Why cartographers need to play politics

Cartographers need to play politics. Well, not all cartographers, drawing maps of sewer systems, for example, is different to drawing maps of rail networks. But for this situation, let's talk about drawing a map of the countries of the world.

How many countries are there? You might be thinking "Someone else has already done that for me, I'll just count them from someone else's map" well you could, but who's map are you counting from? "What do you mean, aren't they all the same?" you may be thinking-  NO. "Well, then, let's ask the United Nations" you might be thinking- they will reply "193" (or maybe 195) "Okay" you're thinking, "Then why do different maps have different numbers? Are they wrong?" No "Are they outdated?" Well maybe, and historical maps are interesting, but let's assume that your maps are up-to-date. Why do different maps have different numbers of countries? Well that's simple, nobody can agree on what does and does not constitute a country. For example, is Hong Kong a country? Is Macau a country? At first you might be thinking "No, it's part of China" but think about it. Hong Kong and Macau's currencies are both different to Mainland China- Mainland China uses the Renmibi, Hong Kong uses the Hong Kong Dollar, and Macau uses the Macanese Pataca. Both cities drive on the left, when mainland China drives on the right, and they even have their own passport and immigration policies, separate laws and even different languages. So, they are separate countries? Well no. (Though to be fair, many countries don't, at least in the formal sense,  take for example Iceland and Costa Rica), and they have no (official) diplomatic relations with other countries (unofficially, though, that's a different matter). Also, the People's Republic of China declares Hong Kong and Macau as part of their sovereign territory, as they were officially in every legal regarded handed to China by Britain and Portugal respectively. China is one of the countries which must officially recognise you in order for your country to be universally recognised, which is ironic, as we cannot even agree on what exactly China is. "What do you mean?" you ask, whilst pointing Beijing on your atlas, "China is this giant country here". "Well maybe, but what if this is "China" I reply, whilst pointing to Taiwan. You see, China is a country which is technically ruled by two different governments. When there was a civil war between the communists and the capitalists, the communists took much of the mainland, (now known as "Mainland China"), the capitalists took control of the island of Taiwan. The civil war never ended, meaning that both places claim themselves as the legitimate government of China. This is also the case with Korea, meaning that both Koreas consider themselves the only Korea, but with China, that applies on an international scale. Officially speaking, if you choose to recognise Taiwan, that means that the People's Republic of China cannot be recognised. If you choose to recognise the People's Republic, you cannot officially recognise Taiwan (the Republic of China). So which "China" is a country? Are they both countries? Well, that's a matter of opinion. Another one of the five countries which recognise must recognise you is the United States of America, but is the United States of America a country? Yes, yes it is, now, but in the late 1770s, it may not have been. For those who don't know, there were a series of 13 British colonies who wanted independence, so they united into what is now the United States of America and fought a war and defeated the British, only to have some of their own states want independence, forming the Confederate States of America (the CSA), fought the civil war, Their country was a complected limbo period as they were fighting for independence against the British. "But it's a country now, so therefore it was always a country" you might be thinking, well not exactly. Is the Confederate States of America a country? Of coarse not, they were a rebellious group of traitors. Well what's the difference between the status of the USA and the status of the CSA? The fact that the USA won the war, where the CSA. That's it. Had the CSA, it would have been the second American war of independence, and the CSA would have been a completely sovereign nation, like the USA is today. "Okay that's history" you're probably thinking, well yes, yes it is. However, this independence limbo is applicable to the modern world, is Kosovo an independent country or a part of Serbia? Are South Ossetia and Abkhazia part independent countries or are they part of Georgia? And there are many examples of this around the world. Further, other disputes such as Northern Cyprus. Whether or not you choose to recognise Northern Cyprus is your personal decision.

Another one of the five countries which must approve your entry into the United Nations is the United Kingdom. Now that's definitely a country, isn't it? Well yes, or is three? Or is it four? By which I mean, is the United Kingdom a single country, or are England, Scotland and Wales and different countries? What about Northern Ireland?

