Geographical articles from December 2007

Geographical archives from December 2007

The smoking gun.(FROM THE EDITOR)(glaciers)(Editorial)
December 1, 2007... In the process of putting together this month's Dossier on glacial retreat around the world (page 46), I was surprised to discover that there are actually people out there who believe that the world's glaciers aren't disappearing. Numerous...

Where in the world?(identify the country or place)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Identifying this country using the following clues: * More than half of its population lives on one of its islands * It has the worlds lowest level of foreign investment * Religious freedom is enshrined...

Receding ice cap sparks diamond rush.(WORLDWATCH)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Greenland's inhabitants are facing an influx of visitors drawn not by the world's biggest island's remote beauty, but by the prospect of finding diamonds in rocks exposed by the receding ice cap. After Canadian...

Amazon could be lost in four decades.(WORLDWATCH)(rainforest degradation due to integration of economic hubs )(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... A lack of consideration for the environmental impact of a multi-billion-dollar initiative to integrate 12 South American economic hubs could, according to a report by Conservation International (CI), result in the disappearance of the Amazon...

More rice for less water.(WORLDWATCH)(method of rice cultivation)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... A more sustainable method of rice cultivation that requires less water and produces less methane than conventional methods yet produces higher yields has been identified in a new WWF report. According to the report, the so-called system of...

Lump of rock stirs territorial debate.(WORLDWATCH)(Rockall as a territorial contention of Iceland, Great Britain, Ireland and Denmark)
December 1, 2007... A meeting between Iceland, Britain, Ireland and Denmark has taken place in order to try to resolve a long-running dispute over an isolated lump of storm-battered granite in the North Atlantic. Rockall, an uninhabited islet, has long been a...

The Woodland Trust has set up a new campaign to plant one tree for every child born in Wales.(UK)
December 1, 2007... The Woodland Trust has set up a new campaign to plant one tree for every child born in Wales. The Tree for All Campaign will see around 32,000 trees planted each year, and although families won't be able to identify individual trees, they will...

A goods lorry has crossed the border between India and Pakistan for the first time since the latter gained independence 60 years ago.(INDIA/PAKISTAN)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... A goods lorry has crossed the border between India and Pakistan for the first time since the latter gained independence 60 years ago. The lorry, containing tomatoes, passed through the heavily guarded Wagah border gates, in a move aimed at...

A volcano has erupted on the tiny island of al-Tair in the Red Sea, killing four people.(YEMEN)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... A volcano has erupted on the tiny island of al-Tair in the Red Sea, killing four people. Lava and ash spewed hundreds of metres into the air and the western part of the island, on which a Yemeni military base has been situated since 1996,...

Two unlicensed car parks have been built close to a turtle-nesting site in a national park on the island of Zakynthos, Greece, according to conservation charity Medasset.(GREECE)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Two unlicensed car parks have been built close to a turtle-nesting site in a national park on the island of Zakynthos, Greece, according to conservation charity Medasset. Despite being an important nesting area for endangered loggerhead...

Top 10 hectares of forest.(WORLDWATCH)(Table)
December 1, 2007... TOP 10 HECTARES OF FOREST MILLIONS) 1 RUSSIA 808.8 2 BRAZIL 477.7 3 CANADA 310.1 4 USA 303.1 5 CHINA 197.3 6 AUSTRALIA 163.7 7 DR OF CONGO 133.6 8 INDONESIA ...

Police guard Peruvian meteor.(WORLDWATCH)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... The impact crater caused when a meteor struck the high plains of Peru near Lake Titicaca is being guarded by as many as 20 police officers in a bid to stop meteor fragments from being stolen and taken outside the country. The meteor, which...

Mallory conquered Everest first, says researcher.(WORLDWATCH)(George Mallory, Graham Hoyland)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Evidence gained through a series of expeditions to the world's highest mountain has added weight to the assertion that George Mallory and his companion Andrew Irvine were the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Mallory's last known...

