sethdixon

Author

sethdixon

I am a geography professor at Rhode Island College.

Beyond 7 Billion

After remaining stable for most of human history, the world’s population has exploded over the last two centuries. The boom is not over: The biggest generation in history is just entering its childbearing years.

The Los Angeles Times has produced an in-depth interactive feature centered around the impact of an increasing global population. With videos, population clocks, narrated graphics, maps, photos and articles, this is treasure trove of resources for a population geography unit.

See on www.latimes.com

August 21, 2012 0

Gerrymandering: What is it?

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

This page is a quick primer for understanding how the decennial census leads to the incredibly political process of reapportionment of the congressional districts. It also defines the specific gerrymandering techniques of packing, cracking, hijacking and kidnapping.

See on gerrymanderingmovie.com

August 21, 2012 0

Google Maps: 10 Handy Tricks You Should Know

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

Google Maps is a fantastic free tool, but we’re guessing you don’t have much spare time to play around with the service. Let us help.

Even if you use Google Maps just for personal use, these are basic enough of tips that all users should be able to use.

See on mashable.com

August 21, 2012 0

Philippines floods: the aftermath

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

The torrential rains that caused widespread flooding in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, have left the city reeling…

This is a grim, but captivating photo gallery showing how people adapt to environmental disasters. Human settlements are vulnerable to disasters based on their environmental situations but people still display an amazingly capacity to be resilient in the face of danger. “The torrential rains that caused widespread flooding in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, have left the city reeling. Thousands of people remain in evacuation shelters, and those who stayed in their homes during the deluge face a major clean-up operation.”

See on www.guardian.co.uk

August 20, 2012 0

Streetcar Plans Plow Ahead

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

Cities from Los Angeles to Atlanta are making big bets to revitalize their downtowns by bringing back a form of transportation many abandoned decades ago: the streetcar.

The streetcar was a staple in urban development projects generations ago and was subsequently abandoned. Many mid-sized cities today (and a few large ones) are returning to that ‘outdated’ mode of transportation and hoping that streetcar stops will encourage businesses to open shop in those neighborhoods.

See on online.wsj.com

August 20, 2012 0

Is African food the next Chinese?

See on Scoop.it – Cultural Geography

There is no “African” food.But Americans are beginning to try the continent’s different regional cuisines — and they’re liking them…

What is considered ethnic foods changes over time. For example, many Americans no longer consider Italian ‘ethnic food’ but part of mainstream culture while it was not 100 years ago. What drives our interest in ethnic foods and what cultural exchanges occurs in the packaging of culture in an edible commodity?

See on www.latitudenews.com

August 19, 2012 0

Arms Trade

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

This interactive requires WebGL (viewable in Chrome). Even more compelling than the data is the visualization platform.

See on workshop.chromeexperiments.com

August 19, 2012 0

Tropical Diseases: The New Plague of Poverty

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

Extreme poverty in the United States is giving rise to a group of infections known as the neglected tropical diseases, which we ordinarily think of as confined to developing countries.

Poor Americans are more likely to contract tropical diseases such as Chagas disease and dengue fever. Question to ponder: what geographic factors (physical and human) lead poor people in the United States to be more heavily impacted by the spread to these diseases?

See on www.nytimes.com

August 19, 2012 0

Why should I be interested in Geography?

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

A video made by David Lambert et al showing why Geography is a key subject and the importance of understanding it in the context of our modern world.

This is a creative video that promotes geo-literacy. It is an excellent way to kick off a new school year if you are looking for a ‘hook’ to demonstrate the importance of geography to students today. Other materials of this nature can be found on this website under the tag ‘geo-inspiration.’

See on www.youtube.com