Biomes to Anthromes

Many have debated the semantic tags of “natural” or “pristine” when discussing the physical environment or landscape.  At the heart of this is the reality that humans have long been shaping and outright changing the physical landscape; that there is no true pristine or natural environment in our history or today.  In ecology, discussions and research often do not account for human activities in an inclusive way.  Ecosystems and biomes are often seen as disturbed, disrupted, or destroyed by humans.

Two ecologists set about to change the paradigm from which biomes are viewed as natural systems.  Re-orienting the existing theoretical approach of biogeography, ecology, biology, and more, this new paradigm incorporates the long present human influence in nature.  Using the established ecological tool of the biome, these scientists added the various patterns of human alterations.  Presented in Frontier in Ecology and the Environment, the paper titled, “Putting people in the map: anthropogenic biomes of the world” is a fascinating read for geographers of every stripe.  It includes an intriguing map of these new regions, along with some other interesting graphics for further investigation.

Following up their 2008 paper, came a 2010 Global Ecology and Biogeography paper titled, “Anthropogenic transformation of the biomes, 1700 to 2000.” As the title declares, this paper is interested in the temporal trends of human alteration.  The results are presented in a series of maps that illustrate the changes to anthromes across the Earth’s surface.  This paper offers striking visuals for the global-scale developments that have been associated with the history of human-environment transformation.

Not only are these papers enthralling reads with provocative visuals, but this new paradigm provides an excellent discussion or lecture topic for any geography class, from the pre-undergrad, to undergrad, to graduate levels.  Among the patterns of anthropogenic biomes are correlations to a myriad of environmental, demographic, economic, urban, and social issues.  Some of the issues that have emerged from discussion are: deforestation; sprawl; changing land-use; technological advancement; environmental limits on settlement or agriculture; regional comparisons; and so on.   By viewing the series of maps, students can interpret patterns, investigate historical and contemporary issues, and draw correlations to many related topics in environmental science and geography.  For the most part, they can do so without much pre-instruction.  The relationships they reveal are often intuitive and amount to a very fulfilling classroom dialogue.  Even the classification of the anthrome regions themselves is an interesting topic for consideration.  Interrogating the legend that accompanies these maps uncovers relationships among changing population patterns and densities, agricultural land-use practices, and the significance of various environments to human practices.  A fun activity is to bring up the serious of maps in power point or Google Earth, to view them sequentially, moving forward and backward, and seeing the change in the patterns on the surface.  Students always gasp at the changes they see in “real-time” and remark at the accelerating pace and spread of some of the world’s anthromes.

Both of these papers are provided and expanded on in the website for the Laboratory for Anthropogenic Landscape Ecology at UMBC.  This website is a great companion for instructors, students, and all other interested parties.  Some of the great downloadable extras are Google Earth maps and educator resources, like power points and educational guides.

To end with a quote:

“In this century we need to change the way we educate our children about the biosphere, about the ecology of the world.  We need to think of it as a human ecology.  Ecology in which people interact with nature and that we’re responsible for the way that nature behaves now and we’ll be responsible for the way it behaves in the future.  And if we want to live in an environment that is desirable for all of us, it’s up to all of us to make that happen.  It’s not going to happen out there somewhere; it’s really the nature around us that matters now.”  -  Earl Ellis

Great articles/resources for students:

Keim, Brandon (2010) “Maps: How Mankind Remade Nature” Wired Magazine

Madrigal, Alexis (2008) “Mapping the Humanized World” Wired Magazine

The Encyclopedia of Earth “anthropogenic biomes” Last updated 2010.

Discovery Channel News (2009) “Earth: Human Influence on Ecology Mapped” (video).

Discussion Questions:

1. Examine the legend associated with the Anthromes map.  Reflect on the organization, order, and naming of each legend item.  What patterns can you see with respect to varying population density, type of agricultural activities, scale of land-use, and utility of diverse environments?
2. Upon viewing the maps of Anthromes, what can you infer about the relationship between population growth/density and agricultural activity?  Compare and contrast the Europe, East Asia, South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa world regions.
3. Analyze Figure 2(a) from “Anthropogenic transformation of the biomes, 1700 to 2000.”  Describe the trends in the changing proportions of Used, Seminatural and Wild global lands.  Provide some explanations for the scale and pace of these trends.

Sedimentary Virtual Tour using Google Earth(tm)

Sedimentary Tour
Tour created by Professor Randy Rutberg, CUNY Hunter.

