Pando
@pando-pop.bsky.social
Musical svengali type. Anti-war, antifascist.
The map projection has nothing to do with it: the flaw is putting the centre of the world in Europe. Also, Region A includes France, which has one or two dishes beyond herring.
September 19, 2025 at 2:40 PM
The map projection has nothing to do with it: the flaw is putting the centre of the world in Europe. Also, Region A includes France, which has one or two dishes beyond herring.
"Anti-Antifa" lol! I wonder whether they stopped to think what "Fa" stands for. I blame the Yanks for pronouncing it to rhyme with reefer instead of anti-fa.
September 14, 2025 at 4:12 PM
"Anti-Antifa" lol! I wonder whether they stopped to think what "Fa" stands for. I blame the Yanks for pronouncing it to rhyme with reefer instead of anti-fa.
Soviet Union leading the way
September 13, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Soviet Union leading the way
Harsh on Mercator - people who hate it definitely aren't into maps.
September 13, 2025 at 9:18 AM
Harsh on Mercator - people who hate it definitely aren't into maps.
Yes, it's strange. I assume they're making a distinction between North and Central America.
September 13, 2025 at 9:16 AM
Yes, it's strange. I assume they're making a distinction between North and Central America.
The top half of the North American line is only about 500km.
September 13, 2025 at 9:09 AM
The top half of the North American line is only about 500km.
In Mercator - like all projections - the hemispheres are the same size. Also, for years this projection has been called Gall-Peters, since Gall first designed it in the 1850s, Peters merely ripped it off. If you want to promote an equal-area map, surely Equal Earth is superior to this hideous map.
September 9, 2025 at 7:52 AM
In Mercator - like all projections - the hemispheres are the same size. Also, for years this projection has been called Gall-Peters, since Gall first designed it in the 1850s, Peters merely ripped it off. If you want to promote an equal-area map, surely Equal Earth is superior to this hideous map.
This is nonsense. Russia is wider than Africa, and well over half its size - almost twice as big as it is in this picture.
September 6, 2025 at 7:28 AM
This is nonsense. Russia is wider than Africa, and well over half its size - almost twice as big as it is in this picture.
That figure would be taking a shortcut from one end of Russia to the other via the Arctic Ocean - Russia is a lot wider than Africa.
September 6, 2025 at 7:13 AM
That figure would be taking a shortcut from one end of Russia to the other via the Arctic Ocean - Russia is a lot wider than Africa.
Chile is the undisputed champion of extreme country shapes.
September 6, 2025 at 7:10 AM
Chile is the undisputed champion of extreme country shapes.
All map projections are legit, but Gall-Peters (as it's now called, since Peters simply ripped off Gall's design from the 19th Century) is not exactly the most elegant equal-area projection. The new Equal Earth projection is much better, for instance.
September 6, 2025 at 7:06 AM
All map projections are legit, but Gall-Peters (as it's now called, since Peters simply ripped off Gall's design from the 19th Century) is not exactly the most elegant equal-area projection. The new Equal Earth projection is much better, for instance.
Over 50 years ago, and boy were they interested at the time! Arno Peters was the supreme grifter: the one talent he had was for self-promotion.
September 5, 2025 at 8:31 AM
Over 50 years ago, and boy were they interested at the time! Arno Peters was the supreme grifter: the one talent he had was for self-promotion.
If the point of the projection were to make certain countries bigger, then it would be useless as a map. Also, why would they make Europe dwarfed by the Arctic?
September 5, 2025 at 8:29 AM
If the point of the projection were to make certain countries bigger, then it would be useless as a map. Also, why would they make Europe dwarfed by the Arctic?
I don't agree. Nobody has ever thought big means more important until recently - quite the opposite: powerful countries are traditionally small, while big countries are dominated by deserts, mountains, tundra.
September 5, 2025 at 8:26 AM
I don't agree. Nobody has ever thought big means more important until recently - quite the opposite: powerful countries are traditionally small, while big countries are dominated by deserts, mountains, tundra.
A very poor statement. Mercator hasn't made any students think that, unless those students didn't pay attention. Ignorance is no excuse.
September 5, 2025 at 8:24 AM
A very poor statement. Mercator hasn't made any students think that, unless those students didn't pay attention. Ignorance is no excuse.
Trans is a divisive issue on the left, they'd be mad to commit themselves one way or another - the idea is to have as broad a socialist movement as possible, not one that will shatter into a hundred factions before it even has a manifesto.
September 1, 2025 at 8:01 AM
Trans is a divisive issue on the left, they'd be mad to commit themselves one way or another - the idea is to have as broad a socialist movement as possible, not one that will shatter into a hundred factions before it even has a manifesto.
Keeping Europe in the centre also keeps Africa in the centre. Generally it makes sense to have the Prime Meridian in the middle.
August 31, 2025 at 8:37 AM
Keeping Europe in the centre also keeps Africa in the centre. Generally it makes sense to have the Prime Meridian in the middle.
Actually, historically they did the opposite: European imperialists were - and are - proud of how small their countries were and how huge the colonies they'd conquered were. British, Dutch, Portuguese etc. maps would often exaggerate the size of their colonies. "Big is better" is a very US mindset.
August 31, 2025 at 8:36 AM
Actually, historically they did the opposite: European imperialists were - and are - proud of how small their countries were and how huge the colonies they'd conquered were. British, Dutch, Portuguese etc. maps would often exaggerate the size of their colonies. "Big is better" is a very US mindset.
No, equal-area projections have been around since the 19th Century, not 1999, but their use is limited to size comparison, unlike Mercator. Mercator wasn't "found to be inaccurate": every map projection is inaccurate by definition because it's projecting a sphere onto a 2D image.
August 31, 2025 at 8:29 AM
No, equal-area projections have been around since the 19th Century, not 1999, but their use is limited to size comparison, unlike Mercator. Mercator wasn't "found to be inaccurate": every map projection is inaccurate by definition because it's projecting a sphere onto a 2D image.
Ignoring the flags might be the best solution - they want a rise out of people taking them down so that they can have their tantrums.
August 28, 2025 at 9:14 AM
Ignoring the flags might be the best solution - they want a rise out of people taking them down so that they can have their tantrums.
Nonsense, a projection can't be racist.
August 28, 2025 at 8:21 AM
Nonsense, a projection can't be racist.
Oops, I'm a bit slow. The rest is bullshit too.
August 26, 2025 at 8:23 AM
Oops, I'm a bit slow. The rest is bullshit too.
The Mercator projection doesn't shrink anything: the equator is undistorted and everything else is enlarged.
August 26, 2025 at 7:32 AM
The Mercator projection doesn't shrink anything: the equator is undistorted and everything else is enlarged.