Talk:1688: Map Age Guide
Well, I have no clue how to upload the image, it just displays the title text.108.162.216.91 12:47, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- Done. Guess the bot failed because there is a larger one when you click the image on xkcd? --Kynde (talk) 13:08, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
I feel like the title seriously lacks the word "political", there's all sorts of nice things with dating non-modern world maps. -- 141.101.104.104 13:34, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
It doesn't just cover political maps -- there is a section on telling when you are with physical maps via the presence or absence of bodies of water. In fact, there are four or five main branches: fictional maps, topographical maps, not a map, and political maps (which have two branches, based on the naming of Istanbul (was Constantinople) 108.162.237.174 13:42, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
I like how that this flow chart also describes what I've drawn162.158.26.220 14:05, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
The 1992-1996 range (top right corner) could be narrowed down further with the independence of Eritrea 1993. Am I getting something wrong or did Randall actually overlook this? :-) 162.158.85.141 14:49, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- Or the splitting of Czechoslovakia, also in 1993... There are probably others for different time ranges, too. 141.101.95.25 16:28, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
Noone else has started work on this and I'm bored so... (feel free to reorder and/or add more detail where appropriate) Relevant Events
Is there a big lake in Southern California? (Created by Mistake) Salton Sea A previously dry lakebed accidentally flooded in 1905 while attempting to increase irrigation to the area from the Colorado River
How far East do the American Prairies reach? The Northwest Territory was incorporated in pieces ~1820s, there may be something more relavent to draw the line at Indiana though.
Is there a big lake in the middle of Ghana? (Created on Purpose) Lake Volta
The US's southern border looks Gadsden Purchase
"Buda" and "Pest" or "Budapest" Buda and Pest were originally two different cities
Does Russia Border the Sea of Japan? Russia currently borders the sea of Japan so the 1867 upper limit is because of Tokyo not existing higher in the chain. The 1858 limit is to do with the Treaty of Aigun
Rhodesia? The dates down the chain suggest this is about Rhodesia the Region not Rhodesia the Unrecognized state nor Southern Rhodesia the British Colony 162.158.214.218 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)
- We are talking about physical/stellite maps at this point of the chart. Incorporation is not relevant. This is about the movement or size change of the American prairies. Climate change, perhaps. Haven't found anything relevant on that, though. Maybe it is about untouched land, as in not having settlements. -- 162.158.85.183 16:05, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
Should the relevant links above be added directly to the transcript, or to a separate section? --172.68.29.127 14:29, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- The transcript is only for faithful transcription of the comic. It exists for users who would otherwise be unable to view the regular comic, and should contain nothing but the contents of the comic. Links go in the explanation, if relevant. Davidy²²[talk] 18:56, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
Istanbul is not the capital of Turkey! (It's Ankara) 162.158.86.131 14:41, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
Maybe a better way of organizing this is chronologically, i.e., show the state of the world each year.
That being said, is every year accounted for? For example, 1857 appears to be missing. 162.158.60.41 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)
From the left and roughly in chronological order (only partial, might add more later):
'The Holy Roman Empire?' 1806 - Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire by Emperor Francis II
'Do Any of These Exist?'
1867 - British North America act passed, marking Canadian independence
- Alaskan Purchase by US from Russian Empire
- Meiji Restoration (in 1869, Emperor Meiji moves to Edo, which is renamed Tokyo)
'Texas is...'
independent - 1836? 35? 34? Texas Revolution
'Florida is part of...'
The US: 1818 - US basically controls East Florida after First Seminole War (Spain officially cedes the territory in the Adams–Onís Treaty of 1819.
'Venezuela and or Ecuador?'
1830 - Both Venezuela and Ecuador become independent as the Republic of Gran Colombia dissolves in late 1830, early 1831.
