The town being built on the declivity of that high tract of land called Cape Spartel (the Cape Cottes or Ampelusian of theancients), it is seen at a great distance; but on entering the bay, it appears to the best advantage. It is defended by two martello towers, a castle, and a large battery; but I am confident that it could not with stand the attack of a few English frigates, and that such a f…
Wiseman is in the Arctic, a hundred kilometres north of the polar circle. In summer, the sun does not set there and, in winter, it’s pitch black for days. According to the census, the former gold-rush boomtown had just fourteen inhabitants in 2010: seven men and seven women. In the farthest northern region of the USA where Wiseman lies, wild animals have outnumbered humans several times over …
Alexander von Humboldt starts his “Critical Inquiries” in 1852 withthe observation that the miscalculation of one authority has triggeredmany forms of human action in exploring the planet. It is for him theact of travelling that generates knowledge and ultimately drives forwardhuman intellectual progress, even if the travellers themselves might bemisguided. Human triggers and reasons for tr…