Back to School: Sharpen Your Geography Knowledge #30DaysofGOOD

30 Days of GOOD (#30DaysofGOOD) is our monthly attempt to live better. This month we're going "Back to School" and committing to learn something new every day.

Where on Earth are you?

Today's task is to become more familiar with the world we live in. What you specifically study is up to you. Maybe learn the names and locations of the national capitals. Or brush up on the locations of the 50 U.S. states. Personally, I'm going to commit to understanding the geography of Asia.

There are innumerable resources online that make learning about geography a lot more fun than you might remember from your days of sitting through classroom lectures. Search the web for a guide, map, or game that suits you, then spend some time today digging in. Here are a few places to start.

Learn World Geography in 14 Minutes is a (strangely mesmerizing) YouTube video that guides you through the world to the sounds of a classical music score. It's a quick primer that really does the trick.

Geosense is a web game you can play by yourself or against a random player. Select a continent map or a world map to play on, and the game asks you to identify a variety of cities. If you answer wrong, Geosense shows you the city's correct location, so you can learn it for next time.

There are many mobile apps to help you master geography while on the go. If you're an iOS user, try TapQuiz Maps World Edition, a free game that measures your ability to point out cities, states, and countries around the world. It tracks your stats so you can easily see which part of the planet you need to study.

For Android, take a look at the free World Citizen: Geography Quiz, which not only tests your ability to find countries and capitals, but also helps you learn the flags of the world.

For further exploration, Fact Monster keeps a handy directory of geography resources and links. There, you'll see maps, profiles of the world's countries, and some neat tools like a longitude and latitude finder. Also check out Lizard Point's long list of geography quizzes—they're a lot of fun and updated frequently.