'Does Russia border the Sea of Japan?' 1858 - China cedes territory to Russia under the Treaty of Aigun, bordering the Sea of Japan (sort of? There's also the Treaty of Beijing)
'South Africa?' 1910 - the Union of South Africa created, thanks to the South Africa Act 1909 enacted by British parliament
'Is Bolivia landlocked?' 1884 - Treaty of Valparaiso signed ceding Bolivian territory to to Chile, leaving Bolivia landlocked (see also War of the Pacific
'Buda and Pest or Budapest?' 1873 - Buda and Pest merge to become Budapest
'Is Norway part of Sweden?' 1905 - Sweden-Norway dissolved, Norway becomes an independent monarchy
'Rhodesia?' Rhodesia was named under the British South Africa Company in 1895
'Austria-Hungary?' 1918 - Austria-Hungary officially separates into Austria and Hungary
'Albania?' 1912 - Albania declares independence from the Ottoman Empire
'Leningrad?' 1924 - Petrograd (Saint Petersburg) changes its name to Leningrad
You know there are times where I suspect he's just making some of his comics intentionally hard to explain or very ambiguous just to watch us do somersaults trying to describe them and make it clear, not necessarily for this comic but definitely with some of them it just seems that way. I don't know if he does or not, or how much he even pays attention to this wiki, just a thought. Of course maybe he does just because we're prime nerd sniping material. Lackadaisical (talk) 16:00, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
I'm pretty sure 'is it larger than a breadbox' is a reference to 20 questions. 108.162.216.77 16:11, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- From the Wikipedia page for 'Breadbox': "The most common reference to breadboxes is the phrase "Is it bigger than a breadbox?" when trying to guess what some surprise object may be. This question was popularized by Steve Allen on the American game show What's My Line? where he initially asked the question on 18 January 1953. It remains a popular question in the parlor game 20 Questions." 141.101.98.16 17:48, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
Note that it is very hard to even find Jan Mayen on an actual world map (even a political one), never mind figure out which country it belongs to. So anyone actually following these questions might (in some cases) get derailed fairly easily. 141.101.81.77 18:20, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- You will only get there if you can't find Istanbul/Constantinople, you can't find the Ottoman Empire, you can't find North Korea, and Soviet Russia can't find you. Note that the "no" box actually says "not yet". If you can find any of those four, you will never reach the Jan Mayen box. You will also never answer "yes" to the Jan Mayen box, as that would contradict the Soviet Union and North Korea not existing. 108.162.219.9 20:34, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- I tried to explain that a response of "What?" is interpreted to be unable to find Norway, not Jan Mayen, for this reason and that the name didn't exist until 1620, but then I couldn't eliminate that the map is from 1299 or earlier, because the kingdom of Norway is not that old. As for the "Yes" response, for a short period between November 1 and December 28, 1922, neither the Soviet Union nor the Ottoman Empire existed, and Norway had already received jurisdiction over Jan Mayen then.--Troy0 (talk) 07:16, 2 June 2016 (UTC)
Update picture, please: The "giant French blob" "yes" option points to the correct box (Pakistan) on xkcd.com but not on this page (Bangladesh), and the incorrect version leaves out approximately 1930-1960. 108.162.219.9 20:34, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
I fleshed out the Narnian section with links to the original illustrated maps from several books (but this gets weird in a hurry because there is no consistency of illustrations across the various editions of the books). I think it deserves to be mentioned in the article (although I did not try) that Randall is being slightly disingenuous with the history of maps of Narnia. For instance, there is no published map with sufficient detail to determine if Beruna has a ford or a bridge, neither can I find a map that includes Aslan's Country. On the other hand, it is also not an accurate history of the geopolitics of Narnia; for instance, Calormen existed during the time of the first three books even if it wasn't listed on any of the authorized maps. Also, it is the first time I have helped to edit an article, so I apologize for the quirkiness (especially the reliance on non-wikipedia links). Mwdaly (talk) 02:55, 2 June 2016 (UTC)
My map doesn't fit the chart... I think?
I've got a Stanford's General Map of the World (On Mercator's Projection) from 1968. My answers:
Istanbul -> The Soviet Union exists -> West Africa is not a giant French blob -> Only one Vietnam -> Jimmy Carter is fine... I think? The only animals on my map are Poseidon and a seahorse -> Sinai is mostly Egyptian...
Bangladesh exists, and below Victoria is Tanzania; so where's the second Vietnam I've failed to locate on my map? Mr FJ (talk) 20:44, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- Your map is optimistic in suggesting there is only one Vietnam, as 1968 was in the heart of the Vietnam War. 141.101.98.123 22:42, 1 June 2016 (UTC)
- Saint Trimble's Island
I think the real question is: how long until there actually is one on this planet, even though Randal claims to have made it up. --Divad27182 (talk) 03:30, 2 June 2016 (UTC)
Appearantly the year of an event is included in intervals after the event, but not in those prior. How do we handle it? Troy0 (talk) 03:46, 2 June 2016 (UTC)
- Flaws
Going on the path neither - no ottoman empire - no soviet union - no north korea - jan mayen is norwegian I will get results that all belong to a time were the soviet union existed. Am I doing it wrong?--162.158.92.175 08:01, 2 June 2016 (UTC)
- This path implies a time interval between November 1 and December 28, 1922, so it is unclear why it is linked to the Istanbul Division, which is 1928 or later.--Troy0 (talk) 08:28, 2 June 2016 (UTC)
- Did it work on your map?
- Worked
I just tried this out on an old Danish world atlas (Lademann Verdensatlas with most English names also included). And although I could not determine the capital of Micronesia, I found out that it was still called Upper Volta not Burkino faso and thus the map should be from 1982-1984. First then did I check the release date for this map and true enough it was from 1982! Cool. --Kynde (talk) 08:41, 2 June 2016 (UTC)
