Blog Topic #12

Eyjafjallajokull, Iceland, home to the recently erupted volcano, is one of the smaller glaciers in Iceland and is located to the north of Skógar and to the west of the larger glacier Mýrdalsjökull. The volcano has erupted twice. The first eruption was on March 20 and the second eruption was on April 14, 2010. The second eruption produced a large plume of ash that has caused the cancellation and delaying of flights all around the world. The fallen ash and eruptions could kill acres of forest and change the landscape and geology of Iceland. Thousands of people have been left stranded at airports, due to the eruptions, in different parts of the world. The flight cancellations have hurt the economy because airlines have lost millions of dollars due to the cancellations and delays. The recent eruptions have also caused the displacement of many people. Hundreds of people have been evacuated to safer locations. The eruptions could cause people to be permanently relocated, which would mean jobs would be lost.



The President of Poland died on April 10th in a plane crash. President Obama was unable to fly to Poland for the service because of the volcanic eruption in Iceland. The eruption of Eyjafjallajokull has historically been followed by the eruption of its larger neighbor, Katla. Iceland and other countries are preparing for the possible, and highly likely, eruption of Katla. The potential future eruption could be larger and more devastating than that of Eyjafjallajokull.

Blog Topic #11

Languagecorps is an organization that gives individuals the opportunity to travel abroad and teach English. In order to quality for Languagecorps you must complete a TESOL language program that takes about four weeks. There are few different variations of the program, but they all provide you with the knowledge and requirements you will need to teach English overseas. China and Taiwan have their own individual programs because the demand for English is so high in those countries.

The opportunities for college grads are tremendous. A 4-year college degree is required, but as long as the required TESOL programs are taken, job placement and pay are almost guaranteed. Paid teaching positions are in high demand in all locations. Languagecorps allows individuals to travel to exotic places and experience different cultures. Housing is free and aside from teaching, you get to travel to different regions of the country to see the different sights and sounds. You can volunteer or take a paying job. The average salary is between $500-$1500 a month. The opportunities are endless, you can stay for different durations of time, and there are many countries available to travel to and teach.

Languagecorps is making an impact on globalization. They are bringing the English language to other parts of the world. Not only are they having an influence on other people, but it also gives the English teachers a chance to experience other cultures. Everyone will be affected by the experience in some way and walk away with something new.

Blog Topic #10

There are a lot of bizarre foods out there. The show "Bizarre Foods" with Andrew Zimmern takes you to other cultures where he samples the local cuisine, a lot of which I personally could never dream of eating. Diets vary from culture to culture. Different regions of the world have access to different foods. In Africa for example, many people do not have access to foods that are rich in vitamins and nutrients. Drinking cow blood is one way to get iron. In many places, all parts of an animal will be eaten. Nothing goes to waste. As Americans, we are used to eating what we want when we want. All types of foods are available 24/7 via drive-thru's. The types of food and the quantities that Americans eat differs greatly from other countries and cultures. However, globalization is slowly having an impact on what people will eat in the future. For example, China had one McDonald's only a few years ago. With the introduction of cars, there are now hundreds of McDonald's in China. McDonald's is only one example, but I believe that as globalization increases, cultural cuisines will be introduced to new foods and, as a result, begin to change.

My personal ventures in bizarre foods has been rather limited. I am not much of a world traveler and have not been exposed to many interesting foods. This doesn't mean that I've never tried anything out of the ordinary. While in Alaska, I sampled frog legs. Oddly enough they tasted just like chicken. The smell however wasn't so great. They smelled swampy and the scent made me nauseous. I also tried calamari, caviar, and reindeer chili. All of those were pretty tasty with the exception of the caviar. The minute i bit into the caviar it was like a salty/fishy explosion. It was awful and it was on top of salad. I wouldn't recommend it. That was not a good experience for me but I'm open to trying new things. I think food is a wonderful way to get a "taste" of different cultures. I would definitely be open to trying more interesting and bizarre foods in the future.

