The Back to Skool Dance is always fun. Magnet doesn't have That many dances, so I'd recommend you jump on this one.
Each student can bring one guest who attends another school, says Mr Gallant.
Parents, please pick up your passengers no later than 9 pm. Those of us who chaperone really appreciate your punctuality.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Indie work: comparing Mark Zuckerberg to Christopher Columbus
Mark Zuckerberg is the man of the moment because of his immensely successful site, Facebook. Christopher Columbus is notable for his brave exploration of new physical lands.
Despite some profound differences, they are quite comparable. Remember to search the Essay Guidelines to make sure your comparison essay gets the maximum points.
You may email your completed essay to trudeau@earthlink.net
Despite some profound differences, they are quite comparable. Remember to search the Essay Guidelines to make sure your comparison essay gets the maximum points.
You may email your completed essay to trudeau@earthlink.net
A brief report on the problems facing the Louisiana coastline
Students visit the Computer lab in B-3 today to assemble a brief report on the loss of coastline that is such a problem for the Bayou State.
The report -
- due Tuesday
- typed.
- one page.
- edited (bulleted) reasons for loss of coastal land.
- sources (at bottom or in the body of the paper)
- snarly title, explanatory subtitle.
- map indicating problems along the coastline.
Email it home so as to complete and print the report.
The report -
- due Tuesday
- typed.
- one page.
- edited (bulleted) reasons for loss of coastal land.
- sources (at bottom or in the body of the paper)
- snarly title, explanatory subtitle.
- map indicating problems along the coastline.
Email it home so as to complete and print the report.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Remembering 9-11
While I encourage my students and parents to read the background of the 9/11 attack at worldbookonline.com or wikipedia.org, there are a couple of facts that I'd like to emphasize.
Osama bin Laden and most of the assassins were natives of Saudi Arabia. The average American probably thinks they were Afghani because many members of al Qaeda were trained in Afghanistan.
"Then why didn't we attack Saudi Arabia?"
We have an uneasy relationship with Saudi Arabia. The overriding fact is that we need their oil. The fact that al Qaeda got most of its money and philosophical support from Saudi Arabians was an inconvenient truth in the post-9/11 war on terrorism.
"Then why did we attack Iraq?" In my opinion, there's no satisfactory answer to that one aside from faulty intelligence and questionable judgement.
Osama bin Laden and most of the assassins were natives of Saudi Arabia. The average American probably thinks they were Afghani because many members of al Qaeda were trained in Afghanistan.
"Then why didn't we attack Saudi Arabia?"
We have an uneasy relationship with Saudi Arabia. The overriding fact is that we need their oil. The fact that al Qaeda got most of its money and philosophical support from Saudi Arabians was an inconvenient truth in the post-9/11 war on terrorism.
"Then why did we attack Iraq?" In my opinion, there's no satisfactory answer to that one aside from faulty intelligence and questionable judgement.
Homework in geography class?
The basic and quotidian assignment is not one that my students are accustomed to:
Read the class web site.
Each day I post notes and assignments. It's like a constantly evolving personal textbook. If you keep up with the flow of material it all makes sense. If you print it out and try to read it once a week it can seem incomprehensible.
Reading your class notes on a web site is a skill for now and for the future. More and more teachers will be posting their class marterial on similar sites.
Fri, Sept 12 brings a different sort of homework: a typed essay. Many of my students checked their drafts with me today. Yay. That's the mark of an outstanding worker.
Read the class web site.
Each day I post notes and assignments. It's like a constantly evolving personal textbook. If you keep up with the flow of material it all makes sense. If you print it out and try to read it once a week it can seem incomprehensible.
Reading your class notes on a web site is a skill for now and for the future. More and more teachers will be posting their class marterial on similar sites.
Fri, Sept 12 brings a different sort of homework: a typed essay. Many of my students checked their drafts with me today. Yay. That's the mark of an outstanding worker.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
The Caribs: among the first to be enslaved, tortured and genocidally murdered in the New World
Carib, Island Carib or Kalinago people, after whom the Caribbean Sea was named, live in the Lesser Antilles islands, says Wikipedia.
They were among the first people to be enslaved, tortured and genocidally murdered by the Spanish in the New World.
The Caribs were skilled boatbuilders and sailors, and seem to have owed their dominance in the Caribbean basin to their mastery of the arts of war.
The Caribs were themselves displaced by the Europeans, and most were eventually exterminated or assimilated during the colonial period by the Spanish.
Even after Columbus was presented with evidence that the cannibalism of the indigenous people was a myth, the myth was perpetuated because in 1503, Queen Isabella ruled that only people who were better off under slavery (including cannibals) could legally be taken as slaves. This provided Spaniards an incentive and legalistic pretext for identifying various Amerindian groups as cannibals in order to enslave them and take their lands away from them.
They were among the first people to be enslaved, tortured and genocidally murdered by the Spanish in the New World.
The Caribs were skilled boatbuilders and sailors, and seem to have owed their dominance in the Caribbean basin to their mastery of the arts of war.
The Caribs were themselves displaced by the Europeans, and most were eventually exterminated or assimilated during the colonial period by the Spanish.
Even after Columbus was presented with evidence that the cannibalism of the indigenous people was a myth, the myth was perpetuated because in 1503, Queen Isabella ruled that only people who were better off under slavery (including cannibals) could legally be taken as slaves. This provided Spaniards an incentive and legalistic pretext for identifying various Amerindian groups as cannibals in order to enslave them and take their lands away from them.
Archipelago: a chain of islands, such as the West Indies or Hawaii
Southeastern (windward) Islands - Hawaiian Archipelago - Ka Pae `Aina O Hawai`i Nei
Originally uploaded by brewbooks
In the Caribbean archipelago, there is an island that comprises two nations, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Finding the name of that island is not easy. It is known as Hispaniola.
What is the implication carried by the name Hispaniola? The indication is it's connected to Spain or something Hispanic. That's correct. It was named by Columbus for his beloved nation of Spain, or Espana.
Caribs: the native people of Hispaniola and the West Indies
The word "hurricane" derives from the Carib god of evil, Hurican. It is used for severe storms in the North Atlantic and the North Pacific east of the international dateline.
- BusnessNet.com
- BusnessNet.com
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Parents & students: get a copy of the Rand McNally Quick Reference World Atlas so that each day's class work in enhanced
Please help me by making sure that students have
a) the Rand McNally Quick Reference World Atlas ($6)
b) have paid the class fee of $5 - payable to Caddo Magnet High School.
The deadline is Friday. I appreciate your help.
a) the Rand McNally Quick Reference World Atlas ($6)
b) have paid the class fee of $5 - payable to Caddo Magnet High School.
The deadline is Friday. I appreciate your help.
Riding as storm from the coast of Africa to the shores of Louisiana; brief essay due Fri, Sept 12
Brief essay:
Riding a storm from Africa to Louisiana
5 pt essay due Fri, Sept 12
To be scored on -
- English construction.
- Orderly flow of locations.
- Completeness.
- Must be typed.
- Name, date, hour in upper right corner, please.
Please include -
- 2 ocean currents
- 1 ocean and 2 seas
- 3 islands
- 2 continents
- 1 peninsula
- 3 states
- punchy title and explanatory subtitle.
Riding a storm from Africa to Louisiana
5 pt essay due Fri, Sept 12
To be scored on -
- English construction.
- Orderly flow of locations.
- Completeness.
- Must be typed.
- Name, date, hour in upper right corner, please.
Please include -
- 2 ocean currents
- 1 ocean and 2 seas
- 3 islands
- 2 continents
- 1 peninsula
- 3 states
- punchy title and explanatory subtitle.
Monday, September 08, 2008
Speaking of Mexican resorts: Acapulco is on the cliffs of the Pacific
Cliff divers are a signature tourist-based activity of the boys of Acapulco, Mexico's longest-running beach resort.
Acapulco's success was duplicated by a Yucatan resort developed decades later, Cancun.
Acapulco's success was duplicated by a Yucatan resort developed decades later, Cancun.
Jacques Cousteau: 20th century undersea exlorer, inventor and author
Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910 – 1997) was a French naval officer, explorer, ecologist, filmmaker, scientist, photographer, author and researcher who studied the sea and all forms of life in water.
He co-developed the aqua-lung, or SCUBA gear, and pioneered marine conservation, says Wikipedia.org.
