Professor Barry Prentice and his ISOPolar Group are to be commended for calling the attention of the world (or at least that part that pays attention to something beyond the latest sports scores). By naming his challenge "... to the Arctic", he has done a first-rate job of bringing the challenges of transportation in an area rich with a culture increasingly stranded without vital supplies as well as with increasingly important natural resources.
... and yet, Cable television is also doing an excellent job of reminding us of the many other areas of the world where geology and lack of infrastructure either hinder development or impose horrendous penalties of risk and difficulty on taking advantage of the possibilities.
We're talking about the South American Andes mountain range where a misstep of two feet (less than one meter) or a judgment call of similar size while driving supply trucks can precipitate disaster. Arguably the most difficult driving in the world, shipping supplies by motor truck remains an incredible challenge to skill and human nerve.
It also reminds us that there are other, similar, logistical challenges in the world. The Indian Sub-continent, bounded by the Himalayan mountain range on one side and the Indian Ocean on the other, effectively seals the boundaries of one of the most vibrantly alive, burgeoning economies in the world.
If truly wish to open boundaries, as our small efforts in open economic borders seem to indicate, carefully weigh the difficulties of supply and access by land routes to billions of people, not only rich in cultural heritage, but representing a major market. ... and we haven't even begun to think about sub-Saharan Africa.
We cannot just depend on surface transportation, and we must pursue the technologies that would permit us to fully expand our horizons to communicate to, engage in commerce with, and supply the many forgotten peoples of the world.
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