Blog Topic #9

The billionaire I chose is #8, 53 year old Eike Batista. I read his profile and decided I wanted to know more about him. The first thing that caught my eye was that he is a self-made billionaire. I like the fact that he worked for his money and didn't inherit it. As I read on, I decided there wasn't much else I liked. His net worth of $27 billion comes from mining and oil. He resides in Rio de Janeiro, is a divorced father of two, and a college dropout. His ex-wife is a former Playboy cover girl, which is probably why it ended. Police raided his home in 2008, alleging Batista smuggled gold and unfairly influenced the acquisition of a railroad, but he never suffered any consequences. Not the greatest resume for a billionaire. However, when it comes to cash he isn't doing too bad. This year alone he added $19.5 billion to his personal account. His goal is to be the richest man in the world. He obviously isn't doing too bad, but he is still about $26.5 billion short. Batista got his start in the gold trade. I'm guessing he learned from his father who was a member of mining royalty to some extent. Batista founded the oil-and-gas exploration company, OGX, in 2007 and that's where 2/3 of his profits come from. It is likely that we will see him moving up the Forbes list in the future.

Eike's ex-wife, Luma de Oliveira

Blog Topic #8

It's a hippo...it's an anteater...no...it's a Tapir.


I chose this video because it was ironic to me and I love animals. I was at the zoo last year and I saw an animal in the rainforest exhibit. I had no idea what it was. It looked like a cow/hippo/anteater/rhino. I read the sign and found out that this strange creature was called a Tapir. The title of this video describes this animal in the same exact way that I did. I don't know much about the Tapir or where it came from so I decided this video would educate me on the species. The video goes through eigth interesting facts about Tapirs.
1. Tapirs have been around for a very long time.
2. The Tapir is the official national animal of Belize.
3. In Belize, it is called the "Mountain Cow", but it's related to the horse and rhino.
4. Tapirs have four toes on each front foot and three toes on each back foot.
5. Tapirs have a rubbery, flexible nose that they use to eat with.
6. The Tapir weighs up to 700 pounds.
7. They are facing extinction due to a shrinking habitat caused by humans.
8. Tapirs are named after the naturalist who found their skeleton and studied it.
This isn't the most shocking or interesting video but it interested me. It is not about a current event or the latest news. It is something different, which is why I chose it and most people have probably never heard of this animal. This is the reason I love National Geographic. It provides us all with new and interesting information about even the strangest things, like the Tapir.

Blog Topic #7

Global warming...is it actually happening? This question has been quite a "hot" topic and one of personal interest to me. My father and I have had many arguments on whether or not global warming is a real issue. Everyone seems to have an opinion on whether or not global warming is taking place. While the climate is cyclical, I do think global warming is having an effect on our planet's climate. According to an article in Science Daily, the changing climate is expected to shift climate zones and possibly even eliminate some of them by the year 2100. Tropical highlands and polar zones would be the first to disappear. Many other climate zones would grow warmer. These changes in temperature could alter where crops are grown and possibly lead to the extinction of certain species of plants and animals who can't handle the rapid change. Global warming has the potential to change many aspects of geography.

There is also evidence of increasing temperatures where carbon dioxide emissions are high. The emissions are the result of human air pollution from cars, factories, homes, etc. There are ways to prevent pollution. Among these ways include "going green", which includes recycling, cutting down on electrical use, and using energy saving devices and automobiles. Researchers also state that conserving forests and planting new trees are two of the best ways to remove carbon dioxide from the air.

Many people have their own thoughts and opinions about global warming. I personally think that humans do contribute a large amount of air pollutants and waste to the environment, which plays a role in raising temperatures due to carbon dioxide that is released into the air. However, I do not think it is the sole reason for the rising global temperature. Climate change is cyclical and I think ultimately this is the explanation for global warming.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2007/0902-our_changing_climate.htm

Blog Topic #6

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS 2010



Africa is home to some of the poorest countries in the world. They rank very low on the Human Development Index due to poor quality of life and low income. Despite these things, many Africans find time to play soccer and support their favorite teams. Soccer is a large part of African culture and other cultures all over the world. While baseball is referred to as "America's pastime", soccer could be referred to as the "World's pastime". Soccer is the world's most popular sport, and in a country where the future seems uncertain for many people, soccer is something to look forward to and something people share in common. This particular video is about the Africa Cup of Nations 2010. The year 2010 is a big year in terms of soccer for the continent of Africa. South Africa will be hosting the 2010 World Cup later this year, but before the World Cup is the Africa Cup of Nations, which will plot the best teams from the continent against one another in the hopes of claiming the title of best team in Africa. The Africa Cup of Nations is played in Angola this year. The country of Egypt is home to the best team in the whole continent, the Pharaohs of Egypt. Egypt is seeded first in the tournament. If they win, it will be three titles in a row for the Pharaohs. They have won the most Africa Cup of Nations titles with a total of six. However, they did not qualify for the World Cup this year and will be missing out on South Africa 2010. Winning the Cup of Nations will possibly serve as a means of redeeming themselves since they will be missing out on the World Cup later this year.

