Magazine Current Issue September 2008
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GeoPedia
GeoPedia
GeoPedia is a companion to our magazine feature stories. Each GeoPedia entry provides in-depth background material on a given topic, while maintaining National Geographic's vaunted standard of accuracy. It's a research tool with valuable links to the best resources. Ask our experts a question, share a link, or contribute your story ideas.
Features
Soil
Soil
Only about 11 percent of Earth's land surface is suitable for farming, and demands on that land are increasing.
Elephant With Tusks
Elephants of Samburu
Earth's largest living land mammals, African elephants, need a lot of space and food to survive.
Sailfish
Sailfish
Read about some surprising uses for their "sails," how they change their color almost instantly, and watch them attack their prey in a video.
Lost Tribes
Green Sahara
Two groups lived more than a thousand years apart in what was once a lush region.
Bolivian Wrestlers
Bolivia's Women Wrestlers
Women are steadily gaining ground in the male dominated wrestling world.
Stone Statue Gate
Ancient Soul of Iran
Archaeological evidence indicates that Iran has been inhabited for approximately 30,000 years.
Red Eared Monkey
Bioko Island
One of Bioko Island's claims to fame is its primates, including six unique subspecies.
Daisetsuzan
Daisetsuzan
Japan's indigenous Ainu people called Daisetsuzan the "playground of the gods."
Red Square
Moscow at Night
Muscovites love their nightlife.The city of 10.5 million people boasts hundreds of packed clubs and bars.
Meteor Crater Arizona
Target Earth
Rocky asteroids and icy comets have bombarded Earth since its formation 4.5 billion years ago.
Gorilla
Virunga Gorillas
Ten gorillas were killed in Virunga National Park in 2007, caught in the human conflict of the region.
Eroded Rock
Bolivia and the Altiplano
From varied to geography to a diverse population, Bolivia is a nation full of contrasts.
Dinosaur Crocodile Skull
Tyrannosaurs
In China’s Junggar Basin, the primitive ancestors of Tyrannosaurus rex are relatively small.
Burning Camper
Wildfires
Wildfires have scorched record acreage across the United States.
White Tip Shark
Kingman Reef
Kingman Reef is an uninhabited, mostly submerged atoll reef located nearly one thousand miles south of Hawaii.
Stonehenge
Stonehenge
Construction on Stonehenge, a Neolithic monument on England's Salisbury Plain, began in the third millennium B.C.
Oil Field
Siberian Oil
Russia is a major oil producer, and western Siberia provides almost 70 percent of the supply.
Oil Tanker
World Oil
The world's oil supply is finite. The trillion-dollar question for experts is, When will the supply peak?
Blue Nudibranchs
Nudibranchs
Nudibranchs are shell-less marine mollusks. Some 6,000 species live in disparate habitats all over the world.
Snow Leopard Face
Snow Leopard
The snow leopard, uncia uncia, lives a solitary life in remote areas of 12 Central Asian countries.
Afghan Statue
Afghan's Treasures
Afghanistan, a nation with a rich history and rare, ancient artifacts, has long been a cultural crossroads.
Falklands
Last Colonies
Almost half a century after the UN called for independence for all colonies, 16 places are still ruled by foreign powers.
Geopedia Newlyweds
China
Everything about China is big—its population, its area, and its labor force.
Geopedia Tribesmen
The Sahel
Crossing one of the sub-Saharan savanna's unseen lines landed the writer in a Sudanese jail.
Geopedia Gecko
Biomimetics
Burs on a dog's coat led to the invention of Velcro—that's an example of biomimetics.
Geopedia Rickshaw Driver
India's Rickshaws
The city of Kolkata has a love-hate relationship with its rickshaws.
Geopedia Tree
Nā Pali Coast
Golden beaches and soaring cliffs make this rugged edge of Hawaii a paradise on Earth.
Geopedia Running Chimpanzee
Almost Human
The Fongoli chimps of Senegal will break off a branch, sharpen it with their teeth, and use it to hunt bush babies.
Geopedia Elephant
Animal Minds
Brainy fellow creatures show that humans have company in the smarts department.
Geopedia Iceland
Iceland's Heated Debate
Land-proud Icelanders struggle to protect their environment while expanding their economy.
Geopedia Godparticle
The God Particle
Will Europe's new giant atom smasher crack the physical universe's code?
Geopedia Pacific
Pioneers of the Pacific
How did voyagers colonize the Pacific? Archaeologists are beginning to understand.
Geopedia Bhutan
Bhutan's Experiment
The Himalayan kingdom makes a daring move to democracy.
Geopedia Chestnut
The American Chestnut
New blight-resistant chestnuts could herald a rebirth of this American giant.
Geopedia Blackpharaohs
Black Pharaohs
Nubian kings ruled ancient Egypt for decades, but their achievements are just being recognized.
Geopedia Mexicosborder
Mexico's Southern Border
For Central Americans heading north, crossing the other border can be dangerous.
Geopedia Philippineeagle
Philippine Eagles
With their habitat disappearing, can these exquisite raptors be saved?
Geopedia Drying West
Drying of the West
A population boom and drought means water is in short supply.
Geopedia Hazara
Outsiders in Afghanistan
Why the Hazaras are treated as the country's odd man—and woman—out.
Geopedia Basho
Basho's Trail
Following the path of Japan's haiku master brings his poetry to life.
Geopedia Weather
Extreme Weather
With global warming, old weather patterns are changing and anything can happen.
Geopedia Volcano
Volcano Culture
Indonesia's fiery peaks dominate more than just the landscape.
Geopedia Hightechtrash
High-Tech Trash
The laptop you tossed might wind up overseas, toxic parts and all.
Geopedia Mondikagorillas
Lowland Gorilla Family
For these Congo Basin gorillas, the search for food shapes family dynamics.
Geopedia Nangaparbat
Himalaya Winter Climb
Polish climbers take on Pakistan's deadly Nanga Parbat under the harshest conditions.
Geopedia Benoybehl
India's Ancient Art
A gifted photographer brings fifth-century cave paintings to light.
Geopedia Emptiedprairie
Emptied Prairie
North Dakota's ghost towns tell a story of migration and decline.
Geopedia Adoption
The Politics of Adoption
The international map of adoption is being redrawn as the U.S. becomes a full participant in the Hague Convention.
Geopedia Dinosaur
Bizarre Dinosaurs
Sickle-shaped toenails? Domed skulls? Fossils reveal dinosaurs' evolutionary secrets.
Geopedia Bethlehem
Bethlehem 2007 A.D.
Jesus' birthplace is today one of the most contentious sites on Earth.
Geopedia Albatross
Wings of the Albatross
With the longest wingspan of any bird, the albatross is built to fly.
Geopedia Cowboys
21st-Century Cowboys
What makes these men and women feel at home on the range?
Geopedia Permafrost
Permafrost
Millennia-old permafrost formations may not last forever. Time and temperature will tell.
Geopedia Religion
The Geography of Religion
A regional look at the world's major religions.
Memory
Aging isn't the only factor responsible for memory loss. Why does memory fail—and how to preserve it?