THEMATIC MAPS

 Choropleth maps
 Dot density maps
 Proportional symbol maps
 Maps with pie or bar charts
 Grided maps, aka heatmaps
 Cartograms
 Thematic Maps
 A thematic map shows georeferenced data,
numeric or character, by colors or
symbols.
 Specific data displayed in this manner is
referred to as a theme
 Different types of thematic maps, useful for
showing different types of thematic variables

 Commonly used to show natural resources,

vegetation areas, population, types of soil,
 How Does One Read a Map?
 Need to understand the following:
 Map Legends
 Scale
 Geographical grids
 Map indexes
 Latitude and Longitude (map projections)
Map Legends and Symbols
 Map legends list and
explain the symbols and
colors found on a map

 Sometimes the map

symbols look like the
features they represent
(tree represents a forest)
 Map Scale
 The scale on a map shows the relationship
between the distances on a map and the
distance on the earth’s surface
 Scale is shown with a bar or measuring
tape.
Geographical Grids
 Lines on a map that help us find and
describe locations
 Most common grids are lines of latitude and
longitude
 Display Information using Thematic Maps
 Thematic mapping is the process of shading a map
according to a given theme

 Data displayed on the map is called a thematic

variable
 Shading can be based on color, patterns, symbols,
…
 Use values of data for comparisons and checking
patterns
 Large variety of thematic options to display the
same data.

 Common thematic map types include:

 Choropleth maps, aka ranged maps
 Dot density maps
 Choropleth/Ranged Maps
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkmAiINPdrI

 Involves coloring
geographic areas to
represent categories of
rates or densities
 Most common type of
thematic map
 Represent a single
georeferenced
variable Population density in the U.S. by state, using a single
hue sequential color scheme that depicts the range of
 Show variations over data values from low to high with light to dark color
values.
 Determining Ranges in Chloropleth Maps

 All data classification methods revolve around two questions:

 How many data ranges should there be?
 How large is each data range?

 The answers to these questions are determined in part by

the classification method selected.

 Some common data classification methods are:

 EQUAL-COUNT
 EQUAL RANGES
 NATURAL BREAKS
 STANDARD DEVIATION
 CUSTOM 16
 Equal-Count classification aims at
having an equal number of
cases in each range
 Depending on the data
table, this will be
approximate only

 In the example, 50 states and the

District Of Columbia could not
be exactly divided by 4. The
result is that the number of
cases in each range varies from
10 to 14.

 Notice that the size of ranges

varies greatly, from about
1,100,000 (the smallest range) to
about 24 million (the largest). 17
 Equal Range classification
aims at equal-sized ranges.

 In the example, every range

has an interval of about 7
million.

 This method does not always

reflect the data well.

 Notice that the lowest range

has 42 cases and the highest
range has only 1 case, making
for a very unbalanced map.

18
 Natural Breaks
classification creates
ranges based on
clusters or gaps
within the data itself.

 This makes for

ranges that reflect the
data very well.

 Note however, that

the number of cases
per range and the
size of ranges can
vary considerably.
19
Graph of U.S. 1990 Populations by State, Ascending Order.

2.3 million

4.7 million

10.8 million
29.8 million

Chart with data used in previous example

 Standard Deviation classification
creates classes 1 standard
deviation in size around the mean.

 In the example, the mean value is

about 4.9 million and the
standard deviation is about 4.5
million.

 Four ranges were specified, but

only three ranges are shown
because the lowest range
contains no values.

 In effect, the map shows above

and below average values.
 This type of classification is
popular for highlighting extremes
of data (either much smaller or
21
much bigger than the average.
 Custom Ranges are used to
highlight particular features
of the data (for example,
population between 1 and
3.7 million) or to modify
ranges defined by one of the
other methods.

 Data ranges can be

discontinuous. This is
acceptable, as long care is
taken to ensure that no data
values fall into the gaps.
22
 Colors and Number of Ranges

Notice that all of the examples shown dark high

illustrate a convention in thematic mapping to
use progressively darker shades to
represent progressively higher value ranges. light low

 On the question of how many ranges to use, research has

shown that between 4 and 6 ranges is the most effective.

