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On the surface, there is little to distinguish small islands on continental fragments from oceanic islands that have no continental connections. Careful observation, however, can reveal some interesting differences. The Seychelles microcontinent in the Indian Ocean is an intriguing case in point. The islands sitting on this chunk of continental crust constitute a sovereign state, […] The post The Biological Significance of Micro-Continents: The Fascinating Caecilians of Seychelles (and Other Parts of the World)     appeared first on GeoCurrents.
8 hours ago

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GeoCurrents Listed as One of the 100 Best GIS Blogs and Websites in 2025

I am pleased to report that GeoCurrents has been selected by FeedSpot as one of the “100 Best GIS Blogs” for 2025. It is an honor to receive this recognition and I give my sincere thanks to FeedSpot for the acknowledgement, although I do have to say that GeoCurrents is more a “GIS-adjacent blog” than […] The post GeoCurrents Listed as One of the 100 Best GIS Blogs and Websites in 2025 appeared first on GeoCurrents.

3 days ago 3 votes
Mapping Continents Based on Continental Crust

As the previous GeoCurrents post argued, the division of the terrestrial world into a handful of continents derives in part from the division of the Earth’s crust into tectonic plates. But there is another geological factor equally pertinent to the concept of “continent.” It refers not to individual landmasses but rather to a particular kind […] The post Mapping Continents Based on Continental Crust appeared first on GeoCurrents.

6 days ago 9 votes
Map Art or Scientific Cartography?

Many maps, in my view, are also work of art, regardless of their creators’ intentions. Some maps, however, are explicitly made as art, and as such are not designed to convey spatial information beyond that found in the mere geographical shapes that they contain. Increasingly, it can be difficult to tell whether a given map […] The post Map Art or Scientific Cartography? appeared first on GeoCurrents.

a week ago 6 votes
Are Continents Rooted in Plate Tectonics?

Tectonic plates are the basic building blocks of the Earth’s lithosphere, its outermost rocky layer. As these large segments of crust slowly move, landmasses and sea expanses are gradually rearranged. The current configuration of tectonic plates shows a tight connection with the architecture of continents: North America is on the North American plate; South America […] The post Are Continents Rooted in Plate Tectonics? appeared first on GeoCurrents.

a week ago 7 votes

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Hack some bokeh into your ArcGIS Online map

You know how you can crank up the sense of drama and studio photography professionalism by switching over to portrait mode on your phone’s camera? It just looks…cool. The subject is in focus and the peripheral background content is blurry. It’s actually how our eyes and brains work, so it’s pleasing to see in photography. …

12 hours ago 2 votes
The Treasure Hunting Game
21 hours ago 2 votes
GeoCurrents Listed as One of the 100 Best GIS Blogs and Websites in 2025

I am pleased to report that GeoCurrents has been selected by FeedSpot as one of the “100 Best GIS Blogs” for 2025. It is an honor to receive this recognition and I give my sincere thanks to FeedSpot for the acknowledgement, although I do have to say that GeoCurrents is more a “GIS-adjacent blog” than […] The post GeoCurrents Listed as One of the 100 Best GIS Blogs and Websites in 2025 appeared first on GeoCurrents.

3 days ago 3 votes