Urgent action needed on extinctions.(WORLDWATCH)(World Conservation Union's report)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Efforts to conserve the planet's biodiversity need to be boosted if we're to halt the pace at which we are losing species, according to the World Conservation Union (IUCN). The IUCN maintains the most comprehensive inventory of the world's...

Scientists develop way to 'scrub' the atmosphere clean.(CLIMATEWATCH)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Two scientists from the USA's Columbia University in New York have identified a method of 'scrubbing' carbon dioxide gas from the atmosphere. Attempts to capture and store C[O.sub.2] gas usually involve extracting it at its source, before...

Hard facts on cement industry emissions.(CLIMATEWATCH)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... The cement industry has largely escaped the attention of the world's media and environmental campaigners despite contributing a higher percentage of global carbon emissions than the aviation industry. According to a report in the Guardian,...

Carbon 'spike' explained.(Global Carbon Project's study on atmospheric carbon dioxide's growth)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Growth in the world economy, heavy use of coal in China and a reduced take-up by 'sinks' such as forests, soils and the oceans are behind the recently observed acceleration in the rate at which atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are rising,...

World's largest wind farm given go ahead.(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Plans to construct the world's largest offshore wind farm off the Kentish coast have been given the green light. The installation of around 340 turbines on the 233-square-kilometre site will cost about 2billion [pounds sterling]--500million...

Bug-power arrives!(battery powered by plant-eating bacteria)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... A team of students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, USA, has created a battery that's powered by plant-eating bacteria. As part of a science and engineering competition, the team of material scientists and engineers...

Well-travelled Brits top air-travel emissions list.(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Britons have emerged as the nationality with the highest carbon emissions produced as a result of air travel, according to figures published by market research company Global TGI. Emissions come to an average of 603 kilograms of carbon per...

Climate 'mega disaster' hits.(CLIMATEWATCH)(climate change's impact)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Dire predictions for the impact of climate change are being realised following a record number of climate-related disasters this year, according to the UN's emergency relief co-ordinator, Sir John Holmes. The...

Canada.(HOTSPOT)(indigenous Cree peoples' land settlement with the goverment )
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] CANADA IN JUNE, PROTESTS erupted across Canada in an attempt to draw attention to the country's impoverished aboriginal communities. On the National Day of Action, several major highways were blocked and the...

Methane and other gases: a range of greenhouse gases contribute to climate change.(STATE OF THE WORLD)
December 1, 2007... [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Methane, nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gases are more efficient at warming the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, but are present in much smaller quantities, and their overall contribution to global warming is less. ...

Norfolk Coast: bordering Britain's largest marine embayment, the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty provides a safe haven for almost half a million birds each winter. Joe Surgent explores the region's rugged coastline.(AREA OF OUTSTANDING NATURAL BEAUTY)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Peering between tree trunks across the reclaimed salt marsh and dark-brown mudflats that border Ken Hill, I train my eyes intently upon two orange blobs on the horizon. These incongruous flashes of neon, nestled amid...

Geography needs you!(IN SOCIETY)
December 1, 2007... 'He pitched his talk at just the right level. He was a natural speaker and brilliant ambassador, and his enthusiasm for geography was tenable. His presentation was excellent and he managed to keep a class gobsmacked on a Friday afternoon! I...

Melting the mystique of climate change's effects on glaciers.(IN SOCIETY)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A team from the University of Portsmouth will soon be travelling to Tanzania to climb Kilimanjaro to measure glacial retreat and investigate the role of climate change in this unique mountain habitat, thanks to...

Event of the month.(IN SOCIETY)(Anita Ganeri's lecture)(Brief article)(Calendar)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 8 December, 2.30pm Horrible Geography (CHILDREN'S CHRISTMAS LECTURE, LONDON) Anita Ganeri is the author of the amazingly successful Horrible Geography series, which now comprises 12 titles covering all...

A selection of December's events.(IN SOCIETY)(Brief article)(Calendar)
December 1, 2007... For further information, please visit www.rgs.org/whatson, email events@rgs.org or telephone 020 7591 3100 3 December, 6.30pm Panama fever (LECTURE, LONDON) The construction of a canal that would link the Pacific and Atlantic...

