He had read an account of the exploits of Amerigo Vespucci, who searched almost the entire length of the South American coast looking in vain for a westward passage to the Orient. Columbus always believed he was in the vicinity of mainland Asia. Friday We're not always aware of it, but we humans carry around all sorts of maps in our heads that help us find our way home, or to the supermarket, or to the gas station. These so-called mental maps and are a part of everyone's memory. We also use many different types of maps in our lives to help organize information in different ways.
Weather maps help meteorologists make forecasts.
Tourists use road maps to figure out the best route to their destination. Urban planners use special maps to help design cities. Political maps show the borders of countries and physical maps indicate rivers, lakes, mountains, valleys, or deserts. Modern technologies like satellite imaging have helped us create maps more accurately than ever before. Now, scientists are actively engaged in trying to map the universe.