Have you ever looked at a world map and wondered why some countries seem much larger than others, even though that doesn't ...

Such maps can also help us see the past and present with fresh eyes. For example, any alternate history is not simply a point of divergence, followed by seat-of-the-pants conjecture.

Winning requires a fairly decent knowledge of the names of the world’s nearly 200 countries, a sense of where they are and, just as important, who their neighbours are.

But in the alternate world depicted by graphic artist Alfred Twu, we’ve realized them all, and more. The map above depicts Twu’s vision of an America whose major cities are all connected by ...