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Abstract
Although most Americans are geographically illiterate, they possess a strong innate curiosity about the world. Many geographers share that curiosity, as well as a visceral love of maps and of places. These shared curiosities and enthusiasms form a natural link between professional geographers and the lay public. If geographic illiteracy is to be banished, however, professional geographers must learn both to satisfy the public's curiosity and to touch the public's heart. That can be done best if geographers cultivate their abilities to describe the world in ways that are appealing aesthetically as well as intellectually. To do that, geographers must master new technologies to create vivid images, television in particular. Still more important, human geographers need to recover old knowledge and old skills that they have allowed to atrophy: a command of history and physical geography, the capacity to make handsome maps, and especially the ability to recognize and write vivid attractive English. Above all, students should be encouraged to pay close attention to the tangible world, and to retain their enthusiasm for the wonders of the earth.
