Geography 208 Final
Know states in this region. (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
Minnesota- iron, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa & Illinois- corn, Missouri,Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, & Kentucky- coal, New York, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Ontario (little bit).
Know native peoples named in book. (California)
Miwok,Yurok and Yokut
What are some effects of globalization on North America in the 21st century? (The Future of North America)
More trade with other nations, and a faster spread of values
What are Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa, and Kilauea? (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Shield volcanoes.
How do water resources/availability in these regions affect economies and populations?(Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
Since a large part of the economies in this area are agricultural based and water resources are not abundant, having your farm next to a river or stream becomes very important. This leads to a lot of disputes
What are the primary economic bases of these regions? (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
• ranching- mining- lumbering • silver, gold, lead, and zinc. Not agriculture due to steep slopes. Mining mineral deposits and running cattle is a major primary base in the rockys. Farming is prevalent in the intermontane region though.
What are some progressive elements in present-day the South? (The Inland and Coastal South)
Civil Rights movement, Colleges (Roll Tide), Technology industry, diverse populations, The end of jim crow laws, the tech industry, strong educational institutions in the south (Ex: Emory, Duke, Chapel Hill) (cities: athens, raleigh = examples of more liberal aspects of the south in comparison to mainly conservative cities.)
What are some characteristics of transportation in this region?(The Far North)
Dog sleds, boats, snowmobiles, planes -Lack of highway and rail connections; greater use of aviation. Lack of adequate transportation network leads to high cost for services
What are major hazards? (California)
Earthquakes, drought, landslides
Why is this region considered to be especially environmentally conscious?(Pacific Northwest)
Ecotopia: Because it is. We care more than you do! Isolation has something to do with it also. Oregon farmers turned to grain for local markets, Washington did similar with produce (they were eating the foods they were growing) Salmon! Oceanic Fishing
Know the States in these regions. (The Inland and Coastal South)
Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Missouri
What are the landforms of this region? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
Great Lakes; lies between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains (this is the occupation of America's large central lowland). -rivers, lakes, waterways, - flat to gently rolling hills
What are the landforms of these regions? (The Inland and Coastal South)
Gulf of Mexico, Appalachian Mtns, Mississippi River, Gulf Coastal Plains, Lowlands
What is Hawaii's landform? (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Hot Spot Waimea Canyon on Kauai is one of the island's most dramatic landforms, and across the larger islands fertile mountain valleys, volcanic craters, deep canyons and waterfalls are also commonplace.
What natural hazards are present in Hawai'i? (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Tsunamis, hurricanes, volcanic eruption, landslides, extreme weather
What is a maquiladora and some effects of maquiladora? (MexAmerica)
• A manufacturing operation in the free-trade zone. Most of the workers don't have higher education. These are often owned by US companies because of the cheap labor. located mostly in the border of US and Mexico - Effects: environmental problems, social inequalities, severe poverty
How do the concepts of "melting pot" and "cultural pluralism" compare? (The Future of North America)
melting pot: used to describe the assimilation of immigrants to North America. A metaphor to describe the fusing together of different nationalities, customs and ethnicities. Cultural pluralism is a term used when smaller groups within a larger society maintain their unique cultural identities, and their values and practices are accepted by the wider culture provided they are consistent with the laws and values of the wider society.
What does endemic mean?(Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
native to its current zone of habitation Restricted or peculiar to a locality or region, native to its current zone of habitation
What have been significant aspects of transportation for this region? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
-Boats, trains and the Erie Canal. -Chicago=very linked with the train system -Train/railroad system extended coast to coast. -Automobiles were in the early 20th Century -Big 3 automakers= Ford, GM, Chrysler -The great lakes can connect to the Atlantic, allowing boats to come from Europe into the Great lakes to deliver/take goods.
