It's a little unfair that giant states with tiny populations get so much room for such few people. I mean, especially since states on the east coast are living on top of each other in cramped borders. So let's change that with a fun little thought exercise and a spin on how to look at the map of United States: what if we gave the biggest states by physical size to the states with the biggest population? New York would be the new California, Alaska is in New Jersey, Hawaii is part of the contiguous 48 and Texas stays Texas forever.


Here's what the map of the United States would look like if the population matched its physical size:


It'd be fun to mix things up. Imagine Hawaii and Colorado now in the south near South Carolina and Arkansas. Or Utah as Pennsylvania and Oregon as New York. The Carolinas and the Virginias get split up while the Dakotas remain relatively close to one another (thought North is actually south and South is actually north). Quirks!

I want to live in this United States if only to see what happens when you drop an entire state's population into a brand new place.