Lack of affordable housing threatens China's urban dream
https://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/6365-Lack-of-affordable-housing-threatens-China-s-urban-dream
And even the housing that is affordable is frequently tiny and not great quality. Rural-to-urban migrants can't afford much in exploding megacities.
Thursday, December 15, 2016
Sunday, October 23, 2016
America vs. Europe on economic scale
On an interview on Bloomberg radio last week, a European finance commentator made an interesting observation about why US companies often outdo European companies when it comes to gaining global scale in industries (economic scale = serving a larger market so that costs per unit are reduced). He noted that in the US there is a massive single market naturally, because it is a huge country with one economic system, one currency, one language, one mail system, etc. So it is natural for many US companies to seek large scale, because they are already part of a huge market right there waiting for them. Because they are accustomed to seeking massive scale, US companies then have an advantage in transitioning to global markets, where the scale gets only more massive. By contrast, European companies often serve a smaller scale, which does not always lend itself to shifting to global scale as easily. But the commentator was clear he thought it could be done. Another factor is that many European countries have extensive longstanding ties to other regions of the world left over from the colonial era, like French and British ties to Africa and Asia, Spain's ties to Latin America, and Dutch ties to South Africa.
Having said that, many European companies already have global scale. One example is Carrefour, the French supermarket found in 30 countries. Among many other examples are BMW, Aldi, Saab, Electrolux, Bosch, Siemens.
Friday, October 14, 2016
Neat rankings of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems worldwide
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems are often touted as a more economical solution than rail systems. But not all BRT systems worldwide really fit the principles established by planners. To establish a common global definition of BRT systems, the Institute for Transportation Development and Policy published a “BRT Standard” in 2012. Made up of transport experts from around the world, the organization now rates BRT systems based on how well they meet the BRT Standard’s scorecard: gold, silver, bronze, basic BRT, and non-BRT. Of seven cities receiving a gold rating in 2014, six were in Latin America, with the top score going to Bogotá, Colombia.
Only seven cities received the gold rating:
Bogotá, Colombia
Guangzhou, China
Curitiba, Brazil
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Guadalajara, Mexico
Lima, Peru
Medellín, Colombia
The only US city to receive silver was Cleveland.
BRT Standard Scores
https://www.itdp.org/brt-standard-scores/
Only seven cities received the gold rating:
Bogotá, Colombia
Guangzhou, China
Curitiba, Brazil
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Guadalajara, Mexico
Lima, Peru
Medellín, Colombia
The only US city to receive silver was Cleveland.
BRT Standard Scores
https://www.itdp.org/brt-standard-scores/
Thursday, October 13, 2016
Things I saw last summer in Midwest and West, USA
Last summer I spent three months rolling around Montana (a month) a other states like Idaho, North Dakota, Wyoming, and at the end Oregon and Washington. A few things I saw:
-Hail storm in June in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Ice balls just started flying out of the sky, pelting my car like rocks.
-Coal trains across Montana, coal headed to China.
-Livingston, Montana on Fourth of July. Good place to be. Huge craft fair, where I talked for an hour to Tracey Roberts of Rattlesnake Creek Alpacas. She grew up raising cattle, riding horses, trapping beavers, and shooting deer and elk. Now, she has kids and decided to take up raising alpacas. She takes the wool and sews hats, gloves, scarves, and other products herself. Says often she hangs out in the barn with the alpacas to chill, sewing.
-Butte, Montana: officially one of America's most busted cities. Once the richest city in Montana, now destitute as mining has disappeared.
-Snake River. My vote for America's baddest river. It's so wide in parts it looks like a lake, water is pure teal, and it keeps resurfacing along the highway from Wyoming through Idaho through Oregon and Washington.
-Rugged, able-bodied people. It's amazing how people's body structures are different in a place like Bozeman, MT. So many people look in shape--not anything crazy or fake or glamourous, just people who can do stuff, hikers, climbers, bikers, etc. Here in DC, you often see a 40 year old man jogging who looks like a deer trying to stand for the first time, like he just bought his body and has not figured out how to use it yet.
-Independent people. So many examples of this.
-Fargo, North Dakota and Boise, Idaho: two cool midsize towns where you can get a huge 3 BR house for the same price as a small condo in DC. Boise stood out to me for really solid, down to earth people. I liked the vibe. Fargo seemed like a good place for an entrepreneur looking to expand, cheap rent and a neat downtown, funky vibe. Major biochemical industries up I Fargo. Both towns are works in progress, but the development is visible. Spokane, Washington is another midsize town, very green but downtown looks like it needs more of a facelift.
-Wal-Mart in Bozeman, MT has a massive rifle and fishing section and sells fishing licenses by the dozens. I still have never fired a gun in my life and I don't think I've ever caught a real decent-sized fish.
-Boise BAM JAM 3 on 3 basketball tournament. Just stumbled into this tournament walking down the street in downtown Boise, about ten blocks were blocked off for it. To my surprise, a lot of the teams were good, both kids up through adults. Apparently it is the largest streetball tournament in the Northwest.
-The Basque Block in Boise. Took a tour of the block with a lady who was Basque herself and grew up there. This block was home to boarding houses where Basque men from Spain came over on a government-sponsored program. The deal: they had to go tend sheep on the plains for three years--often totally alone--and in return they got citizenship. This lady's dad was one of those guys. In winter, they came in from the plains and stayed in Basque boarding houses, her family ran one and when she was a kid she would sing Basque songs to the guys living there. They had a jai alai court in one.
-Ice age glacial lakes across North Dakota. Usually people--including me--think of Wisconsin and Minnesota as the "Land o' Lakes," with thousands of lakes created by glacial processes like erosion and kettle lakes (giant pieces of ice that broke off and formed a pot-like hole) during the Ice Age. I didn't realize that the lakes also extend across North Dakota, all along the highway. So you see mile after mile of green and crops but also one small lake after the next, cool.
-Mount Rushmore. It stood out to me just how good it is, how well done the sculpture is given it is just a huge piece of rock. Saw some mountain goats nearby on one mountain road where you can view the profile of George Washington from different angle than the park. Also went to the Crazy Horse monument but you can't actually go up close because they are still building it.
-Glacier National Park - the drive is definitely great, huge views. Unfortunately, only 10% of the original glaciers remain, and being summer their area was low. But did see two bears and a trio of bighorn sheep i.e. rams with the curly horns up close. They walked right across the road in front of people to try to get to a parking lot, apparently they like to lick antifreeze from the asphalt (and somehow it doesn't kill them), but the park rangers were stationed there to keep them out.
-Foreign kids working in the US CIEE program. This program hires foreign students to work over the summer, including in a lot of state and national parks. I talked to kids from Russia, Taiwan, China who were waiters and cashiers in the national parks. One Russian girl was from Krasnoyarsk, she was surprised I knew (generally) where that was (Kuznets basin coal area). She was more surprised after I went out to the car and brought back my Geography textbook which has a photo of mining winter in Krasnoyarsk.
-Huge herds of buffalo. Saw in Yellowstone and also in Custer State Park in South Dakota. Cars were lined up on the road amid around fifty buffalo. Some buffalo were licking the headlights on my Toyota Camry, I had recently polished them to pass inspection and the chemicals were still on there.
-Painted Hills of Eastern Oregon and the Palouse region of Washington. Welcome to another planet, these hills are so other-worldly. Like driving across the moon with grass and crops on it, especially canola. The hills are a maze, like a driving test. Fast and Furious should do some scenes here among the canola and wheat. I blew $100 in gas just driving through these hills.
-Pullman, Washington - now hear this: the Lentil Capital of America. Holds the annual National Lentil Fair.
-Walla Walla, Washington - dual-identity: downtown is full of shi-shi wine bars and restaurants, because Walla Walla is the heart of Washington's wine country. Six blocks out from downtown: trailer homes.
-Few ethnic minorities. About 90% of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho are white. By contrast, Northern Virginia is 55% white with immigrants from all over the world.
-Gambling in dumb places. In Montana, gambling is legal and found in all kinds of places. There are gas stations with video gambling. Many regular hotels have a casino where people can throw their lives away. Overall, it looks very tawdry and emphasizes just how cheesy gambling is and why it should be very limited.
-Great Plains. They are great. They are huge. It is truly incredible that we have this much flat space. Also incredible that it is devoted largely to grains, like wheat, soy, corn i.e. monocultures. Very frequently, I would look out and think. "what if these ten square miles of wheat were covered in 200 different crops instead of just one."
-Lewis and Clark Historic Trail Interpretive Center, Great Falls, Montana. Learned a lot there. Those guys did an amazing trek dragging boats across range after range of mountains. Incredible luck to meet Sacajawea who recognized her Shoshone brother with them and took over navigation using her memory of the mountains. They had furs there from all kinds of animals that were hunted/trapped, neat to feel them. It said the ate about seven pounds of meat/fish per day.
-A lot of poverty and also a lot of rich folks. Montana is a prime example. On magazines there, it is common to see many pages of real estate ads for $16 million ranch estates where you basically own a lake or a view of a mountain. Many wealthy people buy a home there--and often don't even live in it except for a season or a few weeks out of the year. Meanwhile, Montana lacks jobs and there are many poor and homeless. Overall the population of Montana is only one million, but ten million tourist come in each year especially for Yellowstone and Glacier national parks, two of the most popular in the US national park system.
-Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA. I went to Gonzaga High School in DC for three years and also Georgetown U. which are both Jesuit, so seeing Gonzaga University another Jesuit school and a big basketball school was an obvious attraction. Nice modern campus, but neighborhood is just a bunch of suburban-style houses it is not really downtown per se.
-Kansas City and suburb Overland Park. Was not impressed. Unbelievably hot in summer, felt like being in Chad (never been to Chad though). Overland Park is rated as a top place to live in Kansas City, but only because it is a wealthier area with a Whole Foods etc., not so much a real city but just a vast chunk of sprawl. There is a huge medical research park there which provides jobs. Downtown KC is full of gentrification, flipped buildings, overall just looked cheesy to me. Omaha similar on a smaller scale.
-Space. So much of it. The US is a huge country. Very few countries have the luxury of having the amount of space that we do.
-Hail storm in June in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Ice balls just started flying out of the sky, pelting my car like rocks.
-Coal trains across Montana, coal headed to China.
-Livingston, Montana on Fourth of July. Good place to be. Huge craft fair, where I talked for an hour to Tracey Roberts of Rattlesnake Creek Alpacas. She grew up raising cattle, riding horses, trapping beavers, and shooting deer and elk. Now, she has kids and decided to take up raising alpacas. She takes the wool and sews hats, gloves, scarves, and other products herself. Says often she hangs out in the barn with the alpacas to chill, sewing.
-Butte, Montana: officially one of America's most busted cities. Once the richest city in Montana, now destitute as mining has disappeared.
-Snake River. My vote for America's baddest river. It's so wide in parts it looks like a lake, water is pure teal, and it keeps resurfacing along the highway from Wyoming through Idaho through Oregon and Washington.
