With the arrival of the Wuhan University Cherry Blossom Festival, the number of visitors has reached a new peak. To help tourists find a proper tour route and gain a deeper immersion of WHU, a set of digital atlas was born, which included features such as route guidance and history introductions. Once released, the atlas got highly praised by the public. “It is much more reliable than those hand-drawn maps sold at the school gate.” Ma Xiaofei, a senior student said.
Cherry blossoms along Star Lake
Actually, the people behind the atlas are members of the S-Lab and W-Team from the School of Resources and Environmental Sciences. “I have been making maps for decades, but none of my works were designed for our school. So, I felt it was time for us to do something now.” said Weng Min, the leading teacher of W-Team. Inspired by passion, the idea of designing an atlas for the WHU Cherry Blossom Festival sprang up last November. “We wanted to dig out some deeper information about the festival and to show Wuhan University from different angles.” Teacher Weng said.
The atlas garnered a good reputation due to its elaborate design and detailed information. “After several discussions and revisions, we finalized our map style during the winter vacation.” said Su Shiliang, the leading teacher of S-Lab. Data collection and mapping were carried out afterwards, in which process not only the team members participated, but lower-grade students also helped out. “We want more young students to get involved.” said Kang Mengjun, one of the tutors in the team. In fact, undergraduate students undertook the major tasks. “They really did a good job.” said teacher Weng. He thinks practice is the best way to gain knowledge, and this “full participation” gives the atlas more meaning. Teacher Kang and his team are now working on turning “static” maps into a “dynamic” E-zine. The interface supports basic map operations, information query and spatial analysis.
Route guidance
In the future, the S-Lab and W-Team will produce more maps relevant to people’s daily life. “Something about geographical culture, or even ancient Chinese maps are all interesting.” Teacher Su said, “but we will definitely make a more comprehensive and detailed atlas for WHU. Alumni can provide ideas or materials such as some of their old photos. What they want to see on the atlas is what will be included in the future.”
The team started the plan out of love for their mother school. During the process, students gradually discovered the fun of mapping as well as the charm of WHU. Through this, the feeling of belonging in the WHU community also passes on from generation to generation. In the near future, perhaps a thick atlas of Wuhan University, presenting a multidimensional WHU, will make an appearance.
The young faces behind the atlas
（Photo by Wang Yupin）
（Edited by Li Minjia, Edmund Wai Man Lai, Liu Jiachen and Liu Xiaoli）
