Publication Date: March 2021
Author: Jaewon Lim, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown, Jr.
Abstract: This fact sheet reports the population distribution for the 687 census tracts in the State of Nevada between 2015 and 2019. Mapping population distribution by census tract can misrepresent population density. Oftentimes, in rural regions with low population density, large census tracts are home to a small number of people. Likewise, urban cores have many small census tracts, each with high population density. Using a method for constructing density-equalizing projections, or cartograms (i.e. maps that show statistical information in diagrammatic form) by Mark Newman and Michael Gastner at the University of Michigan, the constructed maps in this fact sheet better visualize population density among the 687 census tracts in Nevada. The illustrations provided allow for the comparison of a simple choropleth population distribution map -- which displays numerical data using a color gradient -- and a cartogram, which utilizes density-equalizing projections to demonstrate population density in Nevada and how population density differs by age-cohorts.