Day 77 - Thanksgiving

Since my last blog entry the past two weeks have been rather busy. The big USC vs UCLA American Football game took place in which we won! Enrolment for the next quarter also is now coming to a close. As emphasised in my previous post, I greatly desired to enrol in Hydrology and Political Geography, two modules of which I feel will be a bit more in line with the knowledge I acquired at UCL. Thankfully, I was able to enrol in both classes despite the high demand surrounding them; I can now look forward to starting them after Christmas and developing my knowledge in both subject areas.

In this post I wish to discuss more about Applied Climatology and how it has compared to what I have studied previously in the UK. Despite having high hopes for this course, I feel underwhelmed by the substance of the lectures. Rather than being technical and going into detail about processes in the climate, the class has been structured into 10 rather vague lectures in which do little more than outline climate processes and their interactions with the environment. In my first blog entry I made reference to Chagnon (1995) definition of Applied Climatology with the 3-ringed theory. For me, this was an interesting way to approach the area of climatology and I expected that the class would explore the topic through the lens of Chagnon giving equal emphasis on each aspect of applied climatology. Despite this however, I feel there has been an overemphasis on the ‘inner ring’, which comprises of interpretation and generation of climatic data (Chagnon, 1995). This could be seen as one of the flaws with using the quarterly system instead of the semester system which is hotly debated between students and teachers in the United States, with such little amount of class time, one can barely scratch the surface of the main objectives of the module, something that I believe not even extensive reading could fix. In addition to this, a lot of the reading is based on IPCC workings; the ones that feature in my reader however are out-dated, using the 2001 publication. In terms of differences between what I’ve learnt in the UK and US related to climatology through this module provides no distinctions of interest in terms of perceptions and paradigms. The notable differences are present in how engaging, and stimulating the content taught has been. The science is essentially the same, the IPCC is an intergovernmental body and widely considered of great importance in providing up-to-date data and assessments both in the US and the UK. Yet, I have found that climatology has been much superior and interestingly taught in my experiences at UCL.

As I write this blog entry it is torrentially precipitating outside, a sight that is not often seen in this semi-arid area of California. This proves noteworthy as it provides a momentary break from what has been the worst drought in California’s history (figure 1), or at least since 1895 according to the standardized precipitation and evapotranspiration index (SEPI) for California (NOAA, 2014).

 

FIgure 1. NOAA Standard Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index for California

The subsequent blog post will be in a few weeks as final exams are fast approaching! After this busy period I shall be returning to the UK and providing a summary of my findings.

Changnon, S. A. (1995) ‘Applied climatology: A glorious past, and uncertain future’, American Meteorological Society, 379–393.

NOAA (2014) SPEI California Drought through to October 2014. [WWW.] http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/drought/; [Accessed: November 30, 2014]

Day 63 - Midterms and revelations...

After two months of consuming happily the wealth of amazing food offered at the dining halls scattered around campus it appeared to me I needed to start being a lot more careful with what I consume. This thought process was inspired by reading ‘Salt, Sugar and Fat’ (Moss, 2013) a recommended reading for my Food and Environment class. The book explores the politics, science and corporate aspects of modern processed foods and how many deceptions lay underneath the grey areas of food labelling and processes of production. The book makes a vital point that fat cannot be detected by the receptors on the tongue and there is no tangible taste that can be attributed to it (Moss, 2013). In addition to this, Moss highlights that fat stimulates the brain and is widely enjoyed inviting extensive addition of fat to foods in order to preserve, reduce costs yet still satisfy consumers. Upon adjusting my consumption patterns, opting for less fatty foods, I decided to try one of the appealing salads offered by one of the healthier choices of on campus restaurants. I was rather shocked when I saw that my salad of choice contained 74% of my recommended daily intake of fat and 53% of saturated (figure 1). Putting this into perspective, the night before, I consumed deep fried chicken tenders and curly fries, which contained only 51% and 37% respectively (figure 2). This revelation reminded me of some of the key ideas and experiments undertaken in ‘Salt, Sugar and Fat,’ as fat can be hidden into even the most healthiest of foods, and yet still cant be detected through taste. Not only this, but it sparked interest into the perception of healthy foods. I feel that there needs to be a better understanding of what actually constitutes healthy and nutritious food as many people will happily indulge in a salad like the one I was interested in believing it is nutritious, healthy and almost fat free. This interest led me to the work of Marie-Claude Paquette at the University of Quebec, who did a direct study on the perceptions of healthy eating in Canada and highlighted similar issues (Paquette, 2005). These are some of the deeply interesting debates that I’m covering currently in Food and Environment. I feel through this course I have gained a significant understanding of what food constitutes, where it comes from and the scale of politics that is involved from production to consumption. This is a side to geography I have never really come across in the UK, however it is one that is very interesting and relevant in the context of fears over the obesity crisis (Caballero, 2007) and the monopolisation and privatisation of foods by large companies like Monsanto (Hauter, 2012).

