Shanghai is the world's busiest container port -- handling about 3x the container traffic of #2 Rotterdam -- and China's ongoing COVID lockdown of Shanghai is further gumming up global shipping. This map, based on live ship-tracking data, shows the backlog of ships earlier this week in the East China Sea, the mouth of the Yangtze River, and the Huangpu River waiting to be loaded and unloaded. cdn.statcdn.com/Infographic/images/normal/27343.jpeg

Thinking ahead to your summer reading list?  You can test your knowledge of classic literature by matching characters to novels with this 35-question quiz: play.howstuffworks.com/quiz/can-you-name-which-literary-classic-these-characters-are-from

Data collected by the Pacific Group and analyzed by Statista finds that water-related conflicts have escalated sharply in the last decade, particularly in Asia and Africa, as this geo-graphic shows: www.statista.com/chart/27272/water-conflicts/  (The full data set is worth exploring to understand the growing range of ways in which water is being weaponized or spurring violence: www.worldwater.org/conflict/list/)

The U.S. recently announced that it will no longer use missiles to destroy defunct satellites -- which scatters orbital debris that then poses collision problems for other satellites and space launches -- and called on other countries to do the same. The U.S. announcement comes ahead of a UN meeting on May 9 that is to be the first ever considering the development of norms and rules to reduce "space threats." www.politico.com/news/2022/04/18/u-s-vows-no-anti-satellite-tests-00026144

Changes in physical geography -- including changes in weather patterns -- can create biogeographic changes too. Australia's recent, and unprecedented, outbreak of Japanese encephalitis is a case in point. Japanese encephalitis is a mosquito-borne disease endemic to Asia. However, record flooding in eastern Australia in March created wetlands for migratory birds, which are thought to have brought Japanese encephalitis with them to Australia. When native mosquitoes, also plentiful due to the flooding, bit the infected birds and then people and other animals, both wild and domestic, Japanese encephalitis began spreading in Australia. Because the virus is now present in animal hosts, it is unlikely the disease will be eradicated from Australia. Instead, the geographic range for Japanese encephalitis has expanded to include eastern Australia. www.newscientist.com/article/2312539-australias-japanese-encephalitis-outbreak-blamed-on-climate-change/

Unionizing efforts at Amazon and Starbucks have made headlines recently. In the 1970s, one in four U.S. workers was a member of a labor union. Today, the figure is roughly one in 10. This interactive map from Business Insider shows 2021 union membership by state: www.businessinsider.com/map-of-what-union-membership-looks-like-in-us-2022-1

As part of the promo for his new book, Nasty, Brutish, and Short: Adventures in Philosophy With My Kids, University of Michigan philosophy professor Scott Hershovitz is inviting children ages 4 to 8 to send him their philosophical questions via The Guardian newspaper (UK), where he will try to answer them: www.theguardian.com/books/2022/apr/11/does-your-child-have-a-question-to-ask-a-philosopher

Tomorrow, French voters will go to the polls to choose between current president Emmanuel Macron and perennial far-right challenger Marine Le Pen. This geo-graphic from Statista shows where right-wing populist parties have had the most electoral success in Europe: www.statista.com/chart/20094/national-election-success-of-far-right-parties-europe (For those who cannot make out the flags to the left of the bars, the top three countries shown are Hungary, Poland, and Switzerland.)

Have a student interested in discussing current events? The University of Virginia's Youth Leadership Initiative offers the First Freedom Wall, a free platform for teaching and practicing the skills of online discourse and debate. The First Freedom Wall allows students to exchange comments with other students across the country on current issues in American politics. yli236.youthleadership.net/learning-programs/firstfreedom-wall

If one is in the U.S. or its democratic allies (with the notable exception of Israel and India), it might seem as if the world is all but united against Russia and its invasion of Ukraine. But, in fact, most of the world's 195 countries have not joined in sanctions or provided assistance to Ukraine, and a few have actively provided assistance to Russia. This map looks at how countries voted on the UN resolution condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine. (Map from www.nytimes.com/2022/04/18/briefing/russian-invasion-response-world-sanctions.html.)

