The presentation of information in a table, diagram, or map can be as important, or even more important, than the words that accompany it. For instance, people often remember an image from a science textbook long after they have forgotten the words written near the image explaining it. While the orientation or shape of a map might seem harmless, it can have a significant effect on the perception of the relative importance of different places.
Map Orientation—Up is the New Down
Most maps of earth have north at the top (so north is up). However, this map orientation is arbitrary. Putting north at the top of maps became standard when European exploration was at its height in the 16th century. This might have been because Europeans navigated using the North Star and magnetic compasses, or it might just have been because they liked to keep themselves at the top of the world. Regardless, map orientation with north at the top has led people to refer to places as being “above” or “below” others. People also say that they travel “up” or “down” to visit these locations. Because people often assume height correlates with importance, the north-up convention reinforces the idea that countries or people in the north are more important than those in the south. When the South Pole is rotated so that it is “up” on a map, the unfamiliar orientation forces people to view the world from a fresh perspective (SF Fig. 1.6).

Map Shape—Mercator Maps
Mercator-projection maps are a type of cylindrical-projection map commonly used in classrooms. Whereas all maps distort the earth’s surface in some way, the Mercator projection displays a grossly distorted image of the area and boundaries of landmasses. This is because a Mercator map displays the spherical earth as a rectangle with perpendicular lines of longitude and latitude, when in reality these lines are circular. Mercator maps are useful for nautical navigation, but they are a poor choice for learning about the earth. The Mercator map has generated a lot of confusion about geography (SF Fig. 1.7 A) as compared to other types of map projections (for example, pseudocylindrical maps, SF Fig. 1.7 B). For example, on a Mercator map, Europe looks larger than South America, and Africa looks the same size as Greenland. In reality, South America is more than 50% larger than Europe, and Greenland it is one-fourteenth the size of Africa.
Maps convey data, but they also convey ideas and opinions. When viewing a map, remember that each type provides a unique perspective, and it is important to understand that perspective in order to correctly use and interpret the map.