July 2010 Archives

The National Geographic Society  recently awarded Alexander Graham Bell Medals to GIS pioneers Dr. Roger Tomlinson and Jack Dangermond. 

The Alexander Graham Bell Medal is named after the inventor, who also served as the second president of the National Geographic society.  It is awarded for extraordinary achievement in geographic research. 

Bell's great-grandson, National Geographic Society Chairman Gilbert M. Grosvenor presented the medals to Tomlinson and Dangermond at the ESRI International User Conference on July 12, 2010. 

Check out Matt Rosenberg's Five Favorite Geographic Apps for iPhone and tell us what your favorite five geographic cell phone apps are. 

Keep checking back to see our favorite five geographic apps for "other" smartphone users!

Background:  In early June, ethnic rioting broke out in and around Osh, Kyrgyzstan.  To better understand the nature of the current violence, the roots of the violence, and the global implications, see our recent blog posts, Ethnic Violence Breaks Out In Kyrgyzstan,  Kyrgyzstan: Roots of Violence, and International Implications of Violence in Krygyzstan.

The Project:  Following recent reports of extensive violence, including looting and arson, between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) used satellite imagery to conduct a damage assessment of the area around Osh, Kyrgyzstan. AAAS conducted the study at the request of Amnesty International, USA, who wanted to corroborate that on-the-ground reporting was consistent with a bird's eye view of the violence. 

The images show that an estimated 1640 structures were damaged including 172 damaged structures in in Furkat, 297 in Cheremushki, 448 in Kizil Kishtak and 551 in Osh.  These are damage estimates, not exact counts, as it is difficult to count structures in dense urban areas using satellite imagery.
 

2010 Fine Art is an international exhibition and sale of original artwork, specially commissioned for the World Cup.  Check out the work of artists around the world, including the World Cup's host country, South Africa.



Courtesy New York Times

"The Real Heroes-- Silhouette 2" by Clint Strydom of South Africa.
















Michelle Renn

Although the World Cup may be old news to many in the U.S., replaced by the drama of sports events such as the Tour de France, the death of former Yankees baseball team owner, George Steinbrenner, and even the National League's win of the Major League All-Star Game, transition back to "normalcy" after the World Cup will not be as smooth for the nations of South Africa, the Netherlands, or Spain--the host country and the tournament's top finishers.
 
As fans and players leave South Africa, the site of the first World Cup on the continent, the country prepares for a transition back to life, pre-World Cup. In a country of 48 million, an estimated 130,000 jobs were created by the tournament, many in construction.  However, these jobs were only temporary, and as they fade away, it's possible South Africa will plummet back to the 25% unemployment rate, that was "normal" prior to the tournament.  In South Africa, "normal" conditions also include large wealth gaps between rich and poor, and limited access to basic services for much of the population.  As the World Cup fervor dies down, many fear that the same national unity and enthusiasm mustered for the World Cup will not be sustained enough to bring long-term prosperity to the country.
 
 
But not all of the prosperity gained from the World Cup is leaving with the football fans.  The South African government invested billions of dollars in infrastructure and construction that will benefit the development of the country in the long term.  As South Africa's finance minister, Pravin Gordhan said, "Once you build a road, it doesn't disappear once the World Cup ends."

ABOUT THE SURVEY:
National Geographic and international polling firm GlobeScan recently released the results of the third annual Greendex survey.   The Greendex is a quantitative study of 17,000 consumers in 17 countries.  Participants were asked questions about their energy use, consumer product use, transportation practices, beliefs about the environment and sustainability, and knowledge of environmental issues.  The answers were then calculated to churn out a Greendex score--the relative environmental impact of a person's consumer choices.  Individual scores are averaged to create a mean score for each country.  The Greendex measures the impact of the average consumer in each country surveyed; it does not measure the environmental impact of a total country.


Here are some of the results:

1.)    WATERFRONT INDEPENDENCE FESTIVAL
What:  Music, food, kids activities, FIREWORKS!!
When: July 3&4, Festivities start at 5 p.m., Fireworks begin at 10 p.m.
Where:  Louisville, Kentucky
             Fireworks over the Ohio River
Why is it one of our favorites?  It's free, it's for families, and the fireworks are fantastic as they light up the Ohio River.  The two day festival features live music and activities for kids at Waterfront Park.