Next post is going to be about Siberia, Russia. This is one of the harshest environments to live in on Earth, if not the harshest.
Here are a few facts you may not know about Siberia.
Siberia takes up 77% of Russia and stretches out for 13.1 million square kilometres.
The highest point in Siberia is the volcano (which is active) called Klyuchevskaya Sopka, located on the Kamchatka Peninsula. It is 15,253ft tall. This is the equivalent to 10.4 empire state buildings stacked on top of each other.
40 million people live in Siberia, it's population density is in and around 3 people per square kilometre. Siberia is one of the most sparsely populated regions in the world.
The majority of land in Siberia is a boreal forest/snow forest called taiga. It mostly consists of pines, spruce trees and larch trees. To the north there is artic tundra and to the south, a temperate forest.
Weather in Siberia does vary considerably. There are short summers and long winters. The average temperature is 0.5 degrees centigrade. In the summer the highest is around 20 degrees centigrade, in the winter however, it can drop to as low as -71 degrees centigrade.
There are many tribes of people living and travelling around Siberia. Some examples include the Dolgan, Khanty, Nenets and Chukchi people. These people travel in sleighs pulled by reindeer or dogs (Siberian Huskies). They set up tents made out of reindeer skin and herd reindeer. They wear animal furs and skins to protect themselves from the bitterly cold temperatures that freeze your moustache and your eyebrows if you're outside too long!
Lets talk about the clothes Siberian Eskimos wear to survive. Anyone own a parka? Eskimos wear layers of parkas made of caribou hide, they also have a couple of fur lined hoods which keep your head and face warm in the cold. They wear layers of mittens also made from deer hide. Eskimos even incorporated seal skin in. Often they wore big, heavy, well-insulated boots made of fur and seal skin.
If you're a vegetarian I wouldn't advise joining an Inuit tribe because surprisingly there aren't many quinoa salads lying around in Siberia. The Inuits in Siberia, just like other Inuit tribes, travel and survive on the land. Their diet includes reindeer, seal, narwhal, walruses or anything they can catch.
Sunday 19 April 2015
So to kick it off, I'm starting with Australia. This Christmas I went and visited Perth, Melbourne, Armadale, Sydney, the Gold Coast and Cairns and I was blown away by how gorgeous Australia is. I hope I can go back again and visit more of it.
Satellite image of Australia
Here are a few facts about Australia:
There are presently over 23 million people living in Australia.
Capital city: Canberra. Biggest city: Sydney
Total area of Australia: 7,692,024km squared. Ireland could fit in Australia 91 times!
It is the worlds biggest Island and smallest continent. There are three different time zones in Australia.
Australians have adjusted to life in Australia very well, from waterproof currency (for all you surfers out there!) to knowing which spiders are harmless and which are lethal. I was very impressed by how safe it is in Australia despite the threat of poisonous snakes and salt water crocodiles. The Australian Government have made it so that it's safe to explore and observe the beauty of Australia. As long as you obey the signs and have a bit of common sense!
One of the most important things the Australian Government has done is educate it's citizens on the dangers of the sun and the importance of wearing strong sunblock and covering up when going out in the sun to prevent bad sunburn and skin cancer (the most common type of cancer in Australia). The Australian sun is very strong and unforgiving. According to the Australian Cancer Council, 2 in 3 Australians will be diagnosed with skin cancer before the age of 70, and more people die from skin cancer than transport accidents every year in Australia.
Main Beach in Southport, Queensland
So what have they done to help?
Uniform regulations in Australia require students to wear wide rimmed hats, wear shirts with high collars and sleeves down to their elbows and wear shorts or skirts down to their knees. The fabrics should be loose and closely woven to prevent as much sun exposure to your skin as possible.
Schools all over Australia (especially at primary level) are encouraged to join their SunSmart Schools program. Just like we have Green-schools in Ireland.
In order to reach the SunSmart status, primary schools must do the following:
Schedule outdoor activities to when the sun's UV rays aren't at their peak.
Have a written sun protection code hanging in the school that meets basic standards relating to environment, behaviour and curriculum.
Teach students about the importance of protection from the sun.
Agree to check ups and policy reviews performed by their local SunSmart organisation and adjust their sun protection guidelines to meet the standards of the SunSmart organisation.
Work to create more shade.
The Australian Cancer Council has also created the 'Slip, Slop, Slap, Seek, Slide' sun protection measures to increase awareness and help children know what to do when they're in the outdoors.
Applications are available in the App Store which alert you when UV rays are at their peak. Alerts are also found in Australian newspapers in the weather section.
Aussies are very outdoorsy and everyday, people go out to surf, dive, waterski, hike, camp, fish, canoe, parachute, snorkel, sky-dive, bush-walk, bike, the list is endless. And why wouldn't they? If you live in a place as gorgeous as Australia with Tropical rain forests, mountains and of course the Great Barrier reef it would be very hard not to be outside all the time.
Cape Tribulation, Northern Queensland
Due to the currents, riptides and dangerous marine life in Australia, water safety is very important and taken very seriously. Ways that Australians stay safe, be it simply swimming in the sea or catching some waves, is by having fully qualified lifeguards on patrol and recommending to the public to only swim in patrolled waters.
I always felt very safe swimming in the sea when I was in Australia because no matter what there was always a lifeguard watching. At the beach there was a sign beside the lifeguard's chair that stated the surf conditions and UV ray peak times. There were also colour coded flags stating the strength of the surf, and whether or not there were any dangerous marine life around.
Dangerous marine life, as you can imagine, can be a problem for swimming in Australia. Animals like saltwater crocs, sharks and jellyfish inhabit Australian waters and while they don't target humans they can do serious damage if encountered.
Great White Shark
One jellyfish in particular is a big problem. The Box jellyfish has killed over 5,000 people since 1954 and has enough venom in it to kill 60 adult humans. It's 15 tentacles can grow to be 3 meters long and are covered in half a million poison filled teeny tiny darts.
Box Jellyfish
But wait theres more! A sting from one of these guys is known to be so painful that victims often die of cardiac arrest or drown before they have any access to an anti venom. Even if you survive the sting, the pain and scar will stay with you long after it happens. The summer season is when the jellyfish come in to Aussie beaches to breed because the water is warmest at this time. Pretty bad timing right?
So the Australian Government put big, long nets in the water. Some stretch along the coast for miles and others cover a square mile of water to it keep shark/jellyfish-free and perfect for swimming.
Cottesloe Beach, Western Australia.
Overall my trip to Australia was a blast and I'd definitely recommend sitting through over 15 hours of flying because the reward of visiting this amazing place is definitely worth it.
Hello all, my name is Emily and this is my blog on different lifestyles around the world and how people have adapted to their environment in order to live happy, healthy lives. I chose to do a blog on this because this year I've been lucky enough to go to some amazing places abroad and I want to learn more about life in these places and how we as humans have adapted to where we live. Hope you enjoy!
_scavenging_on_whale_carcass_-_journal.pone.0060797.g004-A.png)