He explored the world's seas in his research ship, the Calypso. He made films about the seas and fishes that were aired by National Geographic.
One of the many places he popularized - for its underwater beauty - was Isla Cozumel, Mexico.
He co-developed the aqua-lung, or SCUBA gear, and pioneered marine conservation, says Wikipedia.org.
He explored the world's seas in his research ship, the Calypso. He made films about the seas and fishes that were aired by National Geographic.
One of the many places he popularized - for its underwater beauty - was Isla Cozumel, Mexico.
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Two tests this week in geography: map and open notes
Tues, Sept 9 -
Mississippi Valley map
- path of the Miss. R.
- hand-sketched states in approximate blocks
- 10 states, correctly placed and spelled
- 3 cities, " "
14 pts.
(additional rivers will be omitted this week)
Thurs, Sept 11 -
Open notes, multiple choice quiz based on class and web site notes and emphasizing reading comprehension.
approx. 15 pts.
Indie work:
Read, research and compare in a typed essay -
* Louisiana and Alaska
* New Orleans and Chicago
Mississippi Valley map
- path of the Miss. R.
- hand-sketched states in approximate blocks
- 10 states, correctly placed and spelled
- 3 cities, " "
14 pts.
(additional rivers will be omitted this week)
Thurs, Sept 11 -
Open notes, multiple choice quiz based on class and web site notes and emphasizing reading comprehension.
approx. 15 pts.
Indie work:
Read, research and compare in a typed essay -
* Louisiana and Alaska
* New Orleans and Chicago
Planning a cross-country trip and using your atlas
Practical geography and basic use of maps:
Planning a trip by making an outline of the cities and terrain to be encountered in a series of cross-country treks.
From your home base of New Orleans you will be traveling by motorized, wheeled vehicle - using vessels and other conveyances when absolutely unavoidable - to ___, ___ .
1) You must list the cities through which you believe your trip will be best taken.
2) Using clues from the atlas, you must describe the general terrain to be enjoyed during the major sections of the trip.
3) Using the atlas scale, you must estimate the approximate length of the journey in the Old English measurement of “miles.”
4) You must make an approximate sketch of the US map, including the cities relevant to your peregrination.
5) One person in your group must report the pertinent facts to the class as the group follows the route in their atlas.
Destinations -
1) NYC
2) Detroit
3) Minneapolis / St Paul
4) Helena, Montana
5) Seattle
6) Los Angeles
7) Acapulco, Mexico
8) Nassau, the Bahamas
Planning a trip by making an outline of the cities and terrain to be encountered in a series of cross-country treks.
From your home base of New Orleans you will be traveling by motorized, wheeled vehicle - using vessels and other conveyances when absolutely unavoidable - to ___, ___ .
1) You must list the cities through which you believe your trip will be best taken.
2) Using clues from the atlas, you must describe the general terrain to be enjoyed during the major sections of the trip.
3) Using the atlas scale, you must estimate the approximate length of the journey in the Old English measurement of “miles.”
4) You must make an approximate sketch of the US map, including the cities relevant to your peregrination.
5) One person in your group must report the pertinent facts to the class as the group follows the route in their atlas.
Destinations -
1) NYC
2) Detroit
3) Minneapolis / St Paul
4) Helena, Montana
5) Seattle
6) Los Angeles
7) Acapulco, Mexico
8) Nassau, the Bahamas
Saturday, September 06, 2008
The art of editing the material you read
Editing is a higher thinking skill.
In a class activity involving a series of review questions, the business of editing - compressing - the questions is probably a higher skill activity than the finding of the answer.
It entails:
- Deciding quickly which words are the essence of the question.
- Which words to omit.
- Use of abbreviations.
- A possible re-ordering of the words to shorten the statement.
When first-year students take notes, the mental sweat spritzes the room.
In a class activity involving a series of review questions, the business of editing - compressing - the questions is probably a higher skill activity than the finding of the answer.
It entails:
- Deciding quickly which words are the essence of the question.
- Which words to omit.
- Use of abbreviations.
- A possible re-ordering of the words to shorten the statement.
When first-year students take notes, the mental sweat spritzes the room.
Answers to Quiz # 1, "Latitude"
You'll find the questions to quiz #1 when you scroll farther down.
1. A) Great Circle
2. T
3. C) Ni Hau
4. T
5. T
6. C) Beijing, China
7. B) Prime Meridian
8. A) Western
9. F
10. T
11. A) Louisiana
12. D) 32N, 94W
13. T
14. A) Paper
15. D) Red River
B) 150
16. D) Los Angeles
17. C) Mexico City
18. B) Hong Kong, China
19. C) 35S, 59W
20. A) 6S, 106E
1. A) Great Circle
2. T
3. C) Ni Hau
4. T
5. T
6. C) Beijing, China
7. B) Prime Meridian
8. A) Western
9. F
10. T
11. A) Louisiana
12. D) 32N, 94W
13. T
14. A) Paper
15. D) Red River
B) 150
16. D) Los Angeles
17. C) Mexico City
18. B) Hong Kong, China
19. C) 35S, 59W
20. A) 6S, 106E
Friday, September 05, 2008
Africa to Louisiana project
Friday's review:
1. Name the ocean current that flows south along the coast of West Africa.
2. “ “ “ that flows west across the Atlantic and into the Caribbean at the midsection of the earth.
3. The Yucatan peninsula is a region. To what nation does it belong?
4. The capital of Cuba is a city on a beautiful and protective harbor. a) Name the city. b) State the English word which indicates a shelter from the storm.
5. Which body of water would be the most effective haven for ship-borne colonialists looking for shelter from storms? a) mouth of the Mississippi River b) Mobile Bay c) Galveston Island.
6. Name for a bay in which the fresh water meets the salt water and wildlife and fish life is incubated: __ .
7. Type of rich soil that is deposited in a river delta each time the river floods: __ .
8. Storms often approach the Gulf of Mexico from the Caribbean. When the come from the south they pass through a strait bordered by Cuba and __ __ .
9. Name the island that lies south of Cuba and west of haiti / Dominican Republic: __ .
10. Explain in brief - but with logic steps - how the weather in Africa can affect the state of Louisiana.
1. Name the ocean current that flows south along the coast of West Africa.
2. “ “ “ that flows west across the Atlantic and into the Caribbean at the midsection of the earth.
3. The Yucatan peninsula is a region. To what nation does it belong?
4. The capital of Cuba is a city on a beautiful and protective harbor. a) Name the city. b) State the English word which indicates a shelter from the storm.
5. Which body of water would be the most effective haven for ship-borne colonialists looking for shelter from storms? a) mouth of the Mississippi River b) Mobile Bay c) Galveston Island.
6. Name for a bay in which the fresh water meets the salt water and wildlife and fish life is incubated: __ .
7. Type of rich soil that is deposited in a river delta each time the river floods: __ .
8. Storms often approach the Gulf of Mexico from the Caribbean. When the come from the south they pass through a strait bordered by Cuba and __ __ .
9. Name the island that lies south of Cuba and west of haiti / Dominican Republic: __ .
10. Explain in brief - but with logic steps - how the weather in Africa can affect the state of Louisiana.
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Storm map: how weather gets from the West African coast to the Gulf of Mexico
Th, Sept 4
Storm map project:
Sketch, label and color -
- Fla
- Al
- Ms
- La
- Tx
- Mexico
- Yucatan Peninsula
- Cuba
- Haiti / Dominican Republic (Santo Domingo is the capital city).
- Gulf of Mexico
- Caribbean
From the Ocean Currents map (see earlier post) -
- Canary Current
- Equatorial Current
The lesson: "Recognizing connections over vast distances - such as linking Africa and Louisiana via weather - enables students to understand global dynamics. Think big."
Storm map project:
Sketch, label and color -
- Fla
- Al
- Ms
- La
- Tx
- Mexico
- Yucatan Peninsula
- Cuba
- Haiti / Dominican Republic (Santo Domingo is the capital city).
- Gulf of Mexico
- Caribbean
From the Ocean Currents map (see earlier post) -
- Canary Current
- Equatorial Current
The lesson: "Recognizing connections over vast distances - such as linking Africa and Louisiana via weather - enables students to understand global dynamics. Think big."
questions found on the first geography quiz, entitled Latitude
Geography quiz: the Basics / 08-09 / Trudeau
1. A jet transport plane is likely to traverse a __ route as it goes on a transoceanic journey. a) Great Circle b) True Direction c) shipping d) Gulf stream.