-Rugged, able-bodied people. It's amazing how people's body structures are different in a place like Bozeman, MT. So many people look in shape--not anything crazy or fake or glamourous, just people who can do stuff, hikers, climbers, bikers, etc. Here in DC, you often see a 40 year old man jogging who looks like a deer trying to stand for the first time, like he just bought his body and has not figured out how to use it yet.
-Independent people. So many examples of this.
-Fargo, North Dakota and Boise, Idaho: two cool midsize towns where you can get a huge 3 BR house for the same price as a small condo in DC. Boise stood out to me for really solid, down to earth people. I liked the vibe. Fargo seemed like a good place for an entrepreneur looking to expand, cheap rent and a neat downtown, funky vibe. Major biochemical industries up I Fargo. Both towns are works in progress, but the development is visible. Spokane, Washington is another midsize town, very green but downtown looks like it needs more of a facelift.
-Wal-Mart in Bozeman, MT has a massive rifle and fishing section and sells fishing licenses by the dozens. I still have never fired a gun in my life and I don't think I've ever caught a real decent-sized fish.
-Boise BAM JAM 3 on 3 basketball tournament. Just stumbled into this tournament walking down the street in downtown Boise, about ten blocks were blocked off for it. To my surprise, a lot of the teams were good, both kids up through adults. Apparently it is the largest streetball tournament in the Northwest.
-The Basque Block in Boise. Took a tour of the block with a lady who was Basque herself and grew up there. This block was home to boarding houses where Basque men from Spain came over on a government-sponsored program. The deal: they had to go tend sheep on the plains for three years--often totally alone--and in return they got citizenship. This lady's dad was one of those guys. In winter, they came in from the plains and stayed in Basque boarding houses, her family ran one and when she was a kid she would sing Basque songs to the guys living there. They had a jai alai court in one.
-Ice age glacial lakes across North Dakota. Usually people--including me--think of Wisconsin and Minnesota as the "Land o' Lakes," with thousands of lakes created by glacial processes like erosion and kettle lakes (giant pieces of ice that broke off and formed a pot-like hole) during the Ice Age. I didn't realize that the lakes also extend across North Dakota, all along the highway. So you see mile after mile of green and crops but also one small lake after the next, cool.
-Mount Rushmore. It stood out to me just how good it is, how well done the sculpture is given it is just a huge piece of rock. Saw some mountain goats nearby on one mountain road where you can view the profile of George Washington from different angle than the park. Also went to the Crazy Horse monument but you can't actually go up close because they are still building it.
-Glacier National Park - the drive is definitely great, huge views. Unfortunately, only 10% of the original glaciers remain, and being summer their area was low. But did see two bears and a trio of bighorn sheep i.e. rams with the curly horns up close. They walked right across the road in front of people to try to get to a parking lot, apparently they like to lick antifreeze from the asphalt (and somehow it doesn't kill them), but the park rangers were stationed there to keep them out.
-Foreign kids working in the US CIEE program. This program hires foreign students to work over the summer, including in a lot of state and national parks. I talked to kids from Russia, Taiwan, China who were waiters and cashiers in the national parks. One Russian girl was from Krasnoyarsk, she was surprised I knew (generally) where that was (Kuznets basin coal area). She was more surprised after I went out to the car and brought back my Geography textbook which has a photo of mining winter in Krasnoyarsk.
-Huge herds of buffalo. Saw in Yellowstone and also in Custer State Park in South Dakota. Cars were lined up on the road amid around fifty buffalo. Some buffalo were licking the headlights on my Toyota Camry, I had recently polished them to pass inspection and the chemicals were still on there.
-Painted Hills of Eastern Oregon and the Palouse region of Washington. Welcome to another planet, these hills are so other-worldly. Like driving across the moon with grass and crops on it, especially canola. The hills are a maze, like a driving test. Fast and Furious should do some scenes here among the canola and wheat. I blew $100 in gas just driving through these hills.
-Pullman, Washington - now hear this: the Lentil Capital of America. Holds the annual National Lentil Fair.
-Walla Walla, Washington - dual-identity: downtown is full of shi-shi wine bars and restaurants, because Walla Walla is the heart of Washington's wine country. Six blocks out from downtown: trailer homes.
-Few ethnic minorities. About 90% of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho are white. By contrast, Northern Virginia is 55% white with immigrants from all over the world.
-Gambling in dumb places. In Montana, gambling is legal and found in all kinds of places. There are gas stations with video gambling. Many regular hotels have a casino where people can throw their lives away. Overall, it looks very tawdry and emphasizes just how cheesy gambling is and why it should be very limited.
-Great Plains. They are great. They are huge. It is truly incredible that we have this much flat space. Also incredible that it is devoted largely to grains, like wheat, soy, corn i.e. monocultures. Very frequently, I would look out and think. "what if these ten square miles of wheat were covered in 200 different crops instead of just one."
-Lewis and Clark Historic Trail Interpretive Center, Great Falls, Montana. Learned a lot there. Those guys did an amazing trek dragging boats across range after range of mountains. Incredible luck to meet Sacajawea who recognized her Shoshone brother with them and took over navigation using her memory of the mountains. They had furs there from all kinds of animals that were hunted/trapped, neat to feel them. It said the ate about seven pounds of meat/fish per day.
-A lot of poverty and also a lot of rich folks. Montana is a prime example. On magazines there, it is common to see many pages of real estate ads for $16 million ranch estates where you basically own a lake or a view of a mountain. Many wealthy people buy a home there--and often don't even live in it except for a season or a few weeks out of the year. Meanwhile, Montana lacks jobs and there are many poor and homeless. Overall the population of Montana is only one million, but ten million tourist come in each year especially for Yellowstone and Glacier national parks, two of the most popular in the US national park system.
-Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA. I went to Gonzaga High School in DC for three years and also Georgetown U. which are both Jesuit, so seeing Gonzaga University another Jesuit school and a big basketball school was an obvious attraction. Nice modern campus, but neighborhood is just a bunch of suburban-style houses it is not really downtown per se.
-Kansas City and suburb Overland Park. Was not impressed. Unbelievably hot in summer, felt like being in Chad (never been to Chad though). Overland Park is rated as a top place to live in Kansas City, but only because it is a wealthier area with a Whole Foods etc., not so much a real city but just a vast chunk of sprawl. There is a huge medical research park there which provides jobs. Downtown KC is full of gentrification, flipped buildings, overall just looked cheesy to me. Omaha similar on a smaller scale.
-Space. So much of it. The US is a huge country. Very few countries have the luxury of having the amount of space that we do.
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
Great overview of types of geothermal energy
Great overview of types of geothermal energy
Geothermal technologies explained for the rest of us - Jay Egg
http://www.greenbuildermedia.com/buildingscience/geothermal-technologies-explained-for-the-rest-of-us-heat-pump-geoday2015-hvac-solar-wind
Geothermal technologies explained for the rest of us - Jay Egg
http://www.greenbuildermedia.com/buildingscience/geothermal-technologies-explained-for-the-rest-of-us-heat-pump-geoday2015-hvac-solar-wind
Monday, October 10, 2016
Making some sense of the Syria mess
In last night's presidential debate, it was clear that neither candidate has a clear sense of how to move forward in Syria. Geography is essential to understand Syria, but as Plato noted, democracy has no requirements for its leaders except that they proclaim themselves to be the "friend of the people." There is definitely no Geography test required to become president.
There's a saying, "War teaches geography," Geography is indispensable to engaging in warfare and diplomacy.
The Washington Post and so many other outlets have published clear maps of Syria and Iraq and the spatial ranges of the different groups there. Just looking at and listening to these maps is a first step toward bringing wars to an end in Syria, they speak volumes.
More than ten actors in Syria
Here's a short list more than ten major actors fighting in Syria, and these are just the ones I know about:
Five major groups of actors:
Assad coalition (Assad regime, Russia, Iran, Hezbollah)
US-led coalition, notably the Kurds
Al-Quaeda (multiple subgroups like Al-Nusra)
ISIS
Syrian opposition groups ex. Ahrar al-Sham
State actors
Assad regime - Shia, doing more killing of innocent people than ISIS in order to stay in power, under the pretense of attacking ISIS
Russia - Assad ally, providing military and financial support, bombing innocent people
Iran - Shia headquarters, Assad ally, providing major money and troops
Turkey - US ally yet ancient enemies with Kurds, taking in incredible number of refugees
US-led coalition (includes UK, Netherlands, France, etc.) - air war and also doing all kinds of special ops and support that don't all make headlines
Jordan - US ally, taking in incredible number of refugees
Saudi Arabia - military support including bomber planes
UAE - military support including bomber planes
Non-state actors-Kurds - US allies yet ancient enemies of Turkey
-ISIS
-Al-Quaeda/Al Nusra
-Hezbollah - Shia terrorist organization from Lebanon, Shia allies with Iran and Assad regime
-Syrian opposition groups ex. Ahrar al-Sham
So Assad and his troops are supported by Russia and two Shia groups Iran and Hezbollah.
US is supposedly allied Sunni groups ex. Jordan, the Kurds, and (sometimes) Turkey.
Key points:
1. The Kurds are the major "good guys" on the ground, fighting both ISIS and Assad for the free world--and yet are a stateless nation, 30 million people without their own country. The injustice is self-evident.
2. Assad & Russia are not really bombing ISIS, they are bombing Syrian rebels opposed to Assad. Russia essentially lied and told the US they were helping to defeat ISIS.
3. All three major "bad guys" in Syria are in it to the death, yet none will be left standing.1) The Assad regime, 2) ISIS, and 3) Al Quaeda/Al Nusra will not retreat or disappear of their own accord. There's nowhere to go. So they have to be taken out, all the way. There is no reconciliation with any of them. This is why the original Obama strategy to "help the moderates" in Syria didn't work: as many observers have stated, there are no moderates in Syria.
4. US blew its coalition with Sunnis with the Iran nuclear deal. From the perspective of the Sunni coalition of the Saudis, Jordan, etc., the #1 threat is not ISIS but Iran and the Shias. When the US gave Iran $150 billion, the Sunnis looked at this as simply adding fuel to Iran's longstanding funding for Shia terrorism against them. No doubt a large chunk of the US gift of $$$ went to support Shia rebels in Yemen and Hezbollah in Syria, both of which we are fighting.
5. Syria is Russia's only ally in the Middle East and is Russia's only outlet to the Mediterranean Sea. Syria is mostly desert but it has a slice of Mediterranean coast above Lebanon.
Things that should have been done years ago and still need to be done:
1. Ground Assad's air force and create a no fly zone to stop the bombing. Relatively easy, probably could be done in a week or less but we just haven't done it. Does not require boots on the ground. We have stood by while Assad has bombed the life out of his own country and forced millions of refugees to Turkey, Jordan, Europe, etc.