How can we characterize Chicago and Detroit in terms of demography and civil rights history? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
-Chicago and Detroit were both major destinations for African Americans escaping the south during the great migration between 1910 and 1970 -Chicago's African American population grew by 600,000 in 20 years. -Many african americans escaped by train to chicago and detroit thanks to their vast transportation system. -Chicago was one of very few cities that actually integrated migrated A.A. into their society rather than segregating them to a lower class
What are some characteristics of Toronto? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
-Political and economic development shifted over to the wealthy British Elite. -Blossomed after the WWII era -Lots of immigrants which enlarged the city -Growing rapidly -Largest city -Today it is vibrantly sophisticated -The city is very exciting and diverse because of the flood of immigrants. Now, it has a lot of cultural diversity paralleled to Chicago. More than half of its population is born outside of Canada. -Very open to immigrants - Canadas major industrial center, and ecumenic and political core
What are suburb, exurb, and urban sprawl? What are the main impacts of urban sprawl in North America today? (The Future of North America)
-Suburbanization: Spread of settlement in cities outward from the center, usually as a result of transportation improvements and economic development outside the central city. -Exuburbanization: A term used to describe the growth of areas on the fringes of major cities. It is one of the many causes of the increase in urban sprawl. -Urban sprawl: A multifaceted concept that includes the outward spreading of a city and its suburbs to its outskirts to low-density and auto-dependent development on rural land.
What are some of the impacts of the Great Lakes on this region? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
-The great lakes have a moderating effect with the land around them. Influence is on extending the growing seasons. -LAKE EFFECT: cold air moving up and over body of water, cold air over a body of water evaporates and is swept away. A very narrow band of heavy snowfall, this is a big deal and brings blizzards. It regulates temperatures -Summer weather includes tornadoes and thunderstorms.
What is the Ogallala Aquifer and why is it significant? (The Great Plains)
-accounted for nearly 30 percent of all groundwater used for irrigation across the country -being withdrawn from faster than it is being replenished -increased costs of pumping and water in general -pesticides seeped into water deteriorating its quality -led to new ideas on how to conserve water
Characterizes demographics in this region. (The Far North)
....
What are characteristics of California's population, historically, and today?
....
What was the Oregon Trail?(Pacific Northwest)
A 2000-mile historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between 1840s and 1860s.
What is an archipelago? (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
A chain of islands with the same geological structure often form by volcanoes
What is plantation agriculture and how was this related to slavery? (The Inland and Coastal South)
A plantation is a large piece of land area where one crop is intentionally planted for widespread commercial sale. The crops typically grown include cotton, tobacco, rice, and sugar cane.Slave labour extracted from forcibly transported Africans was used extensively to work on early plantations.
What is the Northwest Passage and why was it important?(The Far North)
A sea route connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Archipelago of Canada. Sought by explorers for centuries as a possible trade route, it was first navigated by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen with a small expedition in 1903-1906.
What are some challenges faced by these regions today? (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
Battle over the use of water: "the first one to use it gets it." - climate change -immigration influx causing more developments to take place
Why was this region attractive to the Latter Day Saints (Mormons)? (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
Because the region is secluded, isolated and harsh. Meaning that they moved away from people and moved into harsh climate so that they could practice their religion without outside interference. Wanted to escape persecution for their religious beliefs.
What characteristics of this region have contributed to its isolation?(Pacific Northwest)
Being Isolated, Surrounded by Mountains, Desert, Coast
How does petroleum production compare to the fisheries industry in Alaska?(The Far North)
Both are the extracting of resources
Know the states in this region. (MexAmerica)
California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, (Mexico...), Nevada
Characteristics of the landform of this region. (Pacific Northwest)
Cascadia. Cascades Mountains, Columbia River, Coast, Shipping Bay, Puget Sound, Willamette Valley, Columbia Plateau, Glaciers, Siskiyou Mountains, Volcanoes
Be able to recognize the names of several major Northwest Native American/First Nations tribes. (Pacific Northwest)
Chinook, Salish, Kwakiutl, Haida, Spokane, Tillamook, Umpqua, Snoqualmie, Wenatchee, Yakima, Puyallup, Walla Walla, Klamath, Okanagan, Umatilla,
What Native Peoples are named in the textbook? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
Chippewas, Ottawas, Hurons, Shawnee
What is Hawaii's main economic base and what are some related issues?(Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Main economic base is tourism, the problem is the state relies on other people to bring in money, and not their own people and resources
What are some weather hazards in these regions? (The Inland and Coastal South)
Hurricane, Flash Floods, Tornados, Thunderstorms
What is the Western Continental Divide?(Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
In North America, the Western Continental Divide is an imaginary line that sits atop a continuous ridge of mountain summits that divide the continent into two main drainage areas. On one side of the continental divide the water will flow to the pacific while the other will flow to the atlantic
Be able to recognize the names of several major indigenous peoples of this region. (The Far North)
Inuit, Taiga, Cree, Ojibways, Athabascan, Aluet
Why has this region developed a connection to the Pacific Rim?(Pacific Northwest)
It is the closest geographically to that region. Shipping is easier. Since the region is isolated from the rest of the country. Lot of immigrants from the region (Asians in BC, Pacific Islanders in WA/OR) It is located on the Pacific Rim (Faults/Earthquakes). (also, a lot of people liked the movie)
How is the region connected to the Underground Railroad? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
It's connected to African-American migration, pre-civil war period, some African American slaves escaped from their masters and fled northward with the support of the Underground Railroad. Some of these slaves made it as far as southern Ontario and Nova Scotia in Canada, where many of their descendants still live.