2. The Mercator map is a cylindrical projection created about 1569 CE. T / F
3. Chinese greeting: a) Salaam alaykum b) Shalom
c) Ni hau d) S’up.
4. On the East the Mississippi River is adjacent to Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Minnesota. T / F
5. The Missouri River is longer than the Mississippi. T / F
6. What city lies at 39N, 116E?
a) Seoul, S. Korea b) Shanghai, China c) Beijing, China
d) Denver, Co
7. Greenwich, England, is home to the a) equator b) prime meridian c) prime rib, au jus.
8. Canada would be considered part of the __ hemisphere. a) Western b) Eastern c) Southern d) Central.
9. The Prime Meridian runs through London and the Equator runs through Hong Kong. T / F
10. The Tropic of Capricorn crosses South America, Africa, Madagascar and Australia. T / F
11. 90W is a line of longitude that runs through
a) Louisiana b) India and Bangladesh.
12. Latitude and longitude of Shreveport: a) 32N, 94E
b) 32E, 94N c) 32S, 94N d) 32N, 94W.
13. The implication in the article on corn is that rising costs of gasoline will not affect the corn crop. T / F
14. Pratt Industries is the company behind Shreveport’s new recycling program. Their main business is recycling
a) paper b) wood c) plastics d) glass products.
15. Shreveport’s recycling company, Pratt Industries, has
built its center on a site advantageous for cheap transportation. It is located on ____. a) I-49 b) I-20 c) downtown d) Red River.
15. Henry Miller Shreve took on quite a project when he began - in 1832 - to clear the log jam from the Red River. The Great Raft in the Red spanned about __ miles. a) 50 b) 150 c) 1,500 d) 10, 500.
Match a famous city with each of these coordinates:
16. 34N, 118W a) Boston b) Manila, Philippines c) Madrid, Spain d) Los Angeles
17. 19N, 99W a) Rio de Janeiro, Brazil b) Mecca, Saudi Arabia c) Mexico City
18. 22N, 115E a) Beijing, China b) Hong Kong, China c) Sydney, Australia
Supply the coordinates for -
19. Buenos Aires, Argentina a) 35N, 59E b) 35S, 59E c) 35S, 59W
20. Jakarta, Indonesia a) 6S, 106E b) 6N, 106E c) 6S, 106W d) 6E, 106S
Answers to be posted tomorrow.
1. A jet transport plane is likely to traverse a __ route as it goes on a transoceanic journey. a) Great Circle b) True Direction c) shipping d) Gulf stream.
2. The Mercator map is a cylindrical projection created about 1569 CE. T / F
3. Chinese greeting: a) Salaam alaykum b) Shalom
c) Ni hau d) S’up.
4. On the East the Mississippi River is adjacent to Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Minnesota. T / F
5. The Missouri River is longer than the Mississippi. T / F
6. What city lies at 39N, 116E?
a) Seoul, S. Korea b) Shanghai, China c) Beijing, China
d) Denver, Co
7. Greenwich, England, is home to the a) equator b) prime meridian c) prime rib, au jus.
8. Canada would be considered part of the __ hemisphere. a) Western b) Eastern c) Southern d) Central.
9. The Prime Meridian runs through London and the Equator runs through Hong Kong. T / F
10. The Tropic of Capricorn crosses South America, Africa, Madagascar and Australia. T / F
11. 90W is a line of longitude that runs through
a) Louisiana b) India and Bangladesh.
12. Latitude and longitude of Shreveport: a) 32N, 94E
b) 32E, 94N c) 32S, 94N d) 32N, 94W.
13. The implication in the article on corn is that rising costs of gasoline will not affect the corn crop. T / F
14. Pratt Industries is the company behind Shreveport’s new recycling program. Their main business is recycling
a) paper b) wood c) plastics d) glass products.
15. Shreveport’s recycling company, Pratt Industries, has
built its center on a site advantageous for cheap transportation. It is located on ____. a) I-49 b) I-20 c) downtown d) Red River.
15. Henry Miller Shreve took on quite a project when he began - in 1832 - to clear the log jam from the Red River. The Great Raft in the Red spanned about __ miles. a) 50 b) 150 c) 1,500 d) 10, 500.
Match a famous city with each of these coordinates:
16. 34N, 118W a) Boston b) Manila, Philippines c) Madrid, Spain d) Los Angeles
17. 19N, 99W a) Rio de Janeiro, Brazil b) Mecca, Saudi Arabia c) Mexico City
18. 22N, 115E a) Beijing, China b) Hong Kong, China c) Sydney, Australia
Supply the coordinates for -
19. Buenos Aires, Argentina a) 35N, 59E b) 35S, 59E c) 35S, 59W
20. Jakarta, Indonesia a) 6S, 106E b) 6N, 106E c) 6S, 106W d) 6E, 106S
Answers to be posted tomorrow.
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
WorldBookOnline.com is a resource you can use from home or school
Please go to Worldbookonline.com to enjoy a terrific resource. It is a service paid for by the state so that we may all have a solid reference work no matter where we are studying.
There's a new home access for students and teachers, says WB representative and Cmhs parent Andy Snelling:.
www.worldbookonline.com
ID- lahome
Password- student
Worldbookonline.com is almost a one-stop resource center. You'll be gratified to see all the ways it can be helpful in your school work.
There's a new home access for students and teachers, says WB representative and Cmhs parent Andy Snelling:.
www.worldbookonline.com
ID- lahome
Password- student
Worldbookonline.com is almost a one-stop resource center. You'll be gratified to see all the ways it can be helpful in your school work.
Project: relief Map of Cmhs
How to make a simple topograhical map of the Cmhs campus?
A relief map. Elevation map.
Start with a sketch of the wing placement.
Add paper representations of the buildings.
Find a way to show the general elevation of the land on which most of the wings are built.
A relief map. Elevation map.
Start with a sketch of the wing placement.
Add paper representations of the buildings.
Find a way to show the general elevation of the land on which most of the wings are built.
Weather permitting: making a map of CMHS aided by a walking field trip
Mental and physical mapping is a priority for geography students. Thus we must, weather permitting, venture out of the classroom to make a map of our educational site.
We will combine perspectives and move beyond the technical view (while using the official view, to be sure) to create artful renditions of the campus.
We will combine perspectives and move beyond the technical view (while using the official view, to be sure) to create artful renditions of the campus.
Digital portfolio: Flcikr.com or Google page, both free and highly recommended
Make a digital, online cache of your best papers & projects and volunteer hours at a site such as
* Flickr.com, a photo storage site that is can be a blog . . .
* Google free sites, an easy-to-build stand-alone, traditional web site that is probably the easiest and most stable of all available.
You can get indie work bonus points for this site before each progress report time.
* Flickr.com, a photo storage site that is can be a blog . . .
* Google free sites, an easy-to-build stand-alone, traditional web site that is probably the easiest and most stable of all available.
You can get indie work bonus points for this site before each progress report time.
Google founders Sergey Brin & Larry Page in 2005
Indie work this week:
Research and compare (see essay guidelines)
* Google founders Brin & Page to early US explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The expedition of 1804–1806 had a profound impact on the US, much as had the explosion of google.com.
Research and compare (see essay guidelines)
* Google founders Brin & Page to early US explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The expedition of 1804–1806 had a profound impact on the US, much as had the explosion of google.com.
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Exploring the options in regards protection of New Orleans from future hurricane-borne floods
Notes from an article published in 07 called "The Threatening Storm,"
By Michael Grunwald.
* Corps officials have also committed to restoring the surge-softening marshes, cypress swamps and barrier islands that are disappearing at a rate of a football field nearly every half-hour. They say they now understand that the survival of New Orleans depends on a sustainable coast.
* traditional engineering: huge structures designed to control rather than preserve nature. And its latest plan seeks to extend those structures along the entire coast, calling for such massive levees across so much of the state that scientists call it the Great Wall of Louisiana. The Corps says it's just an idea, but Congress is about to authorize the first stretch of the wall--a $900 million, 72-mile (116 km) levee.
* "Fix the Coast, or We Are Toast!"
