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I took a look at this map and wasn't surprised to see that many immigrants to America settle along the coasts/borders of the United States. The map legend indicates that regions with darker blue have higher a high percent of foreign born citizens within their county. Much of the south west border is dark blue, evidently due to is proximity to Mexico, a country undergoing violence from the eternal drug wars. In addition, major cities here and there, such as New York City, display dark blue. This is logical, as these cities provide job opportunities and serve as major ports, historically and in the present today.

Also look at the area around Louisiana. It's interesting that there is a small amount of migrants there knowing that the islands off the coast are not too far away. I would figure that there is a small amount of immigrants there, because of Hurricane Katrina, and the thought that that area is more vulnerable to natural disasters than other areas.

The amount of foreign born babies is relatively low with most counties having less than 1% of the babies being foreign born. This is most likely due to the hurricane which caused the area to not be an attract location for migrants.

This makes sense because areas of natural disasters tend to be major push factors for migrants.

This article explains the changing jobs in the developed country, Australia.

First thought...interesting article Cameron. It encouraging to see a country like Australia developing and implementing services in its economy. I wonder how this will effect the prices of the minerals Australia exports to the majority of the world? With more people moving to the service sector there will be less in the mines, so my gut tells me that the world wide prices will go down due to the fact that companies will be able to make a bigger profit selling the same amount of material due to lower labor costs.

I feel like Australia has a lot going for it! Like you mentioned, it has a high HDI- this is no coincidence. As we know, it has access to important natural resources. It is fairly isolated, which can hurt its economy, but there is less competition for jobs. It is also a highly popular area for tourism. It doesn't get involved in a lot of matters occurring in the northern hemispheres, which keeps it out of costly wars.

It's interesting that there are less people going into construction even as a part time job since most college grads don't get a job right out of school. You would think that instead of working at a McDonalds or something people would do construction jobs where they have more of a chance to turn a profit and actually get a permanent job.

It is quite interesting to see that a large amount of construction workers are over the age of 55. This is going to cause problems within the field with less teens filling in their spots. As we learned in class those people over 55 will soon be added into the dependency ratio and they will no longer be able to work causing even more problems within the construction work force.

Anyone enjoying the World Cup?  Check out this site about the stadiums.  Which theme(s) of geography are you reminded of when you read the stadium descriptions? Is it region, movement, globalization, nature-culture, cultural landscape or any combinations? Which stadium(s) are most likely preferred by certain teams? Who might prefer certain stadiums and why? .... Let's get a discussion going, APHUG!

According to new research it's estimated that global carbon emissions will reach 40 billion tons 2014, a record high in human history. If carbon-dioxide in the atmosphere exceeds 3200 tons then the global temperature average will see a 2 degrees Celsius increase since the Industrial Revolution. The Earth hasn't actually seen any mind-blowing drastic changes in the environment because of climate change but this 2 degree threshold is where things start to change and it might actually be a big threat. carbon-dioxide in the air increases every year not at a linear rate but an exponential one. There's already ~2000 tons of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and its estimated that another 1200 tons will be emitted in the next 30 years. That's our generation. What can we do to prevent the rise in the global temperature average, and what is already set in stone?

Another great post and excellent question. What do you think, APHUG? Interesting doc. ...http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/11/01/executive-order-preparing-united-states-impacts-climate-change

What are the causes and effects of urbanization? Read this article to learn more. (**Hint. Hint)

Sarah Johnson yells for help outside the convention center in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on Sept. 1, 2005. Which of the five themes of geography relate to this natural disaster?

The given article informs readers of the growth of the amount of Chinese secret agents in the United States and the reasons for why they are there. The United States government does not know of said spies' whereabouts. "The agents are from the Ministry of Public Security, China's security service. U.S. officials charged Wednesday that the increase suggests China lacks concern for U.S. laws." (Scuitto, Scott). This is a repeating issue, as United States representatives "warned China to stop using covert law enforcement agents on U.S. soil." (Scuitto, Scott). China states that it is not breaching any legal contracts, it is only fighting corruption in a program called Fox Hunt 2015. This shows the theme of globalization, as Chinese spies are within the United States' boundaries. The information they retrieve (as gathering is in the nature of being a spy) will affect China somehow. That action crossing continents is a link between those continents, and links the world together in this way.

This article discusses an interesting recent discovery of the possibility of water on one of Jupiter's moons, named Europa. The discovery was made in 2012 when the Hubble Space Telescope spotted water vapor in the air above southern parts of Europa, and now several space agencies, including NASA have taken an interest in exploring it even further. This summer, work on building the spacecraft that is to be sent to explore Europa, began. In addition to exploring Europa, this spacecraft will also be exploring two of Jupiter's other moons, Ganymede and Callisto. Although covered in ice, all three of these moons have the potential to be harboring oceans underneath, and possibly some bacteria necessary to begin the growth of life on another rocky object in our solar system. The relationship between the moons in the Jovian system and humans on earth looking to explore these objects is an example of nature-culture on a very broad scale. Instead of just one small region of people interacting with the environment around them, this project deals with humans on earth as the people who are trying to change the environment (in this case other moons in the solar system) around them. One could also tie the theme of globalization to this article because various countries from around the world are bringing their knowledge and money together to try to achieve this mission of exploring Jupiter's moons.