Year-over-year prices show inflation running at its fastest pace in 30 years as the economy and consumer spending first contracted sharply in 2020 and then quickly rebounded in 2021. But do even these prices actually reflect the true cost of goods? True Price, a nonprofit organization based in Amsterdam, is working with stores to post two prices on their goods: the price to be paid at the cash register and a price that takes environmental and other externalities into account. Let's say there are two types of apples in the store, and they both have the same posted price. But one type of apple comes from a farm 50 miles away, and the other type comes from across the country (or another hemisphere or is picked by child labor). The "true price" of both apples would also be posted, allowing consumers to make a more informed choice about which apple to buy, not unlike posting calorie information at a fast food restaurant. This article from The New Yorker profiles True Price and other organizations trying to make information about economic externalities more visible to governments and consumers.  www.newyorker.com/business/currency/how-much-do-things-really-cost

Maps are powerful and easily understood vehicles for conveying geographic information. This excellent article from Geographical (UK) looks at the some of the less-obvious issues that  data visualization professionals are needing to consider as they prepare maps about the war in Ukraine, from color choices  to spatial precision to arrows or no arrows and more. geographical.co.uk/places/mapping/item/4316-mapping-ukraine

Federal income taxes are due today. This map identifies those states that contribute the most to federal coffers. Although there is clearly a high degree of correlation with population, some states contribute significantly more than would be expected based on population alone, due to higher average wages and overall economic activity.  California contributes 50% more than #2 NY, but New York is only the 4th biggest state by population.  New Jersey is #11 by population but #8 by contribution to federal revenue.  Massachusetts is #16 by population but #9 by federal revenue, and Minnesota is #10 by federal revenue but only #22 by population.

In 1974, when philosopher Robert Nozick introduced his "experience machine," it was just a thought experiment. But with big tech's race to the metaverse, it now has more pressing applications. Although Nozick argued that most people would not want to plug into the experience machine, subsequent psychological research suggests the answer is not nearly so uniform or straightforward. This article from Philosophy Now (UK) re-visits Nozick's experience machine and some of the more recent work in this area:

"Nozick asks you to imagine a machine that can simulate every experience you would like to have until the end of your life. Once you programmed this machine and plugged yourself into it, you would not be aware that the blissful experiences you are having are simulated, and you would live out your fantasies until the end of your life. ... Let’s now go back to Nozick’s question: would you plug into the experience machine and live the rest of your life out as a fantasy? The majority of people, asked this, reply no. ... From this sort of result it has been argued that ‘mental statism’ must be false. Mental statism is the view that only how experiences feel can make a life good or bad. The experience machine allows us to have the best experiences we can imagine; and still, the study showed that a large majority have the intuition that the life plugged into it is not a good life. ... [In 2010, Filipe De Brigard] put forward the idea of the ‘reverse experience machine’. Describing a thought experiment of his own, De Brigard asked study participants to imagine finding out that they have been plugged into an experience machine up until now. At this point, they are offered the possibility to leave the virtual world they’re accustomed to, knowing that reality will be much less pleasant. Facing this scenario, only 13% of the participants said they would leave the virtual world. Thus De Brigard’s study, as well as others following it, have indicated that refusals of the original experience machine offer are largely determined by status quo bias rather than by our valuing of reality. In fact, the majority of people declare they prefer reality when thinking themselves to be in the real world, but appear to prefer the simulation when imagining themselves to already be in the virtual world! ... Time [also] seems to play in favour of the pro-machine intuition. Perhaps the more people become familiar with virtual reality technologies, the more they would be prone to plug into the experience machine."
philosophynow.org/issues/149/Robert_Nozicks_Metaverse_Machine

Earth Day is next week. This map shows (in green) the parts of the world's terrestrial surface least impacted by humans. The darker the green, the less human activity in that region. www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/where-people-arent

You can design your own opera using "Hansel and Gretel" as the template to learn about what goes into staging an opera with this interactive module from Go Classical: goclassical.org/kids/opera/opera-game

