TresSugar

Where I'm Clicking Now: Global Electoral College

LibertySugar — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 11:00:15 -0700

The Economist polled the world to find out who would win the US election if the result depended on a global electoral college. The results so far: Obama would win 9,103 votes to McCain's 163. The poll gives every country a minimum of three votes, and then allocates additional votes based on the proportion of the world's 6.5 billion voting population located in each country.

The methodology becomes less than scientific after that, as those visiting the website to vote make up the sample. Once a country has more than 10 votes, the results get added to the map. As of now, Afghanistan and Iran are strong Obama countries, while Iraq's 43 electoral votes seem secure in the McCain column. Macedonia is the only country in Europe leaning McCain right now, in addition to a few countries in Africa.

The fact that the world is painted solid blue hints that the international media must have painted Obama in a positive light. It also provides evidence that a President Obama could help make the American brand internationally popular again.

Source

Voting by the Book: Amazon Maps US's Political Reading List

CitizenSugar — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 10:00:13 -0700

If our electoral map were as red as Amazon's map of our political book-buying habits, things would be looking up for John McCain. Yet while Americans are buying up conservative books, our electoral map is getting bluer and bluer each day.

I initially chalked up this discrepancy to how unscientific Amazon's map is. After all, so many variables could affect this. Like how book publishers began feverishly launching conservative imprints five years ago to keep up with an increasing public demand. Could there just be a lot of conservative books to buy right now? Maybe they are better? Republicans tend to be older and older people read print over websites. Or maybe Democrats are at the library, or just buying all their books at indie stores. Who knows?

However, I became more convinced of a real connection when I compared the 2008 map to the 2004. I couldn't help but concoct a few theories about what we're ~~reading~~ buying. To see what I found, read more.

The map this year is much redder than it was four years ago; however, we elected a Republican president then and, if polls can be believed, we're about to elect a Democratic president. It could be possible that people read more when they're looking for answers, or an alternative to a reality they don't like. Did Democrats fear Republican control in 2004? Are Republicans worried about a Democratic president, Senate, and Congress today? Or is this just a meaningless map to help Amazon sell books?

Source

The Atlas of the Real World Maps Out Demographic Importance

LibertySugar — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:30:32 -0700

The Telegraph recently featured The Atlas of the Real World: Mapping the Way We Live, which uses software to illustrate countries around the world, not by their land size, but by their demographic rank on a range of subjects. The size of each country represents its land mass in proportion to that of the others.

The atlas depicts a whole assortment of topics - from tourist destinations, alcohol consumption, wealth in the year one versus wealth in 1990. I was intrigued by the images above, which show (1) the increase in emissions of carbon dioxide and (2) the decrease in emissions of carbon dioxide. Between 1980 and 2000, nearly three-quarters of all territories saw an increase in carbon dioxide emissions with China, the United States, and India leading the pack. Between 1980 and 2000, 28 percent of countries reduced their emissions. Almost half of reductions were made in territories of the former Soviet Union, while Germany, Poland, and France also made substantial cuts.

Does Your Personality Match Your State of Residence & Mind?

CitizenSugar — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 06:00:00 -0700

Think you can judge a person by the state they live in? It might not be such a crazy notion according to new research on the geography of personality. Controlling for factors like race, income, and education, the study profiled 600,000 Americans with a 44-question personality test that evaluates five traits: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness.

Using those results and cross-checking them with stats on crime and health seem to seal the deal on one's state of mind lining up with one's state of residence. High amiability means lower crime, high anxiety points to poor health and lowered life expectancy.

Of course the results spark questions like whether certain states encourage specific personalities by culture, climate, or common history - or whether we just choose to live where we feel most at home. Those questions aside, the results and the interactive maps? Fun times! Very nicely done, Wall Street Journal.

To see some of the most unusual findings, read more.

North Dakota was pegged the most outgoing state in the union.
Despite Puritanical stereotypes, New England ranked at the bottom of the "conscientious" scale.
Scoring well on the "openness" scale strongly correlates to liberal social values and Democratic voting habits - however three of the top ten "open" states (Nevada, Colorado and Virginia) tend to swing Red.
Most conscientious? Florida. (Maybe there's a tie between living in a coastal paradise and pitying others who don't?)
Anxiety isn't just tied to high-powered jobs and a fast lifestyle. States stressed by poverty, like West Virginia and Mississippi also proved highly neurotic.

