GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION

Millions of tourists have already taken a picture of Machu Picchu from this angle, and yet, tourists all want to replicate the iconic shot as for themselves–proof that they were there and had the full experience.  Iconic images are perfect for internet memes (and in this instance a photobomb) because there is a shared cultural understanding of what the picture should look like normally and inverting that provides the comic relief.  CAPTION THIS PHOTO IN THE COMMENTS SECTION. 

Tags: Peru, South America, tourism, images.

This online game where you return the “misplaced” country on the map is more than just and exercise in locating places (there are many online map quizzes for that sort of activity).  What makes this one unique is that as you move the country further north or south the country expands or contracts according to how that country would be projected if that were its actual location on a Mercator map.  This is a great way to introduce projections.

Tags: map projections, mapping, cartography.

There are great iconic places of Africa in this Top 10 list  (and yes, I’d love to see Victoria Falls from above). 

Tags: biogeography, tourism, Africa.

Although a front lawn is not ecologically the best use of urban space, there are strong cultural pressure to conform to that aesthetic ideal.  When individuals choose to grow vegetables and fruit, they often face some push-back from the city or homeowners associations with a different vision on the appropriate use of space.  Some have estimated though, that if we were to convert 10 percent the country’s grass lawns to vegetable gardens that they could supply roughly a third of our fresh vegetables. 

Tags: agriculture, food, urban, unit 5 agriculture.

I’ve posted on this topic now, so regular readers will know that I love a good flashmob that changes our perception of public places.  This flashmob from Quebec makes me wonder, “if there were a bottle on the ground, would I pick it up and recycle it?”  I’d like to think that I would, but the numbers show that most people would just walk right on by.  For more of my favorite flashmobs in public places, see https://geographyeducation.org/whats-new/articles/place-and-flash-mobs/

Who is rooting for which team in the Super Bowl?  How does regional geography play a role in this distribution of the data captured in this map? 

This is a crowd-sourced map of NFL fans very different from this more stylized version. 

Immigration is a sensitive topic so I’ll tread lightly.  There appears to be some support for a campaign that would target would-be migrants specifically from Romania and Bulgaria that life in the U.K. isn’t as as grand as it may seem (ironic coming of the heels of the Olympics).  This obviously isn’t something that is universally supported by the British, but it does highlight the fact that more and more European countries are seeking ways to deter migrants from crossing their borders as economic struggles continue. 

Tags: migration, UK, immigration, Europe, unit 2 population.