# north (direction)

the side of a place that is up on a map

- Computed level: L13 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: direction  ·  Arena: north.direction

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [side](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-side.surface), [map](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-map.spatial), [space](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-space.extent)

**Through:** the side and the map together orient relative to the top of a spatial representation

**Novel properties:**
- directional orientation
- relative upness
- spatial reference

## Examples
- The North Pole is marked at the top of the National Geographic Society's official world map. *(cartography)*
- Migrating Arctic terns navigate toward the northernmost point of Greenland during their annual flight from Antarctica. *(biology)*
- In GPS units used by the 2020 Dakar Rally, 'north' is the default upward orientation on the dashboard display. *(engineering)*

## Used by
- [left](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-left.direction) (L16)
- [west](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-west.direction) (L15)

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*Canonical: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-north.direction*  
*Structured data: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-north.direction.json*  
*Every definition provably resolves to space, time, energy and pattern.*