15 inspiring nature words you didn't know you needed

Hundreds more are documented in Robert Macfarlane's Landmarks.

Photo: Ahmed Saeed / Unsplash
  • In Landmarks, Robert Macfarlane revives hundreds of nearly-forgotten words to remind us of our relationship with nature.
  • New dictionaries are deleting nature words while adding technology terms, which Macfarlane states further separates us from the environment.
  • The words we speak shape the reality we understand, making it essential to aptly describe what is happening on the planet.
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climate change language ecology anthropocene biodiversity nature

The joy of French, in a dozen maps

Isogloss cartography shows diversity, richness, and humour of the French language

  • Isogloss maps show what most cartography doesn't: the diversity of language.
  • This baker's dozen charts the richness and humour of French.
  • France is more than French alone: There's Breton and German, too – and more.
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language maps

How to keep your audience engaged

Tips on telling human stories that audiences want to hear from start to finish.

  • The most important part of being a writer is feeling that you're not important and that the work you're doing is not about you.
  • "A journalist is someone who is willing to disappoint themselves with the truth."
  • Every piece of journalism has a narrative arc, and that arc is integral to any human storytelling.
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writing storytelling learning teaching creativity language motivation

This incredible interactive map plays the 13 emotions music makes us feel

It doesn't matter where you're from — music is an emotional powerhouse.

  • Over 2,500 people from the U.S. and China listened to the same music and were similarly affected by it.
  • The study identifies a specific set of feelings that music can evoke, which you can experience in this incredible interactive map.
  • Further research can use these findings to figure out how music stirs emotion in us.
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neuroscience emotions psychology art language entertainment music

One map to translate them all

European Word Translator: a simple idea adds a cartographic flourish to Google's online translation service

Image courtesy of James Trimble
  • Google lets you translate text into one language at a time.
  • This translator shows you one word in all languages – on one handy map.
  • It's simple, instructive, and fun (a.k.a. móka, Spaß and zábava).
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communication Language Maps