Coğrafya Öğretmeni/Yazar Doğu ATEŞ

        D. Doğu ATES Geography Teacher   When the idea of conducting a geomorphological study on Göbeklitepe* and its surroundings emerged, I found myself entertaining quite different thoughts. The Quaternary geology and geomorphology methodologies I was accustomed to typically involved external observation and non-analytical features. However, many of the studies conducted on Göbeklitepe and the “Pre-Pottery Neolithic Period” sites around Şanlıurfa, now referred to as Taş Tepeler (Stone Hills)**, included quantitative methods such as dating and pollen analysis. Knowing that I couldn’t directly perform dating, I set out for Göbeklitepe with Dr. Yetmen. Göbeklitepe is located on a hill near Örencik Village, 18 km northeast of Şanlıurfa city center, north of the Harran Plain. The mentioned hill is a part of the Anatolian Plateau (D III Upper Pliocene) that has been fragmented by the branches of the Euphrates River and has survived to the present day. The wide plains on the horizontal Miocene and Upper Miocene limestone, which have remained undisturbed, appear as a structural plateau extending over the Miocene-Upper Miocene limestone when viewed from the surrounding depressions. However, when evaluated from a broader perspective, it is evident that the Upper Pliocene surface randomly cuts through the…

        D. Doğu ATES Geography Teacher     As the MTA Cave Research Unit’s four-wheel-drive Land Rover jeep climbed the slope, a sense of fear enveloped us. We were about to enter the “Black Hell” cave, a place we had heard about from various people and in different locations multiple times, and we would be mapping it for the first time. From a distance, on a gently sloping hillside where the Obruk Plateau descends into the Konya Plain, a clean container was visible. The scout said, “Here it is. The cave is just over there.” When you reach the right side of the container, you’ll notice a hole about four or five meters in the ground. That’s the cave’s entrance.” In the top right corner of the photo, I am standing. I am wearing an orange jumpsuit. The tall person in front of me (on the left), wearing a yellow jumpsuit, is Emrullah ÖZEL, a geographer and geomorphologist. I don’t remember the other friends individually. However, I do recall that someone from the Biology Department of Ankara University joined us in entering the cave.     Emrullah ÖZEL, a geomorphologist, actually drove the jeep in that direction….

        D. Doğu ATES Geography Teacher   According to data from AFAD, a devastating earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 struck at 4:17 a.m. on February 6, with its epicenter in Pazarcık, a district in Maraş. The earthquake caused widespread destruction and loss of life across numerous provinces. Initially announced as a 7.4 magnitude quake, AFAD later revised it to Mw 7.7. The earthquake was felt in other countries and was classified as a Level 4 disaster. It was recorded as the most powerful earthquake in Turkey since the 1939 Erzincan earthquake. Numerous aftershocks followed, and at 1:24 p.m. on the same day, another earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 struck Elbistan, also in Maraş. Rescue efforts continued in harsh winter conditions in the severely impacted cities. A report by journalist Hakkı Özdal published in Evrensel newspaper and subsequent announcements revealed that 53,000 lives were officially lost in the earthquake zone. However, unofficial death toll estimates raised further concerns. The most serious statement came from CHP Adana Deputy Müzeyyen Şevkin, who pointed to claims that “300,000 GSM lines and 183,000 credit cards have remained inactive since the earthquake.” This was interpreted as a sign that the death…

D. Doğu ATES Geography Teacher   “I understand the logic and purpose of all subjects, but geography feels completely outside my area of interest. After all, I can easily find all kinds of information about any place thanks to communication tools. Even when I change neighborhoods within the city, I can learn in just a few seconds what I can do, what I can eat, which streets to explore, or what historical sites to focus on by using my smartphone. Beyond that, I can instantly find the height of mountains, the depth of oceans, or the features of lakes through Google. So, is there really a need for this memorization-based subject? Soon, thanks to thousands of satellites orbiting the Earth, we will be aware of everything on the planet, even ‘a fly taking off from the ground.’ Given this, why do we need a subject that forces us to memorize information about places on Earth?” This question, posed by Boran, a 17-year-old student in Ankara, to his teacher, raises an important issue: How should we respond to convince him and make him appreciate geography? Indeed, by 2025, the speed of information circulation worldwide has reached an incredibly high level*. The…