2. Take out Assad and his whole regime. Should already be done. He is a small-time despot. The "caution" bandied about is that Assad is fighting ISIS and all heck will break out if he is removed, but all heck has already broken out, and without an air force the bombings have to end.
3. Destroy ISIS's oil fields. Easy. We knew for years where ISIS' oil fields were--their chief source of income--and yet years went by before we started destroying them. All that time ISIS was raking in millions of dollars that went toward killing innocent people, right under our noses.
4. Destroy ISIS communications centers. Easy. We knew for years where ISIS' communications centers were, the studios where they produce their propaganda websites, videos, and magazines, which are the main thing drawing new recruits to Syria from around the world. Yet we did not take them out.
5. Create safe zones in Aleppo and elsewhere in Syria by finally putting the "coalition" of Middle Eastern allies to use. Create places for Syrians who are trapped to flee to in their own country. This is something that the "coalition" partners in the Middle East could be manning and patrolling. But they can't. Why? Because Obama has not grounded the Assad planes, so any coalition would be risking getting bombed.
How did we get here?
Obama has followed a personal ideology of non-interventionism, rather than realism. The idea, which in theory is great, is to form a coalition of local powers so that the countries in a particular neighborhood of the world like the Middle East play the major roles in taking care of their own problems, rather than have the US jump in and dominate the region with military might, which continues a cycle of the US stretching its capabilities. This idea was engrained by Obama's long formative years in Hawaii and Indonesia, two places where local cultures were dominated by outside colonial powers the British and Dutch in Indonesia and the US in Hawaii. One of his first actions as US president was to send the bust of Winston Churchill in the White House back to London.
The problem is that ideas don't win wars. The wars in Syria and Iraq already existed in full force as Obama was just beginning to talk about forming a coalition within the Middle East to defeat ISIS.
Also, Obama engaged in his own Bay of Pigs in trying to arm a "Free Syrian Army," and it was a disaster of epic proportions, nearly every one of them defected or was killed. Moreover, all that time, the US sat back and watched while innocent people were bombed
Mirror imaging
I had a professor in a grad school class Intelligence in World Politics who talked about "mirror imaging," one of the biggest mistakes in intelligence. It refers to the false premise that other actors share the same objectives and logic as you. Syria is a perfect example: the US assumed that Sunni actors like the Saudis, Jordanians, and UAE would be eager to form a coalition to exterminate ISIS. However, it turns out they were more focused on Iran their Shia rivals.
Essentially, Obama delayed heavy intervention in Syria for years on the false expectation of bringing together centuries-old Middle Eastern rivals like the Arabs, Turks, and Kurds on the fly during a devastating war, as if they would suddenly hold hands and unite to defeat ISIS and Assad. While the US idly watched the Free Syrian Army get slaughtered and the coalition break away on its own, millions of Syrians have been bombed and had to flee their country--and we could have taken out Syria's bomber planes long ago. Syria is a folly of epic proportions.
US balancing act with Turkey and Kurds
The US has been allies with Turkey and the Kurds. However, Turkey and the Kurds have long been enemies, as the Kurds in southeastern Turkey have been fighting the Turkish government for years, trying to get their own country (which they deserve). The Turks also committed human rights abuses against the Kurds there in the past. The US has tried to avoid "arming the Kurds" too much, in order to avoid losing support from Turkey. But the truth is, the Kurds are now fighting ISIS and Assad for the world, there is no way around it. There are even independent rogue fighters from the US and Scotland, etc. flying over to fight with the Kurds and take out ISIS. When all is said and done, the only lasting recipe for peace would be involve the Kurds getting their own country carved out of Iraq and Syria.
Bottom line
At the end of the day, Syria as a country is toast, it will not exist after the fighting is done. The same could likely be true of Iraq. The only question is which groups will get which pieces.
There's a saying, "War teaches geography," Geography is indispensable to engaging in warfare and diplomacy.
The Washington Post and so many other outlets have published clear maps of Syria and Iraq and the spatial ranges of the different groups there. Just looking at and listening to these maps is a first step toward bringing wars to an end in Syria, they speak volumes.
More than ten actors in Syria
Here's a short list more than ten major actors fighting in Syria, and these are just the ones I know about:
Five major groups of actors:
Assad coalition (Assad regime, Russia, Iran, Hezbollah)
US-led coalition, notably the Kurds
Al-Quaeda (multiple subgroups like Al-Nusra)
ISIS
Syrian opposition groups ex. Ahrar al-Sham
State actors
Assad regime - Shia, doing more killing of innocent people than ISIS in order to stay in power, under the pretense of attacking ISIS
Russia - Assad ally, providing military and financial support, bombing innocent people
Iran - Shia headquarters, Assad ally, providing major money and troops
Turkey - US ally yet ancient enemies with Kurds, taking in incredible number of refugees
US-led coalition (includes UK, Netherlands, France, etc.) - air war and also doing all kinds of special ops and support that don't all make headlines
Jordan - US ally, taking in incredible number of refugees
Saudi Arabia - military support including bomber planes
UAE - military support including bomber planes
Non-state actors-Kurds - US allies yet ancient enemies of Turkey
-ISIS
-Al-Quaeda/Al Nusra
-Hezbollah - Shia terrorist organization from Lebanon, Shia allies with Iran and Assad regime
-Syrian opposition groups ex. Ahrar al-Sham
So Assad and his troops are supported by Russia and two Shia groups Iran and Hezbollah.
US is supposedly allied Sunni groups ex. Jordan, the Kurds, and (sometimes) Turkey.
Key points:
1. The Kurds are the major "good guys" on the ground, fighting both ISIS and Assad for the free world--and yet are a stateless nation, 30 million people without their own country. The injustice is self-evident.
2. Assad & Russia are not really bombing ISIS, they are bombing Syrian rebels opposed to Assad. Russia essentially lied and told the US they were helping to defeat ISIS.
3. All three major "bad guys" in Syria are in it to the death, yet none will be left standing.1) The Assad regime, 2) ISIS, and 3) Al Quaeda/Al Nusra will not retreat or disappear of their own accord. There's nowhere to go. So they have to be taken out, all the way. There is no reconciliation with any of them. This is why the original Obama strategy to "help the moderates" in Syria didn't work: as many observers have stated, there are no moderates in Syria.
4. US blew its coalition with Sunnis with the Iran nuclear deal. From the perspective of the Sunni coalition of the Saudis, Jordan, etc., the #1 threat is not ISIS but Iran and the Shias. When the US gave Iran $150 billion, the Sunnis looked at this as simply adding fuel to Iran's longstanding funding for Shia terrorism against them. No doubt a large chunk of the US gift of $$$ went to support Shia rebels in Yemen and Hezbollah in Syria, both of which we are fighting.
5. Syria is Russia's only ally in the Middle East and is Russia's only outlet to the Mediterranean Sea. Syria is mostly desert but it has a slice of Mediterranean coast above Lebanon.
Things that should have been done years ago and still need to be done:
1. Ground Assad's air force and create a no fly zone to stop the bombing. Relatively easy, probably could be done in a week or less but we just haven't done it. Does not require boots on the ground. We have stood by while Assad has bombed the life out of his own country and forced millions of refugees to Turkey, Jordan, Europe, etc.
2. Take out Assad and his whole regime. Should already be done. He is a small-time despot. The "caution" bandied about is that Assad is fighting ISIS and all heck will break out if he is removed, but all heck has already broken out, and without an air force the bombings have to end.
3. Destroy ISIS's oil fields. Easy. We knew for years where ISIS' oil fields were--their chief source of income--and yet years went by before we started destroying them. All that time ISIS was raking in millions of dollars that went toward killing innocent people, right under our noses.
4. Destroy ISIS communications centers. Easy. We knew for years where ISIS' communications centers were, the studios where they produce their propaganda websites, videos, and magazines, which are the main thing drawing new recruits to Syria from around the world. Yet we did not take them out.
5. Create safe zones in Aleppo and elsewhere in Syria by finally putting the "coalition" of Middle Eastern allies to use. Create places for Syrians who are trapped to flee to in their own country. This is something that the "coalition" partners in the Middle East could be manning and patrolling. But they can't. Why? Because Obama has not grounded the Assad planes, so any coalition would be risking getting bombed.
How did we get here?
Obama has followed a personal ideology of non-interventionism, rather than realism. The idea, which in theory is great, is to form a coalition of local powers so that the countries in a particular neighborhood of the world like the Middle East play the major roles in taking care of their own problems, rather than have the US jump in and dominate the region with military might, which continues a cycle of the US stretching its capabilities. This idea was engrained by Obama's long formative years in Hawaii and Indonesia, two places where local cultures were dominated by outside colonial powers the British and Dutch in Indonesia and the US in Hawaii. One of his first actions as US president was to send the bust of Winston Churchill in the White House back to London.
The problem is that ideas don't win wars. The wars in Syria and Iraq already existed in full force as Obama was just beginning to talk about forming a coalition within the Middle East to defeat ISIS.
Also, Obama engaged in his own Bay of Pigs in trying to arm a "Free Syrian Army," and it was a disaster of epic proportions, nearly every one of them defected or was killed. Moreover, all that time, the US sat back and watched while innocent people were bombed
Mirror imaging
I had a professor in a grad school class Intelligence in World Politics who talked about "mirror imaging," one of the biggest mistakes in intelligence. It refers to the false premise that other actors share the same objectives and logic as you. Syria is a perfect example: the US assumed that Sunni actors like the Saudis, Jordanians, and UAE would be eager to form a coalition to exterminate ISIS. However, it turns out they were more focused on Iran their Shia rivals.
Essentially, Obama delayed heavy intervention in Syria for years on the false expectation of bringing together centuries-old Middle Eastern rivals like the Arabs, Turks, and Kurds on the fly during a devastating war, as if they would suddenly hold hands and unite to defeat ISIS and Assad. While the US idly watched the Free Syrian Army get slaughtered and the coalition break away on its own, millions of Syrians have been bombed and had to flee their country--and we could have taken out Syria's bomber planes long ago. Syria is a folly of epic proportions.
US balancing act with Turkey and Kurds
The US has been allies with Turkey and the Kurds. However, Turkey and the Kurds have long been enemies, as the Kurds in southeastern Turkey have been fighting the Turkish government for years, trying to get their own country (which they deserve). The Turks also committed human rights abuses against the Kurds there in the past. The US has tried to avoid "arming the Kurds" too much, in order to avoid losing support from Turkey. But the truth is, the Kurds are now fighting ISIS and Assad for the world, there is no way around it. There are even independent rogue fighters from the US and Scotland, etc. flying over to fight with the Kurds and take out ISIS. When all is said and done, the only lasting recipe for peace would be involve the Kurds getting their own country carved out of Iraq and Syria.
Bottom line
At the end of the day, Syria as a country is toast, it will not exist after the fighting is done. The same could likely be true of Iraq. The only question is which groups will get which pieces.