Relive intrepid expeditions of the past.(IN SOCIETY)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... The expeditions of the great explorers of the 19th century--Stanley, Livingstone, Burton and Speke--will forever rank among the most impressive journeys of geographical discovery. Yet over the years, these tales of adventure and daring...

Henry Bates's pincushion: the British naturalist stored his entomology pins on this cushion during his travels through the Amazon.(FROM THE COLLECTION)
December 1, 2007... Henry Waiter Bates's 11-year expedition to the Amazon helped to provide the basis for the modern-day understanding of the natural world. He brought thousands of insect specimens to Britain from the Amazonian rainforest, demonstrating the...

A river at risk.(Yellow River)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] More than four millennia ago, the Chinese emperor Yu the Great said: 'Conquering the Yellow River equates to controlling the whole of China'. Today, as the country develops at breakneck speed, the river remains as...

Free little pigs: since time immemorial, the fate of Spain's unique oak forests has been inseparably tied to the future of the Iberian pig. Now ecologists and farmers are working together to guarantee new prospects for the survival of two of the nation's great icons. Mark Eveleigh reports from Spain's 'wild west'.(Iberian pigs)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 'It's livestock farming at its most holistic,' Jose Luis Pinto told me as we watched his herd of black Iberian pigs disappear into the dappled shadows of an ancient oak forest. 'The original Spaniards were raising...

High achievers: as the Alpine Club celebrates its 150th anniversary, the cream of the world's climbers meet in Zermatt, Switzerland, to pay homage to the British men who pioneered the sport of mountaineering.(Alpine Club)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] At 3,800 metres on Switzerland's Breithorn mountain, the weather is closing in. White flakes swirl around on a biting wind that has sucked the temperature down to--15[degrees]C. The snow-covered ground blends...

Sounding the retreat.(Geographical dossier: SPECIAL REPORT)(glaciers and global warming)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] While climatologists argue over exactly what effect rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide are going to have on global climate; while governments argue over the most appropriate response to the impending...

Farewell to the Orochen: in the space of a generation, the way of life of China's third smallest minority has all but disappeared, reports Sam Chambers from Inner Mongolia.(Orochen people)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] My chances of seeing the Orochen in their traditional surroundings were slim, but nowhere near as slim as the chance of getting a seat aboard train N93 to Alihe in China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Just one...

That moment.(COMPETITION)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Tell us about your special travel moment: that unique experience that turned a holiday into an adventure; that revealing encounter that will stay with forever. The time you saw a shooting star in Glencoe at 3am,...

Cyprus at the crossroads.(Northern Cyprus, tourism)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Since Cyprus was split in 1974, its south has been largely prosperous, with a thriving tourist trade. International isolation has prevented similar progress in the north, but has meant that the area's environment...

Crude awakening.(Geographical archive)(crude oil)(Photograph)
December 1, 2007... Crude oil is formed over millions of years under very specific geological conditions, yet has been discovered in huge underground reserves throughout the world. Billions of barrels of the thick black liquid have been extracted to make petrol,...

We are what we eat.(Stuffed and Starved: Markets, Power and the Hidden Battle for the World's Food System )(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Stuffed and Starved: Markets, Power and the Hidden Battle for the World's Food System by Raj Patel Portobello Books, hb, pp438, 16.99 [pounds sterling] To the other, verified causes of obesity, we can now add...

Europe's Living Landscapes: Essays Exploring our Identity in the Countryside.(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Europe's Living Landscapes: Essays Exploring our Identity in the Countryside edited by Bas Pedroli et al. KNNV Publishing, hb, pp432, 49.95 [pounds sterling] Landscapes, as the authors of this wide-ranging book...

Land of the High Flags: Afghanistan When the Going was Good.(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Land of the High Flags: Afghanistan When the Going was Good by Rosanne Klass Odyssey, pb, pp344, 9.75 [pounds sterling] Back in the mists of time, Zoroaster is supposed to have described the land we now call...

