Idea behind the Map Room

It is not a map room IMO. It is a guidence system that is used by the person that sits in the pilot seat when it elevates through the floor to direct the derilicts destination.

Its from the Voynich manuscript, which the writers of Lost and other sci-fi have pondered and tried to creatively weave into their stories.

Writers often borrow from these ideas (true or not): http://www.world-mysteries.com/sar_13.htm

The "Map" room is the same room the space Jockey Chair comes out of, if you watch the trailer and new pics we see David playing with Earth, then later the Blue earth is a Green Earth Ball being placed into a receptacle (All oddly holographic) the Chair then starts to come out in the center of the chamber and in theory the SJ hops in to the chair, then the Prometheus slams into him and he crashes.

Its just a Navigation/information map