GIF from the Animation Factory
Geographical stories of interest from the newspapers. Get that clippings file started!
I always recommend it to my Year 12 and 13 students. Do they listen ?
"95% of geography teachers use news stories in the classroom"
An article in the TES suggests that the use of 'set texts' in schools, which has been increased by the use of non-specialists teaching the subject, and this means people are over reliant on the books. This means that pupils get taught the same materials from the same textbooks. The QCA is apparently setting up a website to allow for teachers to share lesson ideas. The same article also pointed out the concept of risk, which is central to some aspects of geography, could help pupils put recent events like the SARS outbreak into context. (TES, 02/05/03)
Good story in the Observer on the growth of villages which are designed to be child-free. Adults-only villages have existed in the USA for some time. One of the first was Hartrigg Oaks near York, opened in 1998. There's also Firhall village near Nairn in Scottish Highlands. Are these places socially divisive ghettoes ? Residency is restricted to people over 45, although children are allowed to visit. For an annual fee of around £1000 residents' garden will be maintained, and they have access to a clubhouse with library, gym and fishing. There's a general focus on leisure and the health of the residents. (The Observer, 04/05/03)
A good recent example of weathering in action was featured on this BBC news report. It describes the loss of the state symbol of New Hampshire in the USA: a rock formation shaped like a face and called 'The Old Man of the Mountain' - except in the first week of May it fell off. The profile was made out of a series of granite ledges and the bottom section succumbed to the elements. All that's left is a scar rather than the face which once inspired a famous children's story by Nathaniel Hawthorne. (04/05/03)
Report on how David Gilmour is continuing his work with Shelter to build an Urban Village for homeless people. The Pink Floyd guitarist sold his house for £3.6 million and gave the full amount to the scheme. He wants other celebrities to follow his lead: " Sell a house to create a home". Crisis estimates that there are around 400 000 "hidden homeless" in the UK. (The Independent, 21/05/03)
Interesting story in the Times on 'regional foods': foods which have to be produced in a particular region in order to be called by their name. The story highlights Parma ham: this has to be sliced in the Parma region. UK regional foods include the following (maybe this could form the basis of a piece of work...) (try EAT THE VIEW for more):
Newcastle Brown Ale
Kentish Strong Ale
Rutland Bitter
Lancashire Cheese
Bonchester Cheese
Buxton Blue Cheese
Dovedale Cheese
Cornish clotted cream
Whitstable Oysters
Shetland lamb
Jersey Royal potatoes
Strong earthquake - no one killed. A quake with Richter scale 7 hit Northern Japan, but has not caused any fatalities. Luckily it was a deep quake: the focus was 70km below the surface (interestingly the BBC said the 'epicentre' was 70km down...) - there were obviously some effects: power was cut to over 30 000 homes, and a nearby nuclear reactor was shut down, houses were damaged and fires were started (26/05/03)
A great deal of coverage of the exploits of Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay "knocking the bastard off" i.e. Everest, 50 years ago this week. Everest was also the subject of recent RGS competition (was featured on Geography Pages but page has now been archived..) Many papers had supplements and special magazine features. Useful article from which there are lots of links from the BBC site.
In addition to helicopter crash which marred the celebrations, there have also been some notable acheivements: a 70 year old man, a 15 year old girl, someone running up it in under 11 hours... Over 1300 people have now reached the summit, which is apparently getting higher by 4-10cm each year. Hillary has apparently called for the mountain to be given a 'rest', but the local Sherpa economy is obviously geared towards supporting expeditions. (29/05/03)
An article in the Guardian's Science supplement suggested that there may be a 5.5°C rise in global temperature over the next century. This is the result of some new modelling carried out by the Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research, based at Bracknell. It includes the effects of volcanic eruptions, fluctuations in the sun's output and changing levels of greenhouse gases and ozone. It also allows oceans to affect the land and vice versa. Interestingly it tells us that to test a model it is first run backwards, so that it can be compared with known data. The Hadley Centre became concerned as far back as 2000 that the drying of the Amazon rainforest's climate would have a significant effect on climate. (The Guardian, 29/05/03)
Good Radio 4 programme on the Wilds, who live in the farm in the middle of the M62, also subject of a song by John Shuttleworth. The farm lies between the 2 carriageways and the programme was rather good. I remember coming over the Pennines in Pete Rawlinson's Beetle after a party in Liverpool. The M62 was shut due to ice, but we carried on going....