What were the Jim Crow laws and when/how did they end? (The Inland and Coastal South)
Jim crow laws were centered around the concept that black people and white people were separate but equal jim crow was deemed unconstitutional by the supreme court in 1954 and ended
What was the significance of the DEW line? (The Far North)
Joint US and Canadian project designed to establish radar stations for tracking potential attacking Soviet aircraft and missiles
What economic sectors are represented in this region and what are some examples?(Pacific Northwest)
Logging, Fur Trade, Agriculture, Fishing, Organic Farming, Shipping, Airplane Building (Boeing) Microsoft, Starbucks, Nike,
How does the history and present state of Native Hawaiians compare to other native peoples in North America?(Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Native Hawaiians were not really forced off of their land the way other native peoples in North America have been, such as First Nations and Native Americans, allowing them to better preserve their culture.
Know the native peoples named in the book. (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
Northern Paiute, Western Shoshoni/Northern Shoshoni, Ute, Wishram, Walla Walla, Umatilla, Cayuse, Nez Perce, Flathead, Modoc, Klamath
Know the states/provinces in this region. (Pacific Northwest)
Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska
What is permafrost and what problems does it cause? (The Far North)
Permanently frozen soil, rock surface or subsurface, can't farm with permafrost. When permafrost melts it releases a lot of methane which contributes towards global warming
What major environmental issues does North America face today? (The Future of North America)
Pollution, habitat loss, shortage of natural resources, global cooling/warming/climate change
Where did Native Hawaiians' ancestors come from? Why has their arrival in the islands been considered puzzling?(Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Polynesia by boat: Europeans brought religion, foreign species, etc.
How are North American economies changing and what are some positive and negative aspects? (The Future of North America)
Positives - increased production in tertiary and quaternary sectors, at a time where the economy is more globalized Negatives - decreased production from primary and secondary sectors, causing fewer locally generated industries of growth. (e.g. - production being outsourced, which hurts lower and middle class)
What are several negative social issues that exist in the present-day South? (The Inland and Coastal South)
Poverty, Racism, Health issues (Obesity), sexism/gay movements, indian removal acts
What were the Native American urban relocation programs? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
Program in the 1950s that encouraged native americans to move off reservations and onto urban areas (specifically 7 major cities) given temporary housing, guidance in finding jobs, community/social resources, and an allowance Indian Relocation act of 1949
Know native peoples named in textbook.
Pueblo culture area along the Rio Grande, Apaches, Tohono Oodham, Apache, Navajo, Comanche
What are several key events and issues related to Hawaii's statehood?(Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Queen Liliuokalani was deposed in 1893, which promoted establishing trade and a naval post with the United States
Know the characteristics of the landforms of this region. (The Great Plains)
Relatively flat- grass covered dune fields "flat as a pancake
How has Hawaii's location contributed to the development of and threats to native species (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Since its isolated, they can't travel to other lands and have adapted to the land. Non-native species brought by colonizers and settlers have severely damaged the populations of native species, and many have gone extinct.
What are the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and what is their composition? (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Small islands and atolls in the Hawaiian island chain located northwest of the islands of Kauai and Niihau, composed of coral
How did life for African Americans change in the years following the abolition of slavery? (The Inland and Coastal South)
Southern planters and newly freed slaves began to enter into tenancy agreements in which many former slaves became tenant farmers or sharecroppers which perpetuated the poverty many in the south faced.
