The purpose of this assignment is “to produce a color, noncontiguous
cartogram of the Hispanic or Latino Population in the United States based on the [latest] US Census data.”

Compare the Hispanic Population Cartogram to the Standard U.S. Map:

• Which state has the largest Hispanic population and which state has the smallest population?  How can you tell?
  • The state that has the largest Hispanic Population is California and the state that has the smallest Hispanic Population is Vermont. Based on the exploding size compared to Texas and Florida (which are also big), California has the largest population compared to the rest of the country. Vermont has over 600,000 total persons but the Hispanic population (less than 10,000) is small compared to the total.
• Find Maryland on the cartogram.  Does it appear smaller or larger relative to its size on the standard map?
  • It’s larger because it has over 470,000 Hispanic persons/10,000 sq. mi (which means 1 in 47 in 100 miles squared) compared to other states like Vermont, Wyoming, etc.
• Based on the cartogram you created, which three states would you conclude have the most Hispanic representatives?
  • California, Texas, and Florida
• In conclusion, do you think the cartogram effectively convey the underlying message, in this case Hispanic population, to the audience?  Explain.
  • Yes. The enlargement/shrinking size and color shading of the symbols is direct to the point and tells the map reader right away the information they need to know.