Over 500 people have died in a heatwave in Andhra Pradesh in India. Temperatures in a district called Godavari rose to 47.5°C (The Guardian, 30/05/03)
Russia has an ambitious plan to relocate 600 000 people from the Frozen North.
Up to 600 000 people are due to be moved from remote parts of Siberia. Large parts of this area have decayed since the collapse of Communism. Many towns relied on mining. Without subsidies, families have had to endure poverty, and the extreme cold. Areas include Yakutia, Kamchatka and Chukotka. Inhabitants would be resettled. A budget of £18 million has been allocated for 2003-4.
A pilot project has been tried in the nickel town of Norilsk. Norilsk began as one of Stalin's gulags. It is believed to be Russia's most polluted town. (The Guardian, 30/05/03)
Another one of those "you couldn't make it up" stories. An American organisation called Habitat for Humanity is opening a theme park which is a recreation of a Shanty Town covering 6.5 acres in Georgia. It is aimed at educating rich Americans into the reality of LEDC poverty. (The Independent, 02/06/03)
An article in 'The Guardian' carried the headline "Trickling away....a life and death commodity"
Groundwater resources are diminishing around the world according to a report by UNEP.
It quotes the example of Mexico City, where so much groundwater has been pumped from beneath the city that buildings have sunk 2 metres.
The water table under the high plains in the American Mid-West has fallen on average by 3 metres a decade - up to 30m in places.
Aquifers are at risk of contamination by sea water in Florida.
Some cities in the Arabian Gulf have become waterlogged because of leaking pipes running from desalination plants.
Twelve cities with populations of 10 million and over, including Bangkok, Calcutta, London and Shanghai rely on groundwater reserves.
2 billion people, and 40% of agriculture are dependent on groundwater.
In rural India, 50% of irrigation water and 80% of drinking water comes from underground
Around 96% of Saudi Arabia's water comes from underground
There are 1300 boreholes beneath Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh - in some cases the water table has fallen by 40 metres
One person in 6 can't rely on safe drinking water
More than 2 billion people have no adequate sanitation
Waterborne diseases kill a child every 8 seconds
Water means food: it takes 1000 tonnes of water to grow a tonne of wheat, and 2000 tonnes of water to grow a tonne of rice
Kofi Annan, UN secretary general said, "We need to learn how to value water."
Desert oases in Jordan are drying up"
Go HERE for the UNEP report in full. It makes fascinating reading. (The Guardian, 05/06/03)
A report suggests that the Italian government is ready to approach the risk to people living on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius in a different way by offering them £18000 (€25000) each to move to safer areas, avoiding the need for evacuations when the volcano erupts. Officials in Naples hope that up to 1500 families will accept the cash. They want to empty 100 000 homes over the next 15 years. Scientists know that "sooner or later" the volcano will erupt. Its most 'famous' eruption was in 79AD, it last erupted in 1944. Around 600 000 people live in 19 towns inside the 'red zone': within a 4.3 mile radius of the mouth of the volcano. There is a long standing plan to evacuate a million people by train when vulcanologists give the warning. The prediction has to be accurate however, as the expense would be huge. Local officials are keen to reduce the amount of building work going on in the area. (The Guardian, 05/06/03)
The Geography behind the News
Some ideas for investigating individual news articles were presented by Clare Brooks in 'Teaching Geography' for April 2003. The worksheet below is designed to allow students to respond to individual articles, which can be stuck in the middle of the sheet.
| GEOGRAPHY IN THE NEWS | |||
|
Summarise the
main story
|
Are there any
alternative views offered
|
||
| Whose views are presented
here ?
|
Article goes here | What further evidence is
offered ?
|
|
|
Is there
evidence of bias ?
|
Are there any
areas that have not been considered ?
|
||
THE WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT WORKSHEET
|
What's it all
about ? Record your geographical questions |
||
| Who ?
|
Where ?
|
What ?
|
|
Why ? (Social, economic, political, environmental and climatic..)
|
Picture goes here - could
be obtained from website
|
And then ? (Long, Medium and Short Term effects..)
|
| When ? (To help you identify causes, record how this is important in relation to other effects)
|
||
Plans have been announced to force school-run drivers to pay extra because of the congestion that they cause. There was also a story suggesting that the London Congestion charge has been too successful. The numbers of drivers entering the charging zone have reduced so much that the scheme is facing a shortfall. (The Observer, 08/06/03)
Geography SATS on the way ? That's the apparent view of the Government. (The Times, 16/06/03)
Scotland's population is apparently the lowest that it's been for over 50 years. Figures from 2001 Census which are slowly appearing have shown that the population will continue to fall over the next decade. The fall is put down to a falling birth rate, and emigration. In the year to June 2002 there were 51 000 births, but 57 000 deaths, and there was a net migration of almost 4 000 people out of Scotland.
The high rates of deaths through cancer and heart disease have also been reiterated. Over the next 20 years, Scotland is likely to face the obvious demographic problems: an ageing workforce and a slowing birth rate. (The Independent, 02/07/03)
MP's vote to ban fox hunting. You might be able to put away the 'Anti-Mate'.
Energy shortages are forecast by the year 2020 in a report by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). By then, gas will have to be brought into the country from some fairly unstable places, and the UK will be at the end of the supply chain. Also (unlike at the start of the miners' strike) there are small reserves (less than 48 hours worth apparently...) (Daily Mail, 02/07/03)
The EU has told Britain that it has to recycle far more waste than it does at the moment. 60% of glass and packaging waste will apparently have to be recycled.
The Three Gorges Dam is apparently filling up ahead of schedule. The lake is now 135m deep, which is deep enough for HEP to be produced, and for navigation of the Yangtze to begin again. (BBC Website)
Major road building schemes set to be announced this week. Could involve a 12 lane M25 and an 8 lane M1. Locally, the road near Stansted airport is set to be widened, and the A47 could be dualled in Cambridgeshire and Norfolk. Or then again, maybe it won't...
An article on the BBC website in July 2003 had the good news that UK men are now living longer than many of their European counterparts. It gives a Top 5 of longevity: Sweden is at no. 1 (77.5 years), Switzerland, Italy, Norway and then the UK (at 76 years on average) - the lowest in Europe is Ireland at 73 years. The figures are from the European Men's Health Forum. (BBC - 10/07/03)
The RGS GEOGRAPHY IN THE NEWS site is now apparently active. Check out the Geography behind the news....
Recently came across an article on photographer and scientist Bill Hirst, who is fascinated by the patterns in nature: the fractal patterns linked to the Mandelbrot set (used to be all the rage a few years back, and can still be found in some places...) There are some great photos of natural patterns which show how some patterns are repeated on different scales. The idea is something called 'self-similarity', and the further you zoom in the more the patterns reappear, so that any coastline, for example, is virtually infinite in length. Look for a book called 'Fractal Landscapes'
Montserrat: volcano erupts as the lava dome collapses, but no-one is apparently at risk. Ash covered cars and buildings. (The Times - 12/07/03)
Government announces a huge increase in wind power off the coast to try to get closer to the 10% target. Apparently 4 million households could soon get their electricity from this source. The Government hope this will spark a new investment boom in the same vein as North Sea Oil. (The Times - 15/07/03)
A good article by John Humphrys in 'The Sunday Times' on the mixed feelings that he has towards wind power and turbines. He talks about:
the scarring of a favourite view - "like a punch in the stomach"
"the wind is free and clean and infinitely renewable"
"no nasty waste products"
He talks about the differing views of the experts in wind power, in a report which also produced some interesting responses in the letters page. (The Sunday Times, 20/07/03)
Posted application for RGS Innovative Teaching Grant for 2003 - 'Geo Blogs'
August 2003 saw the hottest weather ever in the UK
It was due to a rare synoptic situation which saw hot weather from the Azores being drawn up over the UK. Very hot air was drawn in from North Africa, and the Mediterranean.
Newspapers reacted with predictable content:
a) comparisons to Bermuda, Barbados etc.
b) pictures of scantily clad office workers 'cooling off' in fountains
c) talk of how this was evidence of 'Global Warming'...
d) details on where to find the longest jams, just in case you wanted to join them...
The weather was particularly hot in the SE, although on the Northumberland coast it was a bit cooler.
See my HEAT-WAVE page for more information on the effects of the heat as reported in newspapers / TV etc
This would be a useful first piece of work in September - how did the heatwave affect you ? Start your clippings collection and you can produce a great display in the first few days of term. I've already started on my displays for next year - funny how faded they get, and so quickly...
The BBC Website had an interesting article on how relationships with NEIGHBOURS often break down in the summer as people have outdoor lifestyles and their windows open meaning that noise and cooking smells interfere with others...