What main tropical crops have been grown on the island?(Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Sugarcane, pineapple, tropical crops, kona coffee, macadamia nuts, papaya fruits
How do Hawaii's mountains affect its climate and weather? (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
Temperature and precipitation can vary dramatically due to different elevation, especially in the northeast. Much drier on the windward coasts, adaptive radiation -They dictate where the rain falls by where their position is in relation to the land. This affects where the rain shadow occurs and where more rain falls and where "desert" climate forms.
How is the Indian Removal Act connected to the Trail of Tears? (The Inland and Coastal South)
The Indian Removal Act authorized a large-scale removal and resettlement of Native Americans to "Indian Territory" in Oklahoma. During the 1830's, thousands of Cherokees, Choctaws, Creeks, Chickasaws, and Seminoles were forcibly relocated to Oklahoma which is now known as The Trail of Tears.
Why does the phrase "boom and bust" apply to this region and to which industries can it be applied? (The Great Plains)
The area is characterized as boom and bust because it is dependent on agriculture and natural resources. Boom and bust refers to alternating periods of economic growth and decline. This means that agriculture and natural resources fluctuate in terms of weather patterns, which then affects the economy.
What is "adaptive radiation"? (Hawaii and The Pacific Islands)
The diversification of an ancestral group of organisms into a variety of related forms specialized to fit different environments or ways of life,each often further diversifying into more specialized types.
What was the Homestead Act and when was it enacted?(The Great Plains)
The homestead act provided a quarter section (160 acres) of federal land to settlers who agreed to live upon, cultivate, and improve the property. It was enacted in 1862 when it was passed by the U.S. Congress. Following the Civil War, many settlers took advantage of this act and migrated westward. -caused westward migration -open to both Americans and Immigrants
What is a colonia? (MexAmerica)
• A node of Latin American settlement in rural and small town places in the Southwestern part of the U.S. Colonias are unregulated settlements that began to emerge with the advent of informal housing -often lack plumbing,
What is altitudinal zonation? (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
average temperatures decrease as elevation increases, resulting in changes in vegetation patterns. On a mountain, there will be different bands of vegetation in relation to the altitude levels
Demography and population change. (The Future of North America)
• Aging population o Contrast between two different types of older people (people with financial means being able to migrate and move to different locations i.e. sun city Arizona---retirement communities and communities appealing to older people. Lots of retail and medical services. VS. group of people unable to do this w/out as much means. They are in rural areas and "stuck" in appalachia, great plains and atlantic periphery. The issue coming along with this is that younger people in these areas--esp. economically depressed--younger people move out to find better economic means, leaving older people isolated and stuck.) • Social security and medicare o V. Important. • Migration/Location
What is "American exceptionalism" and in what ways has this shaped US/Canadian relations? (The Future of North America)
• American Exceptionalism: A worldview that the United States occupies a special role among the nations of the world in terms of its national ethos, it's political and religious institutions, and its development by immigrants.
What is the historical relationship between Mexico, Texas, and the US? (MexAmerica)
• Annexation of Texas in 1845→ war with Mexico. • After the war ended in 1848, the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ceded present-day New Mexico and Arizona to the United States. • When Texas (new mexico and arizona) became part of the US, many of their residents were of Spanish or Mexican ancestry. Many other Mexicans migrated into South Texas in large number after 1880 to work on ranches and farms that grew with the expansion of irrigation systems in the lower Rio Grande Valley. • 2010, Mexican-born, Mexican-heritage and Spanish-heritage resident comprised over 46% of new Mexico, 37.6% of Texas and over 29% of Arizona. • The Alamo
Know the states/provinces of this region. (The Far North)
• British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Nunavut, Northwest Territories, Alaska, Yukon
Why is water such a major issue in CA? How have water issues been dealt with historically and today? (California)
• California has a large population and high-intensity agriculture that depend on importing vast amounts of fresh water. • Water imports are needed because more than 70% of the state's precipitation falls in its northern mountains, but more than 80% of California's water is used by urban residents, industries and agriculture in the much drier and more densely populated south. • This extreme discontinuity between water availability and water needs means that access and control of water has been the single most important factor controlling the development of much of california. • Result = construction of massive water projects (i.e. large-scale irrigation, imported water, crops grown with irrigation, Extensive dam building by the federal government made for storage and delivery of vast amounts of water.) • The dam building/other projects have profound environmental impacts. • CALIFORNIA WATER PLAN (california aqueduct extending from Lake Oroville in the North to Los Angeles); y funded)LOS ANGELES WATER PROJECT (siphons off water from Owens Valley); CENTRAL VALLEY PROJECT (federally funded) • WRIGHT ACT (1887, large scale irrigation became legal)
What are the landforms of California? (California)
• Coastal ranges, Central valley, Sierra Nevada mountain range, Mojave Desert • Lateral faults, strike-slip faults (San Andreas Fault) • Interior Valleys • Mountains are parallel to the coast • High mountain ranges in the east
What are the two plateaus in the Intermontane region? (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
• Colorado plateaus • Columbia plateaus
Be able to recognize the names of several major Plains Native American tribes. (The Great Plains)
• Dakota Sioux, Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole, Plains Cree, Blackfeet, Crow, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Pawnee, Kiowa, Comanche
What was the Dust Bowl and why did it occur? (The Great Plains)
• Dust Bowl: an area where windstorms caused severe soil erosion. • it occurred because the absence of prairie grasses that had once stabilized the region's soil.
