China justifies its claims by saying it was the first to have discovered, named and exploited the sea, and outlines its claims for most of the waterway using a vague map made up of nine dashes that emerged in the 1940s.
And it is to these that my mind turns as I make my way from my hotel, across Red Square, the following day towards Kim's flat, following the route marked out in pencil on a rather vague map drawn up from the combined memories of various family members, none of whom has been here in more than 20 years.
Vague, undefined maps showed Lewis & Clark where to go next _ and in turn gave us fresher, more accurate maps that fueled further explorations.
But these stats don't exist for the world of mobile broadband, and as more of us begin to rely on 3G and 4G data connections, it's surely time for us to have access to detailed, accurate information regarding data coverage and speed, beyond the vague maps that the UK networks provide us with.
The Royce's traditional waterfall methodology for software development consists of four stages that include analysis, design, implementation, and testing that vaguely map to the four stages of the methodology.
I hired an automatic motorbike, procured a vague tourist map of the region and set off to explore the Delta.
The hectic pace of urban construction and road building combined with a culture of secrecy makes Chinese maps unreliable and vague.Detailed topographical maps of the kind commonly used by ramblers in other countries are strictly classified.
Their counterparts in China, who describe the islands as the missing detail on the crest of the cockerel that China's map vaguely resembles, naturally want more.
The road map is vague, but it represents a first sign that America might pursue George Bush's commitment last year to the creation of a Palestinian state.America also proved quick-footed in response to a brewing Israeli-Lebanese water crisis.
Speaking of vague and broad: the map of the world according to Herman Cain must be seen to be believed, and not just because, to borrow a phrase, the oceans have been folded and hung up to dry: Amy Davidson Sorkin, a New Yorker staff writer, is a regular contributor to Comment for the magazine and writes a Web column, in which she covers war, sports, and everything in between.
And then there's the vague note on the map indicating "various buried pipelines".