Sunday, October 9, 2016
Nice 6-minute overview of geothermal earth processes in Iceland
Nice 6-minute overview of geothermal earth processes in Iceland
Geothermal in Iceland
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_9dNx13f4U
Still not sure what channel/company this came from
Geothermal in Iceland
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_9dNx13f4U
Still not sure what channel/company this came from
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Southern Brazil breakaway? Plebisul vote to secede
The 30 million people who live the south of Brazil are in manys ways like a separate country. Except for Portuguese language, the three southern states of Paraná, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul are more similar to Uruguay and Argentina than to the rest of Brazil. They are mostly European including Italian, Eastern European, German and many other groups. The states lie in the pampas grasslands and share the famous pampas traditions of Uruguay and Argentina, including gauchos (similar to cowboys), ranching, and drinking mate. The south is also the Brazil's only extra-tropical region, beyond the Tropic of Capricorn, and gets chilly in winter.
These three southern states just held a vote on whether to secede from Brazil, called "Plebisul" (plebiscite + sul i.e. south). Plebusul is their attempt to escape from the corruption that plagues Brazil as a whole. Southern Brazil is not perfect, but its citizens feel tired of paying their taxes to fund corruption at the national scale, which has been in the world spotlight with the impeachment of President Dilma Roussef and the "Operation Car Wash" scandal. Two thirds of Brazil's national Congress is under some type of investigation.
I spent a week in the capital of Paraná state, Curitiba, in summer 2015. It was in a hostel in Curitiba that a young computer programmer from Sao Paulo on vacation said: "In your country, people go into politics to change things, to represent people. In Brazil, people go into politics to steal. They go into politics to make money, to get rich." I thought he was exaggerating at the time, but the more I read about the corruption scandals that followed and the depth of corruption in Brazil's Congress, the more he turned out to be dead-on accurate.
Curitiba is known as a global model of environmental planning and innovation. It has the highest standard of living in Brazil and is the "greenest" city in the world in terms of green space per capita. It is an extremely orderly place compared to the chaos of, say, Rio de Janeiro.
I personally could easily see southern Brazil as a separate country--and a powerful one.
Populations:
Brazil: 204 million
Argentina: 43 million
Plebisul states (three states of southern Brazil): 29 million
peru: 31 million
Venezuela: 30 million
Uruguay: 3 million
Half a million Brazilians want to break away and form a new country--Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/10/05/half-a-million-brazilians-want-to-break-away-and-form-a-new-country/
These three southern states just held a vote on whether to secede from Brazil, called "Plebisul" (plebiscite + sul i.e. south). Plebusul is their attempt to escape from the corruption that plagues Brazil as a whole. Southern Brazil is not perfect, but its citizens feel tired of paying their taxes to fund corruption at the national scale, which has been in the world spotlight with the impeachment of President Dilma Roussef and the "Operation Car Wash" scandal. Two thirds of Brazil's national Congress is under some type of investigation.
I spent a week in the capital of Paraná state, Curitiba, in summer 2015. It was in a hostel in Curitiba that a young computer programmer from Sao Paulo on vacation said: "In your country, people go into politics to change things, to represent people. In Brazil, people go into politics to steal. They go into politics to make money, to get rich." I thought he was exaggerating at the time, but the more I read about the corruption scandals that followed and the depth of corruption in Brazil's Congress, the more he turned out to be dead-on accurate.
Curitiba is known as a global model of environmental planning and innovation. It has the highest standard of living in Brazil and is the "greenest" city in the world in terms of green space per capita. It is an extremely orderly place compared to the chaos of, say, Rio de Janeiro.
I personally could easily see southern Brazil as a separate country--and a powerful one.
Populations:
Brazil: 204 million
Argentina: 43 million
Plebisul states (three states of southern Brazil): 29 million
peru: 31 million
Venezuela: 30 million
Uruguay: 3 million
Half a million Brazilians want to break away and form a new country--Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/10/05/half-a-million-brazilians-want-to-break-away-and-form-a-new-country/
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
Bhola islander
Just had yet another conversation with yet another cashier at the same Exxon mentioned in the previous post, this one named Haider. I asked him where he was from, he said Bangladesh. What part of Bangladesh, north, south, etc.? From the south. Oh, very hot, near the coast on the Bay of Bengal. Yes. Near the Sundarbans wetlands? Actually yes, from an island called Bhola. Told him I would look it up.
Turns out the island of Bhola is the largest island in Bangladesh, smack in the middle of the Ganges Delta. It is threatened to go underwater with sea level rise, and large parts of the island go already go underwater every summer during monsoon rainy season--which is true for a large portion of Bangladesh in general. Bhola island has many "climate refugees" from flooding.
The Ganges Delta is the largest delta in the world, and is "tide-dominated" meaning its shape is determined by the tides that wash in and out in both directions, continually cutting new channels. So the area is chopped up with many thin channels between islands as is very dynamic with sediment constantly moving along shorelines. Pollution is a huge problem in the Ganges Delta because it is forms the end of one of the most heavily populated river basins in the world, the Ganges Basin. Whatever was dumped into the river across India and Bangladesh can end up here.
This video talks about sea level rise there
Bangladesh: Bhola threatened with submersion - DW.com
http://www.dw.com/en/bangladesh-bhola-threatened-with-submersion/av-18870710
Turns out the island of Bhola is the largest island in Bangladesh, smack in the middle of the Ganges Delta. It is threatened to go underwater with sea level rise, and large parts of the island go already go underwater every summer during monsoon rainy season--which is true for a large portion of Bangladesh in general. Bhola island has many "climate refugees" from flooding.
The Ganges Delta is the largest delta in the world, and is "tide-dominated" meaning its shape is determined by the tides that wash in and out in both directions, continually cutting new channels. So the area is chopped up with many thin channels between islands as is very dynamic with sediment constantly moving along shorelines. Pollution is a huge problem in the Ganges Delta because it is forms the end of one of the most heavily populated river basins in the world, the Ganges Basin. Whatever was dumped into the river across India and Bangladesh can end up here.
This video talks about sea level rise there
Bangladesh: Bhola threatened with submersion - DW.com
http://www.dw.com/en/bangladesh-bhola-threatened-with-submersion/av-18870710
Thursday, September 22, 2016
Kaliningrader
Just had a brief conversation with a guy from one of the most unusual places in the world geographically, Kaliningrad. He was a cashier in an Exxon station of all places, I saw his name tag Timur and asked where he was from. I guessed he would say Mongolia or somewhere else in Central Asia from the name, but he said he was from Kaliningrad. (Turns out Timur is the Persian name for Tamerlane the Turkic-Mongol "conqueror" born in Uzbekistan.)
The city of Kaliningrad is the capital of Kaliningrad state (oblast) within Russia. The state is an exclave of Russia that between Poland and the Lithuania, 200 miles away from Russia proper, with a coast on the Baltic Sea. The territory has changed hands many times through history, including between Poland, Germany, and Russia. From 1878-1945, it was part of the former state of East Prussia and the capital city was called Königsberg in German. In 1946, after WW2 ended, as the allies carved up German territory it became part of the Soviet Union, which renamed both the city and state Kaliningrad.
I've always wondered if people who live in Kaliningrad are able to cross their border into Poland and Lithuania easily, or are they stuck in that pocket? So I asked him. He said you need a visa to cross the borders--there's definitely no way a part of Russia is going to be part of Europe's open-border Shengen Zone--but the visa is not that hard to get. So they can travel relatively easily.
It's also interesting that a guy named Timur was from Kaliningrad, it would be interesting to see how he or his ancestors ended up in there, migrating within Russia, and then in the US. Central Asia and the Middle East are quite a hike from Kaliningrad.
Coincidentally, a few months ago I had read a chunk of the chapter on Kaliningrad in Norman Davies' Vanished Kingdoms. He describes how the area was obliterated by WW2 and became a sort of wasteland full of crime, but recently I have read that it has improved and is doing better economically, including shipping at the port of Kaliningrad. Goes to show you never know when something you're reading will pop up. We also talked about Kaliningrad in my Cultural Geography class last spring as an example of an exclave.
Also, I met several Russian teenagers last summer in several national parks like Glacier National Park in Montana. They were working in the park bookstores and restaurants through the CIEE international exchange programs, along with kids from China and Taiwan, etc. None of them were from Moscow. One of them working in the gift shop at Glacier NP was from Krasnoyarsk in Siberia. I went to the car and brought back my geography textbook, which has a picture of coal mines in Krasnoyarsk, which lies in the Kuznets Basin, one of the world's largest coal regions in the middle of Siberia. She was pretty surprised. She showed me on the map where she will work when she goes back, an oil settlement up on the shores of the Arctic Ocean, as Russia is trying to exploit Arctic oil right now. Bundle up.
Friday, September 16, 2016
Demolishing an old neighborhood in Shenzhen, China
Demolishing an old neighborhood in Shenzhen, China - a sign of the pace of change there.
The twilight of Shenzhen's great urban village baishizhou - Foreign Policy
http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/09/16/china-demolition-economy-the-twilight-of-shenzhens-great-urban-village-baishizhou/
The twilight of Shenzhen's great urban village baishizhou - Foreign Policy
http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/09/16/china-demolition-economy-the-twilight-of-shenzhens-great-urban-village-baishizhou/
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Bitcoin in Tibet
Bitcoin in cold Tibet
The bizarre world of bitcoin ‘mining’ finds a new home in Tibet - Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/in-chinas-tibetan-highlands-the-bizarre-world-of-bitcoin-mining-finds-a-new-home/2016/09/12/7729cbea-657e-11e6-b4d8-33e931b5a26d_story.html
more server farms in polar regions of Scandinavia
Scandinavian countries are attractive sites for server farms - PRI The World
http://www.pri.org/stories/2012-06-01/scandinavian-countries-are-attractive-sites-server-farms
Inside Facebook's green and clean arctic data centre - BBC
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-22879160
The bizarre world of bitcoin ‘mining’ finds a new home in Tibet - Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/in-chinas-tibetan-highlands-the-bizarre-world-of-bitcoin-mining-finds-a-new-home/2016/09/12/7729cbea-657e-11e6-b4d8-33e931b5a26d_story.html
more server farms in polar regions of Scandinavia
Scandinavian countries are attractive sites for server farms - PRI The World
http://www.pri.org/stories/2012-06-01/scandinavian-countries-are-attractive-sites-server-farms
Inside Facebook's green and clean arctic data centre - BBC
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-22879160
Thursday, September 8, 2016
Interersting conversation with a US consulate worker on Mexican border
I bumped into a US consulate worker today in Tyson's Wal Mart of all places. He had worked previously in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico on the border across from El Paso, TX, I saw the offical insignia on his polo shirt and starting asking questions. Ciudad Juarez was in 2010 the world's murder capital but has made a turnaround since then.
He had some very interesting perspectives:
-Border walls are often easy to climb. Some drug cartels bring trucks with ladders. Some guys can just jump up and climb over in a matter of "seconds." There is no barbed wire or electrification so there is no reason not to give it a try, other than the risk of getting caught.
