Globes - How to Get The Best Out of ThemBy Jennifer Akre

Maps that are online are ok, but nothing replaces globes when you really want to get a good look at the world. This makes sense, considering the real world is round, like globes, and maps are flat. Something is going to be lost in the translation.
While there are some cartographers who try to make maps as accurate as globes, cutting the bottom and top of the earth into pieces as they draw it on the map in an attempt to keep all the pieces proportionally correct, studies have shown that it never quite works like the rounded 3D effect of real globes. Since the earth is itself a globe, when you try to flatten it, some parts will have to be stretched to make a flat map. The reason for this is that globes are not just a circle shape, or else you could just make a round map, but they also puff out to create the 3D roundness. Flattening that rounding effect just doesn't work properly.
The only way to make a globe into a flat surface is to somewhat shrink some areas of it, while expanding others to make it work on a flat surface. Think back to your educational years. When you were in the classroom, you likely saw a Mercator map on the wall. When you looked at it, North America looked huge in comparison to countries like Africa. That's not really the case, though. It was just altered, and came out that way, so it could fit on a flat surface. The other globe flattening option is to make a map that is full of cuts and clear spots to compensate for the roundness of globes. Trying to trace your finger around a map that is all chopped up is a trial in itself.
So the solution is to stick to the real thing, globes. With today's technology you don't even have to purchase physical globes to get a birds eye view of the earth. There are a large number of places online that will offer you 3D globes to look at when you want to study the planet. These virtual globes used to also look a little flat, but they have gotten better over the years, thanks to programming advances, and now some of the online globes look a lot like the real thing, just stuck in your computer screen.
There are also websites that not only let you see globes that come from an artists rendering, but the real planet earth in a globe format. Through Google Earth, you can look down on any portion of the planet and see what it really looks like, from the homes that are in a subdivision, to the images of lakes, rivers and mountain ranges from high overheard.
But, sometimes, the best way to use globes is to have your own. If you're teaching your little ones about the world, there's no better way to let them understand the working of the earth, than to be able to trace their finger around it as they learn about new destinations.
Author Jennifer Akre is the owner of a wide variety of online specialty stores that provide consumers with both information and products perfect for either their indoor or outdoor space. Today, she offers valuable advice to consumers when purchasing luxurious gemstone globes, lovely globes, and a stunning Replogle globe.

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