Where does your state stack up? Is it possible to make generalizations about the personality of an entire state's population? Do you match yours?

Where I'm Clicking Now: Find Your Last Name in the World!

CitizenSugar — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 07:00:43 -0700

Where in the world is Carmen San Diego? If you search for her using the World Names Profiler map, apparently "Sandiego" is mostly found in France. I saved this little gem for the weekend because you'll want lots of time to play with it. Just plug in your last name and see where most of your kinfolk live, instantly.

This map is for "Smith," which isn't as worldwide as the Witness Protection Program might like you to think. . . I've heard, anyway. Now go search for your own name, it's fun and easy! Where is your family tree planted?

Source

Top 10 Places We'll Show You That Google Can't!

CitizenSugar — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 15:45:34 -0700

Ah, Google Maps. That street view function that's captured so many a crazy scene has raised security, political, and privacy hackles the world over. From refugee camps to British swimming pools the program's reach is pervasive - so much so that this list of 51 places impervious from spying eyes grabbed my attention - and made me want to see what Google has to hide. Not just the locations, but the reasons behind the pixelation, behold, the top 10 sites that you won't find on Google Maps.

View Slideshow ›

Blessed Be the Answer to the Soda vs. Pop Question in a Map!

CitizenSugar — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 06:00:22 -0700

Oh, answer from the heavens to the existential question that's plagued mankind since the dawn of liquid, what, oh what, in all that is holy-regional-specificity do we call that most bubbly of beverages? Oh, map of the ages, slake my thirst for knowledge!

So yeah. Soda or Pop - or in a crazy Southern specialness that can't at all come from the fact that Coke is based there, Coke. What do you call it? This map will save you from ever having that conversation again - though by all means use it as an icebreaker and then pop them (heh.) with your fizzy drink fountain of knowledge. Maps. Ah, refreshing.

Source

Are 50 States Overrated? What If the US Only Had 38 States. . .

CitizenSugar — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 06:00:04 -0700

This would have made memorizing the capitals a whole lot easier. In 1973 a California geography professor proposed a redrawing of the states to limit them to 38, instead of the 50 we're used to. With names like Ozark, Cascade, and Alamo, the redrawing isn't just for fun, it's kind of a smart idea.

Aimed to limit the number of big cities within each state, to even out tax revenue and make benefits fair. Even the new names had a purpose - to reflect the cultural history of the regions. The 38 state proposal went for a vote in DC but was soundly defeated. The work going into scrapping all of the infrastructure, setting up new voting districts - basically starting from scratch made it pretty unworkable. Too bad, because I dig the thought behind it. Could you see the plan working? Signing off from El Dorado. . . .

To see where the big cities would lie in the wacky 38 state country, mentalfloss has plotted them out. To see them, read more.

Source

Where I'm Clicking Now: Prove Your Geographic Prowess!

CitizenSugar — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 00:00:29 -0700

Think you could still get an A in Geography class, no problem? Try your hand at this quiz. It's a drag-and-drop fill in the blank country map and it's deceptively challenging.

Though there's no punishment (or eraser needed) if you foul up, the big red "X" and buzzer will let all know you don't know your Yemen from your Oman. Give it a go! I'm warning you though, those smaller countries can be slippery little suckers.

Where I'm Clicking Now: NYT Interactive Olympic Medal Maps

CitizenSugar — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:21 -0700

Oh maps, how I love thee. A little treasure trove of info at every glance - and these maps have treasure of the gold, silver, and bronze variety. The New York Times is breaking it down for the big Games with this interactive map that lets you search all the way back to 1896, to see which countries bagged the most hardware - the bigger the dot that represents the country, the more medals won.

Click through and track the trends - and since 66 percent of you said it's not important for the US to win the most, you'll be secure with the fact that in 1936 Germany bested the US. That's the other cool feature, you can see the results looking like a map, or arranged in order of dominance. Gold medal for this map to my friends at the Times!

To see how the 1984 (Mary Lou Retton!) medal count compares to 2004, read more.

Source