maps

Date: 29 October 2007 21:26:00

This one is BBC News's recent demonstration of areas affected by the fires in Malibu. Credit must go to

who pointed it out first, calling it simply "best map ever" and inspiring my own collection. The BBC's map is peculiarly endearing. There's a definite pathos to the lonely little celebrities singled out for our information. "Sting". I love it. "Sting".

Now, as you may know, in 2001 the UK had a census. This included a question on religion.
An email did the rounds at the time, claiming that if enough people put "Jedi" as their religion
on the form, the authorities would be obliged to give it official legal status as a religion.

Needless to say this was probably bollocks, but the debate goes on.

Well, legalities aside, the email did its job admirably. Some 390,127 English and Welsh Jedi Knights
came out of the closet. The map below is based on the proper ONS data, and maps the Jedi at
local authority level across England and Wales. It's not so specific about Scotland, probably because
we tend more towards the dark side. Nonetheless the ONS did estimate 14,052 Scottish Jedi were lurking
somewhere.

These next two are a little less fun. This map demonstrates the results, lest we forget, of the 2004 US Election.

... which compares disturbingly with the following map of...

Chance? Luck? Enormously depressing but blindingly obvious reality?