Geography Today

In this article, reprinted from the weekly Nedelya [1965, No. 38], the author challenges the view that geography has outlived its usefulness. He sees a broad field of research and applied activity not only in the cataloguing of geographic facts in a ready form suitable for use by other disciplines, but also in the forecasting of changes in the natural environment as a result of economic development plans.     

Sign Geography

Signs are significant elements of cultural landscapes throughout the world. Through their form and content, signs reveal a variety of information about places ranging from locational and physical geographic data through social, economic and political characteristics. Signs, which tell of past events, current conditions and future expectations, are landscape notes on the geography of change. Signs are frequently evidence of cultural diffusion and convergence. Many signs give direction to human activity and symbolize societal quest for order. Others reflect tastes, values and attitudes, in concert with prevailing belief systems. Signs are both cultural phenomena and landscape statements that attest to the way of life in a place.     

Marine Geography

The significance of marine geography as a branch of the system of geographical disciplines is stressed, and several steps are recommended to make the new discipline more viable. In keeping with the attention given to horizontal and vertical zonality in terrestrial geography, the research focus in marine geography should also be on problems of a zonal character. Geography is visualized as a dualistic system of disciplines, combined into marine geography and terrestrial geography, with both branches complementing each other in research of joint interest. Priority should be given to four immediate organizational aspects: meetings of marine geographers for the discussion of key research problems; the inclusion of marine geography in the research programs of oceanographic vessels; the compilation of regional volumes of the geography of oceans; and the publication of a textbook on marine geography.     

Tutoring Relevant Geography: A People's Geography Project initiative

UK geography departments are now reaching the stage where, in light of social change and growing competition for students, the need to offer a degree programme that is relevant to the needs and expectations of students is a real urgency. Drawing on the People's Geography Project, an initiative from the USA, this paper details the experiences of the author in teaching relevant geography in first-year undergraduate tutorials. The paper contends that by providing an opportunity for students to engage in contentious debate and to adopt a political position, students are encouraged to approach issues from a critical geographical perspective, demonstrate the relevance of a geographical perspective in contemporary issues, recognise the conflicting interests from competing discourses and reach a possible, just solution to social problems. This paper reports on the choice of topics, the forum of debate and assessment through alternative coursework styles, and it analyses the learning of both geographical and transferable skills through a People's Geography tutorial programme. The degree of relevance perceived by both the students and the tutor is evaluated, and suggestions are made for further development of a People's Geography approach.     

A Geography of Consumption and a Geography of Services

Professor Kovalev, a specialist in rural settlement, proposes the development of two new branches of economic geography in the Soviet Union that would be concerned with the study of regional differences in consumption and services. The proposal reflects the increasing concern of the Soviet party and government for raising the living standards of the population. Kovalev discusses a number of methodological problems, such as the availability of data.     

The Geography of Population and the Geography of Services

In discussing a methodology for a geography of services, a new branch of Soviet geographic research, the authors propose geographically meaningful classifications of services, the use of value and labor-input indicators, the problem of a typology of service regions, and other aspects of research in this new discipline. The geography of services is found to be closely related to population geography because of the correlation between the distribution of services and the distribution of population.     

方志与地志是历史与地理之母

方志的概念诞生于周朝,名日方志,实为古史。历史的概念是由最初的“史”官名,到唐代以“史”命书名,再到明代末年将历与史合成书名,形成今之历史学名。地志是地图、地记、图经、地理总志等书的总称,方志的一种。地理与地志同源共体,只是近代才从地志中脱胎而出,分化独立。因此说,方志与地志是历史与地理之母。