Thematic map facts for kids
A thematic map is a special kind of map. Unlike a regular map that shows roads and cities, a thematic map focuses on showing where certain things are located. It helps us understand how different features or information are spread out.
For example, a map that shows where most people live in a country is a thematic map. It highlights a specific "theme" – in this case, population. These maps are great for seeing patterns in data, whether it's about people, animals, or even weather.
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What Are Thematic Maps?
Thematic maps are designed to tell a story about a specific topic. They don't just show you places; they show you information related to those places. Think of them as maps that answer a question, like "Where is it hottest?" or "Where do most people speak a certain language?".
These maps use different colors, symbols, or patterns to represent data. This makes it easy to see trends and compare information across different areas. They are very useful for studying geography, science, and even history.
Famous Examples of Thematic Maps
The idea of thematic maps has been around for a long time. People have used them to understand the world better for centuries. Let's look at some important examples.
Edmond Halley's Wind Map
One of the first people to make a thematic map was an English astronomer named Edmond Halley (1656–1742). You might know him from Halley's Comet! In 1686, he published a map of the Earth that showed trade winds.
This map was very new and different. It showed the direction and strength of winds across the globe. Some people even call it the first "weather map" because it focused on a specific weather theme.
John Snow's Cholera Map
Another famous example comes from a doctor in London named John Snow. In 1854, he made a map to understand a serious cholera outbreak. Cholera was a deadly disease that spread quickly.
Snow's map showed a neighborhood in London with streets and water pump locations. He then marked each cholera death with a dot on the map. He noticed that most of the dots were clustered around one particular water pump on Broad Street.
Snow asked for the handle of that pump to be removed. After that, new cholera cases almost stopped! Further investigation showed that the pump was near a dirty pit where waste collected. This map helped prove that cholera spread through contaminated water. Snow's method was a very early example of how we use computer systems today to look at maps and data, called a geographic information system (GIS).
Images for kids
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Edmond Halley's New and Correct Chart Showing the Variations of the Compass (1701), the first chart to show lines of equal magnetic variation.
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Proportional symbol map of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
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Dot density map showing the incidence of malaria in Africa. Source: WHO (2017).
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Flow map depicting US aid to Africa in 2016. Source: USAID.
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Choropleth map of water use.
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Isarithmic map of barometric pressure.
See also
In Spanish: Mapa temático para niños