Another of the 5 members which must approve your entry into the UN is Russia. Whilst Russia may be a single country today, we must ask ourselves whether or not the the USSR a single country a collection of many countries?

At this point, you're probably thinking "so, all these countries which get to decide whether or not my country is a country or part of a bigger country have, at some point since the 1860s, not known whether or not regions were part of their countries, or independent countries, but surely the 5th country knows, right, right, right? Please tell me that the fifth country knows"

Well to answer your question, the final country is France

"Phew" you might be thinking. That's pretty simple.  No, no "phew", because France doesn't know how much of its territory is France. "What are you talking about" you might be thinking, whilst pointing to the European portion of France on your globe. France is here. "Well, that's only Metropolitan France" I reply, whilst spinning the globe, you see...

France had a lot of colonies. Since decolonisation, many of these colonies didn't know whether they became full on departments of France, with equal status to the European departments or independent countries, and you know what, neither do we.

Some of these include French Polynesia (more commonly known by the name of its most popular island, Tahiti) is one of these territories, unsure of whether it's an independent country or a full part of France. The people of French Polynesia are citizens of France and have French passports. However, they have a different currency and different migration  laws to France. French Polynesia is but one example of countries that don't know if they're French.

New Zealand also has territories which are unsure whether their independent countries or part of New Zealand. The residents of these territories are New Zealand citizens with New Zealand passports, however, they have different migration laws. These are the Cook Islands and Niue. Whilst New Zealand and Nuie share a currency, the Cook Islands have an independent currency, so are any of these independent countries?

Is Israel a country? Is Palestine a country? Israel is a member of the United Nations as it is universally recognised by the five countries which must recognise it, Palestine is not a member, as it is not observed. Some people choose to recognise Israel as the only country and Palestine an illegal state, and some choose to recognise Palestine as the only country and not Israel. So which is a country?

"Surely it's over," you must be thinking. "How much more complicated could it get?" Well, we haven't even discussed disputed territories yet. "Well what are disputed territories?" you might ask, well, picture this map. Country 1 and Country 2 share an island. They have well defined borders, except for the area in the middle. Who does the area in the middle belong to? Well, that's a bit of a grey area (get it? Grey area).

 This applies to real life, where the region of Kashmir may belong to India or Pakistan. So who does it belong to? Well, that's a grey area. West Sahara is an area disputed between the Moroccans and the Sharwi Arab Democratic Republic. So who does it belong to?

"What has any of this got to do with drawing maps?" you might be thinking, well, cartographers can not put a mark on a map and say "Well maybe this is a country". Cartographers must make decisions on who they will and who they will not classify as countries. Cartographers must decide who is and is not a country. A cartographer cannot put a mark on a map that says "People's Republic? Taiwan?". A cartographer cannot put a mark on a map that says "French Polynesia: France?". A cartographer needs to be decisive, a cartographer needs to decide what is and what isn't a country, knowing that in many cases, which ever decision he/she will make, will upset a lot of people. A cartographer must decide which group of people to upset, and use his/her own discretion whilst doing it.

We as humans have created different groups which control different territories. Despite the fact that these territories have their own, independent human-run institutions to operate them, and despite the fact that there is a highly formal and highly organised human organisation in order to oversee the human territories, we still don't which humanity territory belongs to which group of people. And that's just... crazy...

A Very Controversial Post

What are the best topics to blog about? Exactly, the extremely controversial ones. So let's discuss the three most controversial topics I can possibly think of:
But first I'll tell you a little about myself. I am Australian from Greek ansestry, I am patriotic and I love both of my countries. Okay, now let's get controversial:

Pineapple does belong on pizza. There are many possible origins of pineapple pizza, but the most generally agreed one is that Sam Panopoulis, a Greek immigrant living in Canada who owned a take away shop in Ontario decided to put pineapple on his pizza. Now let's discuss the origin of pizza. Before pizza was known as the Italian dish that it is today, the Ancient Greeks had their very own type of food called plakous. Plakous was considered the "food of the gods". So what is plakous you might be asking. Plakous was a flat bread, which had many toppings on top of it. So in other words, ancient pizza, or rather, the to predecessor to it. When a culture claims a certain type of food, there is generally one type of that food, there will usually be different variations of it, with different recipes. For example, a different Greek food is spanakopita.