*
NEW ORLEANS WASN'T ALWAYS A CITY IN A bowl. The French founded it in 1718 on high ground along the Mississippi, a "natural levee" of sediment deposited by the river. That's why tourists in the French Quarter stayed dry during Katrina. And that's how all of south Louisiana was built--by the Mississippi River mutinying its banks and rambling around its floodplain like an unruly teenager, dropping mud around its delta and creating roughly 4.5 million acres of wetlands between New Orleans and the Gulf.
So while the French built an earthen levee 1 mile long and 3 ft. high to block the river's annual tantrums, they didn't bother trying to block the occasional hurricanes that swept up the Gulf. "They didn't need hurricane levees," says Kerry St. Pe, a marine biologist whose ancestors arrived in 1760. "They had wetlands to protect them." New Orleans wasn't on the coast, and hurricanes wilt over land.
* After the vast Flood of 1927, the Corps of Engineers built dams, floodways, revetments and pumped-up levees throughout the Mississippi basin, caging the river in its channel, safeguarding riverfront cities, creating a reliable web of liquid highways.
But by walling off the river, trapping its sediments behind giant dams and armoring its erosive banks with concrete, the Corps inadvertently choked off the land-building process. The straitjacketed river now carries less than half its original sediment load down to Louisiana. So there's little new land-building material to offset the natural erosion of the coast, much less the unnatural rising of the sea fueled by global warming.
* The result is that New Orleans is sinking, and about 30% of the coast's wetlands have slipped into the Gulf, jutting Louisiana's chin even further into the path of Mother Nature's fist, endangering the U.S.'s largest offshore oil and gas fields, a lucrative seafood industry, a busy network of ports and about 2 million people.
* "Basically, we found that none of the levees that failed were protected by wetlands or trees," Mashriqui says. Oil and gas canals have accelerated the land losses. But so have Corps navigation canals, especially the notorious Mississippi River Gulf Outlet, a shipping shortcut to the Port of New Orleans that was a larger dirt-moving project than the Panama Canal when it opened in 1965. The canal never carried many ships, but it has carried plenty of saltwater into freshwater marshes and cypress forests, killing nearly 100 sq. mi. (259 sq km) of wetlands.
* The U.S. has no water-resources policy, just a ready-to-build water-resources agency whose agenda is dictated by an annual funding free-for-all among its 535 bosses - the US House of Reps. It's a classic example of Washington's iron triangle: commercial interests lobby the Corps and their Congressmen for projects that supply the Corps with work and political cover and help the Congressmen steer jobs and money to constituents and contributors.
* Scientists believe they know how to save it. They want the Corps to let go of the river in strategic areas so it can get back to work building land, even if that requires rearranging navigation at the mouth of the Mississippi. They want to fill in oil and gas canals, constrict the Gulf Outlet and start pumping sediment back into ridges and barrier islands. The Corps developed $14 billion worth of Louisiana restoration plans before Katrina, but Bush scaled them back to $2 billion. Now the scientists want to think even bigger about the entire ecosystem, even the sediments trapped behind dams 1,000 miles upstream (about 1,600 km).
By Michael Grunwald.
* Corps officials have also committed to restoring the surge-softening marshes, cypress swamps and barrier islands that are disappearing at a rate of a football field nearly every half-hour. They say they now understand that the survival of New Orleans depends on a sustainable coast.
* traditional engineering: huge structures designed to control rather than preserve nature. And its latest plan seeks to extend those structures along the entire coast, calling for such massive levees across so much of the state that scientists call it the Great Wall of Louisiana. The Corps says it's just an idea, but Congress is about to authorize the first stretch of the wall--a $900 million, 72-mile (116 km) levee.
* "Fix the Coast, or We Are Toast!"
*
NEW ORLEANS WASN'T ALWAYS A CITY IN A bowl. The French founded it in 1718 on high ground along the Mississippi, a "natural levee" of sediment deposited by the river. That's why tourists in the French Quarter stayed dry during Katrina. And that's how all of south Louisiana was built--by the Mississippi River mutinying its banks and rambling around its floodplain like an unruly teenager, dropping mud around its delta and creating roughly 4.5 million acres of wetlands between New Orleans and the Gulf.
So while the French built an earthen levee 1 mile long and 3 ft. high to block the river's annual tantrums, they didn't bother trying to block the occasional hurricanes that swept up the Gulf. "They didn't need hurricane levees," says Kerry St. Pe, a marine biologist whose ancestors arrived in 1760. "They had wetlands to protect them." New Orleans wasn't on the coast, and hurricanes wilt over land.
* After the vast Flood of 1927, the Corps of Engineers built dams, floodways, revetments and pumped-up levees throughout the Mississippi basin, caging the river in its channel, safeguarding riverfront cities, creating a reliable web of liquid highways.
But by walling off the river, trapping its sediments behind giant dams and armoring its erosive banks with concrete, the Corps inadvertently choked off the land-building process. The straitjacketed river now carries less than half its original sediment load down to Louisiana. So there's little new land-building material to offset the natural erosion of the coast, much less the unnatural rising of the sea fueled by global warming.
* The result is that New Orleans is sinking, and about 30% of the coast's wetlands have slipped into the Gulf, jutting Louisiana's chin even further into the path of Mother Nature's fist, endangering the U.S.'s largest offshore oil and gas fields, a lucrative seafood industry, a busy network of ports and about 2 million people.
* "Basically, we found that none of the levees that failed were protected by wetlands or trees," Mashriqui says. Oil and gas canals have accelerated the land losses. But so have Corps navigation canals, especially the notorious Mississippi River Gulf Outlet, a shipping shortcut to the Port of New Orleans that was a larger dirt-moving project than the Panama Canal when it opened in 1965. The canal never carried many ships, but it has carried plenty of saltwater into freshwater marshes and cypress forests, killing nearly 100 sq. mi. (259 sq km) of wetlands.
* The U.S. has no water-resources policy, just a ready-to-build water-resources agency whose agenda is dictated by an annual funding free-for-all among its 535 bosses - the US House of Reps. It's a classic example of Washington's iron triangle: commercial interests lobby the Corps and their Congressmen for projects that supply the Corps with work and political cover and help the Congressmen steer jobs and money to constituents and contributors.
* Scientists believe they know how to save it. They want the Corps to let go of the river in strategic areas so it can get back to work building land, even if that requires rearranging navigation at the mouth of the Mississippi. They want to fill in oil and gas canals, constrict the Gulf Outlet and start pumping sediment back into ridges and barrier islands. The Corps developed $14 billion worth of Louisiana restoration plans before Katrina, but Bush scaled them back to $2 billion. Now the scientists want to think even bigger about the entire ecosystem, even the sediments trapped behind dams 1,000 miles upstream (about 1,600 km).
Sunday, August 31, 2008
New Orleans asks: Will the rebuilt levees hold?
Students asked about this issue last week in class.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Just three years after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans confronts a new threat from Gustav and a stark question: Will the partially rebuilt levees hold?
levee and drain pipes
Despite $2 billion in improvements, including 220 miles of repaired, raised and replaced floodwalls, 17 new pump stations and more flood-resistant pump stations, nobody can say for sure the city won't be swamped again. And if it is, could it ever recover?
"It's scary, man," said Robert Russell, a 63-year-old plumber whose house in Gentilly Woods is close to floodwalls on the Industrial Canal that are so suspect the Army Corps of Engineers is buffering them with large baskets filled with sand.
"They say it's not up to code," he said. "We'll have to wait and see."
Levee experts and the Army Corps insist New Orleans is safer than before Katrina flooded more than 80 percent of the city on Aug. 29, 2005.
Yet the system still has severe shortcomings: Flood barriers meant only to withstand medium-strength storms, hidden layers of weak soil and navigation channels that inadvertently funnel storm surge into the city, to name a few.
"The positive thing about having any storm hit you, it will reveal any kind of frailty in the system," said J. David Rogers, an engineer at Missouri University of Science and Technology, who's tracked the construction closely. "And we shouldn't be surprised if there is frailty."
Experts estimate the system is only a third of the way to where the corps wants it by 2011 — strong enough to protect against what scientists call a 100-year-storm. That type of hurricane has a 1 percent chance of occurring each year.
By comparison, the corps says Katrina was a 396-year storm, a rare catastrophic hurricane. The agency has not classified Gustav, which was crossing Jamaica Thursday.
"We're not close to 100-year-level protection yet," said Robert Turner, the regional director of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East. "It's not worth putting your life at risk if you have the means to get out."
