The oldest known maps in existence today were created around 2300 BC in ancient Babylonia on clay tablets. The Egyptians created surveying instruments and the Greeks created the astrolabe. Today, cartographers continue to make maps. Of course, most new maps do not depict a newly discovered or explored land as they did in the past.
Maps are still vital to society and continue to improve over time.
In addition to technology, cartographic research has aided in better maps. Cartographic research is important because it provides for a map that best displays the earth in the abstract form of a map to the complex human mind. A major area of research in cartography has been communicating to the map user the message the map makers intended to send. Cartographers began to research people and maps to see if their maps were effective. These studies were often called cognitive research.