The London Tube turns 150

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2013/01/happy-birthday-london-tube/4352/

Here’s an interesting article from The Atlantic Cities about the history of London’s Tube map. The Tube celebrated its 150th birthday on January 9th, and its map has gone through at least 12 iterations since it opened its doors to the public in 1863. The map’s original design was a confusing set of meandering lines, and it wasn’t until 1933 that Harry Beck‘s modern map layout was adopted.

1895:

1910:

1933:

Speaking of Tube maps, Animals on the Underground is worth a look. Paul Middlewick takes the Tube’s map and highlights animals found within the tangle of colored railways. My personal favorites are Hornchurch the rhino and White Chapel the polar bear.

Hornchurch:

White Chapel:

Global Freedom of the Press

Here’s a neat map from the Reporters without Borders website. It ranks the level at which freedom of the press is upheld across the globe. I find it interesting that the press is not free at the highest level in America, where freedom of that sort is protected by the constitution. However, being an American citizen, it’s not surprising that freedom of the press isn’t ranked higher here. Also interesting is that Namibia is the only country south of the equator to be in a “good situation,” while many countries in the northern hemisphere make the cut.

Exploring earth’s random beauty

Ever wanted to be whisked away to some unknown spots of beauty around the globe? Mapcrunch is an awesome website that does just that. It uses Google Streetview to take you to a random place on the planet. There’s even a “view of the day” which is always a particularly beautiful scene. The idea is to explore unknown and beautiful places.