Thinking Time Geography

Time-geography is a mode of thinking that helps in the understanding of change in society, the wider context and ecological consequences of human actions. This book presents its assumptions, concepts and methods, and example applications. The intellectual path of the Swedish geographer Torsten Hägerstrand is a key foundation for this book. His research contributions are shown in the context of the urbanization of Sweden, involvement in the emerging planning sector and empirical studies on Swedish emigration. Migration and innovation diffusion studies paved the way for prioritizing time and space dimensions and recognizing time and space as unity. From these insights time-geography grew. This book includes the ontological grounds and concepts as well as the specific notation system of time-geography – a visual language for interdisciplinary research and communication. Applications are divided into themes: urban and regional planning; transportation and communication; organization of production and work; everyday life, wellbeing and household division of labor; and ecological sustainability – time-geographic studies on resource use. This book looks at the outlook for this developing branch of research and the future application of time-geography to societal and academic contexts. Its interdisciplinary nature will be appealing to postgraduates and researchers who are interested in human geography, urban and regional planning and sociology.

Time-geography is a mode of thinking that helps us understand change processes in society, the wider context and the ecological consequences of human actions. This book brings together international time-geographic research from a range of disciplines. Swedish geographer Torsten Hägerstrand is a key foundation for this book, and an introductory biography charts the influences that led to the formation of his theories. A central theme across time-geography research is recognizing time and space as unity. Contributions from the Netherlands, the USA, Japan, China, Norway and Sweden showcase the diverse palette of time-geography research. Chapters study societies adjusting to rapid urbanization, or investigate the need for structural changes in childcare organization. The book also delves into green transportation and the interplay between humans and nature in landscape transformation. Applicational chapters look at ICT effects on young people’s daily life and methods for engaging clients in treatment practice. This book situates the outlook for this developing branch of research and the application of time-geography to societal and academic contexts. Its interdisciplinary nature will appeal to postgraduates and researchers who are interested in human geography, urban and regional planning and sociology.

This ism-busting text is an enormously accessible account of the key philosophical and theoretical ideas that have informed geographical research. It makes abstract ideas explicit and clearly connects it with real practices of geographical research and knowledge. Written with flair and passion, A Student′s Introduction to Geographical Thought: Explains the key ideas: scientific realism, anti-realism and idealism / positivism / critical rationalism / Marxism and critical realism/ social constructionism and feminism / phenomenology and post-phenomenology / postmodernism and post-structuralism / complexity / moral philosophy. Uses examples that address both physical geography and human geography. Use a familiar and real-world example - ‘the beach’ - as an entry point to basic questions of philosophy, returning to this to illustrate and to explain the links between philosophy, theory, and methodology. All chapters end with summaries and sources of further reading, a glossary explaining key terms, exercises with commentaries, and web resources of key articles from the journals Progress in Human Geography and Progress in Physical Geography. A Student′s Introduction to Geographical Thought is a completely accessible student A-Z of theory and practice for both human and physical geography.

A “landmark book” (Robert J. Sternberg, president of the American Psychological Association) by one of the world's preeminent psychologists that proves human behavior is not “hard-wired” but a function of culture. Everyone knows that while different cultures think about the world differently, they use the same equipment for doing their thinking. But what if everyone is wrong? The Geography of Thought documents Richard Nisbett's groundbreaking international research in cultural psychology and shows that people actually think about—and even see—the world differently because of differing ecologies, social structures, philosophies, and educational systems that date back to ancient Greece and China. As a result, East Asian thought is “holistic”—drawn to the perceptual field as a whole and to relations among objects and events within that field. By contrast, Westerners focus on salient objects or people, use attributes to assign them to categories, and apply rules of formal logic to understand their behavior. From feng shui to metaphysics, from comparative linguistics to economic history, a gulf separates the children of Aristotle from the descendants of Confucius. At a moment in history when the need for cross-cultural understanding and collaboration have never been more important, The Geography of Thought offers both a map to that gulf and a blueprint for a bridge that will span it.

Introducing Human Geographies is a ‘travel guide’ into the academic subject of human geography and the things that it studies. The coverage of the new edition has been thoroughly refreshed to reflect and engage with the contemporary nature and direction of human geography. This updated and much extended fourth edition includes a diverse range of authors and topics from across the globe, with a completely revised set of contributions reflecting contemporary concerns in human geography. Presented in four parts with a streamlined structure, it includes over 70 contributions written by expert international researchers addressing the central ideas through which human geographers understand and shape their subject. It maps out the big, foundational ideas that have shaped the discipline past and present; explores key research themes being pursued in human geography’s various sub-disciplines; and identifies emerging collaborations between human geography and other disciplines in the areas of technology, justice and environment. This comprehensive, stimulating and cutting-edge introduction to the field is richly illustrated throughout with full colour figures, maps and photos. The book is designed especially for students new to university degree courses in human geography across the world, and is an essential reference for undergraduate students on courses related to society, place, culture and space.

Now a new series on Peacock with Rainn Wilson, THE GEOGRAPHY OF BLISS is part travel memoir, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide that takes the viewer across the globe to investigate not what happiness is, but WHERE it is. Are people in Switzerland happier because it is the most democratic country in the world? Do citizens of Qatar, awash in petrodollars, find joy in all that cash? Is the King of Bhutan a visionary for his initiative to calculate Gross National Happiness? Why is Asheville, North Carolina so damn happy? In a unique mix of travel, psychology, science and humor, Eric Weiner answers those questions and many others, offering travelers of all moods some interesting new ideas for sunnier destinations and dispositions.

International Encyclopedia of Human Geography, Second Edition, Fourteen Volume Set embraces diversity by design and captures the ways in which humans share places and view differences based on gender, race, nationality, location and other factors—in other words, the things that make people and places different. Questions of, for example, politics, economics, race relations and migration are introduced and discussed through a geographical lens. This updated edition will assist readers in their research by providing factual information, historical perspectives, theoretical approaches, reviews of literature, and provocative topical discussions that will stimulate creative thinking. Presents the most up-to-date and comprehensive coverage on the topic of human geography Contains extensive scope and depth of coverage Emphasizes how geographers interact with, understand and contribute to problem-solving in the contemporary world Places an emphasis on how geography is relevant in a social and interdisciplinary context

This guide will help you to survive and thrive during your degree and on into the workplace. Everything you do at university can be useful in your career. Packed with practical hints, study tips, short cuts, real-life examples and careers advice, the new expanded fourth edition of this book is an invaluable resource throughout your geography, earth science or environmental science studies. This book provides guidance for successful study on many topics including: Starting as a student Being an effective researcher Presenting information effectively in posters, presentations, essays and reports Time management, well-being and ethics Field and laboratory work Assessment and feedback Written in an accessible style, this guide also explains the role of the academic, and how it differs from that of a school teacher. It prepares you for the world of work by showing how the skills you learn at university today can be used in your career choice of tomorrow.