Baseball season has begun! There’s excitement for this century-old tradition of going to the game, getting a hot dog, and enjoying a day or night of fun. However, something has changed…taking a closer look at regional trends, it seems that baseball food around the country has adapted to fit the palettes of those who desire more to eat than just a hot dog. Don’t get … Continue reading Baseball Dining
It has come to our attention that National Geographic has plans in the works to change the color of the magazine border. The more-than-a-century-old border has adorned the magazine since its first publication in 1888 and has become a symbol of the excellence that NGS strives to achieve in journalism, photography and, of course, geography.
An insider, when questioned on the decision to change the classic yellow border to a new, more identifiable color, noted, “We’re avoiding calling it a ‘change’; it’s more of an update. We’re freshening up, a spring cleaning if you will.”
Semantics aside, the general consensus seems to be that yellow just is not ‘in’ anymore. “Sure, in 1891 yellow was all the rage, but now we need a color that says ‘life’ and ‘growth,’ not ‘jaundice,'” senior editor Ann DeSanctis told My Wonderful World early Wednesday morning.
The society is considering green to reflect its dedication to environmental initiatives.
In the last six weeks, two major earthquakes struck the Western Hemisphere. The first leveled the city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti on January 12. The second occurred off the coast of Concepcion, Chile on February 27. While both of these events were life-altering for local residents and many others around the world, why does it appear that Chile’s earthquake had less of a devastating impact, even … Continue reading Earthquakes in the Western Hemisphere
“No more pencils, no more books. No more teachers’ dirty looks.”
I can remember singing this ditty on the last day of elementary school before summer break. The sense of elation that came with knowing that days spent sitting at a desk would soon give way to mornings of tennis and swimming, following by afternoons of crafts, biking, ice cream, and reading for pleasure was unlike almost any feeling of anticipation I have experienced in my adult life.
That is why I was so interested to read and participate in this discussion in the New York Times’ “Room for Debate.” The Times invited seven educational experts to weigh in on the question of summer homework for students. Most agreed that summer assignments were essential to keeping students sharp over the break, although they offered differing reasons for their positions as well ideas of what summer learning should look like. Below are a selection of excerpts from their statements, followed by my own contribution.
Take a read, and then offer your perspective. I want to know from the real experts–parents, students, and classroom teachers–what you think of homework over summer break. Yes? No?
If yes: How much, and what should it consist of [geography, perhaps!] ? If no: Why not??
We were first introduced to conservation ecologist and National Geographic Emerging
Explorer Luke Dollar’s work a month ago during his engaging presentation at the 2009 National Geographic Explorers Symposium. It was impossible to not be entirely absorbed by his story and experiences on the African island of Madagascar.
Years ago, Luke began his work in Madagascar as a student tracking lemurs, but his target of interest quickly turned elsewhere when one of his animal subjects went missing, and was found later to have been devoured by the locally-infamous carnivore, the Fossa.
Since that time Luke’s efforts have been solely focused on this new scope of study: examining the natural history and ecological role of the Fossa, Madagascar’s largest endemic (exclusively native) predator. The fossa’s importance as a keystone species is growing as Madagascar faces increasingly serious conservation issues – particularly deforestation.
Dollar is one scientist making a distinct difference in Madagascar’s future, and he has taken a leading role in citizen science by working with the Earthwatch organization to engage the public in his research overseas.
Luke was generous enough to talk with us about his research and his work with citizen scientists. Check out our short but inspiring interview with this intriguing explorer:
MWW: When did you first know you wanted to be a scientist?
Luke: As a child, I was always sure I wanted to be either a doctor or a scientist. The summer after my freshman year at Duke University, I went to Los Angeles and worked as an ambulance-based EMT and ER technician. It was an invaluable, hands-on experience. However when I returned to my childhood home in Alabama that summer, I visited my grandparents farm and took a walk through the woods I grew up in. I came across a large newly clear-cut forest, where I had once sat for hundreds of hours alone as a kid thinking and dreaming. It was then that I developed a concern and love of the outdoors and interest in nature conservation. I found the motives behind this destructive logging superficial and heartbreaking, and I realized that most people had enough help but nature didn’t.
As a young, rural, southern boy, I had often gone fishing hunting and hiking in the forest behind my grandparents’ home. I had particularly enjoyed the beauty of the area, where I would hike up old wagon trails and look out on the wide majestic valleys. Returning after such a short period of time, and experiencing this drastic change was as traumatic as losing a loved one to an avoidable accident.
Continue reading “Finding the Fossa: An interview with explorer Luke Dollar”
