AP Human Geography Unit 5 Vocabulary

early hearths of domestication of plants and animals

- Southwest Asia (Fertile Crescent) - Indus River Valley (India) - Southeast Asia - Central America (Mesoamerica)Fertile Crescent: hearth of early agriculture and early civilization (Cradle of Civilization) most credited with Southwest Asia (Tigris and Euphrates floodplains)

economic effects on food production practices

- the location of food processing facilities and markets- economies of scale- distribution systems- government policies

global diffusion of First Agricultural Revolution

First Agricultural Revolution: dating back 10,000 years, when humans achieved plant and animal domestication Columbian Exchange: facilitated the global diffusion of plants, animals, diseases, human population, culture, technology, and ideasGlobalization of Agriculture: improvements in transportation and communication technologies create a variety of goods offered year-round, when they traditionally were only available seasonally e.g. strawberries in winter

consequences of the Green Revolution (Third Agricultural Revolution) for both human populations and the environment

Green Revolution (Third Agricultural Revolution): high yield seeds (hybrid and/or GMOs), increased use of chemicals, mechanized farming, and elaborate irrigation systemspositive impact: increase in food supply more crops grown on same size land improvement in varietiesnegative impact (population and environment): destroying local land and traditional modes of agriculture production decreasing biodiversity (hybrid seeds diminish local plant diversity) impact of chemicals

advances and impacts of the Second Agricultural Revolution

Second Agricultural Revolution: improved methods of cultivation, harvesting, and storage of food that started in the Middle Ages and THEN benefited from the Industrial Revolution with the use of machines and new technologyeffects of Second Agricultural Revolution: better diets longer life expectancies increase in population more people available to work in factoriesIndustrial Revolution: the transformation from an agricultural society to an industrial society with the introduction of power driven machines in manufacturing, mining, transportation, and agriculture

commercial agricultural operations are replacing small family farms

agribusiness: a large-scale mechanized farming business that is controlled by corporate interests, agriculture is gradually being controlled by a small number of large corporations instead of many independent farmers feedlots/Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs): animals kept and raised in confined spaces and given hormones and/or antibiotics and/or fattening grains to prepare them for slaughter at a much quicker pace than traditional forms e.g. cattle, swine, poultry

agricultural innovations

agricultural biotechnology: the use of scientific tools and techniques to modify plants/animals genetically modified organisms (GMOs): plants or animals whose DNA has been genetically modified, often through combination of DNA from a similar plant or animal species for desired traits positive impact of GMOs: greater outputs on smaller pieces of land, less need for chemicals negative impact of GMOs: unknown health effects, unknown effects on pollinating insect populationaquaculture: raising of fish and shellfish in ponds and controlled saltwater hatcheriesissues with agricultural innovations - sustainability- soil and water usage- reductions in biodiversity- extensive fertilizer/pesticide use

extensive farming practices

arming that uses smaller amounts of labor/money in relation to the land areashifting cultivation (slash and burn): - cultivation of crops in tropical forest clearings using a natural rotation system - the forest vegetation is cleared by cutting and burning - the result is a layer of ash that contributes to the soil's fertility - farmers move to another parcel of land when the soil becomes infertile nomadic herding (pastoral nomadism/transhumance): seasonal migration of domesticated livestock, usually fixed territory between highlands & lowlands ranching: the business of raising livestock (cattle, sheep)

ntensive and extensive farming practices are determined in part by land costs

bid-rent theory: theory that shows what various land users are prepared and able to pay for access to the center market (CBD) the further from the center market (CBD), the lower the cost for a site intensive and extensive farming practices are in part by land costs extension of the von Thünen model

societal effects of agricultural practices

changing diets: - MDCs: continued demand for meat - LDCs: growing demand for meat, as well as convenient, processed foods (western diet) role of women in agriculture: increased contributions to rural economies, especially in LDCs economic purpose: - farmers in LDCs growing cash crops for consumers in MDCs instead of food for local people - farmers in LDCs growing crops for illegal drugs instead of food crops - farmers in MDCs and LDCs growing crops for bio-fuel

complex commodity chains link production and consumption of agricultural products

commodity chain activities involved in the creation of a product: design, production of raw materials, manufacturing and assembly, distribution

many LDCs have a high dependency on a single agricultural commodity

commodity dependency: highly dependent on one or more export commoditiese.g. coffee in Haiti, tea in Sri Lanka, bananas in Costa Rica, sugar in Cuba, cotton in Somalia, cocoa beans in Ghana

environmental effects of agricultural land use

desertification: process by which fertile land becomes desert as a result of human activity (inappropriate agriculture/overgrazing)soil salinization: process by which the amount of salt increases in the soil (irrigation)land cover change: process by which agricultural areas are lost to developmentpollution: process by which soil is contaminated by chemicalsconservation efforts of agricultural land: improve soil structure to protect against erosion and nutrient losses sustainable agriculture: farming methods that are profitable, environmentally sound and good for communities

