Question

Long Answer Type Question:
Define and discuss 'distance' as a component of a map.

Answer 1

Maps are drawings. They reduce the whole world or a part of it to fit on a sheet of paper. In other words we can say that maps are drawn to reduced scales. But it needs great care while doing this reduction work in order to keep the distance between the real places. It can only be possible when a small distance on paper represents a large distance on the ground. For this purpose a scale is used. Scale is the ratio between the actual distance on the ground and the distance shown on the map. We can understand this with the help of an example. Suppose, the distance between your coaching centre and your school is $8km$. If you show this 8 km distance by $2cm$ on a map. It means, $1cm$ on the map will show $4km$ on the ground. Thus, the scale of your drawing will be $1cm=4km$.
Scale is very important in any map. If scale is known, calculation of distance between any two places on a map will be easy. A small scale is used to show large areas on a paper like continents or countries. For example, $10cm$ on the map shows $1000km$ of the ground.
A large scale is used to show a small area like a village or town on paper For example, $10cm$ on the map shows $1000$ metes only on the ground.