Geography 7 Assignment 1 (J.Vallejo)

This map can be found using the following link, (http://www.creativeclass.com/_v3/creative_class/category/creative-class-consumption/page/2). Although the map was found on the creativeclass.com website, the map is from a source known as Strange Maps. The map attempts to display the "Best Beer in America" geographically. The darker states refer to states in which the most medal-winning beers were won, while the lighter states have the least medal-winning beers. With 474 medals, this map would indicate that California has the best beer in America. Other than the fact that it discusses beer, I found this map interesting because of the geographic approach. They are not interested in which beer is the best, but rather where the best beer is located. The data is based on results from the Grand American Beer Festival, which clearly has an influence on the map since it is the opinion of this one festival which determines the medal winners. Furthermore, this map may have been more helpful if it accounted for the worst beer as well. Although it may be difficult, creating some sort of deductions for bad beers will give a better illustration of the best state(s) for beer. If only successful beers are accounted for, larger states will have the advantage (more opportunities to succeed without punishment for failure).


This map can be found on the following link - (http://bigthink.com/strange-maps/308-the-pop-vs-soda-map). I found this map on the Strange Maps website although it was produced by Matthew T. Campbell of East Central University (Oklahoma) as indicated on the map itself. This map illustrates the regional variations (by county) in the use of generic names for soft drinks. The map illustrates what percentages of a certain regional population use the term "pop", "coke", "soda", or "other" to refer to soft drinks. I found this map interesting because I personally use the term "soda" and was curious how other regions vary in there usage. I was surprised to see that "soda" is not the most dominant term used across the United States. Furthermore, although I had heard the term "pop" before, I was further surprised to see that the term "coke" was so prevalent in the South. The article indicated that this phenomenon may be explained by the fact that Coca-Cola was originally manufactured in Atlanta, Georgia. Lastly, I found it interesting that there is a significant portion of Missouri and Illinois that use the term "soda" 80-100% when they are surrounded by "pop" and "coke" usage.

 
This map can be found on the following link  - (http://bigthink.com/strange-maps/297-the-south-shall-snack-again). I found this map on Strange Maps but the original location is indicated as frostfirezoo.com on the article. This map illustrates the percentage of adult obesity by state over a three-year period (2005-2007). The map indicates that Colorado is the "leanest state", with the lowest percentage of adult obesity (18.4%) and that Mississippi is the "fattest state", with the highest percentage of adult obesity (31.6%). I found this map interesting because the subject matter was interesting. I have never seen data on obesity rates and I was curious how California compared to the rest of the country. I was surprised to see that more than half of U.S. states have higher obesity rates than California. Furthermore, it was both surprising and frightening to think that about 1/4 of adults in each state were obese. Given that the data is about 5 years old I hope that these numbers have improved.