Journey To The End Of The Earth
Learning objectives and outcomes
Title
Lesson Objectives:
- To understand the significance of geological phenomena in tracing the history of mankind.
- To explore the formation of landmasses and countries and understand their geological processes.
- To recognize the impact of human endeavor in attempting to dominate nature.
Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:
- Describe the role of geological phenomena in understanding the history of mankind.
- the impact of human activities on nature and the environment.
- Reflect on the experiences and perspectives shared by Tishani Doshi and the group of students who explored Antarctica.
- Develop a sense of awe and appreciation for the wonders of the natural world and the importance of its preservation.
Theme:
- The lesson highlights the significance of geological phenomena in tracing the history of mankind and understanding the formation of landmasses and countries.
- The author emphasizes the human impact on nature and the desire to exert control over it.
- The exploration of Antarctica, particularly the landmass under the ice cap, is seen as a potential source of valuable information regarding the birth and evolution of our planet, its connection to the solar system, and galactic evolution.
- The author had the opportunity to travel with a group of students who were engaged in exploring the continent of Antarctica.
- The author describes her experience of encountering the mysteries of the icy region as exhilarating, suggesting the awe-inspiring nature of the journey and the discoveries made.
Theme
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
- Tishani Doshi is an Indian poet, journalist, and dancer based in Chennai. She was born in Madras, India, on December 9, 1975, to a Welsh mother and Gujarati father.
- Doshi holds a master's degree in creative writing from the Johns Hopkins University. In 2001, she was awarded the Eric Gregory Award for her work.
- Her first poetry collection, "Countries of the Body," received critical acclaim and won the 2006 Forward Poetry Prize for the best first collection.
- In 2017, Doshi published her most recent book of poetry titled "Girls Are Coming Out Of the Woods," which was published by HarperCollins India.
- Apart from her poetry, she also writes a blog called "Hit or Miss" on Cricinfo, a cricket-related website.
PART 1
What do you think the author means by Journey to the End of the earth?
"If you want to know more about the planet’s past, present and future, the Antarctica is the place to go to. Bon Voyage!"
- Tishani Doshi had the unique opportunity to visit Antarctica, one of the world's most preserved places, as part of an expedition with a group of teenagers affiliated with the 'Students on Ice' program.
- The expedition to Antarctica provided Doshi and the young participants with an exceptional opportunity to explore and learn about this remote and untouched region.
- The expedition led by Tishani Doshi highlights the importance of visiting Antarctica to truly understand the realities of our world and the need to protect and preserve such unique environments.
- The journey of the author began 13.09 degrees north of the Equator in Madras.
- She was heading towards the coldest, driest , windiest ,continent in the world on a Russian research vessel — the Akademik Shokalskiy.
- She had traveled over 100 hours to set foot on the Antarctica continent
- Her first emotion on seeing Antarctica's e white landscape and uninterrupted blue horizon was relief.
- A giant amalgamated southern super-continent Gondwanaland existed, centered roughly around the present-day Antarctica
- For 500 million years Gondwana thrived, but around the time when the dinosaurs were wiped out and the age of the mammals got under way, the landmass was forced to separate into countries, shaping the globe much as we know it today.
- The author went to Antarctica to be a part of that history, and with that information, know where the future will lead us to
- She also mentions she visits Antarctica to understand the significance of Cordilleran folds and pre-Cambrian granite shields; ozone and carbon; evolution and extinction.
"When you think
about all that can happen in a million
years, it can get pretty mind-boggling."
A PART OF HISTORY- II
- In the later part of the passage, we understand that the author is a sun-worshiping South Indian, who found the idea of spending two weeks in a place like Antarctica, where 90 per cent of the Earth’s total ice volumes is stored, to be very chilling both for circulatory and metabolic functions, and also for the mere imagination.
- She tells us how Antarctica is devoid of any human markers- no trees, billboards, buildings and how we lose all earthly sense of perspective and time here.
- It’s an immersion that will force you to place yourself in the context of the earth’s geological history.
- And at last, we get to know that for humans, the prognosis (a forecast of the likely outcome of a situation) isn’t good.
- Human civilizations have been around for a paltry 12,000 years.
- In that short amount of time, we’ve managed to create quite a ruckus.
- The rapid increase of human populations has left us battling with other species for limited resources, and the unmitigated burning of fossil fuels.
- Scientists warn that a further depletion in the ozone layer will affect the activities of phytoplankton, which in turn will affect the lives of all the marine animals and birds of the region
- The author was working with a programme called "Students on Ice".
- It aims to do exactly this by taking high school students to the ends of the world and providing them with inspiring educational opportunities.
- It was headed by a Canadian, Geoff Green.
- With Students on Ice, he offers the future generation of policy-makers a life-changing experience at an age when they’re ready to absorb, learn, and most importantly, act.
WALK ON THE OCEAN-I
- Though the author's experience was full of such epiphanies (a sudden realization), in her opinion, the best one she encountered was 65.55 degrees south to the Antarctic Circle, where the ship had to stop as it could not pass through.
- The author expected them to turn around, but instead all 54 members walked on a stark whiteness, putting on their Gore-Tex and glares. Below them was a meter thick of ice pack, under which was the ocean itself.
- She then witnesses Crabeater seals which were stretching and sunning themselves on ice floes much like how stray dogs will do under the shade of a banyan tree, and finds it nothing short of a revelation (an interesting realization/
connection).
WALK ON THE OCEAN-II
- The author ends the paragraph with unanswered questions, where she wonders if Antarctica would become a warm place, like how it used to be a long time ago, and even if it does, will we humans be able to witness it or if we also would be extinct just like the dinosaurs, mammoths and woolly rhinos.
- But most importantly, after spending two weeks with a group of teenagers, she realizes that a lot can happen in a million years, but a single day can make a lot of difference. This is mentioned by the author as a wake-up call for her readers, to let us know that we need to take actions this very day to save our environment, and what we do in a single day, can heavily impact our environment, be it good or bad.
Q1
What do you think the author means by Journey to the End of the earth?
Answer: The author calls it a journey to the end of the earth because it began 13:09 degrees North of Equator in Madras, involved crossing nine time zones, six checkpoints, three oceans and as many ecospheres. She travelled over 100 hours in combination of a car, an aeroplane, and a ship.
Identify Tishani Doshi's writing style in Journey to the End of the Earth
Why is Antarctica and its understanding important for the survival of the world?
Answer: Antarctica and its understanding is important for the survival of the world because it helps us to know that the southern supercontinent of Gondwana existed and centered around the present-day Antarctica. Human beings had not come on the global scene, but a huge variety of flora and fauna was present in the supercontinent. It was after 500 million years that the landmass was forced to separate into countries that exist today. Antarctica’s ice-cores hold over half-million-year-old carbon records which are crucial for the study of the Earth’s past, present and future.
Differentiated tasks:
ALL: Answer the following based on the text:
- What are Geoff Green’s reasons for including high school students in the Students on Ice expedition?
- Take care of the small things and the big things will take care of themselves.’ What is the relevance of this statement in the context of the Antarctic environment?
MOST: Write a poem about “The end of the world”
SOME: Write an essay on what you think “The end of the world” will be like.
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