Figure 1. Nutritional facts for typical salad

Figure 2. Nutritional facts for fried chicken tenders

The past 3 weeks have been demanding, mid terms have come to their conclusion and attainment of high grades in all modules has left me very pleased. However, I feel that the way these exams are conducted does not permit the presentation of extensive knowledge over the debates of a certain topic area. Structured in the form of multiple choice, definitions and short essays, specific knowledge is expected, however there is no freedom to explore a subject area in depth and illustrate that one has completed in-depth reading. This is the key difference between the exams I have conducted at UCLA so far and those in the past at UCL.

In the approaching weeks, module selection for the upcoming winter quarter will take place. As with this current quarter there is a wide selection of courses available. A module I am particularly excited for is based on hydrology, taught by Professor Lettenmaier, whom I believe is a friend of one of my favourite lecturers Professor Taylor at UCL. Despite being a physical geographer by nature, I thoroughly enjoyed political geography modules taught in my first and second years at UCL. This upcoming quarter offers a class on political geography taught by John Agnew, a distinguished academic that has featured on many of my reading lists at UCL! My favourite work of his is his critique on International Relations with the ‘Territorial Trap’ (Agnew, 1994). Understandably, enrolling in this course will be difficult due to high demand and limited space however I will try my upmost to become enrolled.

In two weeks time I shall update this blog once more on my experiences of Geography at UCLA.

Agnew, J. (1994). ‘The Territorial Trap: The Geographical Assumptions of International Relations Theory,’ Review of International Political Economy, 1, 1: 53-80.

Caballero B (2007). ‘The global epidemic of obesity: An overview,’ Epidemiology Review 29: 1–5.

Hauter, W. (2012) Foodopoly, The News Press: New York.

Moss, M. (2013). Salt, Sugar and Fat, Random House: New York.

Paquette, M-C. (2005) ‘Perceptions of Healthy Eating: State of Knowledge and Research Gaps’, Canadian Journal of Public Health, 96, 3 15-19.

Day 42 - Settling In

Since the last time I updated this blog I have attended a few more lectures for each of my courses and I have been able to get a true grasp on the content covered. Thus far, all of my classes are proving stimulating, in particular ‘Food and Environment’ is proving fascinating. Led by Professor Carney, a distinguished professor whom is proving to be one of my favourite lecturers. Her presentations are incredibly thought provoking and she talks about her topic of interest with amazing enthusiasm and passion.

The content of the first half of this course reminds me very much of what is covered in the historical geographies aspect of my first year at UCL. Carney investigates both through her book ‘Black Rice’ and her lectures the lost geographies of the African slave trade and how the knowledge systems or ‘cultural funds of knowledge’ were essential for the establishment of functioning plantations in the Americas (Carney, 2002). With this she also critiques the well-documented ‘Colombian Exchange’ and how its rather narrow definition fails to include the elaborate movement of slaves across the Atlantic and their knowledge systems (Carney, 2001). Importantly she highlights it wasn’t just the seeds that enabled the transfer of food around the world and their integration into our diets (Carney, 2002). The racist view of the African as useless and just providing labour is rather emphatically nullified with Carney’s work.

With first midterm examinations in two weeks, the academic system here is fast paced; it encourages one to keep on top of work and reading, which I believe is important as it prevents individuals flying under the radar.

In terms of the differences between how geography is practiced in the US and UK, I wouldn’t at this point suggest that the experiences I’ve had in ‘Food and Environment’ have been particularly different to what I have experienced previously in the UK. After mid term examinations however I expect this to change due to the topic of study transitioning to more modern agricultural techniques and issues we face today like providing for a growing population in a world with limited carrying capacity (Langhelle, 2000), and dealing with ethical arguments about biotechnologies.

One aspect that struck me as really interesting occurred last Friday during my Applied Climatology class, the maps my professor decided to use to illustrate the spatial distribution of satellites and remote sensing technology were ‘American centric’. Showing North and South America at the centre of the map.  It will be interesting as I read more academic articles originating from the US whether this is a common occurrence.

Despite the third module I’m enrolled in this term not being related to geography, I think it would be good to highlight some key differences and adjustments I have had to make due to drastic differences in how the subject is studied in the UK. It was important to me to continue studying Spanish and maintain and improve on the fluency that I had built on at UCL. My first few lessons however have been challenging and there are a few reasons for this. Firstly, in the US, Latin American Spanish is what is taught, understandable when one considers its proximity to Latin America, however this means dialects and some grammar is very different to Spanish taught in the UK. Another key difference is the focus of classes away from grammar and onto speaking. In the UK, I was continuously learning new grammar and how to write but not so much how to communicate orally, something that is emphasised a lot here and which I feel will be beneficial.

Overall, since my last blog post there hasn’t ben much more information to report, the notes I am taking every lesson on differences are rather bare! I’m still very pleased with the progress I’m making as a student and person and with the quality of education I am receiving.