technology has increased economies of scale and the carrying capacity of the land

economies of scale: cost advantages gained by an increased level of production e.g. agribusiness v small family farm

intensive farming practices

farming that uses significant amounts of labor/moneymarket gardening: small scale food production (fruits/veggies) for sale at local marketsplantation agriculture: cash crops (cotton, coffee, sugar, tea) grown on large estates, usually for export; a legacy of colonizationmixed crop/livestock systems: combination of cash crops and livestock to complement land and labor demands across the year

challenges of feeding a global population include lack of food access

food insecurity: the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food food desert: geographic area where large grocery stores are scarce or missing and residents have limited access to fresh nutritious foods, typically found in urban, low-income neighborhoodsglobal food distribution: global hunger and food insecurity are the result of complex factors including increased demand for grain to be used to feed animals and for bio-fuels (grains are fed to animals for human consumption and in bio-fuels)food distribution problems: inadequate transportation networks to markets, inability to afford the costs of production and consumption, inadequate number of markets and ways to access those marketsadverse weather: agricultural production can be affected by high temperatures, drought, flooding, storms, freezessuburbanization: agricultural production can be affected by the growth of residential areas

global food distribution networks

global food distribution: networks that are affected by political relationships, infrastructure, and patterns of world trade

ood and other agricultural products are part of a global supply chain

global supply chain: a worldwide network to maximize profits in production

agricultural practices and land use patterns

influenced by physical environment and climatic conditionsclimatic conditions: how weather affects agricultural practices and productstropical climate: hot humid climate that produces certain plants, such as cassava, banana, sugar cane, sweet potato, papaya, rice, maize, Mediterranean climate: dry-summer climate that produces certain fruits, vegetables, and grains such as grapes, olives, figs, dates, tomatoes, zucchini, wheat, barley and prevails along the shores of the Mediterranean, in parts of California and Oregon, in central Chile, at South Africa's Cape and in parts of southwestern and southern Australia

types of land survey systems

long-lot survey system: divided land into narrow parcels stretching back from rivers, roads, or canals giving each household equal access to water resources reflects a particular approach to surveying that was common with French areas in Americametes and bounds survey system: survey of irregularly shaped tracts of land (does not conform to rectangular system of surveys) relies on descriptions of land ownership in reference to natural features such as streams, hills, trees, etc. that was common in English areas in Americatownship and range survey system: rectangular survey system used by the U.S. federal government to divide the land into a grid like pattern designed by Thomas Jefferson to facilitate the dispersal of settlers evenly across farmlands of the US interior

geographic variations in female roles in food production and consumption

role of females: increased role in food production and consumption that varies depending on the region/community e.g. crops, fruits/vegetables, livestock, fisheries/aquaculture, MDC, LCD

rural land use patterns

shaped by agricultural practicesrural settlement patterns: clustered, dispersed, linear

agricultural land use alters the landscape

slash and burn (shifting cultivation): clearing an area in a tropical forest for planting by burning the vegetationterraces: flat steps are created on the sides of hills to create more land for farmingirrigation: artificial application of water to land for the facilitation of agriculturedeforestation: clearing of forest to make the land available for other uses (agriculture/livestock)draining wetlands: drainage for agricultural purposespastoral nomadism: pasture land that is used for animal grazing

agricultural production regions

subsistence agriculture: only enough food is cultivated to survive (no surplus to sell) and often land is held in commoncommercial agriculture: the production of crops for sale (profit) monoculture: growing one crop in a farm system at a given time mono-cropping: growing one crop in a farm system year after year multi-cropping: growing several crops in a farm system

food production and consumption are influenced by social movements

value added foods: foods that have increased in value due to alterations in production, size, shape, appearance, location, and/or convenience organic farming: crops produced without the use of synthetic or industrially produced pesticides and fertilizers or genetically engineered seedsurban farming: agriculture takes the form of roof-top, balcony, backyard gardening, as well as in vacant lots and parks in an urban areacommunity-supported agriculture (CSA): individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that the growers and consumers provide mutual supportfair trade: trade between companies in MDCs and LDCs in which fair prices are paid to the producerslocal-food movements: movement of people who prefer to eat foods which are grown relatively close to the places of sale and preparationdietary shifts: movement from a diet of processed food, meat, fat, and sugar to one that will promote good health, ideal weight, and prevent chronic disease (fruits, vegetables)

von Thünen model helps explain rural land use patterns

von Thünen model: explains what economic activities are located where and why explains the location of agricultural activities by emphasizing the importance of transportation costs associated with distance from the market describes what should be grown where in relation to the market illustrates the relationship between land cost and transportation cost distributes various farming activities into concentric rings around a central market city regions of specialty farming do not always conform to concentric rings