Praxis 5086 (Geography)

Ravenstein's Laws of Migration

1. Most migrants travel only short distances. 2. People living in rural areas are more likely to migrate. 3. Migrants who do travel farther tend to choose big cities as their destination 4. Large towns grow by migration instead of by natural growth. 5. Mostly adults migrate. 6. Young adults are more likely to cross borders than families who tend to migrate internally. 7. Every migration steam has a counter-stream.

The Demographic Transition Model ties the changes in population to economic development by making two major assumptions:

1. all population growth is based on economic status 2. all countries pass through the same economic stages

Antecedent Boundaries

A boundary line established before an area is populated.

Forward Capital

A capital city placed in a remote or peripheral area for economic, strategic, or symbolic reasons.

Primate City

A city in which all of the resources are concentrated, with smaller cities serving as support for the primate city.

Chain Migration

A common pull factor for new immigrants are previous immigrants to a place.

Prorupted States

A compact state with a large projecting extension.

International Trade Approach

A country focuses on products that it can provide to the rest of the world.

Heartland Theory

A geopolitical hypothesis, proposed by British geographer Halford Mackinder during the first two decades of the twentieth century, that any political power based in the heart of Eurasia could gain sufficient strength to eventually dominate the world. Mackinder further proposed that since Eastern Europe controlled access to the Eurasian interior, its ruler would command the vast "heartland" to the east

Nation

A group of people who identify as a group and share a culture.

Region

A group of places that share common characteristics, whether human or physical.

Net in-migration

A location attracts more immigrants than emigrants; it has high place desirability. Western Europe, US, and Canada

City

A major hub of human settlement with a high population density and a concentration of resource creation or allocation.

Cylindrical Projection

A map created by projecting Earth's image onto a cylinder.

Dependency Theory

A model of economic and social development that explains global inequality in terms of the historical exploitation of poor nations by rich ones.

Political Exclave

A part of a state that is separated from the rest of the state.

Containment

A policy to keep communism contained to the areas where it already existed.

Superimposed Boundaries

A political boundary placed by powerful outsiders on a developed human landscape.

Rimland Theory

A political theory that holds that control of Eurasia and Africa is achieved via control of the countries bordering the Soviet Union

Megalopolis

A region in which several large cities and surrounding areas grow together; a super-city.

Every map is a projection.

A representation of the Earth's features on a flat surface.

Industrial Revolution

A series of improvements in industrial technology that transformed the process of manufacturing goods. It began in Great Britain in the 1760's then diffused to Western Europe and North America by 1825.

Culture Realm

A set of cultural regions showing related cultural complexes and landscapes.

Histogram

A specific type of graph that illustrates the distribution of data and shows how frequently various phenomena occur.

Perforated States

A state that completely surrounds another.

Landlocked State

A state that does not have a direct outlet to the sea.

Multicore State

A state that possesses more than one core or dominant region, be it economic, political, or cultural.

Compact State

A state which is relatively small and nearly square or circular in shape.

Political Enclave

A state, or part of a state, that is completely surrounded by another state

Agricultural Location Theory

A theoretical model to determine how distance impacted human location decisions. This was the first model to look at economics through a geographic lens.

Pastoralism

A type of farming that emerged with the domestication of animals. Rather than raising crops, they breed and herd animals for food, clothing, and shelter.

Slash-and-burn

A way of clearing fields for planting by cutting trees, brush, and grasses and burning them.

Acculturation

A weaker culture may take on the qualities of a more powerful culture.

Rostow Modernization Model

According to the Rostow Modernization model, each stage is a function of productivity, economic exchange, technological improvements, and income. Economic growth occurs when advancing from one stage to another. Stage One - Traditional Society Stage Two - Preconditions for Takeoff Stage Three - Takeoff Stage Four - The Drive to Maturity Stage Five - High Mass Consumption

Wealth

Accumulation of goods.

Stage Four - Drive to Maturity

Advanced technology and development spread beyond the takeoff areas to the rest of the country.

Functional Region

An area defined by common movement or function. Functional regions have a focal point, called a node, around which they are organized.

Culture Region

An area in which people have many shared culture traits.

Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)

An exchange rate that determines how much currency it would take to buy the equal amounts of goods in two different countries.

Global Warming

An overall rise in the Earth's temperature.

