the fact that the USA has some of the top prenatal and natal hospital care in the world, yet after the birthing process we basically leave the mother to fend for herself with no extra paid leave or benefits. What this demonstrates about my perspective as a knower is that I pay attention to the things I can strongly sympathize with and care about. I am a person who considers what social impact an action or event might have on humanity.
ReplyDeleteThe second map I had a strong emotional response to was # 34 entitled "Overall Water Risk Around the World." One of my greatest fears is the impending water crisis, and living in an avid environmentalist family I never hear the end of how important water conservation is. Thus, when I saw the map it was like seeing a visual representation of my fears come to life, so I was disheartened, scared, and sad, In fact, when I first saw the map I heaved a deep sigh and shook my head a little. I was little reassured by the fact that I live in an area with a low water risk, because seeing how heavily affected other areas in the world are I perceived an increase in chaos, warring, and sickness in areas already in heavily devastated. As with map # 6, my response shows that I have strong anthropological connections to my learning and knowing. I look to find justice in every scenario.
1) Map #20: Map of Countries with the Most Violations of Bribery
ReplyDeleteThis map is fairly accurate because from the most violations of Bribery, I saw China. To be honest, from the news on TV or internet, when people in China see a new about some politicians are going to the jail because of the bribery behavior, it feels very normal. However, now China is changing because the government is trying really hard to ban every bribery behavior of the politicians. As a Chinese, I hope the government can take really serious action on this and succeed. My response reveals that I knew the fact about violation of bribery through my knowledge because it does happen in my own country and it was not surprise to see it on this map.
2) Map #39: Map of Europe Showing Literal Chinese Translations for Country Names
I chose this map because it was very hilarious to read it. People who do not know how to speak Chinese would have a hard time to get the funny part, but for a native Chinese speaker, to see the literal translation on the European countries' names on this map was surprising. My response reveals that as a knower is that I can speak Chinese and English, because it required the knowing of both Chinese and English to understand this map fully.
( Some Explanation)
For example, people would not understand why Spain is called "west class teeth" in the literal Chinese translation. Actually, in Chinese it is pronounced "xi ban ya, 西班牙”, which is a similar pronunciation as "Spain". Also, "Law Land", is France, because we call it "fa guo" in Chinese from the same pronunciation, "fa" means "law", "guo" means "land/country". (Sorry for the confusion.)
9.) Map of Time Zones in Antarctica
ReplyDeleteI picked this map because it it evoked a feeling of amazement and calm to me that a place could include so many time zones. it reminds me of the idea that most of us as humans believe we 'own' certain amounts of Land. the US 'owns' North America, Britain 'owns' the UK along with many other islands, and so on. There is a quote by Muhammad Ali that states "Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth" which alludes to the idea that we do not own land here but rather rent it and we often forget that we are on this Earth for a short amount of time. I am provided with a sense of calm that Antarctica has so many time zones which shows that since it is not owned by anyone it belongs to everyone. No one can 'conquer' it and its vast desert of ice therefore it can be shared by everyone.
32.) Map of Contiguous United States Overlaid on the Moon
I picked this map not only because of its beauty but also because it makes me angry. For me, this map shows that the U.S. wants to and/or believes that it is the center of everything. If you look at maps distributed in the U.S. the majority of them show the U.S. as the center of Earth when in actuality it is not. By placing the U.S. in the middle of the moon it reinforces this idea. It angers me to think that the U.S. is so attention driven and feels it has to be the center of attention as a 'world power.'
I believe that my reaction to these two maps show that, as a knower, I tend to make more assumptions than the information I am given which shows in my analysis of both maps. I also tend to think of the negatives of a picture rather than the positive in the sense of what is not included rather than what is. For example, in the first map I looked at what was not included, people and their mindset towards land.
1) Map #10, Global Internet Usage Based on Time of Day
ReplyDeleteHonestly, this map initially drew me in because it was the first and only map with colorful, flashing dots and movement in it. It made me feel amazed that someone could create that. As I looked more and more at it, I became more interested in which countries used the most internet and which countries did not. For example, India lights up, while Greenland has that one dot in the center. I was also interested by what areas in each country used the most internet. For the U.S.A, we can see it most of it lighting up with its internet usage, but Alaska barely uses any internet. This drew my attention and interest to learn more.
2) Map #39, Map of Europe Showing Literal Chinese Translations for Country Names
This was the second map that drew me in because of how humorous it was. It really made me laugh and I couldn't help but feel curious about how Bulgaria became "Insurance + Profit-ya" or how Portugal became "Grapetooth". It made me wonder about the Chinese language and how their naming of European countries came about. As I stared more at this map, I noticed even more funny names such as "Crow to Asia", "Love Your Orchid", and "Horse its Dun."
Overall, I was mostly drawn to the maps that either amazed me or made me laugh. They made me want to learn and gain more knowledge on how they came about or the information that they portrayed. There were some maps that made me upset, but they did not invoke that strong of a feeling in me. This reveals that as a knower, I am more interested in learning about things that I find funny or interesting.
5) McDonald's Across the world
ReplyDeleteThis map evoked my emotions by the vision of 'McDonald's' since I noticed the familiar sign first. When I looked at the map more throughly, I was also attracted by the distinctions between 'countries with McDonald's' and countries without McDonald's', which is an very interesting fact. On the bottom there were also humorous statistics about McDonald's, with images of hamburgers in different sizes or with different flags on them.
12) Flag map of the world
This map evoked my interest because of the special vision. I have always seen maps that has different color and names annotated on different regions. Unlikely, this map is using the flags to designate different countries, which gives me a special vision that catches my attention when I am scrolling down. It is a creative way of showing the globe.
Personally, as a knower, I like to acquire information from interesting and creative visions. The maps I noticed most are the ones with distinctive colors, formats, themes and shapes. The flag map and McDonald's map are very visually creative. In comparison, the ones that are more similar to geographical and historical maps cannot evoke my emotion of knowing that much.
1) The first map that evoked an emotion from me is Map #17, US Map of the Highest Paid Public Employees by State. At first, I just scrolled past this map and didn't pay much attention to it. When I took a second look, it caught my eye. It evoked a feeling of curiosity. I now want to know what it is that makes the job of coaching more deserving of a higher pay. This isn't just in one state, in the majority of states in the U.S.A. coaches have the highest paid job. I am curious to know why, to know what really determines the level of pay for certain jobs. As a knower, my response reveals that I am an inquirer as well. I am curious and I want to learn when things immediately spark my interest.
ReplyDelete2) The second map that evoked an emotion from me is Map #38, The Longest Straight Line You Can Sail on Earth (Pakistan to Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia – 20000 miles). The title of this map caught my attention right away. I immediately had questions. How does one know that this is the longest straight line that can be sailed? Has it been sailed before and if so by who? These questions along with others popped into my mind when I saw this map. As soon as I read it and looked at it, I wanted to know more just like the first map. It evoked the feeling of curiosity. I believe that to be a knower you have to be an inquirer first, and as a knower, one should always want to know more.
40. Reversed Map with Southern Hemisphere at Top of Map
ReplyDeleteThis map really made me question our very narrow view of the world as we know it. The reversed map looks completely foreign to me, but who's to say that this isn't the "correct" way of looking at our earth. I also liked how the US wan't centered, cutting Asia in half. Again, it destroys our narrow conception and creates a more inclusive one.
17. US Map of the Highest Paid Public Employees by State
This map just made me angry. The idea that someone who can yell at players for a few hours a day makes more money than people who spend every waking minute working is absurd. There were so few states that had medical professionals as the highest paid workers, it is crazy. The really sad thing is that pro-football coaches salaries are as high as seven million.
The two maps that I found caused emotional responses were "Area Codes In Which Ludacris Claims To Have H*es", #36, and "Reversed Map With Southern Hemisphere At Top Of Map", #40.
ReplyDelete1) I found the Ludacris map made me laugh. I liked the pop culture reference, and I liked the clarity of the map. I chose this map not only because it made me smile, but because it was easy to read; some of the other maps I found incomprehensible. I think that as a knower this response shows three things about me. First, that I am drawn to humor. I am more likely to stop and look more closely at something if it makes me laugh, and respond better to being taught through humor. Second, that I am drawn to easy to understand graphics, as opposed to more complex ones. I find it easier to learn new things if the information is spread out-- one complex graphic will do less for me than five simpler ones. Third, I respond well to and am interested in learning about current pop culture. Because the map was about a current popular song, I was more interested in it and found it funnier than I would have a map about big band music of the 1940s, although I most likely would have found that interesting as well.
2) The map with the Southern Hemisphere at the top was interesting to me because it quite literally changed the way I perceive the world. I have never seen a map oriented with the Southern Hemisphere at the top before. The associated parenthetical caption, "because position of North is arbitrary", made me think about the universe. Does it matter which way north is? Is north a cultural concept? Does it matter that north is a cultural concept? Oddly enough, just seeing the map reversed sent me onto a larger existential train of thought. As a knower, I think this shows one main thing: I extrapolate quickly. Given one to two data points, I think of their causes, and then the causes of those causes, and then the significance of those causes, and then the significance of the whole. I have a pronounced reaction to new information that strongly changes my perception of the world around me, and often take that information more seriously than I should.
So, Google deleted my comment instead of publishing so forgive me if it is too short the second time around.
