Is the modification a rational map?

I need a map, a really big map

• I need a map. A really big map. I'm looking for a map of the great state of Minnesota. Ideally it would be about five feet tall, would be a political map (cities and roads and stuff) but would also include contours and other geological features - not just a highway map. It would show parklands and rivers. It would be made out of plain old paper, not the fancy super-thick paper or laminated paper. http://images.statemaster.com/images/motw/us_2001/minnesota_ref_2001.jpg Only with more detail, because it would be a REALLY BIG MAP. The closest thing I have been able to find has been a pull-down map of Minnesota, not unlike the ones that used to hover over the blackboard in my third-grade classroom. Although they're the right size, I am not interested in any of the 'extra stuff' (the pull-down mechanism, the super-thick paper, the hanging mechanism). I have also perused the USGS website, only to find more detail than I am looking for. Where does one go to find a really big map? I am shopping online, and have accepted the fact that it might not be cheap to send a really big map through the mail.

• Answer:

  I run a blog called, uh... the Big Map Blog. Barring some huge stroke of luck, you're going to have the best and most economical results -- as others have mentioned -- by finding a large (pixel dimensions) map file and printing it off at a local print shop. Regarding the specifics, you'll have to be flexible with some of the conditions you state. For example, state-level maps are unlikely to show relief through contours (...though I bet Florida could). While I have a bunch of http://www.bigmapblog.com/tag/minnesota/, I don't have any (published) maps that meet your qualifications. Let's find you a good map. You can use a vector source and not care about resolution, but if you don't go that route, you want to keep the pixel dimensions within some bounds. You can go less than 120dpi, but not much less, 4' = 48" × 120 = 5,760px in the large dimension, more or less. Two sources for map files that large spring to mind: David Rumsey and LOC. I did a search and came up with (there are many more; poke around): DRMC: http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~30588~1140115:County-map-of-Minnesota--Copyright-?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~216273~5502609:Cram-s-Rail-Road-&-Township-Map-Of-?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~23830~860003:Rand-McNally-auto-road-map-Minnesot?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~37896~1210744:Rand,-McNally-&-Co--s-Minnesota---w?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~33296~1170714:Minnesota---Published-by-George-F--?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~4208~420038:Sketch-of-the-Public-Surveys-in-the?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~38153~1211170:County-map-of-Minnesota--Copyright-?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~210901~5003784:Schonberg-s-Map-of-Minnesota--Enter?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~3868~400058:Rand,-McNally-&-Co--s-Minnesota-?printerFriendly=1&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No LOC: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.gmd/g4141p.rr001290 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.gmd/g4140.rr002410 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.gmd/g4140.ct001621 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.gmd/g4141p.rr002420 If you don't want to have to worry about image resolution, you can download a vector map; this will print well at whichever size you'd like, up to and exceeding barn-door size. Here's a https://www.google.com/search?q=vector+map+of+minnesota to get you started, if you take that tack.