Geographic Information Systems (GPS)

Any computer system that stores, manages, manipulates, or analyzes spatial data.

Swamps

Any wetland primarily covered in woody plants.

First Agricultural Revolution

Approximately 12,000 years ago, humans began to collect and plant seed and to raise animals for their own use.

Exclusive Economic Zone

Area in which resources found up to 200 nautical miles offshore belong exclusively to the geographically bordering country.

Equal Area Map

Area is correct but other properties are distorted.

Technopoles

Areas of high tech production like Silicon Valley in California.

Marine Climate

Areas that or near or surrounded by water; winters that rarely go below freezing and summers that stay below 70 degrees; warm and rainy.

Frontiers

Areas where boundaries are either not well-established or not maintained well.

Environmental Determinism

Argues that human behavior is controlled by the physical environment.

Cultural Determinism

Argues that the environment places no restrictions on the development of culture, and that the only restrictions come from human limitations.

Political Ecology

Argues that the government of a region affects the environment which, in turn, affects the choices available to the people.

Stimulus Expansion Diffusion

As it spreads to a new place, the new adopters may modify the idea.

Earth's Five Oceans (the biggest bodies of water)

Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, Arctic Ocean, and Southern or Antarctic Ocean

Rural

Away from the city.

United Nations Human Development Index (HDI)

Based on the idea that development is actually best measured by the choices available to the population of a country.

Stage Two

Because CDR has declined, but CBR remains high, this is a high growth stage. Many developing countries today are Stage Two countries.

Second Agricultural Revolution

Began around 500 C.E., was centered in Europe, and was marked by an increase in agricultural technology.

Rivers

Bodies of water that flow towards the ocean; the most important for the development of civilization.

Physical Boundaries

Boundaries created with naturally occurring features like rivers or mountains.

Subsequent Boundaries

Boundaries that are a result of negotiation between states, or human settlement or interaction.

Relict Boundaries

Boundaries that are no longer functioning; example, Great Wall of China

How is climate shaped?

By the latitude of a location, the amount of moisture it receives, and the temperatures of both land and water.

Stage Four

CBR and CDR are equal but at a lower rate, leading to a low RNI. The United States, Argentina, and Singapore are all Stage Four countries.

Stage Three

CBR begins to slow. Most Latin American and Asian countries today are Stage Three countries.

United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development defines several criteria for global sustainable development:

Caring for the soil, avoiding overfishing, preserving the forest, protecting species from extinction, and reducing air pollution.

The largest fully enclosed sea (or salted lake) is the ________________.

Caspian Sea

Third Agricultural Revolution (Green Revolution)

Centered on a dramatic increase in crop yields based on biotechnology.

In physical geography, one of the key ways regions are organized is by ___________.

Climate

Culture Complexes

Combination of all of their culture traits. No two cultures have the exact same complex.

Primary Geographic Data

Comes from the researcher's own observations in the field.

Agribusiness

Commercial agriculture characterized by integration of different steps in the food-processing industry, usually through ownership by large corporations.

Mixed crop and livestock farming

Commercial farming that involves both crops and animals. This was the first type of farming to emerge in the Second Industrial Revolution.

Periphery

Consists of countries with very low levels of industrialization, infrastructure, and per capita income and standards of living; most of Africa (not South Africa), parts of Asia, and parts of South America.

Core

Consists of industrialized countries, those with the highest per capita income and standard of living; United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Western Europe.

Grid of Map

Consists of lines placed on the map to aid in finding locations.

Core-Periphery Model divides the countries of the world into three groups:

Core, semi-periphery, and periphery

Less Developed Countries (LDCs)

Countries on the poorer side of the spectrum; found mostly in the Southern Hemisphere.

More Developed Countries (MDCs)

Countries on the wealthier side of the spectrum; concentrated primarily in the Northern hemisphere.

If two culture complexes have many overlapping traits, they will form a ___________________________.

Culture System

Transculturation

Cultures change by coming in contact with each other.

Secondary Geographic Data

Data taken from sources that have already collected and aggregated useful data.

Distance decay

Decline of activity or function with increasing distance from its point of origin. Example - earthquake.

In order to create a legal political boundary, four steps must be followed.