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Just three years after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans confronts a new threat from Gustav and a stark question: Will the partially rebuilt levees hold?
levee and drain pipes
Despite $2 billion in improvements, including 220 miles of repaired, raised and replaced floodwalls, 17 new pump stations and more flood-resistant pump stations, nobody can say for sure the city won't be swamped again. And if it is, could it ever recover?
"It's scary, man," said Robert Russell, a 63-year-old plumber whose house in Gentilly Woods is close to floodwalls on the Industrial Canal that are so suspect the Army Corps of Engineers is buffering them with large baskets filled with sand.
"They say it's not up to code," he said. "We'll have to wait and see."
Levee experts and the Army Corps insist New Orleans is safer than before Katrina flooded more than 80 percent of the city on Aug. 29, 2005.
Yet the system still has severe shortcomings: Flood barriers meant only to withstand medium-strength storms, hidden layers of weak soil and navigation channels that inadvertently funnel storm surge into the city, to name a few.
"The positive thing about having any storm hit you, it will reveal any kind of frailty in the system," said J. David Rogers, an engineer at Missouri University of Science and Technology, who's tracked the construction closely. "And we shouldn't be surprised if there is frailty."
Experts estimate the system is only a third of the way to where the corps wants it by 2011 — strong enough to protect against what scientists call a 100-year-storm. That type of hurricane has a 1 percent chance of occurring each year.
By comparison, the corps says Katrina was a 396-year storm, a rare catastrophic hurricane. The agency has not classified Gustav, which was crossing Jamaica Thursday.
"We're not close to 100-year-level protection yet," said Robert Turner, the regional director of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East. "It's not worth putting your life at risk if you have the means to get out."
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Hand-sketched map test next Wed: the Mississippi valley
Map quiz:
a) Sketch the 10 states that border the Mississippi River. Label each and spell the states' names correctly.
b) Sketch and label the inlet points of 3 tributaries: the Ohio R, the Missouri R and the Red R.
c) Cite the cities of Minneapolis-St Paul, St Louis, Memphis, Baton Rouge and New Orleans.
18 pts. memorization.
a) Sketch the 10 states that border the Mississippi River. Label each and spell the states' names correctly.
b) Sketch and label the inlet points of 3 tributaries: the Ohio R, the Missouri R and the Red R.
c) Cite the cities of Minneapolis-St Paul, St Louis, Memphis, Baton Rouge and New Orleans.
18 pts. memorization.
Guidelines for Open Notes tests
Students should be confident that fairness exists across the classroom during tests. To that end I work hard to make sure these guidelines are evenly administered:
1. No communication between students; None whatever. Students may raise their hand and shortly I will arrive at their desk to answer the question. Please whisper your question.
2. You may Not trade or pass notes during the test period.
3. Keep your eyes on your workspace only.
4. You may use all sources of info: textbook, atlas, notes, print outs, reference books in the classroom, even a laptop.
5. Violation of test guidelines? I must call your parents and you must type an essay of correction and contrition.
1. No communication between students; None whatever. Students may raise their hand and shortly I will arrive at their desk to answer the question. Please whisper your question.
2. You may Not trade or pass notes during the test period.
3. Keep your eyes on your workspace only.
4. You may use all sources of info: textbook, atlas, notes, print outs, reference books in the classroom, even a laptop.
5. Violation of test guidelines? I must call your parents and you must type an essay of correction and contrition.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Sample questions to make you ready for the open notes quiz on Thurs, Aug 28
1. The coordinates of this famous American city are approximately 40N, 74W. This must refer to:
a) Denver b) San Diego c) London d) Philadelphia.
2. On a Mercator map which is more distorted? a) Ecuador b) Chile.
3. On a flat Mercator map you see a route that seems to be curved rather than straight across. The curved line does not represent a Great Circle route; it represents a Robinson projection. T / F
4. The source of the Mississippi is Lake a) Titicaca b) Superior
c) Michigan d) Itasca.
Famous cities:
5. 40N, 74W
6. 32N, 35E
7. 32S, 19E
8. 34S, 150E
9. 30N, 90W
10. The region associated with the earliest use of math and mapping: a) Babylonia b) Mesopotamia c) Egypt d) Greece.
11. Greenwich, England, is home to the a) equator b) prime meridian c) oldest section of London.
12. Pythagoras and the grid system are associated with a) Greece b) Egypt c) Mesopotamia.
13. Louisiana is usually thought of as having a place in the __ Hemisphere. a) Eastern b) Western c) Southern d) Cerebral.
14. Use your text to find the coordinate that is described as 0 degrees, 0 minutes and 0 seconds.
It is the a) equator b) prime meridian c) both the equator and prime meridian.
15. Cartographer: a) Vespucci b) diCaprio c) Columbus d) McNally.
16. The Red River flows through or adjacent to the states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Mississippi. T / F
answers . . .
1. Philadelphia
2. Chile
3. F
4. Itasca
5. Philadelphia
6. Jerusalem, Israel
7. Cape Town, South Africa
8. Sydney, Australia
9. New Orleans
10. Greece
11. prime meridian
12. Greece
13. Western
14. both
15.Vespucci
16. F
a) Denver b) San Diego c) London d) Philadelphia.
2. On a Mercator map which is more distorted? a) Ecuador b) Chile.
3. On a flat Mercator map you see a route that seems to be curved rather than straight across. The curved line does not represent a Great Circle route; it represents a Robinson projection. T / F
4. The source of the Mississippi is Lake a) Titicaca b) Superior
c) Michigan d) Itasca.
Famous cities:
5. 40N, 74W
6. 32N, 35E
7. 32S, 19E
8. 34S, 150E
9. 30N, 90W
10. The region associated with the earliest use of math and mapping: a) Babylonia b) Mesopotamia c) Egypt d) Greece.
11. Greenwich, England, is home to the a) equator b) prime meridian c) oldest section of London.
12. Pythagoras and the grid system are associated with a) Greece b) Egypt c) Mesopotamia.
13. Louisiana is usually thought of as having a place in the __ Hemisphere. a) Eastern b) Western c) Southern d) Cerebral.
14. Use your text to find the coordinate that is described as 0 degrees, 0 minutes and 0 seconds.
It is the a) equator b) prime meridian c) both the equator and prime meridian.
15. Cartographer: a) Vespucci b) diCaprio c) Columbus d) McNally.
16. The Red River flows through or adjacent to the states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Mississippi. T / F
answers . . .
1. Philadelphia
2. Chile
3. F
4. Itasca
5. Philadelphia
6. Jerusalem, Israel
7. Cape Town, South Africa
8. Sydney, Australia
9. New Orleans
10. Greece
11. prime meridian
12. Greece
13. Western
14. both
15.Vespucci
16. F
Learning the difference between an ordinary route, called a True Direction route, and a Great Circle route
Tues, Aug 26:
- Sketch, label and color the 2 Great Circle Route maps on p. 6. They are similar but note the differences between them,
- Cut out and color representations of 2 ships and 2 planes appropriate in size to your Great Circle maps.
- Place them upon your map, you ask? Yes! With glue? Perhaps, yes!
A disembodied hand and wrist? One that moves to and fro? If we have the time!
- Knowing the type of route on which you must place the ship and plane
is the key to the lesson.
- Sketch, label and color the 2 Great Circle Route maps on p. 6. They are similar but note the differences between them,
- Cut out and color representations of 2 ships and 2 planes appropriate in size to your Great Circle maps.
- Place them upon your map, you ask? Yes! With glue? Perhaps, yes!
A disembodied hand and wrist? One that moves to and fro? If we have the time!
- Knowing the type of route on which you must place the ship and plane
is the key to the lesson.
Maps by Gerardus Mercator, mid 1500's
The Mercator projection is a cylindrical map projection presented by the Flemish geographer and cartographer Gerardus Mercator, in 1569, says Wikipedia.
It became the standard map projection for nautical purposes because of its ability to represent lines of constant true bearing or true course, known as rhumb lines, as straight line segments.
While the direction and shapes are accurate on a Mercator projection, it distorts size, in an increasing degree away from the equator.
It became the standard map projection for nautical purposes because of its ability to represent lines of constant true bearing or true course, known as rhumb lines, as straight line segments.
While the direction and shapes are accurate on a Mercator projection, it distorts size, in an increasing degree away from the equator.
