2951: Bad Map Projection: Exterior Kansas - Revision history

82.132.245.239: /* Explanation */ Case correction

2025-08-29T09:56:27Z

‎Explanation: Case correction

Jkshapiro: /* Explanation */ Remove irrelevant detail

2025-06-29T16:46:47Z

‎Explanation: Remove irrelevant detail

172.70.126.25: /* Explanation */

2025-04-27T20:09:13Z

‎Explanation

Kynde: /* Explanation */

2025-03-07T11:30:20Z

‎Explanation

Kynde: /* Explanation */

2025-03-07T11:29:54Z

‎Explanation

Kynde: /* Explanation */

2025-03-07T11:27:34Z

‎Explanation

172.70.134.87: /* Explanation */ title text now explained

2024-08-29T14:55:53Z

‎Explanation: title text now explained

PaulEberhardt: /* Explanation */ fixed a typo in what I just wrote

2024-08-26T09:17:08Z

‎Explanation: fixed a typo in what I just wrote

PaulEberhardt: Hope I did it right now.

2024-08-26T09:10:15Z

Hope I did it right now.

141.101.98.61: Undo revision 349388 by PaulEberhardt (talk) Try again. Use the Preview button..?

2024-08-26T07:53:27Z

Undo revision 349388 by PaulEberhardt (talk) Try again. Use the Preview button..?

@@ Line 28: / Line 28: @@
 [[File:now.gif|325px|thumb|left|The map in [[1335: Now]] shows an exterior {{w|Arctic Ocean}} and Antarctica in the center]]
-{{Clear}}
+{{clear}}
 ==Transcript==

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 [[File:Azimuthal_equidistant_projection_SW.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Polar {{w|azimuthal equidistant projection}}, as on the {{w|flag of the United Nations}}, but with an "exterior Antarctica"]]
-If Alaska and Hawaii were present in this map and represented in geographically accurate locations (as opposed to inset, as is common in many maps of the United States), Alaska would in the upper right of the empty space, between Minnesota and Washington, while Hawaii would be in the center to the right, off the coast of California. Both would be rather small, with Hawaii particularly compressed (to an extent dictated by the exact projection method used). Additionally, if all 50 states were included, the geographical center would be further to the northwest, resulting in an "Exterior South Dakota" projection.
+If Alaska and Hawaii were present in this map and represented in geographically accurate locations (as opposed to inset, as is common in many maps of the United States), Alaska would in the upper right of the empty space, between Minnesota and Washington, while Hawaii would be in the center to the right, off the coast of California. Both would be rather small, with Hawaii particularly compressed (to an extent dictated by the exact projection method used).
 The title text refers to the fact that {{w|Geographic center of the United States#Contiguous United States|the geographic center of the contiguous United States}} is within Kansas. This map projection instead causes Kansas to show up as the exterior of the US, which makes it the outer edge.

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 ==Explanation==
-This is the seventh comic in the series of [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|Bad Map Projections]] displaying Bad Map Projection  #45: Exterior Kansas. It came about 11 months after the sixth [[2807: Bad Map Projection: ABS(Longitude)]] (#152), and was followed 3,5 months later by [[2999: Bad Map Projection: The United Stralia]] (#102).
+This is the seventh comic in the series of [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|Bad Map Projections]] displaying Bad Map Projection  #45: Exterior Kansas. It came about 11 months after the sixth [[2807: Bad Map Projection: ABS(Longitude)]] (#152), and was followed 3.5 months later by [[2999: Bad Map Projection: The United Stralia]] (#102).
 [[File:Exterior_Kansas_Azimuthal_Projection.png|thumb|left|Projection of the world from the same perspective as the comic. This uses an azimuthal equidistant projection, so distances from the center point (39°50′S 98°35′E) are correct but areas are distorted.]]

