ALL MAPS ARE WRONG
It is an inarguable mathematical fact that every map is a lie.
Well, a map is not a lie in the sense of a statement intended to deceive someone. Maps do give us useful information about the world. But every map is a compromise. Statistician George Box famously said, “All models are wrong.” He was pointing out that no simplified mathematical formulation can perfectly capture the complicated reality of the world. He followed it up, though, with, “But some are useful.” Even models that are incomplete can help us understand the world, as long as we understand their strengths and limitations. The same is true of maps.
Mathematical Impossibility
In the 1820s, German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss proved the theorema