Definition, Delimitation, Demarcation, and Administration

Areas created by water:

Deltas, basins, marshes, swamps

Situation

Describes a location by characteristics relative to those around it. For example, the football stadium might be described by its relative size to buildings around it, its accessibility, foot traffic.

Site

Describes a location by its internal physical and cultural characteristics. For example, the site of a football stadium could be described by the number of seats, field, Jumbotron.

Expansion Diffusion

Describes the process of a phenomenon remaining strong at its hearth while expanding outward to new places.

Popular Cultures

Diffuse and widespread

New International Division of Labor

Division of the manufacturing process across several countries, wherein different pieces of the product are made in different countries, and then the pieces are assembled in yet another country.

Quaternary Sector

Does not deal in physical products, but instead creates, and transfers information.

Savannah

Dry in the winter and wet in the summer

Export Processing Zones (Free Trade Zones)

Duties and tariffs are waived, and restrictions on labor practices are significantly loosened. The goal is to attract factories.

Degree

Each line on a grid system is measured as a degree.

Culture Hearths

Early centers of civilization whose ideas and practices spread to surrounding areas.

Varying climates create different _____________.

Ecosystems

Four Theories of Human Environment Interaction

Environmental determinism, possibilism, cultural determinism, and political ecology

Gravitational Model

Estimates the size and direction of migration between two places.

Regional Studies

Examine the characteristic of a particular place.

Human Studies

Examine the relationship between human activity and the environment.

Legend

Explains the meaning of any symbols used on the map.

Shifting cultivation

Farmers rotate which types of crops are grown in each field in order to maintain healthy soil.

Dairying

Farming which focuses solely on bringing milk-based products to the market.

Norman Borlaug

Father of the Green Revolution; won a nobel prize for his work in 1970.

Tundra

Features extremely cold and long winters; the ground is frozen most of the year but during the short summer, the ground becomes mushy; low precipitation.

Mediterranean Climate

Features hot summers and mild winters.

Maps

Flat representations of the Earth or parts of the Earth.

Plantation farms

Focus on producing only one or two crops.

Physical Studies

Focus on the physical features of the earth.

Primary Sector

Focuses on the extraction of raw materials.

Centrifugal Forces

Forces that tend to divide a country.

Centripetal Forces

Forces that tend to unite or bind a country together.

Three types of regions:

Formal, functional, and perceptual

Middle Latitudes

From latitudes 23.5 degrees to 66.5 degrees N; have a greater variety of climates.

High Latitudes

From latitudes 66.5 degrees north and south to the poles; home to two climates: tundra and taiga.

Infrastructure

Fundamental facilities and systems serving a country, city, or area, as transportation and communication systems, power plants, and schools.

The best example of an equal area map is __________.

Gall-Peters projection

Descriptive Statistics

Geographers can develop these from tables and graphs; mean, mode, range, and average, which allow for more detailed understanding of the data.

Demographic Transition Model

Geographic tool which predicts changes in population using the crude birth rate (CBR), crude death rate (CDR), and the rate of natural increase (RNI), or how much the population is increasing based on the first two factors.

Fair Trade

Governments oversee and regulate outsourcing to ensure all workers receive a living wage.

Commercial Farming

Growing food to be sold on the market rather than to feed one's own family.

Taiga

Home to the world's largest forest lands. It also contains many swamps and marshes.

Desert

Hottest and driest parts of the Earth.

Human Environment Interaction

How do humans shape the environment and how does the environment shape them?

Movement

How do places connect to and interact with one another.

Geographers also look at soil . . .

How fertile it is, the kind of life it can support, and how easily it is shaped by wind and water.

Distribution of People

How people are spread across the Earth.

Cultural geographers are also known as _____________________.

Human Geographers

Human Territoriality

Humans desire to establish ownership of their own specific, personal space.

Net out-migration

If a location has more emigrants than immigrants. Asia, Africa, and Latin America

Irredentism

If a nation is dispersed across multiple states, that nation may strive to reunite its various parts.

Median Line Principle

If there is less than 200 miles between two countries, the ocean area is divided equally in half.

Contour Maps

Illustrate varying levels of elevation in an area. Rather than having the standard markings of latitude and longitude lines, the lines on the map connect points of equal elevation.

Urban

In the city itself.

Stage Two - Preconditions for Takeoff

In this stage, small groups of individual initiate "takeoff" economic activities. They begin to develop small industries in certain pockets of a country.

