Given the increasing importance of rare earths, countries with large reserves are gaining significant economic and political influence.

Tom PattersonThe Equal Earth map projection. An accurate world map is something that has evaded cartographers for centuries. But this new design just might make distorted maps a thing of the past.

This does have its drawbacks, as the Earth is round, but pages are flat, so what we see on a map is slightly distorted.Globes and maps are how we’ve seen the world for hundreds of years.

They have to compromise. Map makers use map projections to transform the Earth onto a flat surface. One of the most popular world map projections is known as the Mercator Projection. You’ll have ...

For decades environmentalists have warned that ever-rising numbers of people and their impact on the Earth's finite resources ... harder to ignore. In this map-based feature, gauge the scope ...