Until next time…

Carney, J. A. (2001) ‘African Rice in the Colombian Exchange’, The Journal of African History, 42, 3, 377-396.

Carney, J. A. (2002) Black Rice: The African Origins of Rice Cultivation in the Americas, Harvard: University Press.

Langhelle O. (2000) ‘Why ecological modernization and sustainable development should not be conflated,’ Journal of Environmental Policy and Planning, 2, 4: 303-322.

The 8 Clap

Month 1

Venice - A day out with fellow UCL Geographers Tirion and Juliet

Los Angeles - A View from the Griffith Observatory

Hollywood - The Reality

 Royce Hall - The Centrepiece of UCLA

Day 28 - First Impressions

 Today marks my 4th week in Los Angeles and the last day of my full first week of classes at UCLA. Valuable and unforgettable experiences have already filled my time here, experiences that I shall reflect on briefly in this first blog post. In addition to this I will share the early signs of differences in my experience of geography in the United States.

Before delving into details about my first impressions on the differences between geography at UCLA and that of the UK, I will briefly share my experiences of the geography of Los Angeles as in the very first week I stumbled upon some notable surprises. Firstly, Los Angeles is vast, however it is not an archetypal metropolitan city with no easily identifiable Central Business District. Public transport within the city is limited and rather unreliable when compared with the strong public transportation system in London. This is understandable as the many distinctive areas of Los Angeles are not simply a bus stop away; thus leaving Los Angeles an automobile-orientated low-density community (Wachs, 1993). The most surprising aspect however is the incredible disparity within the city and how those very rich and those very poor live in such close proximity. Unlike cities in London where the poor are marginalised to certain areas of the city, a dynamic that keeps changing (Haines and Wood, 2002), in Los Angeles in the space of two streets, one can walk from high-rises to sidewalks overcome with homeless people. Interestingly enough, the Lonely Planet guide to Los Angeles fails to mention how the reality of Los Angeles is strikingly different to what is presented on glossy pages. Exemplified in my first experience of Hollywood, walking one block either side of the 15 block ‘walk of fame’ marginalised individuals fill the streets, a setting that is very bleak.

In terms of geography as an academic subject, my first experiences have already brought to light some differences with American Geography and what I have experienced at UCL.

In my first two years at UCL, one of the aspects of geography that interested me most was climatology, learning about the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and comprehending how all of these interact to form one complex interrelated system. After thriving in GEOG2020 last academic year it made sense for me to attempt to continue similar classes at UCLA. From the wealth of modules available to me ‘Applied Climatology’ stood out to be the most natural follow up to ‘Hydroclimatology.’ My first lecture for this module was interesting, however the term ‘Applied Climatology’ itself is quintessentially an American term and the syllabus illustrated to me there would be clear differences between what I would be studying here at UCLA and what I have studied previously at UCL. Loosely defined by American academics as the scientific analysis of climatic data in the light of useful application for an operational purpose (Chagnon, 1995), Applied Climatology investigates data collection, manipulation, its interpretation and finally how this is translated into business strategies or policymaking. This is very different to the Hydroclimatology lectures I took last year.

The differences continue with how classes are conducted and what lecturers expect of students to do outside of class. In lectures there is an emphasis on discussion and fielding ones opinions, something that isn’t as common in the UK, as many modules assess students on their contribution in classes. In addition to this, for geography classes at UCLA there appears to be less encouragement on a wide breadth of reading. This is exemplified by there being only one prescribed text for ‘Applied Climatology,’ with each lecture based around a particular chapter. Even for the more literature-based modules such as the ‘Food and Environment’ module I am studying, only two core texts are to be studied. This will pose an interesting challenge for me, as merely focusing on a select few readings is alien to me.

The exciting module ‘Food and Environment’, mentioned above is one which attracted my attention as soon as I saw the course catalogue for this quarter. After two months of attempting to get enrolled for this class I finally was able to attend my first lecture last week. This module was striking as it is a topic that UCL geography doesn’t specifically cover, it looks at agricultural techniques of the past present and future, linking them to colonial explorations of the past and climate change related problems we are to experience in the future. This class is relevant for California due to the prolonged drought the state has been experiencing of late, it is proving to be a very interesting class that I look forward to sharing details about in this blog with future entries.

I will conclude my first blog post by saying that I am thoroughly enjoying my experience so far at UCLA, I’m thriving as an individual and a student. I acquired a campus job in my first week and I was recently designated the role of International Student Ambassador of the United Kingdom for this academic year.

This post will be followed by a few pictures that illustrate my feelings towards my first month in Los Angeles and my experiences so far.

Changnon, S. A.,(1995) ‘Applied Climatology: A glorious past, and uncertain future’, American Meteorological Society, 379–393.

Haines, R. and Wood, G. (2002) ‘Unemployment, marginalization and survival in Greater East London’, Development South Africa, 19, 4, 573-581.

Wachs, M. (1993) ‘Learning from Los Angeles: transport, urban form and air quality’, Transportation, 20, 4, 329-354.