-Mexican students "in the hundreds" are picked up on the border by US schoolbuses every day to go to US schools. Many come from far away, some getting up at 3 am to travel to the border then get picked up and go to school. They are either US citizens by virtue of being born in US hospitals or have some other legal right to US education.
-We talked about how border security has vastly improved in the last 5-10 years. Obama rarely talks about it, but there has been a major increase in US enforcement of border laws and protections.
-His biggest suggestion to curb illegal migration is to fine US employers $100,000 for each illegal worker they hire. Makes sense to me, that would reduce the magnet for illegal workers to come over direct the punishment toward the US companies who would have a lot to lose.
When I asked what he was doing here, interestingly the consulate worker said he was studying Hungarian because his next post is in Budapest. I told him that, in a way, that's another border region, the border between the EU and non-EU. Hungary and Serbia share a long border that marks the end of the EU, and there is a 109-mile Hungarian Border Barrier i.e. a fence with Serbia. This border has been a major issue with the mass migrant influx from Syria.
He had some very interesting perspectives:
-Border walls are often easy to climb. Some drug cartels bring trucks with ladders. Some guys can just jump up and climb over in a matter of "seconds." There is no barbed wire or electrification so there is no reason not to give it a try, other than the risk of getting caught.
-Mexican students "in the hundreds" are picked up on the border by US schoolbuses every day to go to US schools. Many come from far away, some getting up at 3 am to travel to the border then get picked up and go to school. They are either US citizens by virtue of being born in US hospitals or have some other legal right to US education.
-We talked about how border security has vastly improved in the last 5-10 years. Obama rarely talks about it, but there has been a major increase in US enforcement of border laws and protections.
-His biggest suggestion to curb illegal migration is to fine US employers $100,000 for each illegal worker they hire. Makes sense to me, that would reduce the magnet for illegal workers to come over direct the punishment toward the US companies who would have a lot to lose.
When I asked what he was doing here, interestingly the consulate worker said he was studying Hungarian because his next post is in Budapest. I told him that, in a way, that's another border region, the border between the EU and non-EU. Hungary and Serbia share a long border that marks the end of the EU, and there is a 109-mile Hungarian Border Barrier i.e. a fence with Serbia. This border has been a major issue with the mass migrant influx from Syria.
Wednesday, August 31, 2016
USC helping preserve Atayal tribal language in Taiwan
Cool program sending university students and faculty to the rural mountain regions of Taiwan to help learn and preserve an endangered language Atayal. Part of USC's Problems Without Passports program.
Taiwan is a super-dense island country yet still has major rural areas in its mountainous interior with tribes.
Saving an Endangered Language - USC Dornsife
https://dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/1219/saving-an-endangered-language/
Taiwan is a super-dense island country yet still has major rural areas in its mountainous interior with tribes.
Saving an Endangered Language - USC Dornsife
https://dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/1219/saving-an-endangered-language/
Pennsylvania natural gas is #3--in the world
Heard on the news this morning that if Pennsylvania was a country it would be the #3 gas producer in the world. This map shows the gas is all in the western part of the state which lies in the Appalachians, stretching out from Pittsburgh. This is the Marcellus Shale region, which is by far the largest natural gas producing region in the US and one of the top five natural gas fields in the world.
Notice on this map below of US natural gas pipelines that there is a major cluster in western Pennsylvania along with its neighbor West Virginia.
Saturday, August 27, 2016
What's up at the poles
This video discusses both myths and recommendations for the polar regions.
Laurence Smith is also author of The World in 2050 an excellent book which I used a few years ago in a class I made up called Geography of the Future.
Laurence Smith at the Arctic Circle 2014 Conference
https://vimeo.com/111328012
Laurence Smith is also author of The World in 2050 an excellent book which I used a few years ago in a class I made up called Geography of the Future.
Laurence Smith at the Arctic Circle 2014 Conference
https://vimeo.com/111328012
Thursday, August 25, 2016
Big time
Occured to me in the car: add up
Big Energy (oil, gas, coal)
Big Ag (Monsanta, Cargill, etc.)
Big Pharma (Pfizer, Roche, etc.)
Big Auto (GM, Ford) +
= what % of our economy?
Also add Big Telecom (Verizon, Sprint, etc.), Big Food (Nabisco, Nestle) and Big Ed--the massive education industry in which most of the money goes to administrators, not to teachers.
But a lesson from Seth Godin: if you want to compete as a small guy entrepreneur, there's room if you do something the big guys don't/can't. Ex.:
-be a middleman for some smaller-market product like import/export
-set up in smaller market where the big guys don't go
-provide a customized product or service beyond what the cookie-cutter world of mass production can
Big Energy (oil, gas, coal)
Big Ag (Monsanta, Cargill, etc.)
Big Pharma (Pfizer, Roche, etc.)
Big Auto (GM, Ford) +
= what % of our economy?
Also add Big Telecom (Verizon, Sprint, etc.), Big Food (Nabisco, Nestle) and Big Ed--the massive education industry in which most of the money goes to administrators, not to teachers.
But a lesson from Seth Godin: if you want to compete as a small guy entrepreneur, there's room if you do something the big guys don't/can't. Ex.:
-be a middleman for some smaller-market product like import/export
-set up in smaller market where the big guys don't go
-provide a customized product or service beyond what the cookie-cutter world of mass production can
Saturday, August 20, 2016
Japan in Cambodia
Japan is investing in high quality infrastructure in Cambodia. Amid the rush to modernize in Asia, quality is often left by the wayside, with long term consequences. The video mentions that Japanese projects are sometimes thought of as "slow" but they do quality work.
Infrastructure Funding Puts Cambodia on Front Line of Global Politics
Infrastructure Funding Puts Cambodia on Front Line of Global Politics
http://www.voanews.com/a/infrastructure-funding-puts-cambodia-on-front-line-of-international-politics/3338556.html
Saturday, July 30, 2016
Genetic research in Africa on sleeping sickness in cattle
Doing research in Africa on sleeping sickness in cattle. They identified a gene in some cattle that makes it resistant to sleeping sickness, which kills millions of cattle each year.
Battling a killer cattle disease: animal sleeping sickness
https://vimeo.com/72825342
The "tsetse belt" stops at the Sahara as the map shows below. The inhabitants of the Sahel (see 2nd map below), the long semi-arid transitional edge between the Sahara and the savanna, include millions of nomadic herders. Losing millions of cattle each year to sleeping sickness is a major obstacle to development and livelihood.
The video shows topics they are investigating and/or discoveries they have made to contain sleeping sickness. Many of the scientists are Brits, the British once occupied Kenya and still have major ties there.
Battling a killer cattle disease: animal sleeping sickness
https://vimeo.com/72825342
The "tsetse belt" stops at the Sahara as the map shows below. The inhabitants of the Sahel (see 2nd map below), the long semi-arid transitional edge between the Sahara and the savanna, include millions of nomadic herders. Losing millions of cattle each year to sleeping sickness is a major obstacle to development and livelihood.
The video shows topics they are investigating and/or discoveries they have made to contain sleeping sickness. Many of the scientists are Brits, the British once occupied Kenya and still have major ties there.
Friday, July 29, 2016
Tip on visiting Mongolia from some young guys on Globe Trekker
I remember seeing an episode of Globe Trekker on PBS where they went to Mongolia. They interviewed two young guys who had made a trip there and asked for their advice. They said: "Mongolia is huge, distances are long and you need to hire guides. So you need a lot of money and time. We had neither and did nothing."
Thursday, July 28, 2016
China's first UN peacekeeping mission, in Africa
What China hopes to achieve with its first peacekeeping mission - BBC
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-34976580
China's investment in Africa is one of the biggest developments in world affairs of our times, and this is one sign. One million Chinese have moved permanently to Africa.
There are more people in China (and also India) than on the entire continent of Africa--and half a billion more than in Europe.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-34976580
China's investment in Africa is one of the biggest developments in world affairs of our times, and this is one sign. One million Chinese have moved permanently to Africa.
There are more people in China (and also India) than on the entire continent of Africa--and half a billion more than in Europe.
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Malaria hospital in Gabon
Albert Schweitzer Hospital in Lambaréné, Gabon is situated in the rainforest and is a leading center for malaria research in the world.
Albert Schweitzer Hospital - National Geographic
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/malaria-sci
Albert Schweitzer Hospital - National Geographic
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/malaria-sci
More Somali piracy to come?
Interesting video on dynamics which may lead to a resurgence of piracy by Somalis in the Gulf of Aden.
Somali Piracy: Resetting the Stage? - Oceans beyond piracy
http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/news/somali-piracy-resetting-stage-video
Somali Piracy: Resetting the Stage? - Oceans beyond piracy
http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/news/somali-piracy-resetting-stage-video
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
Inside US Military Ebola Boot Camp in Liberia
What a task.
Inside US Military Ebola Boot Camp in Liberia
http://abcnews.go.com/International/video/inside-us-military-ebola-boot-camp-in-liberia-28354003
Inside US Military Ebola Boot Camp in Liberia
http://abcnews.go.com/International/video/inside-us-military-ebola-boot-camp-in-liberia-28354003
Saturday, July 23, 2016
Aeronautical University in Queretaro, Mexico
Would you go here? Would a lot of US citizens looking for good jobs?
The city of Querétaro, Mexico is a major industrial hub that builds cars, jets, etc. Honda, American Airlines, Bombardier, and Samsung are among the companies with factories there.
They city an aeronautical university to make sure there are enough knowledgeable workers for the industries. Another example that comes to mind in Central America is Costa Rica. I lived there in 2000 and remember Intel created a chip manufacturing plant there, saying that they chose Costa Rica because of its high levels of education compared to other Central American countries.
This promotional video gives an overview of the special university they created just for aeronautics training, so they have enough educated people to make planes.
The city of Querétaro, Mexico is a major industrial hub that builds cars, jets, etc. Honda, American Airlines, Bombardier, and Samsung are among the companies with factories there.
They city an aeronautical university to make sure there are enough knowledgeable workers for the industries. Another example that comes to mind in Central America is Costa Rica. I lived there in 2000 and remember Intel created a chip manufacturing plant there, saying that they chose Costa Rica because of its high levels of education compared to other Central American countries.
This promotional video gives an overview of the special university they created just for aeronautics training, so they have enough educated people to make planes.
Aeronautical university of Querétaro
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRLMpUT9AnUMonday, June 27, 2016
Meixco auto industries
One in five US cars is made in Mexico.
Study points to large wage gaps for Mexican auto workers
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2015/06/15/auto-jobs-mexico/71224972/
Thursday, June 2, 2016
Indigenous languages of South America still in effect
Indigenous languages of the Americas never cease to amaze, many that are usually thought of as "ancient" i.e. of the history books are still spoken by millions.
