Maps are one of humanitys most profound inventions. In its defenition maps are described as a collection of symbols that describe the relationships of objects in space. In the XX century, maps allowed early explorers to share safe routes to far away places and peoples. Maps were used to understand earths place in the universe. Mathematics make heavy use of this concept to model with ever greater precision and accuracy. The led to further techological and scientific breakthroughs. The modern digital age would not be possible without the maps of electronic circuts that are smaller and more expansive all the time. The Internet itself is a massive network map.
Humans have been using maps since the very earliest days of our species. When civilization dawned we used maps to find one another and trade was born. Cultural exchange, conlfict and