Squirrels, Subways, and Spatial Imaging

ArcGIS, with its mystical mapping powers and data-sharing capabilities allowed me to create my map. The map lies at the intersection of three very important things for any New Yorker (I would assume — I’m from CA): squirrels, subways, and and themselves. The map clearly and artistically displays the count and color of squirrels habituated in Central Park, the nearest subways stops to said squirrels (as well as all other MTA subway stops in the city), and the median age of Americans, because we all know octogenarians love squirrel watching.

Once I got past the intimidation I felt from the notion of creating my own map, the process was relatively simple. After importing the CSV data from the squirrel survey to the program, as we did in class, I reassigned the colored squirrel icons to the points, leaving a white circle for those marked “other.” Then, I searched through ArcGIS online for new layers which could potentially be relevant to my squirrel study. This part was slightly trickier, as I had to toe a line between maps that did not have any significant presence in NYC, and those which threatened to completely cover my already plotted data. With enough search, however, I found a few maps to overlay onto my existing one that would not only be easily readable, but would make some sort of sense in conjunction to NYC (and squirrels!).

I am honestly surprised at how well it turned out. While a lot of the actual data plotting and customization occurred in class under the guidance of Austin, I still cannot believe not only that I created a map like mine, but that I would know how to create another one if the opportunity or necessity arose. Overall, ArcGIS is a great tool to have in my ever-expanding Digital Humanities toolbox!