A copy of my new book,
Rethinking Maps, edited with
Martin Dodge and
Chris Perkins both at the University of Manchester also turned up in the post this week. The book examines the diverse ways in which maps are now produced given new technologies (including GIS, Sat-Nav, LBS, GPS, remote sensing, Web 2.0 applications), and new ways of thinking about the ontological and epistemological bases of cartography.
Traditionally maps are conceived as portraying the truth of spatial relations of the world. In the book, the contributors consider maps as social constructs, as inscriptions, as proscriptions, as actants, as practices (there are no maps only mappings), seeking to re-imagine the theoretical underpinnings of cartography and how it is philosophically constituted. Page proofs of the opening chapter are available
here.
At 80 GBP it’s an absolute bargain! We’re now working on a collection for Wiley –
The Map Reader - that will bring together some of the most influential articles concerning how to think about maps published over the 70 or 80 years.
(To paraphrase Rene Magritte) Ceci n'est pas une carte - This is not a map. Discuss ...
I'm heading to the Mapping Manchester exhibition tomorrow evening in the Reading Room in The Rylands Library in Manchester City Centre. It's been put together by Martin Dodge and Chris Perkins of Manchester University. The three of us had a book published earlier in the year, Rethinking Maps. The exhibition runs until January 2010, so if you're in Manchester it might be worth a look.