In this article, it explains the most recent information about the animosity between North and South Korea. As mentioned in the story, the ongoing conflict between the two countries has once again been brought to attention in the beginning of August when South Korean men were injured by North Korean landmines. More recently, South Korea had detected a rocket being launched toward their country. They then responded by firing some shells back toward the area from where the rocket had been launched. This particular event reminds me of the theme of region in geography. This is because the two cultures have always had a long history where they were fighting each other, as was the case in the Korean War. Region itself, is a geographical area based on how a culture functions. Therefore, it is not too much of a surprise that they are once again fighting because it is their natural tendency to fight. I am sure that this is just the beginning of this current conflict and that there will be more trouble for these countries in the future.

This article describes the chemical explosions that happened in a warehouse located in Tianjin China on August 12. The warehouse contained more than 700 tons of highly toxic substances and as a result many people died and many buildings were destroyed. As said in the article, the concentration of deadly chemicals was and still is extremely high in certain locations, and needs lots of cleanup work. It relates to the theme of Nature Culture because of the effects that the blasts have had around the area. There is a designated warning zone where cyanide pollution is severe and polluted water is contained. Even though the pollution has been mostly contained it still has impacted the environment in ways that make it dangerous for human contact. As an example, water tests in the area were done and showed high levels of sodium cyanide, which has the ability to kill humans. The explosion caused by a human built warehouse created problems with the air and water, thus impacting the environment in negative ways; making it unsanitary and clearly not safe. Is the pollution spreading? Are there more precautions companies can take to avoid another situation like this? These are a few of the questions that concern this topic.

This article describes how humans are ultimately the world's top predator. Through research and studies it is easy to see that we are much more dominant over many of the top animal predators such as lions, tigers and bears. The theme of nature culture is shown through this incident as us humans are killing off some of the worlds top predators. Because of this, ecosystems are not in balance anymore as their top predators are being taken away. This can therefore change the evolution of these animals as they reproduce. In the future, we could have a shorter supply of these specific animals, especially the ones we depend on as a supply of food. The author poses a solution to this problem in the article as well. Human hunters should focus on hunting the young and preserve the adults, as they are capable of having offspring. Will human hunters stop the overhunting of these predators? Or will they continue to destroy the ecosystems?

A recent emergency regarding terrorism has surfaced in Tunisia, an African country located along the Mediterranean Sea, after two spontaneous attacks by Islamic extremists, and the effects embody several themes of human geography. To start off, the functional region of Tunisia itself is showcased due to its state emergency declaration, digging of a trench to stop unlawful trade, and implementation of additional law enforcement for protection. Each of these actions illustrate how Tunisia operates within its political boundaries to sustain the well-being of the nation. For mobility, relocation diffusion will decrease as the absorbing barrier of the trench halts people, ideas, and supplies from moving across Libya's border, but Tunisia will benefit from more security and safety. Fewer vacationers coming to Tunisia also impedes the spread of ideas. On the other hand, people emigrating from Tunisia, as mentioned in the article, have increased relocation diffusion by taking their knowledge to new locations, and expansion diffusion has escalated as people rapidly spread news of the attacks. Since the Group of 7 industrialized nations met to discuss the Islamic terror threat, globalization is taking place because multiple countries are interconnected by a foreign problem and are seeking a solution; this resembles the mission of UNICEF in "A Long Way Gone", as do the people fleeing danger like Ishmael did. It is interesting to note that the countries participating in the interactions are industrialized, for they have the technology to provide fast communication and effective actions. Tunisia even asked Western countries specifically for help due to their high development. I believe the gruesome acts were unnecessary and require the proper counteraction, so I am glad these nations are gathering. What will nearby nations do to accommodate refugees socially, politically, and economically? Why might the cultural landscape change to prevent events of this nature?

Excellent analysis. Great work connecting the themes to your selected current event and book. Terrorism is an enormous threat to every country, including industrialized core nations like the Group of 7. Does anyone know why terrorists, and specifically, Islamic extremists such as those associated with ISIS or Al Qaeda, even commit acts of terror on citizens?

What are the economic implications of desertification?

In March of 2014, Malaysia Airlines' flight 370 disappeared without a trace on route from Malaysia to China. Just recently, debris was found on the French territory, Reunion Island, located off of the eastern coast of Africa. Despite searching for over a year, this discovery was the first clue of this airplane mystery. Many countries have collaborated in the search for the missing jet including France, Malaysia, Australia, and the United States. This relates to the globalization theme of geography because many countries are combining their resources and ideas towards the common goal of finding the plane and providing peace to the families affected. Due to modern technology and the ability to communicate almost instantly, countries that are thousands of miles apart are each able to offer something different to benefit the search and rescue effort. For example, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau led the actual search while the French conducted tests to confirm that the debris was in fact from the missing plane. What makes a country's government decide to help another country with a natural disaster or tragedy? How has technology improved connections between countries in times of crisis?

Thank you for sharing this article and providing an insightful post. Great questions, too. I do believe that countries (most) have a major duty to help humanity and struggling peoples. Citizens are for the most part supportive of their government spending money for these disaster relief. Some see the government as wasteful with taxpayer money. Flight safety and reliability is extremely important, too. Does anyone think that this event concerns any of the major world economic powers? How might it impact them?

Why is the Lehigh Valley a valuable site and situation for companies like Freshpet?