Final Project: Final Version

Population Diversity: Mapping the Biracial (black & white only) Population in the Southeastern United States

After multiple topic changes and hours of data research and map design in Adobe Illustrator I have finally produced a map I am very proud of and that I consider to be my very best work.  The larger map in my graphic is a choropleth map depicting the percentage of biracial (black & white only) population by county in the Southeastern United States.  The data is very straightforward and I found there to be a very interesting distribution of the data after I mapped it.   I originally wanted to do a choropleth/proportional symbol bivariate map, but it would not have been effective to do a proportional symbol map at the county level because the counties are so small at the scale I used that it would have looked like a cluttered mess.  It is for this reason I chose to do a separate proportional symbol map showing the number of biracial people (black & white only) per state. I really spent time on my map design and tried to ensure that I produced a balanced and clean product. I found the peer review to be very instrumental in the outcome of my project. One of my many goals with this project was to step outside of my comfort zone and incorporate more creative aspects into my design. I feel like I accomplished that goal.  I've posted my final map below and have included some supplemental websites. The links include the Census data source as well as interesting articles on the biracial population and race identification.

* http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml...

* http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml...

* http://healthland.time.com/2010/12/16/passing-as-black-how-biracial-americans...

* http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/race/2008/08/being-biracial.html

* http://www.mixedheritagecenter.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view...

* http://newsone.com/489592/census-forces-choice-between-black-or-biracial/ 

 

Final Map: Draft 28

Final Project Draft

Weekly Blog 11: Bivariate Map

This is an example of a bivariate map I found from the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services(DCFS).  It may be a little difficult to see the details, but it is basically showing children with incarcerated parents.  The small circles are colored to correspond to race and represent children and youth in Illinois DCFS.  The larger pie charts show travel times to the prisons broken.  It takes some time to really interpret, but it is nonetheless interesting. 

 

 

Lab 10: Bivariate Map

This is a bivariate map I did on Illustrator that combines choropleth and proportional symbol. It simultaneously shows the percentage of children living in poverty by county in North Carolina and the number of overweight 2-4 year olds in those counties.  I was surprised by the counties that had lower poverty rates and higher numbers of overweight children.  I really enjoyed mapping two variables, although it was a bit challenging at times to find the data. I tried out a couple of different things on this map, such as, using a dark background. Overall, I'm very happy with the way this map turned out and really enjoyed using color. I'm leaning towards modifying my final project to include another variable so I can do a bivariate map.

Weekly Blog 10: Isoline Map

This week I selected a shaded relief map from Tom Patterson's website http://www.shadedrelief.com.  I picked this one because I'm in awe of the amount of detail and can only imagine how much time it took to create such a beautiful map of Denali National Park, Alaska.  It is an oblique view and it nicely illustrates the mountains, glaciers and rivers/streams.  I don't think I'm ready to tackle a similar project just yet, but I can certainly appreciate it!

 

Lab 9: Isoline Map

This is an isoline map of Smerg that I did on Adobe Illustrator.  It shows the concentrations of Smerg in parts per million in Virginia and makes it easy for someone to see where the most highly concentrated areas are so they can avoid them.  Stay out of the Richmond area if you can!  It was fun to do a map on make believe data and added to the creativity.