This virtual field trip is designed to show students examples of sedimentary rocks. The tour is designed so that students see each location from above. This helps them orient themselves geographically. I’ve created a number of locations (pushpins) and have labeled them with key words to help orient myself as I go through the tour. In some cases I have made the “pushpins” invisible so that they would not obscure the view.  These labels could easily be changed. I have included Mesa Verde, CO as I think this demonstrates the link between geology and anthropology. In this case, and in some others, the resolution is not sufficient to see the rock formations. However, the tour can be paused and then the blue squares can be “clicked.” This will bring up photographs of the rock formation.

Learning Objectives:

1.  Identify examples of sedimentary rock.

Download File: sedimentary_tour

Are We There Yet?

Issue:  Countries of the world can be classified according to level of economic development, based on a broad array of socio-economic variables. Until fairly recently, many sources simply classified nations into “developed” and “underdeveloped.” Sometimes they are referred to as the “haves” and “have nots.” There are some problems using such a simple, two-category classification. First, there is the underlying implication of superiority and inferiority of the developed nations and underdeveloped nations, respectively. Secondly, many countries do not clearly fit into either of these two broad categories.   This virtual tour using Google Earth(tm) technology allows students to analyze levels of development using the CIA World Factbook and the various categories of classification.

Learning Objectives:

1. Discuss what development is.
2. Understand the difference between development indicators and indexes.
3. How do you define and measure development?

Download File: development

Plate Boundaries Virtual Tour using Google Earth(tm)

Plate Boundaries
Tour created by Professor Randy Rutberg, CUNY Hunter.

This field trip is designed to showcase the three major types of tectonic boundaries: divergent, convergent and transform. In all cases I have tried to show the large scale features with a view from above and then smaller scale features using the zoom tool. The tour can be paused and additional photos can be shown if desired. 

I use this field trip during my presentation of chapter 1. I try to “wow” the students with technology and stimulate their interest in the world around them. It usually makes quite an impression.

Again, this tour can be customized by removing or changing icons, changing the start location etc.

Download File: Plate_Boundaries

Igneous Virtual Tour using Google Earth(tm)

Igneous Tour
Tour created by Professor Randy Rutberg, CUNY Hunter.

This virtual field trip is designed to show students spectacular examples of igneous activity. I specifically included places that I thought might be familiar to them. In addition, I tried to include sites that might connect to other disciplines, i.e. Pompeii might have been discussed in an archaeology class and Krakatoa in a Climate Class. 

At each destination, it is possible to pause the tour and click on photographs (blue squares) so that students can see additional views. In addition, tours can be further customized to include or not include icons, i.e. the volcano symbol. I chose to begin each tour at Hunter College, but the start point of a given tour can easily be changed.

During the tour I describe features that we have discussed in class, i.e. the shape of the volcano, cinder cones, lava types, explosiveness etc. I use the “field trip” to reinforce the concepts.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify several different categories of volcanic eruptions.

Download File: Igneous_Tour

We Are #1! Or Are We?

Issue: Cultures can be many things, but they are certainly not static. Cultures can be changed through innovations and inventions, diffusion, acculturation, and revitalization. With the twentieth century advancement in communications, transportation, and trade, cultures in many parts of the world have become increasingly dynamic. Some nations fear an eventual loss of cultural identity with ever-increasing global interconnections.

In this Google Earth(tm) virtual tour students will read about cultural imperialism, explore different examples of cultural diffusion and appropriation, then answer questions based on what they have learned.

Learning Objectives:

1. What are local and popular cultures?
2. How are local cultures sustained?
3. How is popular culture diffused?

Download File: cultural_imperialism

Glacier Virtual Tour using Google Earth(tm)

Glaciers 
Tour created by Professor Randy Rutberg, CUNY Hunter.

This virtual field trip is designed to show students examples of glaciers and of glacially shaped landscapes. The tour starts at Hunter College and moves to the Franz Joseph Glacier in New Zealand. This is a great location because the resolution is high enough to see details in the structure of the ice. In addition there are fabulous photographs of the ice and students can get a sense of the dynamic nature of the glacier. I have included a path on this tour. The tour needs to be paused and the path clicked on. This will take the students on a “virtual hike” up the glacier. The tour then moves to Milford Sound. The resolution here isn’t great, but the photographs (click on the blue squares) are. Students can see the fjords that were carved by glaciers during the Pleistocene ice ages. The tour moves onto Glacier National Park where striking topography can be observed and then to the Malaspina glacier in Alaska. This location gives a real sense of “glacial flow” and the beautiful blue of the melt water lake is quite striking. The tour continues by going to Norway where more fjords are visible and then to Chile where the glacier is quite close to sea level and lovely to look at.

Learning Objectives:
1.  Distinguish between several different kinds of glaciers and ice formations.
2.  Identify several kinds of landforms created by glacial sediments.

Download File: glaciers