Dear MEL Topic Readers,
UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size
Drawing an accurate two-dimensional flat map of a three-dimensional
sphere is mathematically impossible because flattening a globe always
introduces distortion. In the 18th century during the colonial era, the
Mercator projection became the standard for navigation because it preserves
angles and shapes. Even today, it is the most commonly used map projection, including
Google Maps. However, it inflates the landmasses the farther they are from
the equator. For example, Greenland appears the same size as Africa, but its
real size is comparable to the DR Congo alone. Also, Africa appears the same
size as South America, but it is actually one and a half times as large. On
September 5, sponsored by Togo and supported by the African Union (AU), the “Correct
the Map” resolution was adopted at the UN General Assembly. It aims to correct a
centuries-old visual bias that makes Africa appear smaller in education, media,
and global policy, and to present Africa’s true size. Since the resolution is
not binding, Africa might be shown in different proportions on world maps, at least
for a while. The USA was the only state that voted against the “Make Africa Greater
Resolution”. It seems that the current administration wants to redraw the world
map to make America look greater.
Read the article and learn what world maps mean to Africa.
No comments:
Post a Comment