What else was there apart from the heatwave ?
Report on the improvements of quality in the water in the Thames, which used to be particularly dirty, and was immortalised in lines in Blake's 'London' (remember that Rob ?) - in the 1800's the population was growing rapidly along the river, and it began to smell so bad that it disrupted Parliament. The invention of the flush toilet added to the amounts of raw sewage being put into the river. In 1957, the Thames was apparently declared 'dead' by biologists. Soon after things began to change - one major one being the closure of the Docks. The large tidal range of 8m helps by flushing out pollution and allowing dilution of harmful chemicals. It also allows for the mingling of salt and fresh water species. (The Guardian, 14/08/03)
Huge power-cut hits Eastern USA. This leads to suggestions that we could have similar problems in the UK. Power rationing may be on the cards. A week later there's a major power cut in London.
House prices are rising particularly quickly on properties near the seaside. Everyone wants to be beside the seaside apparently. It's partly due to the number of second homes, and partly due to people 'downsizing' to the seaside. All good news for my house... An estate agent in Padstow suggested in a recent article in 'The Sunday Times', that "there must be over 80% second home ownership in this area (central Padstow) now." Other places which were mentioned in the survey of house prices were Pwllheli, Penzance, Sandwich and Brancaster (in North Norfolk)
Hurricane Fabian the latest hurricane to have its moment in the headlines, and bring tragedy to the Caribbean. Cyclone Maemi hitting South Korea having been through Okinawa earlier.
Register ONLINE for the 'Exploring Place On-Line Inset' run in association with the RGS and BECTa. This will take place during January 2004 on the ICT ADVICE website.
Go to http://www.ictadvice.org.uk/geographyinset to register.
Category 5 hurricane ISABEL en route to Washington DC. There was excellent coverage on CNN.COM and to a lesser extent on the BBC website. Some previous Category 5 hurricanes have had their names 'retired' from the official list. On the 17th of October, the storm was downloaded to a category 2 storm, but there was still a chance that it could pick up energy again. Watch out for coverage on CNN if you have Sky. This makes an excellent case study for A2 Synoptic questions.
Plenty of coverage on Hurricane Isabel - at the same time, the monsoon rains had been reaching the state of Uttar Pradesh, India's most highly populated state. Over 200 people have died since the monsoon started in June - strange that there was wall-to-wall coverage of Isabel and President Bush leaving the White House, but nothing much on the monsoon....
The BBC had an excellent animated view of the development of a HURRICANE. It also offered a chance for people to send in their EXPERIENCES of the Hurricane.
The landfall was near Cape Hatteras in North Virginia. The hurricane was travelling at only 18mph. Landfall was on the 18th of September. Next stop Canada.... Plenty in the newspapers and on FOX to keep you busy...
Use the spare computing power in your PC to run a climate model and help work out how the climate might change over the next 50 years. Go to the CLIMATE PREDICTION website and you can download a small programme to run in the spare capacity of your PC. This will save on processing costs and time. Each computer runs a unique simulation, and yours could just be the one that turns out to be the truth.... There is also the chance to join in e-debates on Global Warming.
CNN and USA TODAY also had excellent coverage.
10mph speed limits have been introduced on some streets to try to recreate a safer era when children could play in the streets. The scheme is called HOME ZONE, and has been set up in an area of Plymouth called Morice Town. Signs warn of the 10mph speed limit. The limits are 'advisory' however... (Daily Mail, 18/09/03)
Article on BBC site describing the search for the 'UK's ugliest wasteland' - I'm sure everyone could name an area. Apparently there are 70 000 hectares of wasteland in the UK. One visitor to the site nominated the Millennium Dome. (BBC News site)
Clear-up after Isabel continuing with flooding in Virginia. People had to queue for water supplies, and people had to empty freezers full of spoiled food as electricity supplies were cut. Runoff continued to swell streams. At least 30 deaths have been attributed to the storms according to the USA TODAY website.
Joke: What's a vulcanologists favourite TV programme ? Steptoe and Son.
A good article on the Amazon, and how it was once more developed than before the arrival of the European settlers. There were larger populations at this time, before diseases such as smallpox decimated communities. (The Independent, 22/09/03)
Interesting article on 'BRITAIN'S DROWNED LANDSCAPES' - underwater bathymetry is revealing lost landscapes: drowned lands being revealed, along with shipwrecks.
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