Tomas Spiers

Tomas Spiers

Comparing my sketch and an overhead image of Harvard Square on Google Maps, I have several major takeaways. First of all, my general conception of proportion is generally good. The size of Cambridge Common relative to the size of Harvard Yard on my map is pretty accurate. My locations of buildings relative to each other are accurate as well. My main inaccuracies stem from street locations and angles as well as building sizes. I grossly overestimated or underestimated the sizes of some buildings and the orientations of some streets (I also neglected to include a lot of the streets I use daily!). I also neglected the curve of the Charles River in my sketch, which is surprising because I am a rower and on the river frequency. My accuracies and inaccuracies tell me that my conception of space largely comes from my relation to buildings. I start and end my day in Harvard Yard, which is now the focal point of my daily experience, and the accuracy of my map diminishes as I get further and further from my dorm, Stoughton Hall. I think my roads are especially inaccurate because of my strong relation to buildings - I depend on using notable buildings to orient myself rather than using street directions. I found this exercise thought-provoking regarding how I relate to the world around me.