Archive for 'Geography'
Brazilian City Spotlight: Walachai, Rio Grande do Sul Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 10, 2008
One of the most impressive things about Brazil is its regional diversity. In this series, we’ll take a look at just how different Brazil’s regions and even cities and towns can be. Walachai, pronounced “vala-hi” is a small town in the southernmost state of Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul. It’s located 100 kilometers from the…
Deforestation of the Amazon on Rapid Rise Posted by Transparent Language on Feb 4, 2008
Rising commodities prices have given developers added incentive to clear the Amazon lately. The BBC has an informative article about the disturbing velocity with which the rainforest has been disappearing. Seems like the world needs more and more soy. Read the article. Image: BBC
Brazilians Leaving the USA Posted by Transparent Language on Dec 5, 2007
A series of events has led to many Brazilians abandoning their lives in North America to return to Brazil. The New York Times reports that immigration policy in the USA, the falling dollar, and the sub-prime lending have all contributed to a dramatic turning of the tide for Brazilians living in the USA. Many of…
Miss Landmine Posted by Transparent Language on Dec 3, 2007
An Angolan beauty pageant empowers women and draw attention to a common plight. The Angolan Civil War, which formally ended in 2002 after 27 years of the strife that followed Portuguese occupation, left the country torn, impoverished, and littered with live landmines. The Miss Landmine pageant aims to bring attention to this reality, as well…
Swim the amazon in 66 Days! Posted by Transparent Language on Nov 12, 2007
…or just let this guy do it. Martin Strel is a world-class swimmer with a zeal for breaking records. Already having broken many Guinness World Records for distance swimming, including swimming the Adriatic Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Danube River and the Mississippi River, Stel decided to attempt the unthinkable: swim the entire Amazin river…
Arabic Influence on Portuguese Posted by Transparent Language on Oct 17, 2007
500 years of Moorish influence will leave a linguistic mark! The period in which the Moors ruled Spain (roughly from 700 to 1500 common era), also affected Portugal quite a bit. It wasn’t until 1250 that the Moors were expelled from Portugal, and by that point the Arabic language had made quite an impact on…
Brazil in Google Earth Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 26, 2007
Explore Brazil (and the whole world for that matter) in 3-D right from your computer! Google Earth is a fantastic free tool developed by those geniuses out on the West Coast that allows the user to virtually explore the entire world! Successfully leveraging user-generated content, you can enhance your personal copy of Google Earth to…