Mitos e sombras

In its simplest expression, geography asks humanities oldest, most fundamental questions:

'Where am I?'

'How do I get there?'

'What is on the other side of the mountain?'

These primal questions have been responsible for pushing humanity from one place to another in search of something better. Eventually, these questions have pushed us off the face of the Earth and into the heavens in search of answers to even bigger questions:

'Where do we come from?'

'Is there anybody else out there?'

'Who or what put this universe together?'

Geography doesn't simply begin and end with maps showing the location of all the countries of the world. In fact, such maps don't necessarily tell us much. No -- geography poses fascinating questions about who we are and how we got to be that way, and then provides clues to the answers. It is impossible to understand history, international politics, the world economy, religions, philosophy, or 'patterns of culture' without taking geography into account.

Geography is the mother lode of sciences. It's the hub of a circle from which other sciences and studies radiate: meteorology and climatology, ecology, geology, oceanography, demographics, cartography, agricultural studies, economics, political science. At some level, all these can be related back to geographic factors. It is obvious that a solid understanding of geography is a vital, basic ingredient for a rounded, full understanding of the world and the universe."

Kenneth C. Davis, Don't Know Much About Geography 1992