Infância em Gaston Bachelard: reflexões sobre o ensino de geografia / Childhood in Gaston Bachelard: reflections on the teaching of geography / Infancia en Gaston Bachelard: reflexiones sobre la enseñanza de la geografía

O presente artigo vislumbra apresentar um texto ancorado na leitura da obra de Gaston Bachelard: "A poética do devaneio". A obra do filósofo permite refletir sobre infância e nos oferece condições para questionarmos a abertura da Geografia escolar para diferentes concepções de infância. Para tanto, este texto procura apresentar que é infância para Bachelard e ampliar seu horizonte reflexivo na relação com o ensino de Geografia. O cenário apresentado permite a interseção entre as mudanças na concepção de ciência, a trajetória e consolidação da Geografia e da Geografia escolar e a pluralidade de perspectivas sobre a noção de infância. Este entrecorte na contemporaneidade sinaliza uma busca e um encontro com uma ciência existencial que permite que o ser se revele em outras formas de ligação entre homem e terra e uma concepção de infância que tenha abertura para imaginação, memória, fantasias e devaneios. Através dessa perspectiva, a Geografia Humanista se apresenta na construção de um referencial-teórico metodológico para Geografia escolar.

This article envisages presenting an anchored text in reading the works of Gaston Bachelard: "The poetic reverie." The philosopher's work allows reflect on childhood and gives us conditions to question the opening of school Geography to different conceptions of childhood. Therefore, this text seeks to present what is childhood for Bachelard and expand its reflective horizon in relation to the teaching of Geography. The scenario allows the intersection of changes in the design of science, history and consolidation of Geography and school geography and the diversity of perspectives on the notion of childhood. In this intersection nowadays signals a search and an encounter with an existential science that allows the Self is revealed in other forms of connection between man and land and a conception of childhood that has opening for imagination, memory, fantasies and daydreams. Through this perspective, Humanistic Geography presents the construction of a methodological framework and theoretical to school geography.

Este artículo tiene previsto presentar un texto anclado en la lectura de la obra de Gaston Bachelard: "La poética de la ensoñación". El trabajo del filósofo permite reflexionar sobre la infancia y nos da las condiciones de cuestionar la apertura de la geografía escolar a diferentes concepciones de la infancia. Por lo tanto, este texto pretende presentar lo que es la infancia para Bachelard y ampliar su horizonte reflexivo en relación con la enseñanza de la Geografía. El escenario permite la intersección de los cambios en la concepción de la ciencia, la historia y la consolidación de la Geografía y de la geografía de la escuela y la diversidad de puntos de vista sobre la noción de infancia. En esta intersección en la contenporaneidad señal una búsqueda y un encuentro con una ciencia existencial que permite que el Ser se revela en otras formas de conexión entre el hombre y la tierra y una concepción de la infancia que se ha de abrir para la imaginación, la memoria, las fantasías y. Através de esta perspectiva, la Geografia Humanista presenta como la construcción de un marco teórico y metodológico de la geografía escolar.

Using intervention-oriented evaluation to diagnose and correct students' persistent climate change misconceptions: A Singapore case study.

The evaluation of classroom-based educational interventions is fraught with tensions, the most critical of which is choosing between focusing the inquiry on measuring the effects of treatment or in proximately utilizing the data to improve practice. This paper attempted to achieve both goals through the use of intervention-oriented evaluation of a professional development program intended to diagnose and correct students' misconceptions of climate change. Data was gathered, monitored and analyzed in three stages of a time-series design: the baseline, treatment and follow-up stages. The evaluation itself was the 'intervention' such that the data was allowed to 'contaminate' the treatment. This was achieved through giving the teacher unimpeded access to the collected information and to introduce midcourse corrections as she saw fit to her instruction. Results showed a significant development in students' conceptual understanding only after the teacher's decision to use direct and explicit refutation of misconceptions. Due to the accessibility of feedback, it was possible to locate specifically at which point in the process that the intervention was most effective. The efficacy of the intervention was then measured through comparing the scores across the three research stages. The inclusion of a comparison group to the design is recommended for future studies.

A licao de abertura do curso de historia e geografia da Faculdade de Nancy, de Paul Vidal de la Blache: reflexoes de um historiador recem-tornado geografo / The opening lesson in the course on history and geography given by Paul Vidal de la Blache at the Faculty of Nancy: reflections of a historian newly turned geographer

Tem como finalidade divulgar a tradução para o português da aula inaugural do geógrafo francês Paul Vidal de la Blache, na Faculdade de Nancy, proferida e publicada em 1873. Essa lição de abertura já revela os princípios gerais propostos pelo mestre incontestável da escola francesa de geografia, que nortearam a geografia francesa por longas décadas. Espera-se, ademais, esboçar o contexto político e institucional que envolve a institucionalização da geografia moderna em finais do século XIX, bem como a tessitura das alianças e trocas com os historiadores, configurando uma herança que Vidal de la Blache não se furtaria a incorporar e transformar.