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 This comic portrays an unusual projection of a map of the contiguous United States based loosely on an {{w|azimuthal projection}}. Maps of individual countries are common, especially in academic settings. It is typical for such maps, which only display a limited area of the globe, to use a projection that does not severely distort the shape of the country or its internal borders, but a country that is large enough (as with the United States) will always noticeably suffer from certain distortions of at least one element chosen from distances, areas or angles. This usually occurs at its extremities (though some projections can be made more faithful to its extremities at the expense of distorting its interior).
-Here, however, Randall has opted for a much different projection. Rather than placing the geographical center of the country in the middle and the borders on the outside, this map has gone the opposite direction, with the border of the US toward the center, and the geographical center of the contiguous US (Kansas) and surrounding states distorted to surround the entire map. This, understandably, results in the shape of both the national and state borders being largely unrecognizable as it effectively puts ''every'' bit of the chosen map features out towards the distorted extremities. Much of the internal area of Kansas itself (should one wish to display further internal features) may be located far beyond the comic's edges, perhaps even to infinitely far away on the projected plane.
+Here, however, [[Randall]] has opted for a much different projection. Rather than placing the geographical center of the country in the middle and the borders on the outside, this map has gone the opposite direction, with the border of the US toward the center, and the geographical center of the contiguous US (Kansas) and surrounding states distorted to surround the entire map. This, understandably, results in the shape of both the national and state borders being largely unrecognizable as it effectively puts ''every'' bit of the chosen map features out towards the distorted extremities. Much of the internal area of Kansas itself (should one wish to display further internal features) may be located far beyond the comic's edges, perhaps even to infinitely far away on the projected plane.
 [[File:Azimuthal_equidistant_projection_SW.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Polar {{w|azimuthal equidistant projection}}, as on the {{w|flag of the United Nations}}, but with an "exterior Antarctica"]]

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 ==Explanation==
-This is the seventh comic in the series of [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|Bad Map Projections]] displaying Bad Map Projection  #45: Exterior Kansas. It came about 11 months after the sixth [[2807: Bad Map Projection: ABS(Longitude)]] (#152), and was followed 4 months later by [[2999: Bad Map Projection: The United Stralia]] (#102).
+This is the seventh comic in the series of [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|Bad Map Projections]] displaying Bad Map Projection  #45: Exterior Kansas. It came about 11 months after the sixth [[2807: Bad Map Projection: ABS(Longitude)]] (#152), and was followed 3,5 months later by [[2999: Bad Map Projection: The United Stralia]] (#102).
 [[File:Exterior_Kansas_Azimuthal_Projection.png|thumb|left|Projection of the world from the same perspective as the comic. This uses an azimuthal equidistant projection, so distances from the center point (39°50′S 98°35′E) are correct but areas are distorted.]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:55, 29 August 2024
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	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	~~{{incomplete\|The title text isn't explained}}~~
	This is the seventh comic in the series of [[:Category:Bad Map Projections\|Bad Map Projections]] displaying Bad Map Projection #45: Exterior Kansas.		This is the seventh comic in the series of [[:Category:Bad Map Projections\|Bad Map Projections]] displaying Bad Map Projection #45: Exterior Kansas.

@@ Line 26: / Line 26: @@
 The statement that ''topologists now believe it's actually their outer edge'' plays with the notion that map projections influence your perspective on the world, as it is known to be the case with more familiar examples like Mercator vs. Gall-Peters projections, or world maps with the South Pole on top and so on. Similarly, or so the claim goes, any notions of interior and edge may just be a matter of perspective.
-If you were to enclose a small square in four walls, but define this to be the outside, you'd effectively create a roofless building of which the floor area encompasses almost the entire surface of the Earth (minus the small square) - see ''So Long And Thanks For All The Fish'' by Douglas Adams for a classic example of this gag. Randall has always been fond of exploring the way map projections influence our perspective both in a parodistic way and by playing it straight, e.g. in: [[503: Terminology]], [[977: Map Projections]], or [[2838: Dubious Islands]]
+If you were to enclose a small square in four walls, but define this to be the outside, you'd effectively create a roofless building of which the floor area encompasses almost the entire surface of the Earth (minus the small square) - see ''So Long And Thanks For All The Fish'' by Douglas Adams for a classic example of this gag. Randall has always been fond of exploring how map projections influence our perspective both in a parodistic way and by playing it straight, e.g. in: [[503: Terminology]], [[977: Map Projections]], or [[2838: Dubious Islands]]
 [[File:now.gif|325px|thumb|left|The map in [[1335: Now]] shows an exterior {{w|Arctic Ocean}} and Antarctica in the center]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:10, 26 August 2024
Line 24:		Line 24:

	The title text refers to the fact that {{w\|Geographic center of the United States#Contiguous United States\|the geographic center of the contiguous United States}} is within Kansas. This map projection instead causes Kansas to show up as the exterior of the US, which makes it the outer edge.		The title text refers to the fact that {{w\|Geographic center of the United States#Contiguous United States\|the geographic center of the contiguous United States}} is within Kansas. This map projection instead causes Kansas to show up as the exterior of the US, which makes it the outer edge.
		+
		+	The statement that ''topologists now believe it's actually their outer edge'' plays with the notion that map projections influence your perspective on the world, as it is known to be the case with more familiar examples like Mercator vs. Gall-Peters projections, or world maps with the South Pole on top and so on. Similarly, or so the claim goes, any notions of interior and edge may just be a matter of perspective.
		+	If you were to enclose a small square in four walls, but define this to be the outside, you'd effectively create a roofless building of which the floor area encompasses almost the entire surface of the Earth (minus the small square) - see ''So Long And Thanks For All The Fish'' by Douglas Adams for a classic example of this gag. Randall has always been fond of exploring the way map projections influence our perspective both in a parodistic way and by playing it straight, e.g. in: [[503: Terminology]], [[977: Map Projections]], or [[2838: Dubious Islands]]

	[[File:now.gif\|325px\|thumb\|left\|The map in [[1335: Now]] shows an exterior {{w\|Arctic Ocean}} and Antarctica in the center]]		[[File:now.gif\|325px\|thumb\|left\|The map in [[1335: Now]] shows an exterior {{w\|Arctic Ocean}} and Antarctica in the center]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:53, 26 August 2024
Line 24:		Line 24:

	The title text refers to the fact that {{w\|Geographic center of the United States#Contiguous United States\|the geographic center of the contiguous United States}} is within Kansas. This map projection instead causes Kansas to show up as the exterior of the US, which makes it the outer edge.		The title text refers to the fact that {{w\|Geographic center of the United States#Contiguous United States\|the geographic center of the contiguous United States}} is within Kansas. This map projection instead causes Kansas to show up as the exterior of the US, which makes it the outer edge.
−	he statement that ''topologists now believe it's actually their outer edge'' draws on the same concept as Wonko the Sane's house in ''So Long And Thanks For All The Fish'' by Douglas Adams. Said house has its outer walls on the inside, declaring the rest of the world to be inside an asylum for its own safety. By challenging common notions about what's outside and inside by a radical change of perspective Wonko the Sane effectively constructed a building with the floor area of almost the entire Earth's surface (works only on 3D-surfaces like a planet). Similarly, this map projection seems to declare that you can see geographical centre of the USA as their outer edge, if you just change your perspective. The map projections we're familiar with may have a great influence on our perspective on the world (cf. Mercator vs. Gall-Peters projections, Winkel-Triple projection centred on China, Australian world map with South on top, and so on), a topic Randall has always been fond of exploring both in a parodistic way or playing it straight, e.g.: [[https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/503:_Terminology]][[https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/977:_Map_Projections]][[https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/2838:_Dubious_Islands]]

	[[File:now.gif\|325px\|thumb\|left\|The map in [[1335: Now]] shows an exterior {{w\|Arctic Ocean}} and Antarctica in the center]]		[[File:now.gif\|325px\|thumb\|left\|The map in [[1335: Now]] shows an exterior {{w\|Arctic Ocean}} and Antarctica in the center]]