No traveler — genre or otherwise — can get very far without a map. But did you know that maps could chart information that is not related to a place (real or imagined)?
“Places & Spaces: Mapping Science,” an exhibit at the New York Public Library’s Science Industry and Business Library now through the end of August, “compares traditional historical mapping of political entities with the mapping of individual fields of scientific research,” according to the website.
“We need to simplify how science is explained,” said Deborah MacPherson, one of the curators of the show. This exhibit provides a guide to how science has evolved, she said.
The show features 20 maps from traditional early maps with ancient representations of Earth to several specific instances of the mapping of science. Also included, is an interactive module allowing you to create a digital map of a specific area of science.
“We have more information than has ever been accessible to human beings,” said Brad Paley, who created a map in the show that acts as a visual index of a book. Knowledge maps are needed now more than ever, he said, because people need ways to manage the large volume of information available to them.
DETAILS:
What: Places & Spaces: Mapping Science
Where: The New York Public Library’s Science Industry and Business Library
When: April 3 through August 31, 2006
For More Information:
New York Public Library’s Page:
www.nypl.org/research/calendar/exhib/sibl/siblexhibdesc.cfm?id=421
Online Exhibition:
vw.indiana.edu/places&spaces/nypl
