New Address

Please note that I have moved to http://jdmcd.edublogs.org/ The GeogBlog may still be used for reference, but no new material will be added.

photo

photo
Originally uploaded by jmmcdgll.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Thinking Geography website

Great new blog I have found called Thinking Geography. set up Dr Andrew Lee, head of Geography at Westminster School, it contains a range of resources designed to stimulate how we think about our environment.

you can access this site by clicking here


Standard Grade markers meeting today-good to meet old friends from the setting team and catch up. Papers seemed very reasonable-perhaps the "hanging valley" question may have caught a few pupils out?

Walked past Buchanan Coach station en route to Glasgow Caledonian-noticed that, as well as heading off to Clydebank, Stirling and Wishaw, coaches now depart to various destinations in Poland-a telling reflection of the phenomenal rise in Polish migrants to Scotland.

Climate change continues to be a major story in the news. Radio 4 carried item about the decline of the Southern Ocean's sink or reservoir of carbon. This means that there may be more carbon in the atmopshere than previously thought. It was assumed that, as human activities released more CO2 into the atmosphere, ocean sinks would keep pace, absorbing a comparable percentage of this greenhouse gas. Howver tests show that levels of carbon in the atmosphere are rising rather than being absorbed by the oceans. This seems to be because the surface of the oceans is already saturated by CO2,m and therefore cannot absorb any more. The reduced ability to absorb carbon is thought to be a result of high winds acting on ocean currents bringing deeper waters that already contain high levels of carbon to the surface.

Trail2

Silberry Hill

Trial

The Independent reports record high in airline travel

The Independent newspaper today carries a report that aviation growth is continuing at a rapid rate, leading to fears that there will be a huge increase in the emission of greenhouse gases. This growth will outstrip any attempts by airlines to reduce carbon emissions by using more efficient fuels, for example. It goes on to say,

Aviation is the fastest-growing source of carbon dioxide, the principal greenhouse gas, and also the origin of other greenhouse gases including nitrous oxide and water vapour.
The new figures highlight not only the remorseless upward trend in global aviation, now greatly boosted by the cheap flights sector, but also astonishing increases in some individual countries. China's domestic flights as a whole are up by 18 per cent year on year, and international flights to and from the country have risen by 17 per cent.
Flights in and out of Britain are up by 7 per cent over the year - an extra 8,000 trips and an increase of 1.9 million, or 10 per cent, in seat numbers. The increases are even more remarkable in the low-cost sector. Cheap flights to and from Spain are up 68 per cent in a year, with seat numbers up by 77 per cent - an increase of 2.5 million.

Trial

Climate Change Update/recommended blog

New information and resources constantly come online to develop our understanding of climate change. It is very much a live issue. this blog will try to keep you posted on recent developments, by directing you to helpful, authorative sites.

a good summary of the effects of global warming can be found on the BBC Science and Nature web pages-click here for shortcut.

Val Vannett of High School of Dundee has an excellent blog, packed full of interesting observations, snippets, photos, news items and revision ideas. Click here for shortcut.

S2 Revision

The S2 Geography examination will be on Monday 14th May. it will test the following areas:

Fieldwork

-gathering
-processing
-analysing

Tourism

-Scotland
-changes in tourism
-tourism and the environment

Environmental Issues

-climate change
-Greenhouse Effect
-Acid Rain
-litter and waste disposal
-Environmental survey of Kilmacolm

Full revision notes can be found at the Geowiki. Click here.