Modifiable areal unit problem

The Modifiable Areal Unit Problem (MAUP) is a problem that can happen when we try to look at maps or data about an area. When we make maps or collect data, it's important that we look at areas that are the same size and shape. But sometimes, the shapes of the areas we look at can be different, which means they don't give us an accurate picture of what's really going on. MAUP happens because the sizes and shapes of the areas on our maps affect the way we think about and interpret the data we get from those maps. For example, if we look at two maps that both show the same area, but one map has bigger areas than the other, the data we get from those two maps might be different. That's because when an area is bigger, it might include more people, more data points, or more features than the smaller area. This means that the data from the bigger area might look different from the data from the smaller area, even though they're both looking at the same area.