Thinking Spatially

In the July 2026 Thinking Spatially podcast, again highlighting a Place, Thought Leader, Tool, Event, and Geographic Oddity, we will focus on:   The wettest and driest places on Planet Earth, Pliny the Elder, fieldwork, and Mt Vesuvius, the Astrolabe, Compass, Sextant, Cross-Staff, and other navigational aids, the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami, and the coldest spots in the Northern and Souther...

In the June 2026 Thinking Spatially podcast, again highlighting a Place, Thought Leader, Tool, Event, and Geographic Oddity, we will focus on:  The Pulau people of Indonesia, John Harrison and the Longitude Clock, BIM-CAD-GIS (Building Information Management), Computer Aided Design, Geographic Information Systems, the SuperBowl and GIS Dashboards, and the sport of curling with a connection to a vi...

In the May 2026 Thinking Spatially podcast, again highlighting a Place, Thought Leader, Tool, Event, and Geographic Oddity, we will focus on:   The Midwest, Cartographer Louise E Jefferson, 3D mapping, the 1884 Meridian Conference, and Loving County, Texas.   Pecos River crossing at Loving County, Texas.  Photograph Credit: Robert Plocheck.  

In the April 2026 Thinking Spatially podcast, again focusing on a Place, Thought Leader, Tool, Event, and Geographic Oddity, we will focus on:  Microstates, James Rattling Leaf, UAVs (Unmanned or Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles, or Drones) in GIS and remote sensing, Earth Day and GIS Day, and the complexities of a section of the Netherlands-Belgium border. UAVs or Drones

In the March 2026 Thinking Spatially podcast, again focusing on a Place, Thought Leader, Tool, Event, and Geographic Oddity, we will focus on:  Two famous and beautiful trails (Cinque Terra Italy and Saxer Lucke Switzerland), scientific and geographic pioneer Gladys West, GPS, The Rights of Nature movement, and national and state borders along latitude and longitude lines. Gladys West Gladys West,...

In the February 2026 Thinking Spatially podcast, we will again highlight a Place, Thought Leader, Tool, Event, Geographic Oddity:  This month we will focus on the distinction between Place vs Space in geography, Dr Yi-Fu Tuan and the concept of Topophilia, Remote Sensing, Mapping Cholera in 1854, and the concept of and importance of Null Island. Landsat Imagery

A place, thought leader, tool, event, and geographic oddity: January 2026 podcast in the Thinking Spatially series. This month I feature:  The shortness of the Alabama coastline, Eratosthenes' Earth Measurement, GIS as a tool, the Earthrise 1968 photo, and the northernmost, easternmost, southernmost, and westernmost points of land in the USA.  Enjoy! Joseph Kerski at GIS lighted sign

This episode investigates Mt Vesuvius: Natural Hazards Analysis, past and present, and its impact on geographic studies. Mt Vesuvius:  Public Domain

This episode discusses how geography is defined, exploring its traditions, themes, and standards. Defining Geography

This episode investigates how photography impacted the study of the Earth and how geographers in turn impacted and used photography.   Photography: Photograph by Joseph Kerski, Idaho-Washington USA border. 

This episode discusses Bernhardus Varenius and the impact that the first modern geography textbook had on the past and present.  Varenius: Geographia generalis, 1715

This episode discusses Sebastian Munster's contribution to geography:  Describing the Heavens and Earth in Cosmographia.  Munster mapTabula Novarum Insularum, 1540: Public Domain. 

This episode discusses how urbanization has impacted planet Earth and how geographers study urbanization.  Urbanization: Phoenix AZ USA:   Photograph by Joseph Kerski. 

This episode discusses Thomas Robert Malthus: Forecasting the future through Demography.   Thomas Malthus

This episode investigates Time: How it is embedded in geography, and how standardization and time zones impacted our world.  Time:  Its impact on geography, how it is studies, and on our everyday lives.  Photo by Joseph Kerski. 

This episode discusses UAVs: Unmanned or Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles, or Drones, and their impact on geography and geotechnologies.  UAVs or Drones:  Photograph by Joseph Kerski.

This episode investigates The Treaty of Tordesillas and Its Impact on Exploration and Settlement, Past and Present. the Treaty of Tordesillas

Why use childhood memory maps to foster spatial thinking?  This episode discusses how and why to use this powerful and easily implementable activity across a wide ranges of educational levels and courses.  Childhood Memory Maps

This episode of the Thinking Spatially podcast examines the life, exploration, and impact that Alexander Von Humboldt had on sciences, with an emphasis on geography.  Alexander Von Humboldt

This episode focuses on surveying, and how measuring the Earth was important through ancient times to our modern times, with an emphasis on the geographic implications. Surveying: Photo by Joseph Kerski, in Colorado.  

This episode investigates Universalis Cosmographia: Waldseemuller's map showing America and the World, and the impact it had on its time in 1507 and on to today's modern web maps. Universalis Cosmographia: Waldseemullers America and the World

This podcast delves into regional studies, their geographic foundations, and their impact.  Regional Studies:  Photo by Joseph Kerski, in Iowa. 

This podcast episode focuses on Posidonius, who untied geography with science and philosophy, and the impact it had on thought in his time (135-51 BC) and thereafter.  Posidonius  

This podcast focuses on the life and work of Gerardus Mercator (1512-1594), who mapped the world in a new way, and the geographic implications of his life and work.  Mercator  

This podcast defines and explains the concept of topophilia--that we as humans are fundamentally attached to place, and why it matters.  Topophilia: Place Matters!  Photo in Indiana by Joseph Kerski.