“Gaps” in Climate Change Knowledge: Do They Exist? Can They Be Filled?
Published version
Peer-reviewed
Repository URI
Repository DOI
Change log
Authors
Hulme, Mike https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1273-7662
Abstract
There are many different ways of thinking about gaps in knowledge. Engraved on the copper face of the Lenox Globe circa 1500, one of the oldest known terrestrial globes, are the evocative words: “Here be dragons.”1 This was used by cartographers to signify dangerous or unexplored territories and drew on a long history from classical times when lack of knowledge equated to danger. This danger was illustrated visually by filling blank areas of maps with fierce-looking sea serpents, dragons, or mythological creatures to warn travelers of the risks they might face. For any user of the map, understanding where the boundaries of knowledge lay was almost as important as knowledge itself. Illusory knowledge was the greatest danger of all.
Description
Keywords
47 Language, Communication and Culture, 44 Human Society
Journal Title
Environmental Humanities
Conference Name
Journal ISSN
2201-1919
2201-1919
2201-1919
Volume Title
10
Publisher
Duke University Press