Map Reading Skills: An Introduction to Map Reading and Basic Navigation.(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Map Reading Skills: An Introduction to Map Reading and Basic Navigation by Terry Marsh Jarrold Publishing, pb, pp96, 10.99 [pounds sterling] You know where you are with a map. That's the idea, anyway, but if you...

Make the Most of Your Time on Earth: A Rough Guide to the World.(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Make the Most of Your Time on Earth: A Rough Guide to the World Rough Guides, pb, pp608, 18.99 [pounds sterling] Despite the plethora of recent publications offering lists of things to do 'before you die',...

Top 10 writer's reads.(Chris Bonington's favorite books)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Sir Chris Bonington has made numerous first ascents of some of the world's highest mountains and reached the summit of Mount Everest in 1985. He has written several books about his experiences, including Quest for...

The Story of India.(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] The Story of India by Michael Wood BBC Books, hb, pp255, 20 [pounds sterling] As lively and enthusiastic as it is, this book ends up being something of a hotchpotch. Just when Michael Wood becomes immersed in...

How to Live Off-Grid: Journeys outside the System.(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] How to Live Off-Grid: Journeys outside the System by Nick Rosen Doubleday, pb, pp356, 12.99 [pounds sterling] The title sounds like a handbook for under-the-radar living, but Nick Rosen's subject is more...

Two Vagabonds in Languedoc.(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Two Vagabonds in Languedoc by Jan Gordon and Cora J Gordon, first published 1925. Most recent edition published by Bene Factum, pb, pp248, 10.99 [pounds sterling] It's difficult to imagine now, but during the...

Cold comfort: Antarctica isn't all penguins and icebergs, and increasing numbers of people are travelling south to climb the White Continent's spectacular mountains. Climbing guide Stephen Jones offers his tips for the best kit for hitting the heights at the bottom of the world.(ESSENTIAL GEAR)(mountain climbing guide)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] At 2.30am, when the sun drops behind the mountain ridge above Base Camp, shadow covers camp and the temperature plummets. Normally, I would be snug inside my sleeping bag at this time, but after several days of bad...

Ten of the best.(gears for mountaineering)(Buyers guide)
December 1, 2007... Mountaineering in the far south requires a range of technical equipment designed to keep the cold at bay. Here is a selection of items that will help to keep you snug in the most extreme conditions. [1] Mountaineering boots La Sportiva...

Bag yourself a new Keen bag.(GIVEAWAY!)(green design for bags)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] It seems that a clean, green ethos really has filtered through to the very core of the outdoor kit industry, with new sustainable or recycled products regularly hitting the market. Keen's new sustainable Hybrid...

Spice up your life.(GIVEAWAY!)(condiment dispenser)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... When it comes to turning an uninspiring mound of lukewarm, vacuum-packed camping fodder into something marginally more palatable, salt and pepper are a hiker's best friends. But until now, there hasn't been a lightweight vessel specifically...

Breathable boot liners: do they really work?(GIVEAWAY!)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Wearing boots fitted with waterproof, breathable liners makes no appreciable difference to your comfort, according to new research from the University of Leeds. Working under laboratory conditions, Dr Mark Taylor...

Hadow heads north again.(Pen Hadow on expedition)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Pen Hadow, Ann Daniels and Martin Hartley are to undertake an expedition to the Arctic next February to undertake a survey of the thickness of the ice cap. The Vanco Arctic Survey team will walk (and swim) 2,000 kilometres from Alaska to the...

Curry on camping.(Chicken tikka masala )(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... The company that brought traditional favourites such as Lancashire hotpot, beef stew and sausage and beans to the campsite table has now moved into Asian cuisine. Chicken tikka masala (3.50 [pounds sterling]) joins lamb curry and chicken...

Give walking pain the boot.(Vasyli's Orthaheel range for foot pain)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... According to a recent survey, 20 per cent of walkers suffer from foot and leg pain after prolonged walking. The reason is simple: some 70 per cent of us suffer from 'excess pronation'--the rolling over of the foot. A simple heel or shoe insert...

