Tuesday 29 September 2009

Comparing earthquakes


USe the following links to help research the presentations comparing two earthquakes. For the basic information, start at Wikipedia.

1989 Loma Prieta (San Francisco)

1989 Spitak (Armenia)

2003 San Simeon (Central California)



Then see the following:

Loma Prieta - photos, BBC
Spitak (Armenia) - USGS page, photos,
San Simeon - USGS
Bam - BBC

Friday 25 September 2009

Flood areas in Scotland


The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) have produced a map that shows the likelihood of any area in Scotland flooding. You can view this map by clicking here (the button is at the bottom of the web page). How likely is it that the school grounds will flood? Start by putting the school's postcode (EH13 0PU) into the search box: the blue areas are those at risk of flooding. Try zooming out to see which parts of the city are at the greatest risk of flooding, then try searching other areas you know.

Wednesday 23 September 2009

The human tide


Following the forced eviction of hundreds of migrants from 'the jungle' near Paris, The Times produced an excellent graphic illustrating migration flows around the world.

Monday 21 September 2009

Lagos - a megacity under stress



A few articles and reports to help with your answers. A news report with some background to the problem. A photo journal from the Guardian. An article about a proposal to upgrade the slums. A final article detailing some of the issues.

A recent article from The Guardian magazine.

Don't forget the resources on the Shared Geography A2 folder as well.

Wednesday 16 September 2009

Mali and USA cotton industries


Some links to help you with your presentations on the cotton industry in Mali and the USA.
A document from Oxfam detailing the issue in mali.
An excellent summary of the situation from Oxfam

Links from the BBC about Mali here, here and here.

Links from the BBC about the USA here

Fairtrade cotton and here.

Section on Wikipedia on the cotton trade and one on the Economy of Mali.

Oxfam reaction to cotton subsidies and entries on their blog

Thursday 10 September 2009

Hotspots




You need to know about both the Philippines and California as examples of multiple hazard hotspots. Use the template provided to create case study sheets for these two areas.


There is a lot of information on the web to help you. A sample to start with is here:


Disaster information from the Philippines
An excellent PowerPoint on the Philippines
An excellent map of the Philippines
Specifics on the natural hazards faced by California
A good summary of the issues facing California
Another good starting point for California
More from USGS on California
Search here for the region you have chosen and you will get a list of hazards
Go here for excellent maps for ALL countries and the hazards which affect them
That should be plenty to start with!

Tuesday 8 September 2009

Distribution of geophysical and hydrometerological hazards


A few links to help with this piece of work.
Start with your text book and then try these links for more information:


On the BBC site:
An animated guide to earthquakes
An animated guide to volcanoes
An animated guide to hurricanes
A list of recent earthquakes

On the USGS site:
Hurricane fact sheet
Landslide fact sheet

From Wikipedia: