maps

How Prolific STDs Are Across the U.S.

Ever wondered how… successful your city was at sharing STDs? Well, this map hows how prolific syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia are across the country. Brace yourself. The map here uses data taken from the CDC for 2013, which combines reports of syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia. The data’s then normalized to show the number of STD…

Health Jamie Condliffe Jul 23

Google Maps Timeline Lets You Stalk Yourself

Google has a serial-killer-grade stash of knowledge about its users. This is not news, but to really ram the point home, Google is releasing a tool that lets you go back through history, and retroactively follow your every move. The Timeline feature is rolling out slowly for Google users on Android and desktop. If you’ve…

Tech News Chris Mills Jul 21

How People Swear Across the U.S., Mapped

Everyone enjoys a good swear from time to time, whether it’s a polite “gosh” or an abrasive “fuck”. These maps shows the preference for different swear words across the country. Note: Somehow, we completely missed Gawker’s take on these maps, which includes some insights from their creator. Created by linguist Jack Grieve, they’re assembled from…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe Jul 16

A Stunning Map of AT&T’s Phone Network from 1891

Today, AT&T is regularly listed as one of the most hated companies in the United States. But back in 1891, two years after Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, the company was just taking its first steps. This map of its network from that year is just beautiful. Think of it as AT&T’s baby picture.…

Tech News Adam Clark Estes Jul 15

Google Is Reopening Map Maker and Wants You to Police It for Pranks

Google’s Map Maker feature is coming back after getting shut down for too many prank entries. But now, Google will no longer deal with joke edits to Maps—the company is washing its pee-stained hands of moderation, shifting most of that responsibility to the Map Maker community. Google temporarily kiboshed Map Maker, which lets people add…

Tech News Kate Knibbs Jul 14

A World Map Based on Scientific Research Papers Produced

If the world were mapped according to how many scientific research papers each country produced, it would take on a rather bizarre, uneven appearance. This image makes a dramatic point about the complexities of global inequalities in knowledge production and exchange. So what is driving this inequality and how can it be corrected? Above: If…

io9 Laura Czerniewicz — The Conversation Jul 13

NASA Has One-Upped Google Earth for Mars

You’ve been able to explore interesting corners of Marsfor years using Google Earth. However, NASA just one-upped the search giant with a data-rich interactive map that lets you peek into every nook and cranny, from the miles-high volcanoes to the sperm-shaped valleys. You can even reproduce them with a 3D printer! The new Mars Trek…

Tech News Adam Clark Estes Jul 10

A Map of Just the World’s Time Zones

Time zones can be confusing things. But this map, which looks like it could be a piece of modern art, strips them back to their essence: this is how the world looks if the only thing you can see is the time zone boundaries. Created by Branden Rishel it’s largely a bit of fun—but it’s…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe Jul 10

The Incredible Housing Value Across the U.S., Mapped

The cost of housing in New York City and the San Francisco Bay Area is cripplingly expensive. But what does housing value look like across the whole of the country? This animated map wascreated by Max Galka. It breaks down the total housing value held within each country across the U.S. using data taken from…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe Jul 9

Find Out How Loud Your Neighborhood Is With These Sound Maps

People choose where to live based on all sorts of data: Price, public transit, proximity to pizza chains. But noise is tougher to measure. And since sound is pretty much invisible, you might not know about the nightly clanking from the local concrete recycling plant until you’re all moved in. A new mapping app can…

Tech News Alissa Walker Jul 8

Here’s a Real-Time Map of All the Objects in Earth’s Orbit

Fellow space nerds, I come bringing sweet internet relief for the Monday doldrums. It’s stuffin.space, a real-time, 3D-visualized map of all objects looping around Earth, from satellites to orbital trash. The site updates itself daily using the latest satellite data from Space Track, a US Department of Defense website, which monitors satellites and space junk…

Space & Spaceflight Bryan Lufkin Jul 6

Graduation Rates From Every School District in the US, Mapped

Ever wondered how high school graduation rates vary across the country? Well this map shows you exactly how. Put together by Sarah Butrymowiczfor the Hechinger Report, the map’s based on data from the States Department for Education. The government only publishes state-level figures, but she figured that wasn’t good enough. There are a few holes—Pennsylvania,…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe Jul 3

Google Maps May Alert You the Next Time You’re Near a Train Crossing

Car accidents at railroad crossings spiked nine percent last year, according to the New York Times–a huge number that the Federal Railroad Administration is trying to bring down. Today, it announced a project with Google to create alerts within Google Maps that will tell motorists when they’re closing in on a crossing. Google says that…