ReplyDelete1) Map #6 "Paid Maternal Leave Around the World" made me feel angry but not surprised. I am angry that the U.S. is the only Developed Country without a policy on Paid Maternity leave. Women should not be subjected to work stress while they are in the most difficult part of their pregnancy and or nursing a newborn child. Leaving the choice up to employers is not wise because there are people would prefer to keep the money and note everyone can help who they work for. If the U.S. wants to identify as a Developed Country, then why does it not have policies to help its citizens that even Developing Countries have?
2) Map #10 "Global Internet Usage Based on Time of Day" This was my second time seeing this GIFfed map and it made me felt amazed, disappointed and confused. I was amazed to the fact that someone created this and could collect the data necessary to make the GIF. I think that it's awesome that for some places the lights outline parts or all of the borders and that you can see the complete Caribbean Archipelago. I am disappointed because the number of lights are concentrated to certain areas that do not necessarily have the highest population. Africa and East Asia has only sparse lighting although there are many people living there. This just shows how technology is able to develop but not spread to people who need it the most to improve their lives. Although a lack of internet access is not necessarily a sign of poverty, wherever technological advancements go the internet usually follows. Also, I am confused to the meaning of the lights because most of the key was cut off
6. Paid Maternal Leave Across the World
ReplyDeleteThis map was the second one to catch my eye (the first being the McDonald's one but I did not really want to write about that). This map just bothered me, because when looking at all the other countries which offer paid maternal leave, it seems fairly obvious that that is a good system. So why does the US not offer any? The more I thought about it, the more angry I got. I believe strongly in women's rights, and the US system is blatantly ignoring a NECESSITY for women. And I think that's pretty messed up. The other feeling I immediately had was one of empathy. I felt like I could understand, at least to a certain extent, how horrible it must be for those women. I think to be a good knower you have to be able to understand how people are feeling.
17. US Map of the Highest Paid Public Employees by State
This map also really bothered me. I actually thought that this had to be a joke. How could so many states pay the coaches (especially football coaches) more money than any other profession? Like, this time on Messed Up Things You Only Find in America. I was disgusted. As in, had to scroll away because I didn't even want to look at that map. Which is why I wanted to write about it. I think that my response to this map reveals how as a knower I'm capable of realizing when something doesn't seem right, or make sense. Obviously this is actually true, but it seemed to absurd that I actually doubted it's truth. It's important to have an instinct for knowing that something seems weird of off, and I think this was a good case of that.
The first map to which I had an emotional rection was map 23, The World's Population, Concentrated. I felt surprise by this map, since I did not realize how dense some cities are and how spacious the United States are. I find it incredible that if everyone in the world could live in the US, then why is there so much struggle for space for everyone to live comfortably around the world? I think much of the answer to that would be that powers such as the US want too much space, so other countries are unable to have enough resources to support themselves.
ReplyDeleteThe second map that gave me an emotional response was map 30, or The World Divided Into 7 Regions, Each with a Population of 1 Billion. This map annoyed me, because certain areas are so much smaller than others. For example the orange area, which is in India, is extremely small and condensed, while the green area which contains all of North America, South America, and Australia are so much less densely populated. Most of the Us is more hopitable than parts of India yet much much much less densely populated. I think that it is not good that people are not spread out based on how hospitable the land is but based on where there is space so that the world powers can have all the space they could ever want while everyone else has to scrunch into a small area.
The reason that this post is late is that I had a test that I was studying for and I forgot that I had not done this yet.
Map 1: #6, Maternity Leaves
ReplyDeleteThis map evoked (mainly) surprise for me. I am highly aware that the United States as a country is fairly far behind the curve in several areas of development - for example, our energy production and consumption and waste disposal systems are far more antiquated and damaging than the majority of those used in Europe. However, I was unaware that our lack of progress extended to the crucially important wages for working mothers. I certainly believe that new mothers deserve to have the security of a paid maternity leave. After going through the ordeal of labor, a labor which hopefully is expected and wanted in most cases but may not be welcome in others, a woman should and needs to have the knowledge that she will be cared for, at least until her body recovers enough for her to go back to work. Especially in the sphere of single mothers, when the income which these women are earning is often short of supporting their already existing family, having to take time off without a guarantee of any money flow could prove fatal to the family's living conditions and basic human needs.
Map 2: #36, Ludacris's "H*es"
This map struck me initially because of the profanity in the title, but upon further examination, I realized how sad I found this map to be. Ludacris, as a well-known rapper, has indubitably inspired and influenced many young boys and men in his time through his songs. I believe that as a prominent artist in the eye of the public, one should always keep in mind the influence which one has over the people one's music or other art touches, particularly younger people. I disagree strongly with the message that the song referred to by this map sends to young men - the lewd attitude surrounding women as purely sexual objects (derogatory names and all) is disgusting, and I strongly discourage the notion that the epitome of masculinity is defined by how many "h*es" one has. Even the term "has" implies ownership, which is in and of itself a skewed view on the role of women in relationship to men.