The nature of the Great Circle route
Great circle routes are used by ships and aircraft where currents and winds are not a significant factor. For aircraft traveling westerly between continents in the northern hemisphere these paths will extend northward near or into the Arctic region, while easterly flights will often fly a more southerly track to take advantage of the jet stream.
A great circle is a circle on the surface of a sphere that has the same circumference as the sphere, dividing the sphere into two equal hemispheres, says Wikipedia.
A great circle is the largest circle that can be drawn on a given sphere. The diameter of a great circle is same as the diameter of the sphere.
When long distance aviation or nautical routes are drawn on a flat map (for instance, the Mercator projection), they often look curved. This is because they lie on great circles. A route that would look like a straight line on the map would actually be longer.
On the Earth, the meridians are on great circles, and the equator is a great circle. Other lines of latitude are not great circles, because they are smaller than the equator; their centers are not at the center of the Earth -- they are small circles instead.
A great circle is a circle on the surface of a sphere that has the same circumference as the sphere, dividing the sphere into two equal hemispheres, says Wikipedia.
A great circle is the largest circle that can be drawn on a given sphere. The diameter of a great circle is same as the diameter of the sphere.
When long distance aviation or nautical routes are drawn on a flat map (for instance, the Mercator projection), they often look curved. This is because they lie on great circles. A route that would look like a straight line on the map would actually be longer.
On the Earth, the meridians are on great circles, and the equator is a great circle. Other lines of latitude are not great circles, because they are smaller than the equator; their centers are not at the center of the Earth -- they are small circles instead.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Open Notes Quiz on Thurs, Aug 28
Open notes quiz on Thurs on geographical coordinates (latitude, longitude), plus vocabulary from the Mondotrudeau notes. All questions mult-choice.
Ex question: The coordinate is 40N, 75E. That designates
a) NYC b) Paris, France c) Denver, Colorado d) Philadelphia.
In class:
- Making quizzes on the geographical coordinate system
- Each student will write 10 multiple choice questions on items such as the prime meridian and on the coordinates of famous locations such as Paris, France and Sydney, Australia.
Vocab -
"Ni hau!"
- Mandarin Chinese (northern)
- Mandarin implies noble or learned.
- Most frequently-used “hello” in the world.
Ex question: The coordinate is 40N, 75E. That designates
a) NYC b) Paris, France c) Denver, Colorado d) Philadelphia.
In class:
- Making quizzes on the geographical coordinate system
- Each student will write 10 multiple choice questions on items such as the prime meridian and on the coordinates of famous locations such as Paris, France and Sydney, Australia.
Vocab -
"Ni hau!"
- Mandarin Chinese (northern)
- Mandarin implies noble or learned.
- Most frequently-used “hello” in the world.
The Mississippi Valley project
To be completed mostly in class, this review of the tributaries of the Miss. should have the following items:
1. 10 states - the ones that directly border the Miss.
2. The Miss. river.
3. The major tributaries -
Ohio R.
Tennessee R.
Missouri R.
Arkansas R.
Red R.
4. Add a rim of color to the states. Save a contrasting color for the rivers.
5. Titles (see guidelines).
The Mississippi River[2] is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of 2,340 miles (3,770 km)[3] from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico, says Wikipedia. The longest river, a Mississippi tributary, is the Missouri River measuring 2,540 miles (4,090 km)[4].
The Mississippi River is part of the Jefferson-Missouri-Mississippi river system, which is the largest river system in North America and among the largest in the world: by length (3,900 miles (6,300 km)), it is the fourth longest, and by its average discharge of 572,000 cu ft/s (16,200 m³/s), it is the tenth largest river.
The name Mississippi is derived from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi ("Great River") or gichi-ziibi ("Big River") at its headwaters.
Wikipedia reminds us that "The Atchafalaya River in Louisiana is a major distributary of the Mississippi." What does that mean?
1. 10 states - the ones that directly border the Miss.
2. The Miss. river.
3. The major tributaries -
Ohio R.
Tennessee R.
Missouri R.
Arkansas R.
Red R.
4. Add a rim of color to the states. Save a contrasting color for the rivers.
5. Titles (see guidelines).
The Mississippi River[2] is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of 2,340 miles (3,770 km)[3] from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico, says Wikipedia. The longest river, a Mississippi tributary, is the Missouri River measuring 2,540 miles (4,090 km)[4].
The Mississippi River is part of the Jefferson-Missouri-Mississippi river system, which is the largest river system in North America and among the largest in the world: by length (3,900 miles (6,300 km)), it is the fourth longest, and by its average discharge of 572,000 cu ft/s (16,200 m³/s), it is the tenth largest river.
The name Mississippi is derived from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi ("Great River") or gichi-ziibi ("Big River") at its headwaters.
Wikipedia reminds us that "The Atchafalaya River in Louisiana is a major distributary of the Mississippi." What does that mean?
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Observing the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina
This week we observe the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. My goal is that all students will know the background of Katrina, including
* Chronology of the storm
* Reasons for the flooding
* Elevations in New Orleans
* Poverty in the Crescent City
* Map of NO
* Coastal deterioration factors
* Corps of Engineers and the Mississippi levees
Ex: compare the basic facts of Hurricane Katrina and the Galveston, Tx, hurricane of 1900.
* Chronology of the storm
* Reasons for the flooding
* Elevations in New Orleans
* Poverty in the Crescent City
* Map of NO
* Coastal deterioration factors
* Corps of Engineers and the Mississippi levees
Ex: compare the basic facts of Hurricane Katrina and the Galveston, Tx, hurricane of 1900.
This week in geography: how can we compare Facebook to the Mississippi valley?
Ni hau! That's Mandarin Chinese for "hello."
What city lies at 39N, 116E?
a) Seoul, S. Korea
b) Shanghai, China
c) Beijing, China
d) Denver, Co
This week: grids, coordinates and map projections.
While this is a week on the basics of geography, we will also look ahead to our unit on the US.
- The importance of the Mississippi valley network, a non-digital information and social connection system.
How is Facebook like a modern version of the Mississippi valley?
What city lies at 39N, 116E?
a) Seoul, S. Korea
b) Shanghai, China
c) Beijing, China
d) Denver, Co
This week: grids, coordinates and map projections.
While this is a week on the basics of geography, we will also look ahead to our unit on the US.
- The importance of the Mississippi valley network, a non-digital information and social connection system.
How is Facebook like a modern version of the Mississippi valley?
The art of comparison, a higher-thinking theme of this geography class
Typical comparison work in this class will comprise the following elements. Typically, this will be the format for independent work.
- Base your essay on no less than 3 factual items for each topic.
- Open with a colorful, descriptive sentence.
- Switch back and forth between topics, which is called integration of topics. Do not give the info in separate blocks and add a final integration.
- Cite your sources (Wikipedia.org, teacher Robert Trudeau, etc) by the phrase “according to.” Place it at the end of the first sentence of each paragraph.
- Top it with a a) smacky title and b) explanatory subtitle
- Proofread your paper for * legibility * speeling * grammar
- Name, date & hour in upper right corner!
- Proofread one more time.
Ex.: Compare the 2008 and 2004 Olympic Games in regards locations: Athens, Greece and Beijing, China.
- Base your essay on no less than 3 factual items for each topic.
- Open with a colorful, descriptive sentence.
- Switch back and forth between topics, which is called integration of topics. Do not give the info in separate blocks and add a final integration.
- Cite your sources (Wikipedia.org, teacher Robert Trudeau, etc) by the phrase “according to.” Place it at the end of the first sentence of each paragraph.
- Top it with a a) smacky title and b) explanatory subtitle
- Proofread your paper for * legibility * speeling * grammar
- Name, date & hour in upper right corner!
- Proofread one more time.
Ex.: Compare the 2008 and 2004 Olympic Games in regards locations: Athens, Greece and Beijing, China.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Titling: an essential skill in social studies
On every paper you do for this class I will expect you to follow these titling guidelines:
a) Snappy title.
b) Explanatory subtitle.
- Snappy title ex: Roiling on the Red
- tweaks a phrase from pop culture
- uses alliteration
- Explanatory subtitle ex: Mapping the Course of the Red River
- longer and detailed.
Communication in a crowded, busy world is not easy; using vivid titling is a way to stand out from the crowd.
a) Snappy title.
b) Explanatory subtitle.
