Geographical explorationGeographical exploration, sometimes considered the default meaning for the more general term exploration, refers to the practice of discovering remote lands and regions of the planet Earth. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most of Homo sapiens history, saw humans moving out of Africa, settling in new lands, and developing distinct cultures in relative isolation.
Exploration of the PacificEarly Polynesian explorers reached nearly all Pacific islands by 1200 CE, followed by Asian navigation in Southeast Asia and the West Pacific. During the Middle Ages, Muslim traders linked the Middle East and East Africa to the Asian Pacific coasts, reaching southern China and much of the Malay Archipelago. Direct European contact with the Pacific began in 1512, with the Portuguese encountering its western edges, soon followed by the Spanish arriving from the American coast.
Jean Joseph MounierJean Joseph Mounier (12 November 1758 – 28 January 1806) was a French politician and judge. Mounier was born the son of a cloth merchant in Grenoble in Southeastern France. He studied law, and in 1782 purchased a minor judgeship at Grenoble. He took part in the struggle between the parlements and the court in 1788, and promoted the meeting of the estates of Dauphiné at Vizille (20 July 1788), on the eve of the French Revolution. He was secretary of the assembly, and drafted the cahiers ("notebooks") of grievances and remonstrances presented by it to King Louis XVI.
Exploration of North AmericaThe exploration of North America by European sailors and geographers was an effort by major European powers to map and explore the continent with the goal of economic, religious and military expansion. The combative and rapid nature of this exploration is the result of a series of countering actions by neighboring European nations to ensure no single country had garnered enough wealth and power from the Americas to militarily tip the scales over on the European continent.
Danielle StordeurDanielle Stordeur is a French Archaeologist and Directeur de Recherche at the CNRS. She is also Director of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs permanent mission to El Kowm-Mureybet (Syria), replacing Jacques Cauvin in 1993 until 2010, when Frédéric Abbès is due to take over this position. Member of the Editorial Committee of 'La Revue Syria' and BAH publications. Member of the Editorial Committee of 'La Revue Neo-Lithics'.
Calvin VeltmanCalvin Veltman (born 1941) is an American sociologist, demographer and sociolinguist at the Université du Québec à Montréal. He previously worked at the State University of New York at Plattsburgh. In the United States, his work on English use and acquisition among Hispanics is well known.
Grande Médaille d'Or des ExplorationsThe Grande Médaille d’Or des Explorations et Voyages de Découverte (Great Gold Medal of Exploration and Journeys of Discovery) has been awarded since 1829 by the Société de Géographie of France for journeys whose outcomes have enhanced geographical knowledge.
Jacques JaubertJacques Jaubert (born 26 July 1957) is a French prehistorian and professor of Paleolithic archaeology at University of Bordeaux 1. He obtained his MA and PhD at University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne. He obtained his Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches (HDR) in 2000 at University of Toulouse-Le Mirail with a thesis entitled Middle Paleolithic and Early Upper Palaeolithic in Southwestern Europe and Northeastern Asia. He is a member of the editorial boards of a number of international journals, including Archaeology, Ethnology, and Anthropology of Eurasia.
Georges VilleGeorges Ville (23 March 1824 – 22 February 1897) was a French agronomist and plant physiologist born in Pont-Saint-Esprit. In 1843 he started his career as an interne in pharmacy. From 1857 to 1897 he held the chair of Physique végétale at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle in Paris. He is known for his research involving the absorption of nitrogen by plants.
Heroic Age of Antarctic ExplorationThe Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration was an era in the exploration of the continent of Antarctica which began at the end of the 19th century, and ended after the First World War; the Shackleton–Rowett Expedition of 1921–1922 is often cited by historians as the dividing line between the "Heroic" and "Mechanical" ages. During the Heroic Age, the Antarctic region became the focus of international efforts that resulted in intensive scientific and geographical exploration by 17 major Antarctic expeditions launched from ten countries.