Blog Topic #5

The human development index measures three aspects of human development. These three aspects include living a long and healthy life (measured by life expectancy), being educated (measured by adult literacy and gross enrollment in education) and having a decent standard of living (measured by purchasing power parity, PPP, income). There are several things the index does not measure including gender and income inequality. The HDI is meant to show the relationship between income and well-being. To be included in the HDI, a country must be a member of the United Nations. Not all United Nations members are included. There must be enough data from a country in order for it to be included in the index. However, there are some information gaps for some of the included counties. The HDI geographic pattern shows most of the medium to low developed countries to be in Africa and Asia. Sub-Saharan Africa is probably ranked so low in HDI because life expectancy is low, their standard of living is low, and the literacy rate is low. Also, many of the countries in Africa are less developed countries and that probably plays a part in why they are ranked so low on the index.

Blog Topic #4

This article is about Venezuela. Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez, has threatened to cut off oil supplies to the United States. Venezuela's state oil company has stopped selling crude oil to Exxon Mobil Corp. as of Tuesday, February 12 and has suspended commercial relations with the U.S.-based oil company. According to the article, Exxon Mobil attempted to seize Venezuelan assets through U.S. and European courts in a dispute over the nationalization of its oil ventures in Venezuela. President Chavez says the suspension of commercial relations with the U.S.-based oil company is an act of reciprocity for the United State's actions. Exxon Mobil is apparently no longer welcome to to business with Venezuela. Venezuela relies heavily on its oil production for income. The U.S. relies on Venezuela for its imported oil. It is unclear how either country will be affected in the long run. It is likely that the Venezuelan economy will suffer slightly with out American business, due to the fact that Exxon Mobil is a major partner and the United States is so dependent on foreign oil.

Blog Topic #3

ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT


This map represents the countries with the largest ecological footprint. The ecological footprint is a measure of the area needed to support a population’s lifestyle. This includes the consumption of food, fuel, wood, and fibers. Pollution, such as carbon dioxide emissions, is also counted as part of the footprint. According to the cartogram, the United States, China, and India have the largest ecological footprints. Population must be taken into account. China and India lack resources and are below the world average for resource use. Their large populations are what cause both counties to have such large footprints. As for the United States, the per person footprint is five times the world average and is almost ten times what would be sustainable. Europe and Japan also have large ecological footprints and less developed countries appear to have relatively small footprints.

SPECIES EXTINCT


This cartogram shows the different locations where over 700 species that are extinct once existed. Included are mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates and plants. The United States is the leader in recently recorded animals that have gone extinct. The U.S. is followed by the United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda and Mauritius. These places are far more exotic than the United States. Current extinction is occurring due to the widespread loss of habitats because of human activity. Natural habitats that remain have been degraded and are small and fragmented.

Blog Topic #2

Many images of the world display North America as the main focus and all the other continents and countries are around it. I often think of North America as being the "center of the world", so to speak, because this is the image I am most used to seeing. This particular view of the earth shows Central America as the main focus. I liked this image because it puts Latin America at the center of attention. I also like how North and South America are tilted. It looks like the earth is a little off balance. Also, the other continents aren't visible and there is mostly just ocean. It looks like the Americas are the only continents that exist.



This image of Latin America is also unique. South America is the center of attention in this view of the world and it is also tilted on its side so that it is virtually the only continent in sight. I don't think I realize sometimes exactly how large South America is. I think that people should take the time to look at the earth from different perspectives. It can change how you view the world and the place you come from.

Earthquake Levels Haiti

It has been one week since a devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti. Images from the tragedy are still fresh in our memories, but like most tragic events, the earthquake and its devastation will probably soon be forgotten, and the people of Haiti will be left to deal with the destruction on their own. This image shows just one of the many Haitians that are now left with nothing. It will be very difficult for the people of Haiti, the poorest country in the western hemisphere, to pick up the pieces.

This video clip portrays images of the aftermath in several different areas of Haiti. I think that it is very important that people around the world are provided with an accurate visual of what really happened. With accurate information, people will be better able to understand the situation. It also shows live footage of the people affected by the earthquake. I couldn't imagine what it would be like to be in their situation. Hopefully images such as these will inspire people to do what they can to provide help and aid to those in need. Relief efforts are underway for the thousands that are in need of shelter, food, and medical care.