Maps are essential décor for any social studies class, and though they are helpful tools in beginning to understand geography, maps are merely 2-D representations of a 3-D world and will always carry certain inherent inaccuracies. Because of their flatness and size restrictions, maps require manipulation, rendering them incapable of showing the actual shape of the Earth and the continents, nations, and other features upon it. Though these might seem like necessary concessions, the implications of such manipulations move beyond the blackboard and can have damaging effects; forcing students to see the world in 2-D each day has the attendant effect of teaching them to understand the world in two-dimensional terms.

Furthermore, maps present borders as fixed, unchanging entities, which is a misleading implication to present in a history course. Borders have been changing throughout the history of civilization, and the United States is a perfect example of a country with borders that have blurred and bled into one another for decades as states continued to form and join as recently as the 20th century.

The author’s main idea is that

(A) maps are a necessary evil
(B) maps present borders as static
(C) 3-D representation of the world is impossible
(D) outdated information makes education less effective
(E) graphic representation can encourage cognitive misconceptions



Which of the following, if true, would most undermine part of the author’s evidence?

(A) Some students exposed to maps grasp 3-D and dynamic concepts about the world.
(B) Most teachers rely very little on the maps displayed in their classrooms.
(C) Computer-generated map displays increasingly in use in classrooms show changes in boundaries almost instantaneously.
(D) Maps from hundreds of years ago contain errors.
(E) 2-D maps do not indicate topographical features effectively.



The author does which of the following in the passage?

(A) Employs circular logic.
(B) Cites a historical case.
(C) Uses physical description to support an accusation.
(D) Discusses a hierarchy of problems with maps.
(E) Rebuts a commonly held view.