Japan's shindo distribution map is read by millions of people in the seconds before the shaking arrives. Grey landmass, deep blue sea, intensity stamped on in patches from 震度1 to 震度7 — every colour fixed by the agency's own guideline so that a national broadcaster, a prefectural office and a phone app render the same event identically.

Nothing here is a stylistic choice. The numeral always sits beside the swatch, label text flips white or near-black per the table, and panels are rectangles pinned to the screen edge. Authority comes from each colour doing exactly one job.