Deliverable: Once you have completed the assignment below, please submit a singl

Deliverable: Once you have completed the assignment below, please submit a single document with your two maps and reflection using this Canvas submission portal.
Learning Objectives:
Use health data to produce maps in R
Consider the choices cartographers make when creating a map
Practice putting map elements together to make a cohesive argument through a map
Description:
Students are expected to complete three exercises over the course of the quarter. This is the first of those. In this exercise, students are introduced to data manipulation and mapping in R. R is a free software environment and programming language that is widely used by geographers and statisticians for both data analysis and mapping. This exercise relies on the Intro to R tutorial provided to you which uses census data and walks students through taking that data from a table and getting it into a format in which it can be mapped in R. Thus, that tutorial and this exercise are designed to set you up to be able to make your own maps in R from any census data you wish (something you might find useful in making maps for your atlases).
This exercise is worth 10% of your course grade and will be graded out of 10 points.
Instructions:
answer the questions that follow. After you have made your two maps (one each in response to the two questions below), you are asked to reflect on the experience following the prompt.
Question 1: The Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, was introduced by President Obama in 2010. One of the major tools it employed was the individual mandate which required all individuals to be enrolled in health insurance or to pay a penalty on their taxes. This individual mandate went into effect in 2014. When President Trump came into office, he repealed that individual mandate starting in 2019. So, in 2019 and since then, there has no longer been a tax penalty for anyone who does not have health insurance. As health geographers, we want to know what impact the repeal of the individual mandate had and how that effect varies geographically. Please make a choropleth map showing the percent change in the number of people enrolled in health insurance between 2018 (the year before the individual mandate was repealed when we would expect health insurance rates to be highest) and 2021 (the most recent data available to us) by county. It is up to you whether and how you classify that data, what colors you use, etc., but you’ll want to make sure that your map effectively communicates the information (upon which you will be graded) and you’ll want to be conscious of the choices you are making as a cartographer (which will come in handy in the reflection below).
Question 2: The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was first enacted in 1990. Since then, it has been interpreted in many different ways in different places. While it is a federal statute, the ADA is primarily enacted by states. Because different states have interpreted the law differently and enacted different programs in support of the law, some states have come to be known as much friendlier to people with disabilities (i.e. providing more services, in more accessible ways) than others. As such, there is a geographic variability in where people with disabilities choose to live (and where people tend to be diagnosed with disabilities and access services). Please make a choropleth map showing the 2021 distribution of the population with disabilities by state. Again, it is up to you how you make your map, but you will be assessed on how clearly it conveys the information. As you work, make note of the choices you are making to include in your reflection (see below).
Question 3: Finally, please write a reflection (250 – 400 words) that considers:
What choices did you make as a cartographer?
Why / how did you make them?
How did the technology you were using (R / RStudio) constrain or support those choices?
What impact did the choices you made and the technology you used have on the story your maps tell?
Data:
Data has been provided for you in the form of two shapefiles: Ex1A.shp and Ex1B.shp. Below you can find a glossary of the data provided:
From Ex1A.shp:
GEOID: geographic identifier (assigned by the Census Bureau)
NAME: name of the county and states
STFIPS: state FIPS code (geographic identifier)
COUNTY: name of the county
STATE: name of the state
YEAR: year on which the estimate is based
POPULATION: estimate of total population
DIS19: total population under the age of 19 with a disability
DIS1964: total population between the ages of 19 and 64 with a disability
DIS65: total population over the age of 65 with a disability
From Ex1B.shp:
GEOID: geographic identifier (assigned by the Census Bureau)
NAME: name of the county and states
STFIPS: state FIPS code (geographic identifier)
COUNTY: name of the county
STATE: name of the state
YEAR: year on which the estimate is based
CIVILPOP: the total non-institutionalized civilian population
UNINSURED: the total non-institutionalized civilian population that is uninsured
You can find the shapefiles in a zipped file here Download a zipped file here. In that zipped file, you will also find an R script containing the info in this assignment to get you started.
Rubric
Exercise 1 Rubric
Exercise 1 Rubric
CriteriaRatingsPts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeQuestion 1How well does your map communicate the information and answer the question.
4 ptsExcellent
Map does a great job of answering the question. Information is presented clearly and effectively. Map is aesthetically pleasing and does not include superfluous map elements.
3 ptsGood
Map answers the question, but could be a little clearer. It may contain superfluous map elements or distracting map features, but it does answer the question.
2 ptsAcceptable
Map contains information relevant to the question, but doesn’t fully answer it. Map may lack clarity.
1 ptsAttempted
If you attempt to make a map, you will earn at least one point, even if you do not successfully answer the question with a map.
0 ptsNo Map/Answer Included
4 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeQuestion 2How well does your map communicate the information and answer the question.
4 ptsExcellent
Map does a great job of answering the question. Information is presented clearly and effectively. Map is aesthetically pleasing and does not include superfluous map elements.
3 ptsGood
Map answers the question, but could be a little clearer. It may contain superfluous map elements or distracting map features, but it does answer the question.
2 ptsAcceptable
Map contains information relevant to the question, but doesn’t fully answer it. Map may lack clarity.
1 ptsAttempted
If you attempt to make a map, you will earn at least one point, even if you do not successfully answer the question with a map.
0 ptsNo Map/Answer Included
4 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeQuestion 3Does your reflection touch on all of the points of Question 3 and present a coherent reflection on the exercise process and the limitations of the technology.
2 ptsExcellent
Reflection shows significant thought and addresses all aspects of the question. Reflection is clear and brings in terms and/or concepts from class.
1 ptsAcceptable
Reflection addresses the prompts in the question but may not be complete or could be strengthened with more attention.
0 ptsNo Reflection Included
2 pts
Total Points: 10