Spanakopita is a spinach "pie" which consists of spinach and various other green vegetables and herbs. For example, some people decide to include dill in their spanokopites, whilst some don't, but in either case, it's a Greek dish called "spanokopita". Also, a country's traditional foods could consist of food which isn't native to the area. Tomato is a staple in Greek salads, and in other Greek dishes, despite the fact that it's native to parts of Latin America. Beef pies, lamb roasts, etc. are traditional Australian dishes, even though cows and sheep are not native to Australia. The fact that a food is not native to a certain area is irrelevant to whether or not it can be included as part of its cuisine.
what's that gotta do with pineapple? Well the guy who invented pineapple pizza is Greek.

So to summarise, pizza is modern plakous. Just like pizza, plakous could have a great variety of toppings on them. Irregardless of what you decided to put on it, it was still considered plakous (just like modern-day pizza, where the toppings are irrelevant) The person who put pineapple on it was Greek, and even though there are no pineapples native to Greece, it's irrelevant as foreign foods could become adapted to become staples as part of different parts of the world, so therefore, the pineapple pizza is just pineapple plakous, or in other words, SCREW YOU! This is our food, and we can put whatever we want on it! 

The difference between a country and a nation

This only applies to English. Other languages are different

"What are you talking about?" you might be thinking, "Countries and nations are synonymous" well yes, yes they are, depending on context, and in modern usage, the more or less are, and languages constantly evolving, meaning that it's becoming the case more and more. However, in the strictest sense of the definitions, the two words are different. They are very similar concepts, and in some places, they can be interchangeable, whilst in others they can't.

A nation is a group of people who share similar cultures and values. Nation refers to the people. A country, on the other hand, refers to the geographical location. Countries are marked by borders and territories. Usually, they are refer to the same thing, for example, the Japanese nation is the same as the Japanese country, however, this is not always the case. For example, the Greek ethnic group is spread across two countries; Greece and Cyprus. By the strictest sense of the term, however, they don't qualify as separate nations. Conversely, there could be nations, such as the Kurds, which do not have their own countries. Alternately, there exists countries, such as the USA, which contain hundreds of indigenous nations. Ironically, however, the adjective of country is "national" refering to "nation" as oppose to "country". 

Why it sucks to be a landlocked country

The easiest and cheapest way to trade is through the ocean. Without a coastline, a nation cannot trade directly with the ocean. A significant amount of the world's trade is conducted through ships, so oceanic access is ideal. Trade is also possible through (some) rivers and lakes, and some landlocked nations have access to major rivers and lakes, but you still rely on your neighbours for access to the ocean, so that ships can enter the rivers and lakes. This means that you require both friendly relationships with your neighbours and you also hope that they have good infrastructure. Even if trading with a nation who shares your continent, you still rely on your neighbours to be able to trade with them. The below is a pretend map of a pretend continent. The continent is surrounded by the ocean and has a giant lake in the middle of it.

If country A wishes to trade with country D, then they have two options. Trains and trucks can travel through Country B or Country C, or a ship can travel through the ocean and bypass both countries. If country A wanted to trade with another country in a different continent, then a ship can travel from country A to that continent. However, if Country C wants to trade with Country I, they need access to country A's roads and railways. If Country A is underdeveloped and/or refuses to grant them access, then it becomes significantly more difficult to trade with Country I. Assuming that Country A has excellent relations with Country C, and that Country A has excellent infrastructure, then Country C could easily trade with Country I through Country A. However, it will be less economical to do so. Trucks and trains require roads and railway lines, which cost money to maintain, water does not have maintenance fees.  Also, trucks require a driver per vehicle, which has a limited capacity. 