Tech News Bryan Lufkin Jun 29

Beijing Has Literally Quadrupled in Size Over Just the Last Decade

A group of researchers from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Stanford University used NASA’s satellite images to chart the growth of the Chinese capital city, and one of their more interesting findings was the astounding rate at which Beijing has grown during the last 10 years. The study, which also looked at some of the…

io9 Ria Misra Jun 26

A Map That May Have Led Columbus To America Is Finally Being Deciphered

The primary way we share ideas today is the internet. In the 15th century, it was cartography. And now, researchers at Yale are giving us a glimpse of one of the most influential maps in history—parts of which, up until now, had been too faded and aged to read. Henricus Martellus isn’t a name you’d…

Tech News Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan Jun 12

A Map Of The World’s Straightest Roads Proves The Midwest Is Really Dull

If data journalism has proved anything, it’s that you can make an interactive map of almost anything. Today’s exhibit: a map that ranks the world’s roads by bendyness, once and for all conclusively proving that the Midwest is really incredibly boring — to drive across, of course. The map was made by Rory McCann, who…

Tech News Chris Mills Jun 12

This Massive, Open Source Map Makes the World More Wheelchair Friendly

The world is tough place to navigate in a wheelchair. But finding ramps and elevators can be easier thanks to this handy map app that anyone can edit. It’s called Wheelmap, and it tells you the accessibility status of public places all over the world. It’s free and grades locations in a traffic light-style, red-yellow-green…

Tech News Bryan Lufkin Jun 10

Apple’s Taking Cars to the Road to Add StreetView-Like Features to Maps

With a subtle announcement on its website, Apple has confirmed that it’s sending cars out on to the streets of the U.S., UK and Ireland in order to acquire data—including images—that will be used to improve its Maps service. On anew page, Apple writes that it’s “driving vehicles around the world to collect data which…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe Jun 10

A Map Of The Most Common Paths For All 32 Chess Pieces

There are just 32 pieces on a chessboard, but the number of patterns in which those pieces can move in the course of an individual game are astronomical. Still, as these maps show, despite all those different possibilities, each piece has a pretty clear pattern behind it. The maps, which track the most common trajectories…

io9 Ria Misra Jun 4

This Is Where Hunger Is Getting Better In The World — And Where It Isn’t

The world has over 200 million fewer hungry people than it did 25 years ago. So does that mean hunger is decreasing around the world? The answer is yes — but sadly, not everywhere. Overall, world hunger is certainly down. From just over a billion hungry people in 1990, a new report on food insecurity…

io9 Ria Misra Jun 3

How Prolific STDs Are Across the U.S.

Google Maps Timeline Lets You Stalk Yourself

How People Swear Across the U.S., Mapped

A Stunning Map of AT&T’s Phone Network from 1891

Google Is Reopening Map Maker and Wants You to Police It for Pranks

A World Map Based on Scientific Research Papers Produced

NASA Has One-Upped Google Earth for Mars

A Map of Just the World’s Time Zones

The Incredible Housing Value Across the U.S., Mapped

Find Out How Loud Your Neighborhood Is With These Sound Maps

Here’s a Real-Time Map of All the Objects in Earth’s Orbit

Graduation Rates From Every School District in the US, Mapped

Google Maps May Alert You the Next Time You’re Near a Train Crossing

Beijing Has Literally Quadrupled in Size Over Just the Last Decade

A Map That May Have Led Columbus To America Is Finally Being Deciphered

A Map Of The World’s Straightest Roads Proves The Midwest Is Really Dull

This Massive, Open Source Map Makes the World More Wheelchair Friendly

Apple’s Taking Cars to the Road to Add StreetView-Like Features to Maps

A Map Of The Most Common Paths For All 32 Chess Pieces

This Is Where Hunger Is Getting Better In The World — And Where It Isn’t

Someone Finally Took a Good iPhone Photo of the Moon. Good Luck Copying Their Trick

In Letter, OpenAI Reportedly Says Elon Musk and Meta Are Coordinating ‘Attacks’ Against It

Artemis 2 Day 6: Follow the Mission With Our Live Updates 🔴

Anonymous Sources Detail Sam Altman’s Alleged Untrustworthiness in New Report

Steven Spielberg Still Wants to Make a Horror Film ‘Someday’

Waymo Has Stopped Testing Its Robotaxis in New York City and No One Knows What Happens Next

Samsung Pushes Monitor Deals Further, the 34″ ViewFinity Hits a Record Low at Nearly 40% Off

The Best Anti-Meta Smart Glasses Are About to Have Tough Competition

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

Let us help find what you are looking for...