- Snappy title ex: Roiling on the Red
- tweaks a phrase from pop culture
- uses alliteration
- Explanatory subtitle ex: Mapping the Course of the Red River
- longer and detailed.
Communication in a crowded, busy world is not easy; using vivid titling is a way to stand out from the crowd.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Cartography . . .
Ancient advances in mapping seen in Babylonia, Mesopotamia, about 2,300 BCE (Before the Common Era). Use of geometry in mapping.
Egyptians use geometry in mapping for land ownership.
Greece: Strabo wrote the book Geographia about 63 BCE.
* Pythagoras was the first to offer proof that the earth is spherical.
* Greeks develop map projections and the grid system.
Cradles of Civilization, acc to A History of the World:
* Mesopotamia
* Nile Valley
* China's Huang valley
* Indus Valley of Pakistan / India.
1) Storms seem larger than usual in recent years. According to National Geographic, scientists largely attribute this to a) coastal erosion b) loss of barrier islands c) changes in ocean currents such as the Gulf Stream d) global warming.
Name the large city closest to:
2) 40N, 74W
3) 32N, 35E
4) 30S, 20E
5) 35S, 150E
6) 30E, 90W
7) The region associated with the earliest use of math and mapping: a) Babylonia b) Mesopotamia c) Egypt d) Greece.
8) Greenwich, England, is home to the a) equator b) prime meridian c) oldest section of London.
9) Pythagoras and the grid system are associated with a) Greece b) Egypt c) Mesopotamia.
10) This ancient region was not mentioned in notes on the history of cartography, but it is one of the regions designated a Cradle of Civilization. We may guess that their achievements in map making were also significant.
a) China b) Rome, Italy c) Aztecs, Mexico City d) Constantinople.
11) Called the Father of geography for his book Geographia, this scholar was an ancient Greek: a) Plato b) Herodotus c) Pythagoras d) Aristotle.
12) Called the most ancient city of the Western world: a) Babylon b) Cairo
c) Alexandria d) Ur.
13) Write the grid coordinates for Istanbul (formerly Constantinople).
14) Sometimes the world fights over ethnocentric concerns (ie, the Germans wanted to take over most of Europe because they deserved it, said Hitler) and sometimes it simply accepts them.
In one or two sentences describe a situation in which the world has quietly accepted an ethnocentric term and describe the non-ethnocentric alternative to that term. (2 pts.)
Answers: geography / cartography
1. d global warming
2. 40N, 74W: NYC; that single answer should be adequate to get you started on latitude and longitude.
3. __
4. __
5. __
6. __
7. d Greece
8. b prime meridian
9. a Greece
10. a China
11. b Herodotus
12. d Ur
13. __N, __E
Egyptians use geometry in mapping for land ownership.
Greece: Strabo wrote the book Geographia about 63 BCE.
* Pythagoras was the first to offer proof that the earth is spherical.
* Greeks develop map projections and the grid system.
Cradles of Civilization, acc to A History of the World:
* Mesopotamia
* Nile Valley
* China's Huang valley
* Indus Valley of Pakistan / India.
1) Storms seem larger than usual in recent years. According to National Geographic, scientists largely attribute this to a) coastal erosion b) loss of barrier islands c) changes in ocean currents such as the Gulf Stream d) global warming.
Name the large city closest to:
2) 40N, 74W
3) 32N, 35E
4) 30S, 20E
5) 35S, 150E
6) 30E, 90W
7) The region associated with the earliest use of math and mapping: a) Babylonia b) Mesopotamia c) Egypt d) Greece.
8) Greenwich, England, is home to the a) equator b) prime meridian c) oldest section of London.
9) Pythagoras and the grid system are associated with a) Greece b) Egypt c) Mesopotamia.
10) This ancient region was not mentioned in notes on the history of cartography, but it is one of the regions designated a Cradle of Civilization. We may guess that their achievements in map making were also significant.
a) China b) Rome, Italy c) Aztecs, Mexico City d) Constantinople.
11) Called the Father of geography for his book Geographia, this scholar was an ancient Greek: a) Plato b) Herodotus c) Pythagoras d) Aristotle.
12) Called the most ancient city of the Western world: a) Babylon b) Cairo
c) Alexandria d) Ur.
13) Write the grid coordinates for Istanbul (formerly Constantinople).
14) Sometimes the world fights over ethnocentric concerns (ie, the Germans wanted to take over most of Europe because they deserved it, said Hitler) and sometimes it simply accepts them.
In one or two sentences describe a situation in which the world has quietly accepted an ethnocentric term and describe the non-ethnocentric alternative to that term. (2 pts.)
Answers: geography / cartography
1. d global warming
2. 40N, 74W: NYC; that single answer should be adequate to get you started on latitude and longitude.
3. __
4. __
5. __
6. __
7. d Greece
8. b prime meridian
9. a Greece
10. a China
11. b Herodotus
12. d Ur
13. __N, __E
One of the more brutal Cross Sections I can imagine
Cross section maps are fun.
Some people find cross sections of human anatomy interesting, too. Maybe this is your first test in regards medical school. So you think you want to be a doctor, eh?
Some people find cross sections of human anatomy interesting, too. Maybe this is your first test in regards medical school. So you think you want to be a doctor, eh?
Map art: the reds & blues of the world ocean currents map
Ocean Surface Topography Mission/Jason 2 Begins Mapping Oceans
Originally uploaded by Ilusiones...no realidad...
Find one on p. 63 in the textbook. Or see physicalgeography.net.
- Render and label the continents and oceans.
- Sketch and color these currents:
1.California Current
2. N Equatorial Current
3. S Equatorial Current
4. Brazil Current
5. Gulf Stream / N Atlantic Current
6. Canary Current
hemi / sphere
Hemisphere (from Ancient Greek - hēmisphairion "half of a sphere") may refer to:
* Half of a sphere
As half of the Earth:
* Any half of the Earth or other planetary or stellar body
* New World
* Old World
* Western Hemisphere
* Eastern Hemisphere
* Northern Hemisphere
* Southern Hemisphere
* Land hemisphere
* Water hemisphere
As half of the brain:
* Cerebral hemisphere, a division of the cerebrum
* Half of the cerebellum, a smaller part of the brain
wikipedia.org.
* Half of a sphere
As half of the Earth:
* Any half of the Earth or other planetary or stellar body
* New World
* Old World
* Western Hemisphere
* Eastern Hemisphere
* Northern Hemisphere
* Southern Hemisphere
* Land hemisphere
* Water hemisphere
As half of the brain:
* Cerebral hemisphere, a division of the cerebrum
* Half of the cerebellum, a smaller part of the brain
wikipedia.org.
Greenwich, England, lies upon the Prime Meridian
The Prime Meridian is the meridian (line of longitude) at which longitude is defined to be 0°, says Wikipedia.
The Prime Meridian and the opposite 180th meridian (at 180° longitude), which the International Date Line generally follows, form a great circle that divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
Unlike the parallels of latitude, which are defined by the rotational axis of the Earth (the poles being 90° and the Equator 0°), the Prime Meridian is arbitrary. By international convention, the modern Prime Meridian is one passing through Greenwich, London, United Kingdom, known as the International Meridian or Greenwich Meridian.
The Prime Meridian and the opposite 180th meridian (at 180° longitude), which the International Date Line generally follows, form a great circle that divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
Unlike the parallels of latitude, which are defined by the rotational axis of the Earth (the poles being 90° and the Equator 0°), the Prime Meridian is arbitrary. By international convention, the modern Prime Meridian is one passing through Greenwich, London, United Kingdom, known as the International Meridian or Greenwich Meridian.
This is not the Prime Meridian
This may remind you of the Prime Meridian, but it is, in actuality, a cut of Prime Rib. It is a tender, flavorful cut of roast. Served au jus with a bit of horseradish and fried onion rings it is a sublime reminder of the imaginary line that runs through Greenwich, England.
One day I would truly like to consume a 12 oz. Prime Rib on the Prime Meridian. You, too?
One day I would truly like to consume a 12 oz. Prime Rib on the Prime Meridian. You, too?
Italian design: the 1950's shape of the Vespa motor scooter
How did we get to the graceful Vespa, whose name means "wasp?"
From Amerigo Vespucci, the explorer and cartographer (about 1500). Our continents are named for him.
