astronomy

Jacques Bertin

Jacques Bertin is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Jacques Bertin rather than just read about it. In short: Jacques Bertin (27 July 1918 – 3 May 2010) was a French cartographer and theorist, known from his book Sémiologie Graphique (Semiology of Graphics), published in 1967. This monumental work, based on his experience as a cartographer and geographer, represents the first and widest intent to provide a theoretical foundation to Information Visualization, with his most lasting contribution being his set of visual variabl…

Key takeaways

Jacques Bertin belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Jacques Bertin to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Jacques Bertin from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Jacques Bertin (27 July 1918 – 3 May 2010) was a French cartographer and theorist, known from his book Sémiologie Graphique (Semiology of Graphics), published in 1967. This monumental work, based on his experience as a cartographer and geographer, represents the first and widest intent to provide a theoretical foundation to Information Visualization, with his most lasting contribution being his set of visual variables that can be used to construct map symbols and other graphical techniques one of then being the Bertin Projection, an innovative map projection type, or to seriate them (the Bertin Matrix).

Biography Jacques Bertin was born in 1918 in Maisons-Laffitte, Yvelines. When he was 10, he received the first prize of cartography at primary school. He never had problems with drawing, and pursued interests including architecture, the teaching of drawing and cartography. Finally he ended up studying geography and cartography at the Sorbonne. He became founder and director of the Cartographic Laboratory of the École pratique des hautes études (EPHE) in 1954 and director of studies (directeur d'études) in 1957. In 1967 he became professor of the Sorbonne, and in 1974 he became director of studies and director of the Geographical Laboratory of the École des hautes études en sciences sociales (EHESS), which is part of the École pratique des hautes études (EPHE, VIe Section). Later in the 1970s he became head of research at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS). In 1993 Bertin received the "Mercator-Medaille der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Kartographie" and in 1999 the Carl Mannerfelt Gold Medal from the International Cartographic Association. Bertin died in Paris on 3 May 2010.

Publications Jacques Bertin has published numerous scientific maps, papers and articles on map making, semiology, graphical information and graphic processing.

1967. Sémiologie Graphique. Les diagrammes, les réseaux, les cartes. With Marc Barbut [et al.]. Paris : Gauthier-Villars. (Translation 1983. Semiology of Graphics by William J. Berg.) 1969. Etude et réalisation d'un dispositif de goniométrie et d'observation de formes d'onde, en large bande. 1976. Experimental and Theoretical Aspects of Induced Polarization. 2 vol. With J. Loes. Berlin : Gebruder. Borntraeger. 1977. Graphique et le traitement graphique de l'information. With Serge Bonin [et al.]. 1977. La graphique et le traitement graphique de l'information. Paris : Flammarion, 1977, 273 p. (translation 1981. Graphics and graphic information-processing by William J. Berg and Paul Scott). 1992. Harper atlas of world history. with Pierre Vidal-Naquet. N.Y. : HarperCollins. 1997. Atlas historique universel. Panorama de l'histoire du monde. With J. Devisse, D. Lavallée and J. Népote. Genève : Éd. Minerve, 180 p. 2006. Nuovo atlante storico Zanichelli / sotto la direzione di Pierre Vidal-Naquet; direzione della cartografia.

References

External links

Interview with Jacques Bertin Jacques Bertin's Semiology of Graphics Graphische Variablen im UMN MapServer (in German) Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales page for Bertin Archived 16 December 2021 at the Wayback Machine (in French)

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Jacques Bertin

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Jacques Bertin claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Jacques Bertin before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Jacques Bertin ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Jacques Bertin

In research: Jacques Bertin appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Jacques Bertin in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Jacques Bertin is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1918 births, 2010 deaths, Academic staff of the École pratique des hautes études, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Jacques Bertin outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Jacques Bertin in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Jacques Bertin means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Jacques Bertin out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Jacques Bertin in simple terms?

Why does Jacques Bertin matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Jacques Bertin?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Jacques Bertin.