The aim of this presentation is to divulge the translation into Portuguese of the inaugural lesson given by French geographer Paul Vidal de la Blache at the Faculty of Nancy, given and published in 1873. This inaugural lesson already reveals the general principles proposed by the undisputed master of the French school of geography, which oriented French geography for many decades. A description is also given of the political and institutional context involving the institutionalization of modern geography in the last nineteenth century and the web of alliances and exchanges with historians, configuring an inheritance that Vidal de la Blache readily incorporated and transformed.

Geoengineering: re-making climate for profit or humanitarian intervention?

Climate engineering, or geoengineering, refers to large-scale climate interventions to lower the earth's temperature, either by blocking incoming sunlight or removing carbon dioxide from the biosphere. Regarded as 'technofixes' by critics, these strategies have evoked concern that they would extend the shelf life of fossil-fuel driven socio-ecological systems for far longer than they otherwise would, or should, endure. A critical reading views geoengineering as a class project that is designed to keep the climate system stable enough for existing production systems to continue operating. This article first examines these concerns, and then goes on to envision a regime driven by humanitarian agendas and concern for vulnerable populations, implemented through international development and aid institutions. The motivations of those who fund research and implement geoengineering techniques are important, as the rationale for developing geoengineering strategies will determine which techniques are pursued, and hence which ecologies are produced. The logic that shapes the geoengineering research process could potentially influence social ecologies centuries from now.

Geography and global health.

In the wake of the report of the World Health Organisation's Commission on the Social Determinants of Health, Closing the gap in a generation (Marmot 2008), this invited commentary considers the scope for geographical research on global health. We reflect on current work and note future possibilities, particularly those that take a critical perspective on the interplay of globalisation, security and health.

Balancing urban and peri-urban exchange: water geography of rural livelihoods in Mexico.

The peri-urban area is the region where there is a more dynamic interaction between the urban and rural. The peri-urban area supplies natural resources, such as land for urban expansion and agricultural products to feed the urban population. In arid and semi-arid lands, such as northern Mexico, these areas may also be the source of water for the city's domestic demand. In addition, scholars argue that peri-urban residents may have a more advantageous geographical position for selling their labour and agricultural products in cities and, by doing so, sustaining their livelihoods. A considerable number of studies have examined the peri-urban to urban natural resources transfer in terms of land annexation, housing construction, and infrastructure issues; however, the study of the effects of the reallocation of peri-urban water resources to serve urban needs is critical as well because the livelihoods of peri-urban residents, such as those based on agriculture and livestock, depend on water availability. In the case of Hermosillo there is a tremendous pressure on the water resources of peri-urban small farm communities or ejidos because of urban demand. Based on interviews and structured surveys with producers and water managers, this paper examines how peri-urban livelihoods have been reshaped by the reallocation of the city's natural resources in many cases caused some ejido members or ejidatarios to lose livelihoods.

The essence of student visual-spatial literacy and higher order thinking skills in undergraduate biology.

Science, engineering and mathematics-related disciplines have relied heavily on a researcher's ability to visualize phenomena under study and being able to link and superimpose various abstract and concrete representations including visual, spatial, and temporal. The spatial representations are especially important in all branches of biology (in developmental biology time becomes an important dimension), where 3D and often 4D representations are crucial for understanding the phenomena. By the time biology students get to undergraduate education, they are supposed to have acquired visual-spatial thinking skills, yet it has been documented that very few undergraduates and a small percentage of graduate students have had a chance to develop these skills to a sufficient degree. The current paper discusses the literature that highlights the essence of visual-spatial thinking and the development of visual-spatial literacy, considers the application of the visual-spatial thinking to biology education, and proposes how modern technology can help to promote visual-spatial literacy and higher order thinking among undergraduate students of biology.

Weather, geography, and vehicle-related hyperthermia in children.

Vehicle-related hyperthermia is an unfortunate tragedy that leads to the accidental deaths of children each year. This research utilizes the most extensive dataset of child vehicle-related hyperthermia deaths in the United States, including 414 deaths between 1998 and 2008. Deaths follow a seasonal pattern, with a peak in July and no deaths in December or January. Also, deaths occurred over a wide range of temperature and radiation levels and across virtually all regions, although most of them took place across the southern United States. In particular, the Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, and Las Vegas metropolitan areas had the greatest number of deaths. We utilize our vehicle hyperthermia index (vhi) to compare expected deaths versus actual deaths in a metropolitan area, based on the number of children in the area who are under the age of five and on the frequency of hot days in the area. The vhi indicates that the Memphis, West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, and Las Vegas metropolitan areas are the most dangerous places for vehicle-related hyperthermia. We conclude by discussing several recommendations with public health policy implications.

