Mental Geography, Wonky Maps and a Long Way Ahead
Alan John Dix · 2013
Spatial and geographic cognition are not only important for designing mapping and mobile applications, they also underlie, at a metaphorical and neurological level, many other aspects of abstract and digital reasoning. Digital maps need to respect this rich human understanding of space, which is not always found in the Cartesian regularity of standard maps. Instead it is often embodied in quirky and irregular local maps and effective use of these alongside 'standard' maps is not only good for interaction, but can also be a statement of community empowerment. These and other issues are being explored in the author's ongoing practical work on mobile local heritage applications and a three month, 1000 mile, IT-focused walk around the entire periphery of Wales. Author Keywords maps, mental models, local empowerment, mobile user interfaces ACM Classification Keywords