Cold and dead? Medical advice on avoiding cold injuries and hypothermia on expeditions to sub-zero environments by Dr Harvey Pynn of Wilderness Medical Training.(Expedition health)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Humans evolved in tropical climes and have to maintain a core body temperature of 37[degrees]C. Body heat is lost to the environment via four mechanisms: conduction (contact with other surfaces), convection to the...

Explorer's essentials: Charlie Hunter, adventurer and participant in a recent 'bear-dodging' expedition in Spitsbergen.(gears for expeditions)(Buyers guide)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 1. Canada Goose Expedition parka. Very hard wearing, extremely versatile and well designed. * sub-zeroboots.com 2. Canada Goose 5150M down-filled mitts. In a league of their own. * www.canada-goose.com...

The Geographical good guide guide: helping you choose that vitally important, but often rather confusing, item of kit: the guidebook.(OUT AND ABOUT)(Fisher's Travel SOS)(Brief article)(Book review)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Fisher's Travel SOS WHAT ARE THEY LIKE? Fisher's Travel SOS is a series of slim travel guides that focus on providing local and national emergency advice and information within a particular country,...

Flying visits: with birds flocking to the British Isles in their hundreds of thousands from the frozen north and moulting into their winter plumage, now's the time to grab your camera and head for the nearest hide.(bird photography)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The British Isles are a favourite wintering destination for hundreds of thousands of birds flying south from Scandinavia, Siberia and other parts of the Arctic. And Britain is home to dozens of large nature reserves...

Binoculars.(Equipment selections)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... An absolutely essential piece of kit for the birdwatcher or photographer, binoculars not only help you identify distant species, but also aid observation to establish patterns of behaviour, such as favoured perch sites and the timings between...

Long telephoto lens.(Equipment selections)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Professional bird photographers use a range of telephoto lenses, both fixed focal length and zooms. But if there's one type of lens that most find invaluable it's the 500mm telephoto. For so many wildlife photographers, this is the ideal focal...

Spotting scope.(Equipment selections)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... A spotting scope is like a telescope, but more portable and designed primarily for looking at land-based subjects rather than the stars. The types used for birdwatching have a magnification of between 20x and 30x (although 60x is available),...

Inspiring through nature.(LETTER OF THE MONTH)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2007... I read the article on nature deficit (Lost in the concrete jungle) in November's issue of Geographical with great interest, and was prompted to write immediately to tell you about our workshop programme aimed at (re)engaging children and young...

Offences against the world.(MAILBAG)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Thank you for Charlie Furniss's instructive report, Can God save the world? (October 2007). One part of Christianity that takes the environment seriously is the Orthodox Church. It teaches its members that they...

Religion's report card.(MAILBAG)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2007... Can God save the world? Only if (s)he exists! For the present, let us just ask how organised religion is doing. Climate change? Regular churchgoers of all denominations were the main force behind the re-election of President George W Bush....

Not a fan, then.(MAILBAG)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2007... I can't comprehend your editorial decision to place a photograph of Bruce Parry on the cover of your respected magazine (October 2007). Giving him space inside was already more than his patronising antics should warrant. It would be...

Otter, not Auster.(MAILBAG)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2007... I found the article on the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition (Forward crawl across the White Continent) in November's Geographical particularly interesting. However, I feel I should point out that the photo on page 48 shows the...

Prize-winning holiday.(MAILBAG)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2007... I wanted to share our 'Letter of the month' Mumm champagne experience. This year, we decided to minimise our carbon footprint and camp on the machair in the Outer Hebrides in July. While the rest of Britain was awash, we enjoyed comfortable...

Return of the wild.(MAILBAG)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2007... Thirty or so years ago, my husband and I researched and wrote a biography of the Arctic scientist William Scoresby. While looking for a publisher, we approached Oxford University Press and they said, 'What you want is a small local publisher.'...

Dr Iain Stewart.(IN CONVERSATION)(Interview)
December 1, 2007... Dr Iain Stewart, lecturer and TV documentary presenter, graduated in 1986 with a degree in geology and geography. After investigating the geology of earthquakes in Greece and Turkey for his PhD, he decided to take his geological research and...