Geography for All!

My wife lived in Norway for 18 months, and her love for this country is infectious.  The stunning physical geography leads to some equally magnificent cultural landscapes that were forged in a very rugged, inhospitable environment for early human settlers.   

Tags: Norway, place, tourism, physical, Arctic, geo-inspiration, images, art, landscape.

I find it quite facinating how the world changes. Some of the worlds most beautiful things may not be here 30 years from now. It is quite humbling that things that man builds can be taken away by Mother Nature. As the years pass the memories made will be vanished by the environment.

Interesting how the physical landscape of one country can be effected by the surrounding water that connects two different countries. To have some areas of Louisiana be overtaken by the Gulf of Mexico is astounding, seeing an area that has stayed relatively the same be wiped off the map is interesting

This is an important lesson, especially for those who actually live in Arizona/Mexico and have seen the border itself. Learning about the Arizona/Mexican border is important and shouldn't be left solely to teaching it only in those areas. The maps included in the lesson plan are efficient and could be used in the high school setting.

Unnatural landscapes. Amongst all the new technology and graphics, the world still holds phenomena’s that can leave any persons jaw dropped. This article on buzzfeed shows 25 images that can amaze you. In Mt. Roraima, Venezuela there is a slab of land that seems to be suspended in the clouds. The Metro in Stockholm, Sweden resembles a space station in the rocks. The tunnel of love in the Ukraine looks like a path carved out of bush and also a romantic place for a date. The tulip Fields in Lisse, Netherlands looks like a grounded rainbow. Lapland, Finland is home to massive natural snow creatures. The mountains of Zhangye, China resembles the colors and look of Zebra stripe gum. Lake Rebta in Senegal looks like your floating in tomato soup.

Physical geography and landforms are something that have amazed people for millennia. The world's tallest mountains, deepest oceans, widest rivers, and largest deserts have, at various times, astounded, baffled, and hindered human beings. Some physical features are helpful to human progress (cities built on hills are more defensible, rivers allow for irrigation for agriculture) and others delay it (mountains are difficult to traverse, oceans are large and treacherous to navigate). And then there are landforms or geographic features that are just downright strange or unusual, like the ones listed in this article. 

While looking at pictures of these places or visiting them may be fun, they also provide us with a valuable lesson about nature. Nature is a force to be reckoned with, as it can produce some pretty amazing and unusual things. People sometimes do not stop to think what nature can do and as a result, suffer the consequences (Napoleon, and later Hitler's ill-fated invasions of Russia, for instance). Geography and natural landforms can be invaluable tools in human progress, but it should also be kept in mind that they are part of nature, and that nature is an unpredictable and sometimes violent force. As with anything, then, nature and geography must be respected and feared to avoid making the same mistakes that others have made in the past. 

Another interesting failure of the Soviets during the Cold War. One really begins to question their competence when reading about this, Chernobyl and the Aral Sea. I honestly don't see how anyone would consider lighting a major gas leak on fire would help the situation either. Regardless this site stands as a testament to the influence we have on the geography of area through our reshaping for society. The incident also now helps Turkmenistan economically because it offers tourist attraction revenue. Additionally while the gallery had many fascinating images from around the world this one captivated me due to its historical nature and affect it would have had on the region. Hopefully the site doesn't ever become too dangerous do to the flammable substances because I would imagine that is a possibility (also hopefully there is not too much environmental damage from it either).

This is a very cool opportunity due to the fact that photography isn't usually allowed in the Sistine chapel. Of course it can't compare to the beauty of the place in person, but in some ways it's almost more powerful as this room is usually filled to the brim with tourists, seeing it empty is a bit more striking as you can appreciate the fool instead of missing it in the crowds of people.