How did we somehow integrate mention of Leonardo DiCaprio and the Isle of Capri (on the Italian, Mediterranean coast)? The island of goats?
Why, from the Tropic of Capricorn. Basic, my dear.
From Amerigo Vespucci, the explorer and cartographer (about 1500). Our continents are named for him.
How did we somehow integrate mention of Leonardo DiCaprio and the Isle of Capri (on the Italian, Mediterranean coast)? The island of goats?
Why, from the Tropic of Capricorn. Basic, my dear.
What are questions like on the open notes tests? A sample . . .
Queries that coordinate with your work in World Geography, pp. 5 - 11.
The basics!
1. Parallels are lines of a) latitude or b) longitude.
2. 40E is an example of a line of a) latitude b) longitude.
3. A line of longitude may also be termed a myrmidon. T / F
4. Tropic of Cancer: a) latitude b) longitude.
5. Prime meridian: a) latitude b) longitude.
6. Tropic of Capricorn: a) latitude b) longitude.
7. The equator: a) latitude b) longitude.
8. Map symbols such as cross-hatched lines, dotted lines, dashed areas, patches of color and shield-shaped items laden with numbers are explained in the __ __.
9. There are 4 pointed elements to this type of famous map graphic. Sometimes there are even more points. Additionally, this can be a colorful and decorative item. It is called a __ __ .
10. Pilots save expensive jet fuel by navigating a route called a __ __ __.
11. Another name for a map maker: __.
12. A slice or segment shaped in approximately triangular form - so that it can be fitted. It is called a __.
13. Most of the maps we encounter in daily life are probably in the category of: a) physical b) political c) so-called “breakfast” maps.
14. Sketch a cross-section map of CMHS, including the river. It will be rough, but OK for our purpose today.
15. Latitude and longitude of Shreveport: __, __.
Next project: colorful map of the toiling tributaries of the Mississippi valley.
Independent project: geographic and economic profile of the Old Navy and Gap corporate empire.
The basics!
1. Parallels are lines of a) latitude or b) longitude.
2. 40E is an example of a line of a) latitude b) longitude.
3. A line of longitude may also be termed a myrmidon. T / F
4. Tropic of Cancer: a) latitude b) longitude.
5. Prime meridian: a) latitude b) longitude.
6. Tropic of Capricorn: a) latitude b) longitude.
7. The equator: a) latitude b) longitude.
8. Map symbols such as cross-hatched lines, dotted lines, dashed areas, patches of color and shield-shaped items laden with numbers are explained in the __ __.
9. There are 4 pointed elements to this type of famous map graphic. Sometimes there are even more points. Additionally, this can be a colorful and decorative item. It is called a __ __ .
10. Pilots save expensive jet fuel by navigating a route called a __ __ __.
11. Another name for a map maker: __.
12. A slice or segment shaped in approximately triangular form - so that it can be fitted. It is called a __.
13. Most of the maps we encounter in daily life are probably in the category of: a) physical b) political c) so-called “breakfast” maps.
14. Sketch a cross-section map of CMHS, including the river. It will be rough, but OK for our purpose today.
15. Latitude and longitude of Shreveport: __, __.
Next project: colorful map of the toiling tributaries of the Mississippi valley.
Independent project: geographic and economic profile of the Old Navy and Gap corporate empire.
America's largest crop: corn
America’s largest crop is corn, says Wikipedia.
Corn is a readily available, reliable, storable and versatile commodity. In the average American supermarket, corn derived ingredients can be found in one-fourth of everything on the shelves.[2]
This includes not only food items, but also cosmetics, toiletries, cleaning products and household goods. Aside from that, corn is also used for the feeding of factory farm animals, for the production of alcohol, and can be used as a fuel source for both heat production and vehicles. On top of being a versatile commodity, corn has been genetically modified in a way that facilitates industrial-agricultural harvesting and large yields.
Between the years 1920 and 1980, US corn yields increased 333 percent and continue to improve.[3] The strains of corn used for industrial farming are engineered to grow in a uniform, perfectly upright fashion that facilitates mechanical harvesting. Corn is also modified to thrive in crowded conditions; one acre of land can accommodate around 30,000 plants and produce roughly 180 bushels of corn, with each bushel weighing in at 56 pounds.[4] Genetic modifications have made it possible for certain strains of corn to be naturally insect resistant.
Cheap and readily available chemical pesticides and synthetic fertilizers have contributed greatly to high crop yields; corn has also been engineered to tolerate chemicals and to efficiently utilize petrochemical fertilizers.[5] Increases in the productivity of corn have helped to keep food prices low. America’s number one crop has an undeniably important place in both the economy and in peoples' diets.
Corn is a readily available, reliable, storable and versatile commodity. In the average American supermarket, corn derived ingredients can be found in one-fourth of everything on the shelves.[2]
This includes not only food items, but also cosmetics, toiletries, cleaning products and household goods. Aside from that, corn is also used for the feeding of factory farm animals, for the production of alcohol, and can be used as a fuel source for both heat production and vehicles. On top of being a versatile commodity, corn has been genetically modified in a way that facilitates industrial-agricultural harvesting and large yields.
Between the years 1920 and 1980, US corn yields increased 333 percent and continue to improve.[3] The strains of corn used for industrial farming are engineered to grow in a uniform, perfectly upright fashion that facilitates mechanical harvesting. Corn is also modified to thrive in crowded conditions; one acre of land can accommodate around 30,000 plants and produce roughly 180 bushels of corn, with each bushel weighing in at 56 pounds.[4] Genetic modifications have made it possible for certain strains of corn to be naturally insect resistant.
Cheap and readily available chemical pesticides and synthetic fertilizers have contributed greatly to high crop yields; corn has also been engineered to tolerate chemicals and to efficiently utilize petrochemical fertilizers.[5] Increases in the productivity of corn have helped to keep food prices low. America’s number one crop has an undeniably important place in both the economy and in peoples' diets.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Note-taking skills in social studies class
Recommended practice . . .
- Leaving generous space between items.
- Learning to shorten sentences and to use abbreviations.
- Using sketches to punctuate and illustrate items.
- Using color for accent.
- Underlining key words.
- Asking questions of the teacher when in doubt.
- Leaving generous space between items.
- Learning to shorten sentences and to use abbreviations.
- Using sketches to punctuate and illustrate items.
- Using color for accent.
- Underlining key words.
- Asking questions of the teacher when in doubt.
Rain hampers the local corn harvest; what are the implications?
This morning I talked with teacher Margaret Nance about her farm in Dixie. She said the August rains - ordinarily expected in September - were stopping the harvest. The harvester machines cannot work the fields when there is too much mud. She added that the farmers are under contract to deliver their crops at a certain time.
So I asked geography students to write a brief answer to the query "Rain hampers the local corn harvest; what are the implications?"
First, students wanted to know the definition of "implication." It is something that is not stated directly but something that is suggested.
The implications? The price of corn may rise. Many students smartly pointed out that supply and demand might cause the price increase.
Other students said that supplies of Ethanol, a fuel made from corn, might be affected. A few students pointed out that prices of beef and soft drinks and even ice cream might rise because these products are based partly on corn.
All things considered, it gave students a chance to use a higher level of thinking and their background in current events.
So I asked geography students to write a brief answer to the query "Rain hampers the local corn harvest; what are the implications?"
First, students wanted to know the definition of "implication." It is something that is not stated directly but something that is suggested.
The implications? The price of corn may rise. Many students smartly pointed out that supply and demand might cause the price increase.
Other students said that supplies of Ethanol, a fuel made from corn, might be affected. A few students pointed out that prices of beef and soft drinks and even ice cream might rise because these products are based partly on corn.
All things considered, it gave students a chance to use a higher level of thinking and their background in current events.
Implication? Studious, intelligent, careful
The truth of the matter is that I don't know whether Joseph is studious and careful. He was placed in my class only today. But something about this photo of him implies those qualities.
To imply is to suggest. One must interpret to draw an implication.
Today's question was -
"Corn harvest in Caddo upset by rain. What are the implications?"
Thus we are looking for the things that will happen in the overall marketplace as a result of this slowdown in harvesting this important grain.
To imply is to suggest. One must interpret to draw an implication.
Today's question was -
"Corn harvest in Caddo upset by rain. What are the implications?"
Thus we are looking for the things that will happen in the overall marketplace as a result of this slowdown in harvesting this important grain.
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