5 ms·
>> "do you really need one in a desert anyway" Do you really need to live in a desert? Why would a human civilisation choose to live in a place that lacks an e
by k-mcgrady 10y ago
>> "do you really need one in a desert anyway"
Do you really need to live in a desert? Why would a human civilisation choose to live in a place that lacks an essential ingredient for life? It seems we choose to do this in deserts all over the world so there must be a reason.
- StavrosK 10y agoBecause it looks like human civilisations choose to live everywhere.
- massysett 10y agoBecause the desert might have other things humans find useful, such as minerals.
- CydeWeys 10y ago99.9% of the people living in Phoenix and Las Vegas aren't there to mine minerals. This is just a complete non sequitur. For an actual example of towns that exist primarily to supply labor for resource extraction, look at the Canadian towns in the Alberta tar-sands region. They are much, much smaller.
- massysett 10y agoMany of them probably live in Phoenix in part because they like the climate--thus, there is something there that people find useful.
- jlg23 10y agoFirst of all they usually settle within walking distance to a source of fresh water - some areas in Israel are the great exemption here. And there is plenty of reason: * historic: a lot of trade routes for sought-after goods went through deserts * economic: rich fishing grounds just off the coast - see Western Sahara for an example (Boujdour and Dakhla being the main cities) * economic: a lot of nomadic farmers live in deserts because they provide just enough food for the livestock * politics: keep disputed areas occupied (Israel and Western Sahara as examples) * politics: borders - these things tend keep people from freely moving to more hospitable areas * nature: some think deserts are beautiful (count me in) * spiritual: very low population density and a very tight connection to the forces of nature appeal to some people