GIS - Geographic Information System Cartography and Visualization Questions and Answers

Question 1

A cartographer is creating a map to show population density for every county in the United States. The data is continuous but has been aggregated into political boundaries. Which type of thematic map would be most appropriate for visualizing this data?

Accepted Answer

Choropleth map

Answer

A choropleth map is ideal for displaying data that has been aggregated into enumeration units, such as counties or states. [1, 13, 14] It uses color or shading to represent the intensity of a variable, like population density, within those predefined areas. Isarithmic maps are for continuous data without predefined boundaries, dot density maps show distribution, and cartograms distort area to represent a variable. [1, 9, 24]

Question 2

When designing a map, the principle of guiding the viewer's eye to the most important elements first is known as:

Accepted Answer

Visual hierarchy

Answer

Visual hierarchy is the cartographic principle of arranging map elements to clearly show their order of importance. [3, 19] Important elements (like the main map theme) are made more prominent through size, color, and placement, while less important elements (like scale bars or source notes) are more subdued. [12, 18]

Question 3

A GIS analyst is classifying a dataset of annual household incomes for a city's neighborhoods. The data is heavily skewed, with many low-income households and a few very high-income households. To create a balanced map that highlights relative social stratification, which classification method would be most effective?

Accepted Answer

Natural Breaks (Jenks)

Answer

The Natural Breaks (Jenks) method is designed to identify natural groupings inherent in the data. [2, 5] It minimizes variance within classes and maximizes variance between classes, making it well-suited for unevenly distributed or skewed data, as it can isolate clusters and outliers effectively. [15]

Question 4

Which of the following map projections is best suited for a navigational chart of the world's oceans, as it preserves direction (rhumb lines are straight lines), but significantly distorts area near the poles?

Accepted Answer

Mercator

Answer

The Mercator projection is a conformal projection famous for its use in navigation. It preserves angles and shapes locally, and lines of constant bearing (rhumb lines) are straight, which is invaluable for sea travel. Its major drawback is the extreme distortion of area as latitude increases, making landmasses like Greenland appear enormous.

Question 5

A map displays qualitative, categorical data, such as land cover types (e.g., forest, urban, water, agriculture), using different colors or patterns for each category. This type of map is best described as a:

Accepted Answer

Chorochromatic map

Answer

A chorochromatic map (also known as a qualitative area map) is used to display nominal or categorical data. [6] Each distinct area on the map is colored or patterned according to the category it belongs to, such as soil type, vegetation, or political affiliation. Unlike a choropleth map, it does not represent quantitative data. [6]

GIS - Geographic Information System Practice Test

GIS - Geographic Information System Practice Test

GIS - Geographic Information System Cartography and Visualization Questions and Answers