Kelsey Yoder-Ostroski's Portfolio of Geographic Information Science

 Proportional and Bivariate Maps Representing multiple variables in a single design Proportional Maps Often we will need to represent quantitative data. Proportional (often called graduated) symbol maps are an intuitive method of displaying quantities. By using ratios, we can show a range of symbols to indicate quantity or importance. However, creating an effective proportional map can be challenging due to overlapping symbols and the human tendency to over or underestimate size.  The following map depicts the population size of major cities in India. I chose a proportional (or graduated) symbology of three sizes for this map. Circles are a common symbol for point classes and each circle represents a magnitude of class (population) size. Since humans have a difficult time discerning the differences between shape size, it is important to choose symbols that will be easy to interpret. Small, medium, and large are intuitive to most readers. The major challenge of this map was determining

Visual Storytelling  Presenting Information in Pictures Painting from the Lascaux Caves in Eastern France A star map was discovered among these 17,000 years old cave drawings (Photo from the French Ministry of Culture) Humans are innately a visual species. We look for patterns, demand order and balance, and cue into color. Readers come to the map with expectations and prior experience; they expect what is presented to them to follow conventional reading rules and patterns. By encoding our information in a visually hierarchical way, we provide structure and reassurance to the reader. Elements are ordered by importance and balance provides a pleasing aesthetic. Color plays an especially important storytelling aspect as color palettes tap into Jungian archetypes, emotional connotations, and affective expression. By combining hierarchy, color, and symbology, we can use cartography to tell an effective visual story. For this project, we were tasked to collect data from 2018 County Health Ra

 Playing with Color It's a very serious business Creative Commons Oh, hello first grade color wheel. Why are you here? I thought we were in grad school? Oh, you're here to completely disillusion me from the notion that I know what color is? Cool. Color is an important aspect of cartography that often goes unnoticed by the majority of readers. However, color choice plays a critical, unspoken aspect of design and messaging. We can look at color through the Jungian lens: white is pure, red is bold and bloody, green is growth and life, and so on. The meaning of color is dependent on culture and historical trends.  But what about the scientific approach to color? Color is our human perception of the electromagnetic spectrum. We are seeing the absorption, reflection, and interference of light. Our interpretation of these wavelengths is affected by vision, light, and cultural understanding. Naming paint in the hardware store "Canyon Dusk" and "Moondust" is one way

Visualizing Terrain in ArcGIS Pro Ever hear the joke about the topographic map? It was hill-arious! As stated in my last blog post, the world is not flat but traditional mapping is. So how do we go about translating 3D objects into a 2D space?  Terrain visualization is the process of representing either the physical characteristics of the terrain or phenomena occurring at that location. The goal is to provide a visual and intuitive understanding of a specific area's topography and landscape features. Frequently slope and elevation, rainfall, and landcover are recorded and symbolized in various methods. By combining recorded measurements with location and elevation, we can analyze possible patterns and make more accurate predictions.  Contour lines are lines on a map or a two-dimensional representation that connect points of equal elevation above a reference point, usually sea level. These lines help visualize the shape and relief of the land, indicating changes in elevation across

 The Perfect Projection Finding a solution to the persnickety problem of projections The world is not flat.  Ok, maybe you already knew that. I think we all already know that (not looking at you, flat-earthers). So, if we all already know and understand that the world is round, why is mapmaking so vexing?  The problem is: the world IS round. Maybe you've already noticed but most maps are flat. They exist on paper, on cellphones, on the GPS of our cars, and sometimes on really cool scrolls an adventure unfurls dramatically before the big battle. Until we get bigger pockets, nobody will carry around a globe for quick reference. The second problem is: the world IS NOT round. No, I am not conceding to the flat-earthers. The world is still a sphere but it's full of imperfections (aren't we all). There are mountains and oceans: gravity pulls and pushes the planet into an oblique spheroid. One of the most basic, yet most challenging, conundrum for mapmakers is to recreate the actu

  The Importance of Typography Or why Times New Roman is so last Century Gothic Alternatively, what the Helvetica is going on with fonts?      So this is going to sound kooky, but fonts have personality. No, not fronts or fronds or fondue-- fonts. You probably remember your teacher telling you, " Only use Times New Roman or you'll never get into college! " Yes, the thing you probably can barely describe but completely surrounds you in print media. It's on your favorite bag of chips, your comfy sweater, and on the computer screen right in front of you.       Font, or typography,  is the purposefully and carefully chosen craft of choosing how words and symbols appear in print media. It conveys personality and purpose. It taps into the Jungian archetypes-- from heroic to villainous, from analytical to whimsical, and to everything in between.  "elefonts" by John Atkinson     Cartographers employ the same skills in order to communicate effectively. Just like ther