Antarctica is the center of important scientific research. However, with an increasing number of day, scientists have to leave their work to greet a group of tourists who are taking a vacation in this continent of ice. Even though their desire to enjoy this vast and beautiful landscape can be appreciated, Antarctica should be closed to tourists.
Tourists in Antarctica can damage scientific research and hurt the environment. When tourist groups come, they take scientists away from their research. The work is difficult and some of the projects can be damaged by such simple mistakes as opening the wrong door or knocking against a small piece of equipment. In addition, tourists in Antarctica can also hurt the environment. Members of Greenpeace, one of the world’s leading environmental organizations, complain tourists leave trash on beaches and disturb the plants and animals. In a place as frozen as Antarctica, it can take one hundred years for a plant to grow back.
The need to protect Antarctica from tourists becomes even greater when we consider the fact that there is no government here. Antarctica belongs to no country. Who is making sure that the penguins, plants and sea are safe? No one is responsible. It is true that the number of tourists who visit Antarctica each year is smaller compared to the number of those who visit other places. However, these other places are controlled by local governments. They have an interest in protecting their natural environments. Who is concerned about the environment of Antarctica? The scientist, to be sure, but not necessarily the tour companies that make money from sending people south.
If we don’t protect Antarctica from tourism, there may be serious consequences for us all. We might lose the results of scientific research projects. It’s possible that these results could teach us something important about the causes and effects of climate change. Some fragile plants and animals might die and disappear forever. This could damage the balance of animal and plant life in Antarctica. We know from past experience that when things get unbalanced, harmful changes can occur.
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Is “Virtual Reality Tourism” About to Take Off?
For many people, a trip to German’s fairytale-like Neuschwansein castle, or the pristine waters of the Maldives are a bucket list ambition. Plans for these and other international trips were brought to a sudden stop by the COVID-19 pandemic. Around the world, once-crowded sights largely at a standstill, with hotels empty and not a tourist in sight.
It’s predicted that travel will not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024. In the absence of travellers, hotels and destinations have turned to virtual reality(VR) to keep would-be-visitors interested and prepare for the long road to recovery.
Faced with a new reality of depressed tourism, many believe that VR can stimulate a potential audience’s appetite. The further this pandemic goes on for, the higher the chance that VR may become an effective form of alternative travel as consumers get more used to this technology. In this environment, a number of countries have stepped up VR marketing efforts to prepare for the gradual recovery of their tourism industries. Among the most noticeable is Germany, which has unveiled a number of immersive projects to highlight the country’s potential as a travel destination. VR also helps to boost travellers’ confidence. As restrictions ease in the not-so-distant future, VR will be a vital tool in helping familiarize travellers with a new environment and help slowly rebuild consumer confidence. “As we start to recover, there will be some people that will be willing to travel like crazy. Younger people will be booking flights as soon as possible,” says Mr Flecha, a travel and hospitality expert for the multinational consulting firm Accenture.
We know technology is already changing how we travel, and its applications are essential elements in keeping interest in tourist spots alive during travel restrictions, getting potential customers excited about the products and providing inspiration for real world travel. Some, however, believe digital applications cannot, and are not intended to, replace the experience of real-world travel.
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Most people all over the world travel by road. In a city in Italy, however, waterways makeup the primary commuting routes. The city of Venice is best known for its canals. Unfortunately, this beautiful city of flat-bottomed boats (Gondolas), and churches is sinking and sinking fast.
Known as the “Queen of the Adriatic”, Venice is situated on more than one hundred islands formed by canals between the mouths of the Po and Piave Rivers. And even the bits of firm ground have rather boggy foundations and all these are slowly getting eroded (腐蚀).
The existing groundwater table and the global climate changes that have raised sea levels by several inches, are proving its disaster for the city. As sea ice melts and water levels rise, floods in Venice are getting from bad to worse. And buildings are already feeling the impact of this phenomenon, with their foundations literally being shaken. Take one of the most famous landmarks of Venice for example, the St. Mark’s Basilica, now leans slightly to the left.
Experts warn that the city may sink an additional eight inches in the next 50 years. Many scared residents have already started to move to drier regions in Italy’s mainland. To deal with the flood threat, a group of Venetians, called the New Venice Consortium, has come up with “Project Moses”—a dam project named after the biblical figure, Moses. The idea is to place underwater gates at different points where the Adriatic Sea enters the lagoon (环礁湖). When the water is low, the gates will remain open and as the water rises, the gates will close, preventing the seawater from flooding Venice. However, some people disagree with this idea. Environ mentalists point out that the gates would have to remain closed most of the time and seawater will not be able to move in and out of Venice. As a result the lagoon water will become stagnant (停滞的), harming the fish and plants that live there. Until a viable (可实施的) solution is found out, Venice, it seems, would continue to be threatened by floods.
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