9 million speak Quechua the Inca language
6 million speak Mayan languages
5 million speak Guarani - only one for which speakers include large numbers of non-indigenous people
2.2 million speak Aymara
1.5 million speak Nahuatl the Aztec language
Not to mention 100,000 speak Inuit and scores of other smaller languages.
9 million speak Quechua the Inca language
6 million speak Mayan languages
5 million speak Guarani - only one for which speakers include large numbers of non-indigenous people
2.2 million speak Aymara
1.5 million speak Nahuatl the Aztec language
Not to mention 100,000 speak Inuit and scores of other smaller languages.
Thursday, May 26, 2016
Upcoming Brexit is Britain's chance to break from the EU
Great column by George Will on what's at stake with the Brexit referendum coming up. The EU was a nice idea which, without question, does a lot of good today. It makes trade smoother and runs the ERASMUS exchange program. But the EU has overstepped boundaries into areas in which individual countries need to remain sovereign, respecting the differences of each unique European country. Britain is one of the most "Eurosceptic" countries in Europe today. Others may follow if it breaks away.
The ‘Brexit’ referendum is the most important vote in Europe in a half-century
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-potential-brexit-is-65-years-in-the-making/2016/05/25/1c684318-21d0-11e6-9e7f-57890b612299_story.html
The ‘Brexit’ referendum is the most important vote in Europe in a half-century
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-potential-brexit-is-65-years-in-the-making/2016/05/25/1c684318-21d0-11e6-9e7f-57890b612299_story.html
Egypt's black Nubians could finally be returning to their homelands
Egypt's black Nubians could finally be returning to their homelands. About one percent of Egypt is black, the ancient Nubians who are natives of southern Egypt and across into northern Sudan. This article explains how around 50,000 Nubians were displaced from their homelands along the Nile by several dam projects since the 1960s, including the massive Aswan Dam, which flooded their ancestral lands.
Just recently, however, a national referendum included a measure for the Nubians to return to their original homelands:
"Egypt's new constitution, which passed earlier this month with 98 percent of the vote in a controversial referendum, pledges 'to bring back the residents of [Egyptian] Nubia to their original areas and develop them within ten years.'"
Changing Egypt Offers Hope to Long-Marginalized Nubians
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/01/140131-egypt-nubia-dams-nile-constitution-culture/
This is one potential positive result from the tumultuous aftermath of the 2011 Arab Spring, which, as yet, never really ended.
Just recently, however, a national referendum included a measure for the Nubians to return to their original homelands:
"Egypt's new constitution, which passed earlier this month with 98 percent of the vote in a controversial referendum, pledges 'to bring back the residents of [Egyptian] Nubia to their original areas and develop them within ten years.'"
Changing Egypt Offers Hope to Long-Marginalized Nubians
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/01/140131-egypt-nubia-dams-nile-constitution-culture/
This is one potential positive result from the tumultuous aftermath of the 2011 Arab Spring, which, as yet, never really ended.
Chasing Ice: largest glacier calving ever filmed
Whoa. Largest glacier calving (breaking off) ever filmed. Ice calving along faces 300-400 feet tall into the ocean to create icebergs.
Chasing Ice - episode 17
https://www.youtube.com/embed/hC3VTgIPoGU?rel=0
Equivalent in size to the entire southern end of Manhattan breaking off.
Part of the documentary Chasing Ice
https://chasingice.com/
Chasing Ice - episode 17
https://www.youtube.com/embed/hC3VTgIPoGU?rel=0
Equivalent in size to the entire southern end of Manhattan breaking off.
Part of the documentary Chasing Ice
https://chasingice.com/
Teaching in Micronesia
Teaching in Micronesia - WorldTeach
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2daPSMtq5Os
Would you do it for a year or two? This guy worked on the island of Pohnpei, population 34,000.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2daPSMtq5Os
Would you do it for a year or two? This guy worked on the island of Pohnpei, population 34,000.
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
DNA shows some South American tribes are actually descended from Pacific Islanders
It has always baffled me how, in a relatively short span of human history, humans crossed the Bering Strait and then traveled southward through North America, down through Mexico, through Central America, and then through the Amazon and Andes to reach Patagonia.
But it turns out that not all the tribes in South America arrived this way.
DNA shows some South American tribes are actually descended from Pacific Islanders i.e. they floated over to South America from Polynesian islands. One of those tribes is the Surui, the same tribe that have been publicized for working with Google to preserve their homeland.
It makes intuitive sense that Polynesians could float over--hey, if they could make it to French Polynesia or Easter Island, they could make it all the way to South America. And they certainly look physically similar. It marks a second founding group that "discovered" the Americas thousands of years before Columbus, in addition to the First Americans who are thought to have crossed the Bering Strait from Siberia.
Genetic studies link indigenous peoples in the Amazon and Australasia
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/07/150721134827.htm
"We've done a lot of sampling in East Asia and nobody looks like this," said Skoglund. "It's an unknown group that doesn't exist anymore."
"About 2 percent of the ancestry of Amazonians today comes from this Australasian lineage that's not present in the same way elsewhere in the Americas," said Reich.
But it turns out that not all the tribes in South America arrived this way.
DNA shows some South American tribes are actually descended from Pacific Islanders i.e. they floated over to South America from Polynesian islands. One of those tribes is the Surui, the same tribe that have been publicized for working with Google to preserve their homeland.
It makes intuitive sense that Polynesians could float over--hey, if they could make it to French Polynesia or Easter Island, they could make it all the way to South America. And they certainly look physically similar. It marks a second founding group that "discovered" the Americas thousands of years before Columbus, in addition to the First Americans who are thought to have crossed the Bering Strait from Siberia.
Genetic studies link indigenous peoples in the Amazon and Australasia
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/07/150721134827.htm
"We've done a lot of sampling in East Asia and nobody looks like this," said Skoglund. "It's an unknown group that doesn't exist anymore."
"About 2 percent of the ancestry of Amazonians today comes from this Australasian lineage that's not present in the same way elsewhere in the Americas," said Reich.
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
Telling stats comparing suburban density in US vs the rest of the world
This page of stats speaks volumes about the huge difference in density between US suburbs vs. the rest of the world.
Suburban, Core & Urban Densities by Area: Western Europe, Japan, United States, Canada, Australia & New Zealand
http://www.demographia.com/db-intlsub.htm
Of note:
-US suburbs are less than half the density of Japanese suburbs and less than one third the density of UK suburbs.
-US is the world leader in low suburban density.
-US urban areas are just over 25% as dense as Japanese urban areas and less than 1/3 the density of UK suburbs.
On a 2014 trip to Japan, I noticed that many of the suburbs of Tokyo feel much denser than the downtown areas of many US cities.
Suburban, Core & Urban Densities by Area: Western Europe, Japan, United States, Canada, Australia & New Zealand
http://www.demographia.com/db-intlsub.htm
Of note:
-US suburbs are less than half the density of Japanese suburbs and less than one third the density of UK suburbs.
-US is the world leader in low suburban density.
-US urban areas are just over 25% as dense as Japanese urban areas and less than 1/3 the density of UK suburbs.
On a 2014 trip to Japan, I noticed that many of the suburbs of Tokyo feel much denser than the downtown areas of many US cities.
Sunday, May 22, 2016
DC housing growth is actually underdeveloped overall, despite condos and gentrification
The lion's share of DCs new housing growth is only going in one part of the city
http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/27633/the-lions-share-of-dcs-new-housing-is-only-going-in-one-part-of-the-city/
This article explains how, ironically, much of DCs housing is underdeveloped and below city planners' projections, despite the boom of new condos and gentrification in the city core that most visitors see. This planner Payton Chung says that the vast majority of the new housing in DC is located in just two core areas, while the rest of DC has been neglected.
This is verified each time I take a spin around DC in the car. As soon as you leave the core with its endless condos, flipped old townhouses, and newly-named old neighborhoods, you quickly see a switch--often starting just a block or two outside the core--to old underdeveloped neighborhoods that stretch around the the rest of DC to the periphery.
This helps to explain why DC housing is so unaffordable. In general, affordable housing--including regular middle class affordable--has to be built further out on the periphery where land is cheaper. So if all the development takes place in the core only, it is a virtual guarantee that none of it will be affordable.
Bottom line: there is great untapped potential to rejuvenate whole neighborhoods in DC beyond the core with affordable housing.
http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/27633/the-lions-share-of-dcs-new-housing-is-only-going-in-one-part-of-the-city/
This article explains how, ironically, much of DCs housing is underdeveloped and below city planners' projections, despite the boom of new condos and gentrification in the city core that most visitors see. This planner Payton Chung says that the vast majority of the new housing in DC is located in just two core areas, while the rest of DC has been neglected.
This is verified each time I take a spin around DC in the car. As soon as you leave the core with its endless condos, flipped old townhouses, and newly-named old neighborhoods, you quickly see a switch--often starting just a block or two outside the core--to old underdeveloped neighborhoods that stretch around the the rest of DC to the periphery.
This helps to explain why DC housing is so unaffordable. In general, affordable housing--including regular middle class affordable--has to be built further out on the periphery where land is cheaper. So if all the development takes place in the core only, it is a virtual guarantee that none of it will be affordable.
Bottom line: there is great untapped potential to rejuvenate whole neighborhoods in DC beyond the core with affordable housing.
Friday, May 6, 2016
Children of Syria
Children of Syria - PBS Frontline
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/children-of-syria/
This video shows so many of the elements of human migration: push factors, pull factors, intervening obstacles, and transit countries. What a vivid illustration of the process of migration and the decisions and issues the migrants face.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/children-of-syria/
This video shows so many of the elements of human migration: push factors, pull factors, intervening obstacles, and transit countries. What a vivid illustration of the process of migration and the decisions and issues the migrants face.
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Dynamic ebola map
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/maps/en/
This World Health Organization (WHO) dynamic map shows the spread of ebola from 2014-2015 in West Africa. Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea were the most affected countries in West Africa.
2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa - Case Counts
http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/case-counts.html
Saturday, April 23, 2016
Brasileros
Last summer on a trip to South America, I spent a week in Curitiba checking out its innovations, both the ones it is famous for and new ones.
In the hostel I stayed at were both foreigners and Brazilians from Rio and Sao Paolo and other parts of the country. I talked with a young computer programmer from Sao Paolo in his 20s, he said he had just been to Atlanta for a computer conference. We talked about differences between Brazil and the US.
He said, "In the US, people go into government to represent people. Here, people go into government to make money."
I told him there is definitely corruption in US politics, lobbyists and pork. But now we hear that 2/3 of Brazil's congressmen are under some type of probe or investigation, including the President and the next two in line.
"You guys are trying to figure out how to regulate the internet, we're trying to get rid of corruption," he said.
Brazil has a huge mix of rich and poor but has made a lot of progress in reducing poverty. It is an industrial and agricultural giant. All the hard work the Brazilian people have put in to achieve this success is one of the reasons they are so fed up with the corruption in Operation Car Wash and the misuse of funds by Dilma Roussef, who is likely on her way out.
