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Editor\u27s Comments: Geography and Self- Analysis
Get PDFWhat is the future of geography as a discipline taught in American schools? Will it be recognized by those who decide curricula for elementary and high schools as a necessary component of a young person\u27s training? If not, should we be surprised to find declining interest in the subject at many of our colleges and universities? If you answered no to these questions, then you can anticipate further erosion of support for the subject by administrators at institutions of higher education
A Crack in the Dustbowl
Get PDFDust storms have been a common occurrence in the southwestern plains of the United States. Thus, the name dustbowl is an apt one given to a region which includes the central part of the six state area of Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska (Figure 1). Before the 1930s, there had been periodic droughts in this region, but the dusty conditions that accompanied them had always been restricted to the drought stricken area. Since the population of this region was relatively small, and few acres of land were farmed, the dust severely affected only a small number of people. Nevertheless, during the period beginning around 1910 and lasting until about 1930, rainfall was adequate for good crop yields, and the economy was booming. This resulted in increased agricultural activity in the dustbowl region, which increased the potential for damage to the land. Farmers, either out of ignorance or carelessness, used methods from farther east that were not well suited for the drier climate found in the Plains. These farming practices further increased the potential for land damage
Editor\u27s Comments
Get PDFOnce upon a time in the land of academia, there existed an esteemed Department of Geography. It was steeped in tradition and was recognized by its peers as being among the foremost academic departments in the world. Yet this recognition was inadequate to spare it from an abrupt termination. This Department of Geography whose allegiance was once claimed by such notable geographers as Carl Sauer, Preston James, George Kish and others was sentenced to extinction by the Board of Regents on June 19, 1981. It is small consolation that the doors of the Department will officially close during mid-1982. I salute the Department at the University of Michigan for its past accomplishments and I mourn its departure as I would the loss of a close friend and mentor
Do the Effects of Ethnocentrism and Cosmopolitanism Depend on Countries-of-Origins? An Empirical Study of U.S. Consumers
Get PDFConsumer ethnocentrism and cosmopolitanism have been shown to be instrumental factors for the evaluation and purchase of foreign products. Many prior studies have provided evidence that ethnocentric consumers have lower willingness to buy for products that originated from foreign countries, while cosmopolitan consumers have higher willingness to buy. However, prior research has been conducted in the research setting where only one foreign country is pit against home country. Therefore, it is not clear whether their direct impacts on animosity, product judgement, and willingness to buy will be homogeneous, regardless of countries-of-origin. In other words, do consumers hold the same degree of favoritism or hostility toward products from all foreign countries with other factors held constant? To answer the question, we collected data from U.S. consumers on their attitudes toward products from four countries: China, Germany, Japan, and Mexico. Ethnocentric consumers hold slightly higher willingness to buy for German and Japanese products than those from China and Mexico. Cosmopolitans hold slightly lower degree of animosity toward Mexican products. The empirical findings suggest that consumers proceed beyond simple contrast between domestic and foreign. Hence, international managers need to segment consumers by more granular approach that incorporate attitudes toward specific countries-of-origin
Application of 700 Millibar Synotic Climatology to Drought Analysis
Get PDFLarge areas of the earth\u27s surface experience occasional climatic fluctuations. Such fluctuations, integral to the weather system, often lead to drought or flood, and this influences crop production and commodity prices. Drought is a contributor to economic, social, and, on occasion, even political instability in both commercial and subsistence agricultural economics. Particularly affected are areas such as India, China, parts of Europe, and the American Great Plains which include the Canadian Prairies . Because of its dominantly agricultural economy, and because of its location well within a zone of frequent drought, the Canadian Prairies section has been selected for study. Past studies on Canadian droughts put emphasis on drought patterns by using Thornthwaite moisture indices\u27 but in so doing have expressed the effects rather than the causes of droughts. The objective of this paper is to examine the summer droughts in the Canadian Prairies by using synoptic climatological approach2• Recent studies by meteorologists and climatologists indicate the usefulness of synoptic climatology to analyze climatic problems. 3 However, their application to drought analysis is lacki
Editor\u27s Comments
Get PDFWhoops! Much to my surprise Volume 17 was not to be my last issue. This one is. Well, even though time has passed, my comments regarding our new Editor, Robert Ward, still apply. Please give him your support. Although his health did not allow him to be with us, I am pleased that GTU honored Dr. Buzzard on the 50th anniversary of the Society. Dr. Buzzard died this past summer and following this series of comments is Dr. Buzzard\u27s last correspondence to GTU. I hope we will not forget his efforts to found our society; an effort which has been of great value to many aspiring geographers along the
PUBLIC RECREATION ON PRIVATE LANDS
Get PDFNot long ago most citizens of the United States had easy access to rural areas. Wooded lands, forests and pastoral settings were available to the greater portion of the populous. During the past one hundred years however, the nation\u27s population has changed from being primarily rural to overwhelmingly urban. Therefore, the average resident of a large metropolitan area must travel considerable distance to gain access to rural recreation sites. For people In the lower Income ranges, the cost of traveling to distant recreation sites Is often prohibitive. Furthermore, demand for outdoor recreation has Increased In recent years
