Asian Geographic Magazines

Prominence, while not a gauge of the difficulty of the climb, is another good measurement of the height of a mountain.

Today, we look at the familiar map and see the seemingly stable shapes of the land, but we are just catching a moment in a much more complex dance.

They were all waiting for the same thing. When a squawking chicken tumbled over the volcano’s rim into their line of sight, nets moved in unison trying to predict the hapless fowl’s trajectory. Only one villager might have enough luck to bag the bird; while others can only wait for more to come.

Oval faces and almond eyes characteristic of the ethnic Han Chinese people are hardly seen in this oasis city at the northwestern tip of the country, located almost 4,000 kilometres from Beijing. Belonging to the Uyghur ethnic minority, the people of Kashgar are of Turkic origin, following the Islamic faith and with Central Asian physical features.

In every society there are those who do not play by the rules, and who dream of taking long journeys of pilgrimage. In our Solar System, these maverick renegades are also the most mysterious; they are the comets that bring magic and wonder to our night skies. Unexpectedly, and beyond our wildest imaginings, they are the source of all true magic – they hold the key to the origins of life on Earth.

It was quite a strange position to be in, to have a streak of nervousness coursing through me when really I had no idea what I was nervous about. I found myself on a plane, and seated beside me was the Nobel Laureate in Medicine, Sir Richard J. Roberts – or Rich as I later know him – and we were headed into the dark zone.

Lush emerald rice paddies provide textural contrast to limpid fish ponds filled with ceaselessly darting pearly carp, attesting to the abundant bounty of the Pearl River Delta, South China’s blessing.

This year the Vienna-based International Peace Foundation (IPF), along with the Korean National Peace Committee, took a significant step toward raising awareness for peace. A series of educational events were held, which included the participation of three Nobel prize laureates for the first time in North Korea. The laureates were there to share their expertise in the fields of economics, medicine and chemistry with university students in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).