Hydrology and empire: the Nile, water imperialism and the partition of Africa.

Why did the British march up the Nile in the 1890s? The answers to this crucial question of imperial historiography have direct relevance for narratives and theories about imperialism, in general, and the partition of Africa in the nineteenth century, in particular. They will also influence our understanding of some of the main issues in the modern history of the whole region, including state developments and resource utilisation. This article presents an alternative to dominant interpretations of the partition of Africa and the role of British Nile policies in this context. It differs from mainstream diplomatic history, which dominates this research field, in its emphasis on how geographical factors and the hydrological characteristics of the Nile influenced and framed British thinking and actions in the region. Realising the importance of such factors and the specific character of the regional water system does not imply less attention to traditional diplomatic correspondence or to the role of individual imperial entrepreneurs. The strength of this analytical approach theoretically is that it makes it possible to locate the intentions and acts of historical subjects within specific geographical contexts. Empirically, it opens up a whole new set of source material, embedding the reconstruction of the British Nile discourse in a world of Nile plans, water works and hydrological discourses.

Impact of non-livelihood-based land management on land resources: the case of upland watersheds in Uporoto Mountains, South West Tanzania.

Various land management strategies are used to prevent land degradation and keep land productive. Often land management strategies applied in certain areas focus on the context of the physical environment but are incompatible with the social environment where they are applied. As a result, such strategies are ignored by land users and land degradation becomes difficult to control. This study observes the impacts of land management in the upland watersheds of the Uporoto Mountains in South West Tanzania. In spite of various land management practices used in the area, 38% of the studied area experienced soil fertility loss, 30% gully erosion, 23% soil loss, 6% biodiversity loss and drying up of river sources. Land management methods that were accepted and adopted were those contributing to immediate livelihood needs. These methods did not control land resource degradation, but increased crop output per unit of land and required little labour. Effective methods of controlling land degradation were abandoned or ignored because they did not satisfy immediate livelihood needs. This paper concludes that Integrating poor people's needs would transform non-livelihood-based land management methods to livelihood-based ones. Different ways of transforming these land management methods are presented and discussed.

Archibald Menzies on Albemarle Island, Galápagos archipelago, 7 February 1795.

Menzies made the earliest extant botanical collections in the Galápagos; five sheets, representing three endemic species, are known. Menzies's own account of the visit is also extant and is transcribed here from his manuscript journal.

Networks, narratives and territory in anthropological race classification: towards a more comprehensive historical geography of Europe's culture.

This article aims to integrate discourse analysis of politically instrumental imagined identity geographies with the relational and territorial geography of the communities of praxis and interpretation that produce them. My case study is the international community of nationalist scientists who classified Europe's biological races in the 1820s-1940s. I draw on network analysis, relational geography, historical sociology and the historical turn to problematize empirically how spatial patterns of this community's shifting disciplinary and political coalitions, communication networks and power relations emerged, were structured, persisted, changed, interacted and disappeared. I focus especially on core-periphery relations. I argue that if local historical spatial patterns affect those of later phenomena, geographies like that of European integration should be understood in the context of Europe's complex historical cultural geography. Unlike discourse deconstruction alone, this complementary relational de-essentialization of geography can identify large-scale, enduring associations of cultural patterns as well as cultural flux and ambiguity.

Health, sexuality and place: the different geographies of HIV-positive gay men in Auckland, New Zealand.

This paper employs interview narratives alongside participant-led photography and caption writing to examine the different daily geographies of 15 HIV-positive gay men in Auckland, New Zealand. Difference for these men is rooted in both their HIV status and their sexuality, and this difference has implications for their engagement with the world at a range of spatial and temporal scales. Giving voice to such experiences begins to answer calls for geographers to consider more deeply the connections between health, sexuality and place.

Domestic violence, poverty, and social services: does location matter?

Objective. This study investigates whether or not domestic violence agencies are located in areas of need. Recent research indicates that community economic disadvantage is a risk factor for intimate partner violence, but related questions regarding the geographic location of social service agencies have not been investigated.Methods. Using Connecticut as a case study, we analyze the relationship of agency location and police-reported domestic violence incidents and assaults using OLS regression and correcting for spatial autocorrelation.Results. The presence of an agency within a town has no relationship with the rates of domestic violence. However, regional patterns are evident.Conclusion. Findings indicate that programs are not geographically mismatched with need, but neither are programs located in towns with higher rates of incidents or assaults. Future research and planning efforts should consider the geographic location of agencies.