 Also notice that all of the examples are showing exactly the
same data. Clearly the appearance of a thematic map can
vary greatly depending on the classification method used.
 Which method to use
 In terms of visual effectiveness, maps look better when
there is a balance between data ranges (i.e, there are
about the same number of values in each range)

 The Equal Count and Natural Breaks methods

are
probably the best choices for most general
purposes.
 Usage of colors on cloropleth maps
 Specific color progressions should be used to depict the
data properly, in a way that facilitates interpretation
 Single-hue progressions fade from a dark shade of the chosen
color to a very light shade of relatively the same hue. Common
method used to show magnitude.

 Bi-polar progressions use two hues and are normally used to show
a
change in data numbers from negative to positive.

 Blended hue progressions use related hues to blend together the two
end point hues. This type of color progression is typically used to
show elevation changes.

 Full spectral progression contains hues from blue through red.

Usually not recommended.
 Proportional Symbol Maps
 Also called graduated/graded
symbol maps
 Represent classes of counts,
not individual counts
 Useful for counts that lack
exact location (use regions)

 Can represent continuous or

discrete (ranged) values

 Can represent multiple

variables through juxtaposed
symbols at same locations
 Charts in Thematic Maps
 Can show numeric rates,
numeric densities, or
nominal values
 For densities, the divisor
Pie Chart
is usually the
magnitude of a
geographic area
 Can use various formats
for the charts
Bar Graph
 Can show multiple
 Charts in Thematic Maps
 For data that represent an area, proportional
symbols are a fairly extreme abstraction.

 They provide a very simple overview of data

magnitudes geographically but hide any
geographic variation that might occur inside
the enumeration units to which the data are
aggregated.

 An alternative is the dot map.

 Point Density Maps
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKyOT48OMy8
 Showing a symbol (e.g., a
dot) for each individual or
group of individuals
 Used together with
polygons
 Useful to show densities or
values in a continuous way
 Can be used to show
multiple variables (e.g.,
through multiple colors, dot
sizes, symbols, etc.)
 Fails when many individuals
or groups are present
 Only used when exact
 Effect of changing the dot value

1 dot = 1000 persons

1 dot = 150 persons

• Not surprisingly, dot
maps can vary
substantially in how
well the distribution
of dots on the map
represents the
actual distribution of 1 dot = 300 persons
the phenomena in
the world.
Effect of Changing the Dot Size
 Gridded Thematic Maps (Heatmaps)
 Can show numeric rates
or numeric densities
 Shows continuous
variations for a single
variable
 Colors can be based on
interpolated values
from centroids
 Cartograms
 Special case of proportional symbol mapping. But, in this case, the
“symbol” that is scaled in proportion to a data magnitude is the
geographic area for which data are aggregated.

 Deform map area or map

distance with basis on the
variable being represented
 Area cartograms
 Distance cartograms

 Shows a single variable

 e.g., travel times,
population, …

 Usually combined with other Cartogram of election results with red signifying a
types of thematic mapping Republican majority state and blue a Democratic
majority state.
techniques
 Cartograms
 While the map on the left depicts the majority vote results by
county (with a vast majority of counties for the Republican
candidate), the cartogram on the right shows the areas again
depicted by population (this time with the country rather than state
level data), revealing the larger number of Democratic support.

 The map on the left gives a distorted view (even though it does not
look distorted) because a majority of counties won by the
Republican candidate were low in population and many were large
in area.
 Maps can mislead if you
are not careful or are
unscrupulous.

 Maps are models and all

maps distort the reality!

 Attention to map
scale, feature
selection,
symbolization
metaphors, etc…
 Creating Thematic Maps
 Google Earth Thematic Mapping Engine and API
 http://thematicmapping.org/engine/

 R Project for Statistics

 A Practical Guide to Geostatistical Mapping
 http://spatial-analyst.net/book/