Frederick Reuss, renowned author of several books including his most recent: “A Geography of Secrets”, was a plenary speaker at the recent National Map Users Conference in Golden, Colorado. During his remarks, Reuss provided an interesting viewpoint of cartography and map-making. He begins with his childhood perception of maps, discusses some historical moments and context in map-making, and culminates with the contemporary state of maps. His opening remarks entitled: “The Question, What is a Map? Is More Relevant than Ever”, include an introduction by Kevin Gallagher, USGS Associate Director, Core Science Systems.