Kiwis aren’t showing their enthusiasm toward the final four alternate flags they’ll be allowed to choose between. We analyze the results.
Source: www.pri.org
What is in a flag? A flag is intended to represent a people and government while portraying a common heritage and a sense on timelessness. This may seem like a small decision, but symbols can be incredibly potent political and cultural forces; New Zealand better get this right.
Tags: Flags, New Zealand.
The steady stream of migrants in past years has turned into a torrent this year. Here’s a primer on the main forces at work.
Source: www.npr.org
I’ve recently shared some news articles about the global refugee crisis, especially as the so many are surging towards Europe. I’ve realized though, that many students are unsure what to make of the situation because they don’t understand how we got here in the first place. This article is organized to answer these basic questions:
“A new study maps the population gaps between men and women around the world.”
Source: www.washingtonpost.com
This interactive map is a great way to show how the 3 questions of geography make statistical analysis become more meaningful (where, why there and why care?). There are plenty of reason to care about these spatial patterns and their far-reaching implications.
Tags: gender, population, mapping, regions.
“A complete collection of the biggest mudslides and rockslides from around the world.”
This is a terrifying and mesmerizing compliation that shows the raw power of the Earth.
Tags: physical, geomorphology, erosion, landforms.
Source: www.youtube.com
In the latest crisis, tens of thousands are racing to Hungary before a border fence is finished.
Source: www.nytimes.com
Today there are refugees seeking safety throughout the world. There are several regional hot spots of political, ethnic and religious turmoil; many are now asking how the global community should response to the worst refugee crisis in generations (Related article: Migrant or Refugee? There is a difference with legal implications).
To hear the White House describe Alaska, the state has become the canary in the climate change coal mine, complete with raging wildfires, accelerating ice melt in the arctic, vanishing glaciers and whole villages forced to relocate away from rising seas.
Source: www.cnn.com
Most Alaskans already have shed the Mount McKinley name for over a generation, but as this National Geographic article points out, naming conventions matter and are filled with meaning. Some of you might be wondering how it ever got called Mt. McKinley in the first place, but this action is still causing some political commotion.
Tags: place, language, toponyms, indigenous.
“In communities across America, lawns that are brown or overgrown are considered especially heinous. Elite squads of dedicated individuals have been deputized by their local governments or homeowners’ associations to take action against those whose lawns fail to meet community standards.”
Source: 99percentinvisible.org
This is a great podcast that shows not only the environmental aspects of America’s obsession with well-manicured lawns, it also nicely explored the cultural norms that police our behavior to create the stereotypical suburban landscape. This is my favorite quote from the podcast: “There’s a paradox to the lawn. On the one hand, it is the pedestal on which sits the greatest symbol of the American Dream: the home, which people can ostensibly govern however they wish. And yet—homeowners often have almost no control over how they should maintain their lawn. Grass may be a plant, but a lawn is a designed object.”
Tags: housing, neighborhood, cultural norms, consumption, water, environment, urban ecology, culture.
“When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water.” ~Benjamin Franklin
It was busy today on the Canals in Amsterdam. Especially at the junction Prinsengracht/Leidsegracht.
Tags: Netherlands, transportation, place, neighborhood, landscape, time lapse, video.
Source: www.youtube.com
Could this transportation network and system work everywhere? If not, geography and place are critical factors to shaping the human landscape.
Introvert or extrovert? A quick photo quiz could reveal it all.
Source: www.washingtonpost.com
This psychology study found that introverts and extroverts prefer different landscapes for their vacations, and they may even seek out different environments for a home. There are many geographic implications to this idea, and I’m still chewing on them.
GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION 