Germany's Miniatur Wunderland On Google Maps Is A Reflection Of Our Place In The World
Do you ever get on Google Maps and search through an area you're familiar with, only be left in amazement that those images exist as part of a global database. Then, step back from that reality to realize how small of a spec on the planet that area is and in conjunction with how small of a part of that area you are, meaning you're extremely small in the grand scheme of things?
Okay, maybe a bit of a downer there, but this new Google Map of a pretend "Wunderland" may bring you to that realization.
They rolled out this new feature with a statement, that, and maybe it's just me, makes you think about how we all fit into the point of view of Google:
"…we have a Street View surprise for you: Hamburg’s famed Miniatur Wunderland, the world’s largest model railway, has come to Google Maps. Boasting 13,000 meters of track and more than 200,000 tiny citizens."
The idea of 200,000 tiny citizens sticks with me, because, although this is a fake/fantasy civilization created, it seems to be true about how we all are in this world: just "tiny citizens" on a Google Map somewhere.
Similarly to how they've been able to videotape and photograph Miniatur Wunderland and add it to Google Maps, that's how we as actual human beings exist on a Google Map somewhere, so it literally just raises the question of how much does our little corner of the world really gets reflected on the entirety of Earth.
Most likely, much less than we have ever thought about.