Know the main issues related to US-Mexico immigration policy.(MexAmerica)
• Hard feelings about being neighboring countries and having strict border policies (from Mexico) • Increased border enforcement would force migrants to find even more dangerous and remote places to cross the border, putting their lives at risk. • Debate whether illegal immigrants actually hurt the economy or not. -Overpopulation, loss of jobs to persons not paying taxes and government money spent on illegal immigrants for education, health care benefits, housing benefits, and food stamps
What are the impacts of climate change in this region? (The Far North)
• Ice sheets are melting making it harder for polar bears to survive, • greenhouse effect induced global warming, • because of melting ice from global warming, water levels are rising
Know the states/provinces in these regions. (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
• Intermontane West: o Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico • Rocky Mountains: o Central New Mexico, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, British Columbia, Alberta, Yukon Territory
What sectors of economic activities are represented in this region? How have these changed over time? (Corn Belt and Great Lakes)
• Long growing season=production of corn, soybeans, fruits, dairy, hogs. • Moving towards a post-industrial economy. -Family farms to cash grain farms - Rust Belt: steel production and industrial materials (rapidly declining in its economic importance, losing to competition from production in the Sun Belt
Know the characteristics of the climate of this region. (The Great Plains)
• Mid-latitude steppe (dry) • Humid continental (warm summers) • Humid continental (cool summers) • Complex mountain • Humid subtropical (no dry season, hot summers) • Unpredictable weather (blizzards, thunderstorms, droughts or dry, floods, tornadoes. • Ex. Tornado Alley • Dust Bowl: an area where windstorms caused severe soil erosion. • Ogallala Aquifers: groundwater flow -unpredictability -variability -extremes from day to day, month to month, and year to year -relatively dry with strong seasonal changes and dramatic changes in temp/precip -hot summers, cold winters -Blue Northers: cold(freezing) fronts from Canada, travel as far south as Texas -Chinook winds: warm, dry winds that blow from the Rockies
What are NAFTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership? (MexAmerica)
• NAFTA= North American Free Trade Agreement (1994, agreement negotiated by US, Canada, and MExico to remove barriers to free trade through the gradual elimination of tariffs, a variety of fees, and import quotas among the three participants. • Trans-Pacific Partnership= Seeks to manage trade, promote growth, and regionally integrate the economies between North America and Eastern Asia.
What are the landforms of this region? (The Far North)
• Northwest Canadian shield, the Arctic, Laurentian Plateau, the NW highlands, yukon basin/plateaus, Interior plains, Hudson bay lowlands • Lakes, wetland areas
What are major primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary economies? (California)
• Primary: Agriculture (grains, fruits and vegetables) • Secondary: Defense industry • Tertiary:Entertainment Industry/Hollywood • Quaternary: Silicon Valley/technology
What are orographic effects? (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
• Rainfall that results from or is enhanced by mechanical lifting of an air mass over mountains. • "orographic lifting" = uplift of an air mass due to physical barrier of resulting in cooling temperatures. • "orographic precipitation" = rainfall or snowfall caused by the cooling of air masses that are forced to rise over high mountain barriers.