In the last two years, extremist violence in West Africa has increased significantly in frequency and spread out from its original geographic flashpoints in northeastern Nigeria and central Mali. This map shows the location of 2021 attacks by extremist groups operating in West Africa. The U.S. military and others have observed that "[t]he Islamist militants who have rampaged through the heart of West Africa in recent years are now spreading toward the Gulf of Guinea coast, including some of the continent’s most stable and prosperous countries, ... [with] militant cells infiltrating as far as Ghana and Ivory Coast, the world’s top cocoa producers." [Quote and map from www.wsj.com/articles/sahel-based-militants-edging-south-toward-west-africas-most-stable-and-prosperous-states-11646221800.]

This article from Popular Mechanics explains the use and specs of the various loitering drones (the so-called "kamikaze" drones because they have no landing gear and are designed to detonate themselves and their explosive payload when they reach their target) currently being used in Ukraine: www.popularmechanics.com/military/weapons/a39517660/kamikaze-drones-in-ukraine/

If you're planning a summer vacation, you might want to check out this article from Conde Nast Traveler that features "the most beautiful place" in all 50 states: www.cntraveler.com/gallery/the-most-beautiful-place-in-every-us-state

Even though continued labor shortages are giving employees the best leverage in a generation to raise their wages, the federal minimum wage remains at $7.25 per hour, meaning that many employees, especially in specific parts of the country, are still making less than $15 per hour and are particularly vulnerable to inflation driving up the costs of food and fuel. This interactive map from the British anti-poverty organization Oxfam shows the fraction of each state's labor force earning less than $15 per hour and allows users to also slice stats by race, gender, age, and marital status. www.oxfamamerica.org/explore/countries/united-states/poverty-in-the-us/low-wage-map-2022/

TikTok is not known for its intellectually deep, thoughtful content. But more philosophers are taking to TikTok to bring philosophy to a new audience. This article from Slate profiles some of the philosophers creating content for TikTok, like a TikTok rap song on utilitarianism, and a bit of the controversy around repackaging philosophy for a medium like TikTok: slate.com/technology/2022/03/philosophy-tiktok-academics-social-media.html

Where are Ukrainians taking refuge? For now, primarily in neighboring countries. Poland has taken in more than half of the roughly 4 million people who have left Ukraine. This map (like last Thursday's geo-graphic) is from Statista based on data from the UN High Commissioner on Refugees: cdn.statcdn.com/Infographic/images/normal/26960.jpeg

The Penn Museum's free, online At-Home Anthro series is designed to introduce K-8 students to topics and hands-on projects in archaeology, anthropology, and world cultures. Upcoming events feature Pomo basketry, Middle Eastern incantation bowls, and weaving with recycled materials. Classes are live on Tuesdays 1:00-1:45 ET: www.penn.museum/events/kids-family/at-home-anthropology-live

As of late last month, an estimated 4 million people had left Ukraine, 9% of the population. This geo-graphic from Statista, based on data from the UN High Commissioner on Refugees, puts Ukraine in the context of previous refugee crises since 1960: www.statista.com/chart/27151/largest-refugee-crises-since-1960-by-peak-number-of-refugees

A recent Pew Research Center study asked Americans what they think of artificial intelligence and "human enhancement." The survey asked about "six developments that are widely discussed among futurists, ethicists and policy advocates. Three are part of the burgeoning array of AI applications: the use of facial recognition technology by police, the use of algorithms by social media companies to find false information on their sites and the development of driverless passenger vehicles. The other three, often described as types of human enhancements, revolve around developments tied to the convergence of AI, biotechnology, nanotechnology and other fields. They raise the possibility of dramatic changes to human abilities in the future: computer chip implants in the brain to advance people’s cognitive skills, gene editing to greatly reduce a baby’s risk of developing serious diseases or health conditions, and robotic exoskeletons with a built-in AI system to greatly increase strength for lifting in manual labor jobs." The results are summarized here: www.pewresearch.org/internet/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2022/03/PS_2022.03.17_ai-he_00-01.png  (from www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/03/17/ai-and-human-enhancement-americans-openness-is-tempered-by-a-range-of-concerns)