Let's look at another situation now. If Country G wishes to trade with Country F, then the lake is a suitable trading route. However, if Country F wishes to trade with Country B, with the use of ships, then the ship needs to travel from the lake through the river to Country B. Since the river is completely within Country G, Country H and Country J, and it is completely their territorial waters, Countries F and B rely on G, H and J to trade. If country F wishes to trade with a country on a different continent, then they either need to send trains and trucks through to the closest port in Country I, or send ships through the river. If country H wishes to trade with either of the lake countries, then ships have to pass through Country D, and if Country H wishes to trade with other continents, they rely on Country J. If Country H decides to block the river to all trading ships, then that means that Countries F, E and G can only trade with each other, if using ships. Country D is in the fortunate position of having a coastline on the lake and on the ocean, meaning that they can trade with ships on both waterways. It is also significantly more difficult for a land-locked country to have a navy. This usually means that landlocked countries are both neutral and poor, though there are exceptions. This is why landlocked countries outside of Europe are amongst poorest nations in the world, This is why landlocked countries are neutral in their alliances There might be other factors which contribute to both, however, being landlocked is a big factor. Having a coastline, however, is not enough. In order to be able to send ships through, there needs to be warm water (i.e. it doesn't freeze in winter) and the water needs to be deep-enough. For trade to be successful, both criteria must be met in the same place.  If you have warm water ports which are shallow, or deep water ports which freeze, then you might as well be landlocked. Ice breakers do exist, but they are extremely costly, and in some cases, the ice can freeze again before the ship can pass through the cleared path. 

Hot and Cold Climates Part 2- Food, Water and Beverages

Beverages:

On a hot day, nothing is more pleasurable than drinking a cold glass of water or a cold drink. Iced drinks are also popular (e.g. iced chocolate, iced coffee etc). Unless it's extremely hot, most people also drink hot drinks (tea, coffee, etc.) on hot days. It is also believed that hot drinks help cool you down. Ice cream, ice blocks, etc. are also enjoyed on hot days. However, whilst most people tend to agree that hot drinks can be consumed on hot days, there are many people who would argue that iced drinks can be consumed on cold days, whilst others who argue that they can't.

Further, whilst many people enjoy cold water during both summer and winter, others will want cold water in hot weather, and tap water in cold weather. Some will be indifferent in cold weather. Whilst most people wash their hands with cold water when it's hot, some will choose cold water when it's cold, whilst others will choose warm water.

Food:

Soups are universally enjoyed when it's cold, whilst there are some who argue that soups can be enjoyed when it's hot and others who argue that it can't. Ice cream is preferable in hot climate. This means that people experiencing hot weather like cold food, whilst people experiencing cold weather like hot food. In places that experience hot and cold weather, some restaurants will have lighter meals such as salads on their summer menus, and heartier, fuller meals on their winter menus, such as roasts.

 However, the reverse is also ironically true, as people in hot climates prefer hotter foods to those in cold climates. "Hotter" in this situation refers to spicier. Hot climates tend to prefer spicier foods. Hot climates harbour diseases, and before refrigeration, spices were the best way to ward off diseases, whilst cold climates producer fewer spices to use as food seasoning. As generations pass, people from colder climates are less likely to have a low tolerance of spice, and people from hotter climates tend to find non-spicy foods boring.

Water

Some people want hot showers when it's cold,  and cold showers when it's hot, whilst others want hot showers irrespective of the weather.


Whilst most of this is obvious to someone who experiences both hot weather and cold weather, here is something that is only obvious to those who experience the extreme versions of either:

When turning on an outdoor hose on an extremely hot day, the water is not automatically cold (or tap water temperature). You must run the water for a minute or so first, as the first lot of water will be extremely hot. Conversely, on an extremely cold day, the water in your hose might freeze.

