Lab 7

         The map on Asian population in the U.S. is interesting because it shows how densely populated Asian people are in small areas of the country, and how sparse they are in the vast majority of the U.S. Specifically, they seem to be densely centered around the counties that contain the cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, New York, Washington D.C., and a few central U.S. cities. As for the rest of the country, their seem to be low percentages throughout.   

         While the map on Black population within the U.S. features some counties that have a medium density, like the ones that contain Los Angeles, Seattle, and Miami, the blatantly obvious center is in the Southeastern United States. The states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia and eastern Texas and northern Florida are thickly populated by a high percentage of Black people. This is especially true in the counties that contain Atlanta, New Orleans, Birmingham, Mobile, Little Rock, Charleston, and Raleigh.  

         The map on Race Alone within the U.S. is almost assuredly about the Native American population in the United States. The areas that are densely populated, central Florida, southern Arizona, southern Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, eastern Washington, and northern Utah, are all areas that are very sparsely populated, but of the population there, many are Native Americans. Now, when looking at California, then entire southern and central areas of the state are shaded darkly, indicating that these are places where a race that describes themselves as "other" reside. While I do not know exactly which race this is, it makes sense that it is in an area that is heavily populated so that numerous races could mark themselves under "other."

         This census map series was quite interesting to create because it showed the real uses of GIS in outputting data into informative thematic maps. It's also very rewarding knowing that you're working with data that's extremely important and that can be utilized in a way to make things better or more efficient in today's society. Censuses are vastly important for projects such as development and construction within cities, governmental funding, academic school information, and many other facets of civilized life.

         My overall impression of GIS is that it is a completely necessary and helpful system that many of use without even really thinking about it. Of course there are maps and reference tools, but GIS is also utilized in our iPhones and computers, in our cars and airplanes, and without them, we'd often find ourselves at a loss. GIS allows us to live in a global world where we can stay connected even thousands of miles apart, and it without a doubt is a unique and vital tool.