From his love for maps comes Author Simon Garfield's new novel "On the Map: A Mind-Expanding Exploration of the Way the World Works." The author feels that technology has ruined the beauty of maps.
Talking to a reporter from npr.org, Garfield says London underground map is probably the most geographically inaccurate map one could find. A general map gives an outsider the impression that each tube is exactly a mile away from each other when, in reality, it is not. The distance between two tubes could vary from a few hundred yards to four or five miles. This misinterpretation makes it sound and look all too easy for a tourist just looking at the map. But when the tourist actually takes a tube he or she understands the complicity of it.
"But, I mean, when I looked at the map for the first time, the places at the end of the line, at the end of, you know, the Metropolitan line or the Piccadilly line, seemed to me the most exotic places you could ever go in the world. They were my Antarctica, I suppose, in a way. And so really, ever since then, I've been really fascinated by maps," says Garfield.
What appeals to Garfield most about maps is that it empowers him to plan and dream and looking at a map makes him feel he's almost there. Also, the fact that maps largely relate to the history of a place intrigues Garfield.
According to the author, when a person has the power to commission or make his own map, it's like the person is a winner. Just like history is written by winners, so are maps.
"In ancient Greece, you would go right back and it would be Rhodes, the island of Rhodes off Greece - which is now what you would regard mostly as a kind of holiday island; and it absolutely relies on tourism and not much else. But, you know, in ancient Greece it was the center of world maps because it was such a big economic center of trade and port. It tells you a lot about world history - how we saw ourselves. That's the wonderful thing really about old maps; well, obviously, you realize how the world has changed, but you realize how we place ourselves upon it when the map is drawn," says the map lover.
Talking about maps and the effect digitalization has on it; the author admits that he falls into both categories as he uses his maps on his phone. Also, he admits that it's easier for his GPS to guide him to a place rather than looking through a map. However, by doing so, Garfield feels that people lose out on the beauty of maps.
"And I think the other thing, you know, we lose, is a sense of how big the world is. Because now we look at our map, there's a real sense of, 'Get me to where I want to go.' Now you get the feeling, actually, 'It's all about me' ... It's a terribly egocentric way of looking at the world. So I think the view of where we are in the world, in the history of the world, is changing. And I think in a way it's one of the biggest, if not the biggest impacts of the digital and technological revolution - is how we see ourselves in the world."