In extremely cold places, where the ocean or major lakes freeze, ice breakers are needed to keep shipping lanes open and oceanic trade possible for those places

Hot and Cold Weather and Climates

I know that this is a long blog post, and I do sincerely apologise for that

Weather and Climates
Hot Weather, Hot Climates, Cold Weather, Cold Climates. Two polar opposites. In one climate, people like to swim and try to keep cool, and in the other, people like to layer up and keep warm. Both of them (in their extreme) form are unpleasant to most people, and yet, somehow, humans have managed to survive in both of them with stone age technology. Hot weather and hot climates are the reason for air-conditioning, cold weather and cold climates are the reason for heaters. Hot weather is more intolerable when there is high humidity (or extremely low humidity in the form of dry heat) and cold weather becomes more intolerable when there is wind. Basically, humidity is to heat what wind is to cold, and wind is to cold what humidity is to heat.  Some of the hottest places in the world are deserts and tropics, and some of the coldest places are the poles and on top of mountains. As you already know, wherever you are in the world it's usually warmer during the day than it is during the night, meaning that summer days are more extreme than summer nights, and winter nights are more extreme than winter days. So which extreme is more tolerable?

This is a difficult question, and everyone has a subject answer, and some people prefer extreme heat to extreme cold, and some people prefer extreme cold to extreme heat, and some people really like one extreme, whilst most prefer mild weather. I have also experienced extreme heat and extreme cold, (and did a bit of research) so I will try to address this objectively looking from all perspective.

Hot weather

 (Unless you have air conditioning) summer makes it difficult to sleep, especially if humid. Growing up in Sydney, Australia, where we occasionally have heat waves where night time temperatures can easily exceed 30°C (90°C). Sleeping is an incredibly difficult exercise in this kind of weather, even with the window open. Moreover, heat attracts pests and diseases. Much of summer is spent shooing flies. Smells, of any description, are much stronger. There are generally two types of heat, humid heat and dry heat. Humid heat is terrible because of it feels much hotter than what it is, and makes everything "muggy" and sticky. Dry heat sucks the moisture out of you and can make you dehydrated quickly, without realising it. Heat also attracts pests, fungle infections, buildings and vehicles which don't have air conditioning become ovens, and you can't cool down, even if you strip naked. If you have a pool or a beach, you can swim to cool down, but after a certain point, you heat up so drastically that it has little lasting effect. It's still better than nothing, though... When you get into a hot car, the seat belt becomes a branding iron, and you need oven mitts to operate the steering wheel. Your car is also susceptible to over-heating. Houses in buildings need to have natural ventilation. Hot places are more subjected to cyclones/hurricanes/typhoons, and fires favour hot weather. The tropics have two seasons, the wet season and the dry season. The wet season is a non-stop barrage of rain and thunder storms, with the occasional hail (or at least hail, known as "sleet" in North America, and ice pellets everywhere else, whilst the dry season is extremely dry but still humid (in some places). There is no moisture anywhere, and rivers which tend to dry will usually be dry. However, the dry season is the best swimming season, whilst the wet season is the "stay inside" season. In non-tropical areas, summer is the ideal time for swimming, and (unless it's too hot) going outside. Swimming could be hazardous if there is a risk of pests (such as jellyfish) or diseases in the water. Hail, in extreme cases may also be cleared by snow plows. People prefer indoor places which are larger and feel more open. Restaurants will tend to see their outdoor seating is more popular (unless it's raining)  climates. When entering large public buildings, you walk in from a hot outside location into relief in a cool, air conditioned place, only to be bombarded with heat when you step outside again, and public buildings without air conditioning will tend to have ceiling fans, and outdoor ceiling fans exist. If you have never experienced heat, try spending A SAFE AMOUNT OF TIME in a room where the heater is ridiculously high. It's nowhere near similar to what it's like in real life, but it's the closest you can get.