Whoever takes over Brazil's leadership after Roussef has a big task, to somehow unify this divided giant and create an atmosphere of transparency in a country long ruled by elites for elites but which now has a huge middle class.
In the hostel I stayed at were both foreigners and Brazilians from Rio and Sao Paolo and other parts of the country. I talked with a young computer programmer from Sao Paolo in his 20s, he said he had just been to Atlanta for a computer conference. We talked about differences between Brazil and the US.
He said, "In the US, people go into government to represent people. Here, people go into government to make money."
I told him there is definitely corruption in US politics, lobbyists and pork. But now we hear that 2/3 of Brazil's congressmen are under some type of probe or investigation, including the President and the next two in line.
"You guys are trying to figure out how to regulate the internet, we're trying to get rid of corruption," he said.
Brazil has a huge mix of rich and poor but has made a lot of progress in reducing poverty. It is an industrial and agricultural giant. All the hard work the Brazilian people have put in to achieve this success is one of the reasons they are so fed up with the corruption in Operation Car Wash and the misuse of funds by Dilma Roussef, who is likely on her way out.
Whoever takes over Brazil's leadership after Roussef has a big task, to somehow unify this divided giant and create an atmosphere of transparency in a country long ruled by elites for elites but which now has a huge middle class.
European fertility rates
This chart shows both European fertility rates as well as the mean age of women having their first child. Notice that Mediterranean countries Italy, Greece, and Spain are both waiting longest and have the fewest kids.
Friday, April 22, 2016
Global farmland grabs
Typically we think of globalization involving communications, trade, and people moving around the world. But farmland can't be shipped and can't fit in a fiber optic cable. So, many countries in need of more farmland have made deals and/or are seeking new deals to get the rights to other countries' farmland. Case in point: United Arab Emirates (UAE), a small but rich desert country, invested $10 billion in farmland in Sudan in 2015. One of the biggest attempts at a farmland grab was in 2008, when Daewoo Corporation of South Korea signed a 99-year lease for 1.3 million acres of Madagascar's farmland, but the deal was was cancelled in 2009 after major protests.
This site posts examples of this phenomenon.
Farmlandgrabs.org - the global rush for farm land and peoples' struggles against it
http://www.farmlandgrab.org/
This article below says the grabs in Africa are not as large as they are often advertised. Nonetheless, they definitely do exist.
The myth of the African land grab - Foreign Policy
http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/10/20/the-myth-of-the-african-land-grab/
Incidentally, the UAE-Sudan deal partners one of the Islamic world's richest, most stable and orderly countries with one of its poorest and most chaotic. Sudan ranks 4th on the list of the world's most fragile states. The three countries ranked as more fragile than Sudan are all close by: two neighbors with which it shares borders, South Sudan and Central Africa Republic, and Somalia in the Horn of Africa. In this neighborhood of the world, racked by poverty and insecurity, securing those new farms in Sudan will be an interesting proposition for UAE.
This site posts examples of this phenomenon.
Farmlandgrabs.org - the global rush for farm land and peoples' struggles against it
http://www.farmlandgrab.org/
This article below says the grabs in Africa are not as large as they are often advertised. Nonetheless, they definitely do exist.
The myth of the African land grab - Foreign Policy
http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/10/20/the-myth-of-the-african-land-grab/
Incidentally, the UAE-Sudan deal partners one of the Islamic world's richest, most stable and orderly countries with one of its poorest and most chaotic. Sudan ranks 4th on the list of the world's most fragile states. The three countries ranked as more fragile than Sudan are all close by: two neighbors with which it shares borders, South Sudan and Central Africa Republic, and Somalia in the Horn of Africa. In this neighborhood of the world, racked by poverty and insecurity, securing those new farms in Sudan will be an interesting proposition for UAE.
Thursday, April 14, 2016
good video on UK "Brexit" referendum coming up June 23
Could Britain leave the EU? This June, the UK is holding a nationwide referendum vote on whether to stay in or leave the EU. This short video explains the key issues involved.
For America, it is a big issue as well, and Obama just headed to the UK to urge them to stay in the EU. Why do we care? The UK and US have what is called the "special relationship" in international relations: we have each others' back. If the UK pulls out of the EU, the US will no longer have that link to EU decision-making through the UK.
The Brexit Debate: What Happens if the U.K. Leaves the EU
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-13/election-analyst-who-beat-pollsters-sees-24-chance-of-brexit
For America, it is a big issue as well, and Obama just headed to the UK to urge them to stay in the EU. Why do we care? The UK and US have what is called the "special relationship" in international relations: we have each others' back. If the UK pulls out of the EU, the US will no longer have that link to EU decision-making through the UK.
The Brexit Debate: What Happens if the U.K. Leaves the EU
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-13/election-analyst-who-beat-pollsters-sees-24-chance-of-brexit
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
good video on the history and geography of the Spanish language
good video on the history and geography of the Spanish language
The Spanish Language and What Makes it The Coolest - Langfocus
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSfCDdTtBn0
The Spanish Language and What Makes it The Coolest - Langfocus
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSfCDdTtBn0
Friday, April 8, 2016
Nebraska: 93% farms, running out of water fast
Nebraska is 93% farmland, with one in four jobs related to agriculture. While Nebraskans are nicknamed "Cornhuskers," beef production is actually the #1 agricultural activity in Nebraska and the state is #1 in beef and veal exports. But Nebraska is still the #3 corn producer in the US, and has a major ethanol industry to go with it. Together the cattle-corn-ethanol trio are known as the "Golden Triangle."
44% of Nebraska's farms are irrigated by the Ogallala Aquifer, which, unfortunately, is projected to start running out in some areas in 2045 and be 69% depleted by 2060. One more reason why ethanol and corn subsidies are ill-advised--besides the fact that there are hundreds of important crops besides the handful the US government government oversubsidizes: corn, wheat, cotton, sugar, rice, soy.
Even Without a Drought, We’re Depleting Groundwater at an Alarming Pace
http://modernfarmer.com/2015/07/ogallala-aquifer-depletion/
44% of Nebraska's farms are irrigated by the Ogallala Aquifer, which, unfortunately, is projected to start running out in some areas in 2045 and be 69% depleted by 2060. One more reason why ethanol and corn subsidies are ill-advised--besides the fact that there are hundreds of important crops besides the handful the US government government oversubsidizes: corn, wheat, cotton, sugar, rice, soy.
Even Without a Drought, We’re Depleting Groundwater at an Alarming Pace
http://modernfarmer.com/2015/07/ogallala-aquifer-depletion/
The Okinawa connection
With US Air Force and Marine bases, the island of Okinawa, Japan has seen a lot of Americans come and go. Many were stationed there for years. Of my past students, one just told me she was moving to Okinawa for three years as her husband was stationed there. A former student from a few years ago spent time as a Marine there, where he met his first wife. He has Japanese-American kids and learned Japanese while over there. And one lady several years ago had grown up as a kid for several years on Okinawa, she chose to do her project on Japan including Okinawa in order to learn more about the place that she didn't understand back then.
Okinawa is a subtropical island, warm, high humidity with palm trees, lots of rocky coasts, and is closer to Taiwan and Shanghai, China than to Tokyo. What an opportunity to travel from there, to the Philippines, Taiwan, China, Korea, SE Asia, and the rest of Japan all close by.
Okinawa is a subtropical island, warm, high humidity with palm trees, lots of rocky coasts, and is closer to Taiwan and Shanghai, China than to Tokyo. What an opportunity to travel from there, to the Philippines, Taiwan, China, Korea, SE Asia, and the rest of Japan all close by.
Saturday, March 26, 2016
Zebra translocation in Kenya
Great site showing details of how zebra translocation is done in Amboseli National Park, the largest national park in Kenya. Loading and unloading a truck full of zebras, all in a day's work.
Saving Amboseli – Photos of Zebra translocation
http://baraza.wildlifedirect.org/2010/03/01/saving-amboseli-photos-of-zebra-translocation/
Saving Amboseli – Photos of Zebra translocation
http://baraza.wildlifedirect.org/2010/03/01/saving-amboseli-photos-of-zebra-translocation/
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
MexSoaps in Kenya
A couple years ago I did a trip to Kenya, and in my hotel room in Nairobi I flipped on the TV during prime time 9 pm. There was no cable, just national stations. Three different stations, including CitizenTV, were all showing Mexican soap operas and telenovelas dubbed badly into English. Whah?
I looked it up, turns out Mexican soap operas are extremely popular in Kenya and other East African countries like Uganda, etc. Apparently they are on one hand better than local shows, and on the other also cheaper than US shows. Plus they are a huge hit with middle aged women. Who knew? Sombreros in birthplace of the safari.
I looked it up, turns out Mexican soap operas are extremely popular in Kenya and other East African countries like Uganda, etc. Apparently they are on one hand better than local shows, and on the other also cheaper than US shows. Plus they are a huge hit with middle aged women. Who knew? Sombreros in birthplace of the safari.
Thursday, March 17, 2016
New discovery opens up new questions about what Irish and Celtic really mean
A man’s discovery of bones under his pub could forever change what we know about the Irish
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/03/17/a-mans-discovery-of-bones-under-his-pub-could-forever-change-what-we-know-about-the-irish/?hpid=hp_rhp-top-table-main_wonkblog-irish-850am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/03/17/a-mans-discovery-of-bones-under-his-pub-could-forever-change-what-we-know-about-the-irish/?hpid=hp_rhp-top-table-main_wonkblog-irish-850am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Carne Rusa in Miami
I just got back from a short spring break in Miami, a city with lots of sun, lots palm trees and lots of Whole Foods. On the last day, I picked up some natural mango-pineapple juice at "El Palacio de Los Jugos" i.e. The Juice Palace, which is also a deli. Spanish is the only language most of the salespeople speak. I noticed on the counter cans of "Carne Rusa" for sale--"Russian meat."
Cuba had a tight trade relationship with Russia during the USSR era. They imported lots of canned meat from Russia. Miami today is 34% Cuban, and some Cuban-Miamians still have nostalgia for Russian foods and goods, as the article below illustrates. A number of stores in Miami sell Russian products including canned meat, caviar, Russian dolls, tea, and also Russian dolls "muñequitos Rusos."
In addition to imported Carne Rusa that is actually from Russia, there is also Carne Rusa sold in Miami that is actually beef from the US, it is just prepared with the same style and ingredients as the old Russian imported meat and labeled Carne Rusa.
Video: Carne Rusa nostalgia para muchos Cubanos - Univision
http://www.univision.com/miami/carne-rusa-nostalgia-para-muchos-cubanos-video
Article: Miami Cubans have nostalgia for Russian products http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article3936801.html
Saturday, February 27, 2016
Rare metals shortage on the horizon - or not?
