What do you think? Funny, Useful, Derogatory?

As a GIS professional what do you think about the maps presented below? Are they funny, helpful, useful, derogatory? Share your opinion with us in the CFGIS LinkedIn group or CFGIS Blog (cfgis.blogspot.com).

560 - A World Map of Heavy Metal Density  - By Frank Jacobs, Big Think

Cartography has the curious capacity to bypass a map-reader’s critical function when conveying information, and never more so than when a map is plain and simple. Two examples treated earlier on this blog spring to mind - also because they’re quite funny: the Jesusland map (#3), and the New Simplified Map of London (#199). 

Some maps are beautiful because of their rich complexity. Others capture our attention because they are so starkly simple.  

Jesusland is based on electoral data, the Simplified Map on a more subjective idea of wealth distribution. But both communicate a sentiment rather than merely solid data. The map shown here is less editorial, but the information it presents is equally stark. 

This map reflects the number of heavy metal bands per 100,000 inhabitants for each country in the world. It codes the result on a color temperature scale, with blue indicating low occurrence, and red high occurrence [1]. The data for this map is taken from the extensive Encyclopaedia Metallum, an online archive of metal music that lists bands per country, and provides some background by listing their subgenre (Progressive Death Metal, Symphonic Gothic Metal, Groove Metal, etc). Click Here to View Full Story