Cold Weather

Cold weather makes you more susceptible to colds (the disease) and will make your teeth grind. You can always wear many layers, which could eventually become very heavy and a hassle to put on and take off, your face will always feel the cold (unless you wear a balaclava). Cold is completely intolerable with a lack of adequate clothing. Cold causes things to freeze, this could be your car. In extreme, you need to plug in your car's block heater in order to keep it connected. Lakes and rivers freeze. This means that you can skate, ONLY IF YOU'RE SURE THE ICE IS THICK ENOUGH AS IT IS VERY EASY TO FALL IN IF THE ICE IS TOO THIN or if it snows go skiing. In real extreme circumstances, your pool can freeze (meaning that only a few types of pools can built there) and your pipes and toilets can freeze. If your pipes freeze, and not managed properly, this can cause serious damage to your property. People tend to stay inside during winter, as oppose to going outside, and want warm and cosy environments. Restaurants will tend to see their indoor seating is more popular, and those which offer outdoor seating will tend to have heat lamps. Places which see significant snowfall will need to have sloped roofs, so that snow cannot fall off the roof, instead of accumulating and becoming too heavy for the roof to tolerate. Driveways, roads and rail lines will tend to have snow blocking them, meaning that snow shovels and snow plows (vehicles used to remove snow from roads and rail lines) are necessary. Some places will have heat lamps (which are desirable to stand under) underneath the roofs which cover footpaths, in order to melt snow.  During cold weather, people prefer indoor places which are small and cosy. Buildings will tend to have some kind of centralised heating. If water is cold enough, and you fall in, you could potentially suffer from hypothermia. If you have never experienced cold, try spending A SAFE AMOUNT OF TIME in a room where the air-conditioning is too cold. It's nowhere near similar to what it's like in real life, but it's the closest you can get.

Despite their opposites, SOME really hot cities, and SOME really cold cities have one thing in common- a system of tunnels where you can walk from one end of downtown to another and avoid the extreme weather

So where is it hot and where is it cold?
Inland deserts (as in places with red dirt and hot summers, not polar deserts, I'll get to the poles later) are hot? Well, yes, whilst that it is true at first glance, inland deserts have a huge variation between day and night temperature. Let's take Australia's deserts for example. Whilst temperature in Alice Springs can exceed 35°C (95°F) during a summer day, night time temperatures in winter can fall below 5°C (41°F). SOME statistics say that more people die from cold in the desert as oppose to heat. Night time temperatures average approx. less than 20°C (68°F), and day time winter temperatures average 20°C (68°F) or more during the day. 

Okay, so the desert can get cold, but surely, the poles are cold right? Well, yes, yes they are, however, places very, very close to the poles would find it rare to exceed 0°C (32°F) during the short winter days, summer days could average more than 17°C (62°F) and north of Arctic Circle, winter temperatures (where it's always dark, see my post about seasons) could regularly see temperatures around the -30°C (-22°F), summer temperatures can average more than 0°C (32°F).

So what temperature is hot and what temperature is cold? This is highly, highly subjective. A person who grew up in a hot climate will be likely to feel cold at a much temperature than a person from a cold climate. A few years ago, when One Direction visited Sydney, they were commenting on how warm the weather was, whilst the locals were simultaneously shivering through our jumpers. I once travelled with a group of Sydneysiders to our local ski resorts, wearing thick coats and all of our woollen clothing, locals were wearing T-shirts. This is not only the case on a societal level, but also on an individual level too (although, to a lesser extent, unless that individual travels frequently). Similarly, a person from a cold climate complains about the heat, whilst the locals are enjoying how mild the weather is.  Two people could be sitting next to each other, one discussing hot it is, the other how cold it is. 

But in either case, it's amazing, how we, as humans, have managed to survive in both extremes, extreme heat and extreme cold with stone age technology. Everyone from the Inuits/Eskimos of North America, who had to fashion clothing out of any animal they could find, whilst dealing with a small amount of food whilst trying to maintain their body weight which was lost to the cold, to the Aboriginals in the Australian Outback who had to learn to survive the extreme heat with little water, and for that matter, the Polynesians who travelled for months at a time on boats, to those who climbed the highest mountains and lived in the Himalayas. From the coldest parts of the Arctic, to the hottest parts of the desert, we managed to survive for millennia. And you know why, because we're human. We don't say "it's impossible" we make it possible! Our ability to survive in extreme heat and extreme cold is a true testament to the human spirit! But keep in mind that this applies to humanity as a whole, and is significantly more difficult at an individual level back to hot and cold climates.