The Next Resource Shortage?- NY Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/20/opinion/the-next-resource-shortage.html?_r=0
Rare earths not so rare - Geoffrey Styles of Energy Collective
http://www.theenergycollective.com/geoffrey-styles/2243655/rare-earths-not-so-rare
Two perspectives on rare metals: one warning that we need to pay more attention to rare metals in planning for the future, the other that there are enough rare earths to go around.
"If anything will slow the expansion of wind and solar power, hybrid cars and EVs, and other alternative energy and energy-saving technologies, it is unlikely to be a shortage of rare earths. They may be rare relative to other industrial commodities, but in the small proportions used it seems they are not rare enough to pose more than a temporary bottleneck."
Friday, February 26, 2016
Empty homes outnumber the homeless 6 to 1 in America
Empty homes outnumber the homeless 6 to 1 in America
http://www.mintpressnews.com/empty-homes-outnumber-the-homeless-6-to-1-so-why-not-give-them-homes/207194/
http://www.mintpressnews.com/empty-homes-outnumber-the-homeless-6-to-1-so-why-not-give-them-homes/207194/
Monday, February 22, 2016
Good GAO article on temporary worker visas in the US
Good GAO article on temporary worker visas in the US
http://www.gao.gov/assets/670/668875.pdf
The article outlines suggestions like a centralized electronic system of employers that includes listing employers "debarred from participation" in the H2A (agricultural) and H2B (non-agricultural) temporary worker visa programs in order to avoid exploitation of workers.
http://www.gao.gov/assets/670/668875.pdf
The article outlines suggestions like a centralized electronic system of employers that includes listing employers "debarred from participation" in the H2A (agricultural) and H2B (non-agricultural) temporary worker visa programs in order to avoid exploitation of workers.
Saturday, February 13, 2016
China's empty apartments
China has 64 million empty apartments--enough to house the entire population of France.
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Fake PhDs in the US intelligence community?
Doctors of Doom: What a PhD Really Means in the US National Security Community
https://news.vice.com/article/doctors-of-doom-what-a-phd-really-means-in-the-us-national-security-community-1?utm_source=vicenewstwitter"Abdullah expresses mild surprise at the news that he effectively has a bogus doctorate."
This wikipedia article says Rocheville U. is a fake Texas university... that is actually run from Pakistan... with diplomas mailed from Dubai.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rochville_University
Next stop: Catatonic State University
Amsterdam's canal houses
Some great info from a friend who went to Amsterdam and took a tour:
"I learned that there are 11,000,000 poles that support the foundation of Amsterdam. I also learned that the homes along the waterways are extremely high and thin. The reason why they are shaped like this is due to the fact that taxes are paid based on the square footage your home takes up so creating this style home enables a larger house while paying less taxes. Also all the homes are slightly leaning forward with a pulley system above the front of the house on the roof. This pulley system accommodates the moving of furniture in and out of the home via windows on the face. These windows can be removed to allow furniture the ability to come into the room. Now back to why the homes are slightly leaning forward. They are that way so that people can pull furniture without damaging the front of the home."
"I learned that there are 11,000,000 poles that support the foundation of Amsterdam. I also learned that the homes along the waterways are extremely high and thin. The reason why they are shaped like this is due to the fact that taxes are paid based on the square footage your home takes up so creating this style home enables a larger house while paying less taxes. Also all the homes are slightly leaning forward with a pulley system above the front of the house on the roof. This pulley system accommodates the moving of furniture in and out of the home via windows on the face. These windows can be removed to allow furniture the ability to come into the room. Now back to why the homes are slightly leaning forward. They are that way so that people can pull furniture without damaging the front of the home."
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Good article on problems underlying China's "rise"
China's deeply flawed ascent by George Will
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/chinas-deeply-flawed-ascent/2016/01/20/94bdf1ae-bed5-11e5-83d4-42e3bceea902_story.html
Discusses Henry Paulson's book Dealing with China.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/chinas-deeply-flawed-ascent/2016/01/20/94bdf1ae-bed5-11e5-83d4-42e3bceea902_story.html
Discusses Henry Paulson's book Dealing with China.
Saturday, January 23, 2016
Interesting book from Argentine geographer
Interesting book from Argentine geographer Alejandra Roncallo
The Political Economy of Space in the Americas: The New Pax Americana
The Political Economy of Space in the Americas: The New Pax Americana
By Alejandra Roncallo
https://books.google.com/books?id=Fa83AAAAQBAJ&pg=PR6&lpg=PR6&dq=alejandra+roncallo&source=bl&ots=7LkNNgZTY3&sig=2CjRSpEdGmy4YaXsc5oWs1Y3gww&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi6wtCBrsDKAhXJKB4KHZoMD6Q4ChDoAQgbMAA#v=onepage&q=alejandra%20roncallo&f=false
Great article on Guaraní language
Great article about the only indigenous language in South America that is spoken by almost everybody in a country, Guaraní langauge in Paraguay.
An Indigenous Language With Unique Staying Power by Simon Romero
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/12/world/americas/in-paraguay-indigenous-language-with-unique-staying-power.html?_r=0
An Indigenous Language With Unique Staying Power by Simon Romero
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/12/world/americas/in-paraguay-indigenous-language-with-unique-staying-power.html?_r=0
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Schengen zone in flux
Schengen zone is going through major alterations... likely more in the future. I always believed the Shengen zone was very unrealistic, every country needs some kind of border controls.
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Floating wind turbines
Are you kidding me? Could be great for places off the grid.
Floating wind turbines - BBC
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-31716495
Floating wind turbines - BBC
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-31716495
Thursday, January 7, 2016
Tocqueville in Tokyo
Take a look at this 3 minute video:
Young Japanese 'decline to fall in love' - BBC News
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-16500768
It is a case study of one of the problems of democracy Tocqueville foresaw in 1835: the need to sustain the habit of forming groups in a democracy.
The social isolation in Japan today has for decades been huge problem here in the US as well. This problem has long been known to social scientists: in a democracy people are free to do what they want, so they sometimes lose linkages with other people if they do not actively seek them out. This habit of voluntary group-forming is what Tocqueville calls “forming associations” in his book Democracy in America written in 1835.
Democracy in America is often called the most important book ever written about American democratic life. Much of it is as insightful today (or more) than when it was written. He says Americans' habit of forming groups to achieve goals is totally different from Europe (he was French) where people are born into groups and have little say about what groups they can belong to and what those groups will achieve. He also says that without this group-forming habit, Americans would not be able to achieve much and society would lapse into “barbarism.”
To Tocqueville, voluntarily forming and taking part in groups, while always a messy process, is absolutely necessary to get anything done in a democracy; without the group-forming habit, democracy becomes a society of de-linked free agents who cannot agree on or work toward anything. Without voluntary action, nothing gets done—not even falling in love.
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Tocqueville quotes from Democracy in America:
Need for face to face interaction through groups:
"Sentiments and ideas renew themselves, the heart is enlarged, and the human mind is developed only by the reciprocal action of men upon one another. I have shown that this action is almost nonexistent in a democratic country. It is therefore necessary to create it artificially there. And this is what associations alone can do."
How Americans form groups to get things done that government would do in Europe:
“Americans of all ages, all conditions, and all dispositions constantly form associations. They have not only commercial and manufacturing companies, in which all take part, but associations of a thousand other kinds, religious, moral, serious, futile, general or restricted, enormous or diminutive. The Americans make associations to give entertainments, to found seminaries, to build inns, to construct churches, to diffuse books, to send missionaries to the antipodes; in this manner they found hospitals, prisons, and schools. If it is proposed to inculcate some truth or to foster some feeling by the encouragement of a great example, they form a society. Wherever at the head of some new undertaking you see the government in France, or a man of rank in England, in the United States you will be sure to find an association.”
How American associations differ from European aristocratic endeavors:
“Aristocratic communities always contain, among a multitude of persons who by themselves are powerless, a small number of powerful and wealthy citizens, each of whom can achieve great undertakings single-handed. In aristocratic societies men do not need to combine in order to act, because they are strongly held together. Every wealthy and powerful citizen constitutes the head of a permanent and compulsory association, composed of all those who are dependent upon him or whom he makes subservient to the execution of his designs.”
The special need for the habit of group-forming in democratic countries:
“In democratic countries the science of association is the mother of science; the progress of all the rest depends upon the progress it has made.”
Alexis de Tocqueville
Young Japanese 'decline to fall in love' - BBC News
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-16500768
It is a case study of one of the problems of democracy Tocqueville foresaw in 1835: the need to sustain the habit of forming groups in a democracy.
The social isolation in Japan today has for decades been huge problem here in the US as well. This problem has long been known to social scientists: in a democracy people are free to do what they want, so they sometimes lose linkages with other people if they do not actively seek them out. This habit of voluntary group-forming is what Tocqueville calls “forming associations” in his book Democracy in America written in 1835.
Democracy in America is often called the most important book ever written about American democratic life. Much of it is as insightful today (or more) than when it was written. He says Americans' habit of forming groups to achieve goals is totally different from Europe (he was French) where people are born into groups and have little say about what groups they can belong to and what those groups will achieve. He also says that without this group-forming habit, Americans would not be able to achieve much and society would lapse into “barbarism.”
To Tocqueville, voluntarily forming and taking part in groups, while always a messy process, is absolutely necessary to get anything done in a democracy; without the group-forming habit, democracy becomes a society of de-linked free agents who cannot agree on or work toward anything. Without voluntary action, nothing gets done—not even falling in love.
-------------------------------------------
Tocqueville quotes from Democracy in America:
Need for face to face interaction through groups:
"Sentiments and ideas renew themselves, the heart is enlarged, and the human mind is developed only by the reciprocal action of men upon one another. I have shown that this action is almost nonexistent in a democratic country. It is therefore necessary to create it artificially there. And this is what associations alone can do."
How Americans form groups to get things done that government would do in Europe:
“Americans of all ages, all conditions, and all dispositions constantly form associations. They have not only commercial and manufacturing companies, in which all take part, but associations of a thousand other kinds, religious, moral, serious, futile, general or restricted, enormous or diminutive. The Americans make associations to give entertainments, to found seminaries, to build inns, to construct churches, to diffuse books, to send missionaries to the antipodes; in this manner they found hospitals, prisons, and schools. If it is proposed to inculcate some truth or to foster some feeling by the encouragement of a great example, they form a society. Wherever at the head of some new undertaking you see the government in France, or a man of rank in England, in the United States you will be sure to find an association.”
How American associations differ from European aristocratic endeavors:
“Aristocratic communities always contain, among a multitude of persons who by themselves are powerless, a small number of powerful and wealthy citizens, each of whom can achieve great undertakings single-handed. In aristocratic societies men do not need to combine in order to act, because they are strongly held together. Every wealthy and powerful citizen constitutes the head of a permanent and compulsory association, composed of all those who are dependent upon him or whom he makes subservient to the execution of his designs.”
The special need for the habit of group-forming in democratic countries:
“In democratic countries the science of association is the mother of science; the progress of all the rest depends upon the progress it has made.”
Alexis de Tocqueville
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