What are the landforms of this region? (MexAmerica)
• Representative of southern extensions of the mountain ranges to the North of MexAmerica. • To the West, there are rugged mountains interspersed with plains. • Extension of the Basin and Range topography of the Intermontane West. • Mountains, Isolated Peaks
Know the characteristics of the landforms of these regions.(Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
• Rocky Mountains: o Glaciers o Volcanic and Geothermal activates o Altitudinal zonation o High peaks (Mt. Elbert, in CO, is highest) o V-shaped valleys (created by water) o U-shaped valleys (receding glaciers) • Intermontane: o Basin and range (Great Basin) o Plateaus (Columbia Plateau) o Great Columbia Plain o Fault-Block mountains o Arroyos o Hills o Landforms shaped by: volcanism, faulting, erosion, tectonic uplift, glaciation. o Alluvial Fans (fan shaped patterns that become more complex as they become occupied by those who tap wells into subsurface water tables) o Flat-topped mesas, hills, tilted flat-block mountains etc...
What are the important features of this region's landscape and climate? What are some of the implications of these features? (MexAmerica)
• Rugged Terrain • Aridity and Precipitation • Heat IMPLICATIONS • Limited agriculture • Impact of human habitation • Potential future shortages of water
What are important tectonic activities? (California)
• Strike-slip faults (San Andreas Fault) • Lateral Faults • EX: Northridge Quake (1994) • Juan De Fuca moving under the N. American Plate
How have Spanish, Mexican, and indigenous cultures affected this region? (MexAmerica)
• The built environment • urban layouts • Architecture • FOOD: ingredients and styles • MUSIC: traditional and modern (mariachi, ranchera, norteño) • High % of Mexican Americans residing in the U.S. Mexico border states, which defines and delineates the region. • The two contrasting cultures plus one of the longest political boundaries in the world has had a large impact on the political economy of this region. • It is a relatively poor and isolated region, however it is positioned as a gateway, allowing it to achieve substantial growth in population and income in recent years.
What were some of the effects on this region of the Transcontinental Railroad and the Canadian Pacific Railroad? (The Great Plains)
• The completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 attracted many settlers • The transcontinental Canadian pacific Railroad also played a significant role in the settlement of the region. It also helped link British Columbia with the rest of Canada, and encouraged the growth of cities in Quebec and Ontario. The decision to build this railroad in the southern part of this area in the Canadian Prairies also ensured the primacy of some of today's most important cities in the region, including Calgary and Regina. • Through both railroads, many migrants moved from the Great Plains to the west from the eastern United states and Canada, while others came directly from europe.
What is the Pacific Rim? Why is it important? (California)
• The pacific rim is a political and economic term used to designate the countries on the edges of the pacific ocean as well as the various island nations within the region. • It is important because it links the economies of North America and Asia. • High movement in trade in goods and commodities and an increasing number of asian firms maintain offices and production facilities in california. These firms maintain offices and production facilities in California. These firms import thousands of managers, engineers and scientists from Asia to California.
How has the topography of these regions affected settlement? (Rocky Mountains and Inter-montane West)
• The rockies act as a barrier for any large weather system that moves onshore along the Pacific Ocean. • The Rockies are also responsible for the Chinook Winds (snow eaters), winds warm very fast as they flow down the side of the mountains, warming up the temperatures and creating a vast increase in snow melt on the sides of the mountains and down into the valleys. • Cold air trapping-Nebraska and south dakota are kept colder because pressure system from Canada moves southward towards the plains, trapping the cold air on the front range.
Know the states/provinces in this region. (The Great Plains)
• U.S: Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma,Texas, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico • Canadian provinces of Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
What are reasons for high biodiversity/ endemic species in this region? (California)
• Variety of climates, topography and natural barriers. • Mountain ranges are relative to prevailing winds and pressure cells that create a diversity of climates ranging from hot and dry deserts to places that receive more than 300 inches of snow per year. These landform and climate patterns in turn create a variety of ecological niches that support numerous types of vegetation ranging from cactus to redwoods over 30 stories tall. -Many biotic and abiotic processes influence biodiversity important for ecological, economic, and medicinal reasons
What are the climate regimes? (California)
• temperatures and precipitation levels vary considerably, but generally follow the same seasonal trends in patterns. • Most of California has a mediterranean climate with cool and occasionally rainy winters and long summers with warm to hot temperatures and little to no precipitation. • Climate is cooler and wetter in the North, along the coast and in the mountains.
