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MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA – Noé Diakubama, emigrante de la República Democrática del Congo, ahora residente en París, es uno de los pioneros audaces de este siglo. Con la ayuda en línea de herramientas de cartografía creó el primer mapa de su pueblo, Mbandaka; que entre él y su esposa han actualizado más de 100,000 veces desde 2009. Noé, literalmente, puso a Mbandaka –y a las personas que viven ahí– en el mapa.
Noé no es el único pionero en su tipo. Hay una vasta y creciente comunidad de creadores de mapa en línea que realizan mapas creativos y accesibles de zonas poco conocidas –y que transforman, durante el proceso, la vida de las personas.
Durante la edad de la exploración, que abarcó de los siglos XV al XVII, aventureros como Cristóbal Colón, Fernando de Magallanes y James Cook emprendieron viajes peligrosos hacia tierras lejanas, de Nueva Zelanda a Terranova, e hicieron mapas detallados de dichos viajes. Los conocimientos geográficos que desarrollaron ampliaron la visión de las personas sobre el mundo, incrementaron el comercio y ayudaron a fijar los fundamentos de la Revolución Industrial.
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