We use maps all day, including Google Maps, Waze, Apple Maps. We use them without even noticing that every one of them distorts reality. In this episode, Gabrielle explains why flattening a round Earth always bends the truth, how classic projections (like Mercator) live inside today’s apps, and why those distortions shape our mental picture of the world. Practical, visual, and myth-busting, this is cartography you can feel on your daily commute.

To hear the podcast on Marie Tharp, visit: Math Science History with Gabrielle Birchak

Three Coordinates to Remember

1. Why distortion is unavoidable when projecting a 3D globe onto a flat screen (thanks, Gauss).
2. How Web Mercator powers Google Maps/Waze, great for street-level navigation, misleading at global scales.
3. How projection choices shape perception, from Greenland vs. Africa to who appears “big” or “central” on a map.

Resources & Visuals

• Gall–Peters (equal-area) projection:
  Peters Projection Map: Everything Your Ever Wanted To Know
• Compare Map Projections:
  https://map-projections.net/compare.php
• Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion map (unfolded globe):
  https://www.bfi.org/about-fuller/dymaxion-map
• “The True Size Of…” (drag countries to compare real sizes):
  https://thetruesize.com

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