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I was recently on Google Maps doing some cursory pre-holiday "research", and decided for some unexplainable reason (no, I have no ambitions to be a geoguesser) to randomly explore. After some random mouse click-and-dragging, I found myself in the middle of nowhere. Okay well, in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean. Zoomed out far enough on Google Maps, it's just a complete sea of blue. But zoom in more and little islands start to appear (actually their names start appearing before the actual islands do, which gives you a sense of their size or lack thereof). And so, Pitcairn Islands - a tiny collection of islands in the middle of nowhere exactly feeds my fascination with the remote and unknown. So, Wikipedia it is then, and it initially is as fascinating as you expect. The territory consists of four islands, though its probably worth focusing on Pitcairn, the only inhabited island. With just 35 permanent inhabitants (as of 2023), it is the smallest territory in the world in terms of permanent resident population. And more interestingly, the European settlement of the island was a result of a mutiny. Mutiny! "In 1790, nine of the mutineers from the British naval vessel HMS Bounty, along with the native Tahitian men and women who were with them (six men, 11 women, and a baby girl), settled on Pitcairn Island and set fire to the Bounty." Sounds like the opening crawl of a Pirates of the Caribbean movie. That quaintness quickly takes a dark turn, with the insularity of the island becoming a seeming festering ground for sexual abuse: "In 2004, charges were laid against seven men living on Pitcairn and six living abroad. This accounted for nearly a third of the male population, and half of the island's adult males." "A study of island records confirmed anecdotal evidence that most girls bore their first child between the ages of 12 and 15" is also a pretty brutal sentence to read. Food for thought I wonder if we do sometimes take for granted the modern trappings of developed civilisation. Perhaps my fascination with remote places have something to do with feeling the cudgelling weight of technology and hyper-connectivity. Contrast that with a place like Pitcairn, which did not have connection to the Internet prior to 2012, and that perhaps allows us to reframe how we think about our own lives. I'm not suggesting we return to a more tribalistic, pre-technology life (though the argument could be made that technology, and social media in particular, has had an effect in exacerbating tribalistic mindsets in recent years). Clearly there are problems when a community is completely cut off from the norms of the rest of the world. But it's interesting to consider the multiple perspectives of society, and not just assume that our individual context holds true everywhere else. Images from Wikicommons, Unsplash

The world map is a lie. Well, sort of. If you think of a 2D, rectangular world map, the image that comes to mind is what's called a Mercator projection: It's... a map, no doubt, but with some very obvious distortions. The most obvious one being Antarctica, which seems like almost another planet, as well as Greenland being absolutely massive and seemingly the same size as Africa, when it is in fact 1/14 the size. Representing a 3D sphere (Earth) on a 2D surface is fundamentally impossible, because distortions will always exist. The reason why the Mercator map more or less became the widely accepted 'standard' is because it preserved directionality and the shape of countries, which is very important for sailors when navigating. This was the 1500s, after all. There's plenty of discourse on the 'whys' of it all, ranging from simple mathematical challenges to more complex arguments about perpetuating Western/European superiority. That's an academic discussion well beyond me. However, it's worth us quickly just considering how our literal world view can be generically shaped if we don't take some time to analyse and evaluate. As we're now firmly into a globalised era and sometimes jet-setting our way across the world, that can offer an interesting means into rethinking our perception of the world map. For example, Australia is actually huge. While it may not look it on a 'traditional' world map, the flight time from Perth to Sydney is more or less the same as that from London to Moscow. https://www.thetruesize.com/ is an interesting tool that let's you overlay countries atop other regions to get a realistic sense of size and scale. Using it, you can see that you could fit most of the European landmasses within Australia: Brazil - Absolutely massive. Alaska - actually not that big at all. So, is there actually an accurate way to represent Earth on a map? Interestingly, one Japanese designer seems to have it (almost) figured out. Hajime Narukawa created something called the AuthaGraph World Map, and actually won the grand prize in Japan's biggest design competition. It's not perfect, but it's close. It also offers an interesting and different perspective of the map of the world. Maps. Makes you think. ~ Desmond

S’pore Launches Real-Time Maps That Let You Siam Crowds In Malls & Parks source: https://mustsharenews.com/real-time-maps-singapore/ Real-Time Singapore Maps Help Show You Where Crowds Are Gathered With stringent social distancing measures expected to gain full steam in the weeks ahead, you may be wondering how to siam the crowds without disrupting your daily routines. That’s where we can rely on the wonders of modern technology — aka real-time maps that show where crowds are gathered. Spaceout – launched by Gov.sg on Saturday (4 Apr) – does exactly what its name entails. Accessing the site is as simple as clicking the URL here, which will take you directly to a map of Singapore. Use real-time maps to avoid the kiasu shopping crowds Most “non-essential” stores are due to close for a month from Tuesday (7 Apr), so you’d assume there’d be much fewer people at malls. But don’t forget that food places and supermarkets will still be open, which only means one thing — customers stocking up on basic necessities. Since malls are likely to continue with safe distancing measures like controlling visitor counts, there may still be lines forming outside on certain days when people flock to buy items. If only there was a way to know beforehand, so you can save yourself from queuing. Thankfully, the government has thought of that before any of us could complain, and created SpaceOut.Gov.Sg, an interactive real-time map. According to the website, the map helps you “find out crowd levels in malls across Singapore before you head out to buy essential goods and services.” You can zoom in and out on certain areas and click on the multi-coloured dots to check the crowds at different malls. They even gauge crowds throughout the day so you can estimate before going. If only this existed way before the outbreak. Those of us who hate crowds would’ve appreciated the platform. Nonetheless, SpaceOut.Gov.Sg may become an indispensable tool, especially with serious concerns about safe distancing now. Exercise or take a walk in peace Fortunately for us, we can still carry out leisurely activities like exercising or taking a walk in the park. While sweating it out feels great and healthy, doing so in close proximity with others may not be very pleasant. We’re not sure how they’re tracking crowds in parks, but National Parks Board (NParks) has managed to do it with Safe Distance @ Parks. The platform works the same way as SpaceOut.Gov.Sg, so you’ll have no trouble navigating. Now you can siam all the others who also wish to get some fresh air, keeping safe and fit at the same time. Stay home & avoid crowds as much as possible Both sites are still under development, so don’t expect to get full features right away. Regardless, the basics available now are good enough, so make full use of the convenience. Better still, stay home if you don’t have a necessary reason to go out, and limit interactions to your direct family only. A large part of Singapore’s ability to overcome Covid-19 relies on all of us, so let’s do our best to comply with the advisories.

Nice new map: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/new-mrt-train-map-circle-line-redesigned-12175906 For download: https://www.lta.gov.sg/content/dam/ltagov/getting_around/public_transport/rail_network/pdf/SystemMap for download-Nov19.pdf Reminds me of a Dead or Alive song: You Spin Me Right Round.. https://youtu.be/PGNiXGX2nLU

Hi folks, Just bought a Garmin 50LM at Sitex and like to ask the following questions: 1) Do I need to do an initial charge? The staff (looks like part timer) doesn't seem sure when I asked... 2) If I wan to charge using adapter what volts should I use? I wouldn't be in the car long enough to charge it using the supplied car charger.. 3) As I was using another brand last time, how do I search for malaysia locations? I tired keying hatten malacca / Melaka but nothing was found.. My previous Marbella GPS will be able to find when I key in Appreciate your response in advance!