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Map of the US if 50 states were formed by equal population and split by parallel longitude.
(sopuli.xyz)
We need some state names for these. A few -stans would be appropriate as well.
What does equal population mean and what does the different widths indicate?
Are the widths just the original area? Because why then introduce the "equal population" information?
I'm sorry if I'm being a bit thick, but I really don't get it.
It's not you, it's a lack of legend
They are talking about how some states are bigger than others while having a smaller population. The width, in this case, means just the area of land which a state would have to be to have a population count equal to all other states.
here's the article
"Equal population" means each stripe has the same number of residents in it. Wider areas with the same total number of people indicate a lower population density. Closely spaced lines show there are a high population density.