Why study geography?

Geography, as we know, involves the study of natural and human environments, and how we interrelate with our environments. Through studying geography, we hope to understand both ourselves and our environments better.

But why study geography? I mean, why do we have to use concepts and words and pictures to talk about geography? In other words, what do we talk about when we talk about geography, and why do we talk about geography in the first place?

For example, is geography all about identifying and giving names to what we see around us, and then finding an explanation for these phenomena? I think how we perceive our surroundings is a reflection of how we perceive ourselves. For example, when we study the course of a river, why do we use terms such as upper course, middle course and lower course, or young, middle age and old? Is the river a metaphor for our stages of life? And death and rebirth, possibly?

What makes an environment "natural" and what makes it "human"? How much modification to an environment will we need to consider before we label it a human environment? Can any environment today be totally free from any impact of human activities, given that we are so intertwined with Nature?

Why see "human environment" as separate from "natural environment" when humans are part of Nature? Can we ever be free from the cultural and social conditioning in our thinking about geography because different cultures approach geography differently? For example, a native living in the rainforest may have drastically different perspectives from an urban dweller attempting to study the rainforest.

Symphony of Science - Onward to the Edge!

Video information
mp3:http://bit.ly/oRYyiV - A musical celebration of the importance and inspirational qualities of space exploration (human and robotic), as well as a look at some of the amazing worlds in our solar system. Featuring Neil deGrasse Tyson, Brian Cox, and Carolyn Porco.

"Onward to the Edge" is the 12th installment in the Symphony of Science series. Materials used in this video are from :

My Favorite Universe #7 - Onward to the Edge (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEYoTwFBqFs)
BBC Wonders of the Solar System
Carolyn Porco TED talk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxXa9pxwzoY)
NatGeo "Guide to the Planets"

Thanks for watching!

Lyrics:

[Neil deGrasse Tyson]
The act of moving onward means we pass these sign posts
One of them was first leaving earth
The next one is hanging out on the moon
What's next? The planets

Onward to the edge
We're moving onward to the edge
Here we are together
This fragile little world

[Brian Cox]
This is our sun
Just another star in a sea of stars
The heart of the solar system
Just another star in a sea of stars

Mercury is the closest planet
This tortured piece of rock has been stripped naked

[Tyson]
The moon has a sky
It has a horizon
It's another world

It's got earth in the sky
Just the way we have the moon in the sky

(refrain)

We're not the only world to think about
Worlds unnumbered
We're not the only world to think about
Think about worlds unnumbered

[Carolyn Porco]
There is a powerful recognition
That stirs within us
When we see our own little blue ocean planet
In the skies of other worlds

The Saturn system
Offers splendor beyond compare
Because of its rings
And very diverse moons

[Tyson]
These are no longer abstractions
These are worlds
Maybe there's life there
They've changed how we think about Earth

[Cox]
"A mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam
The pale blue dot" (Carl Sagan)

(refrain)

The laws of nature create
Vastly different worlds
With the tiniest of changes

[Tyson]
When I reach to the edge of the universe
I do so knowing that along some paths of cosmic discovery
There are times when, at least for now,
One must be content to love the questions themselves

I have listened to the music video and I like the message too - it blows the mind to see the infinite expanse of the universe we live in beyond the horizon of our planet. And yes, seeing our little fragile blue planet from the outer space perspective evokes a sense of awe and reverence for our unique habitat. I like what Tyson said at the end of the video about loving the questions about the mysteries that lie beyond the edge of the universe.

Our Story in 1 Minute

Video commentary:
A tapestry of footage tracing the cosmic and biological origins of our species, set to original music. mp3: http://melodysheep.bandcamp.com/track/our-story

Inspired by: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrqqD_Tsy4Q

Video sources:

Through The Wormhole with Morgan Freeman
Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking
Do We Really Need the Moon? BBC
How Planet Earth Was Made
David Attenborough's First Life
Life
Dinosaurs Alive
Journey to the Edge of the Universe
Last Day of the Dinosaurs
Walking With Cavemen
Human Planet
Mankind: The Story of All of Us
Hubble Ultra Deep Field
Wonders of the Universe
Quest for Fire
Baraka
The Tree of Life

Creating a Climatic graph

Click on this link Use Excel to create a Climatogram to create your own climatic graph, such as the climatogram of Rio de Janiero, Brazil, shown above.

Another example is shown below, which is a temperature graph and a rainfall graph of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. They were created using Microsoft Excel for Mac 2011.

Slump on hill slope in Singapore (Before and after soil management)

Photograph of a slump near the top of a hill slope along Bartley Road, Singapore, on 12 November 2011.

The slope has been covered with a large sheet to prevent further soil erosion since then. The large sheet also helps to prevent a possible landslide, especially during heavy rains.

The photograph below of the covered slope (shown on the left) was taken on 17 June 2012.

Update (December 2012 - about one year after the first photograph was taken)

The hill slope has been restored as new grass has been replanted to hold the soil firmly. The photograph below shows the result of good soil management.

Storm on Oregon Coast in USA

Video commentary:

Video taken 11/7/06 of storm at Shore Acres State Park. Viewpoint seen on right is 75 feet above ocean.

Nature walk around MacRitchie Reservoir

I went for a three-hour walk this afternoon, starting from MacRitchie Reservoir Park and ending at the edge of the rainforest along Lornie Road.

Along the way, I went to the canopy treetop walkway - I managed to reach there half an hour before the gate closed at 5 p.m.