Stage Five - High Mass Consumption

In this stage, the majority of the population is employed in service, rather than factory jobs.

Buffer States

Independent states that are sandwiched between two (usually larger) conflicting countries.

Compass Rose

Indicates the four directions: north, south, east, and west.

Tropical Rainforests

Intense sun and rain every day. The combination of the two creates high humidity.

Direct Investment

Investing directly into a country's economy.

Quinary Sector

Involves those that are at the highest levels of decision-making and focuses on managing the overall functioning of the economy.

Semi-periphery

Is composed of newly industrialized countries; India, Brazil, South Africa, and China.

Swidden

Land that is prepared for agriculture by using the slash-and-burn method.

Five categories of describing a place physically:

Land, water, climate, vegetation, and animal life.

Lakes

Land-bound freshwater bodies of water; can be found in varying sizes throughout the world.

Five Themes of Geography

Location, Place, Region, Human-Environment, Interaction, and Movement.

Topical Studies

Look at a single physical or human feature that impacts the world.

Global Equations

Look at the total population of the Earth, including the number of births and deaths that occur.

Sub-global Equations

Look at total population in a given area and also include immigration and emigration as factors.

Stage One

Low growth stage. Both CBR and CDR are high making the RNI low or stationary.

Ethnonationalistic

Maintaining allegiance for their nation over the state.

Azimuthal Equidistant Projection

Maintains accuracy in scale for distances from one single point on the map to all other points; most often used in airplane routes.

Industrialization

Manufacturing becomes increasingly important to the functioning of the economy as areas develop and economies grow.

Relief Maps

Maps that depict elevation, but through shading to create a 3-D effect, rather than the drawing of lines.

Conformal Maps

Maps that distort area but keep shapes intact.

Mental Maps

Maps that exist in an individual's mind.

The largest sea is the ___________________.

Mediterranean Sea

The most used conformal map is _________.

Mercator projection

Refugees

Migrants who cross international borders fleeing persecution, governmental abuse, war, or natural disaster.

Zelinsky's Model of Migration Transition

Migration trend follow demographic transition stages. People become increasingly mobile as industrialization develops. More international migration is seen in stage 2 as migrants search for more space and opportunities already in stages 3 and 4. Stage- 4 countries show less emigration and more intraregional migration.

Degree can be subdivided into __________ and ___________.

Minutes and Seconds

Land forms categorize areas by elevation, like . . .

Mountains, hills, foothills, and plateaus on one hand and plains and valleys on the other.

Tertiary Sector

Moves, sells, and trades the products created by the secondary sector; it is also known as the service economy.

The primary driving force of globalization is:

Multinational Corporations (MNCs) or transnational corporations

Contagious Diffusion

Multiple places near the hearth become adopters, rather than the phenomenon spreading in a sequential manner. Example - flu epidemic of 1919 - people in one town became ill, then spread to people in surrounding towns.

Greenhouse Effect

Natural situation in which heat is retained in Earth's atmosphere by carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and other gases.

Suburban

Near the cit.

Push Factors

Negative aspects of the new region that make someone want to leave it.

The world's nine major river systems:

Nile, Tigris, Euphrates, Indus, Ganges, Huang He (Yellow River), Yangtze, Amazon, and Mississippi

Migration Selectivity

Only people exhibiting certain characteristics in a population choosing to migrate.

Immigrants

People moving into a place.

Emigrants

People moving out of a place.

Migration Counter-Streams

People returning home.

Stateless Nations

People that exist as a nation but do not have their own territory.

Internally Displaced Persons

People who migrate intra-nationally by moving from one part of a country to another.

Cultural Geographers

People who study the ways in which each of these human characteristics is shaped by the physical characteristics of a place.

The borders, or political boundaries, of a state can be drawn in three different ways:

Physical boundaries, cultural political boundaries, geometric political boundaries

Intertillage

Planting different crops in the same area to reduce the risk of crop failure and promote a healthier diet.

Cultural Political Boundaries

Political boundaries formed by differences in culture, such as religion or language.

Pull factors

Positive aspects of the new region that make someone want to move there.

Gnomonic Projection

Preserves the property of accuracy of distance. Every straight line on a gnomonic projection is the arc of a great circle, which represents the shortest distance between any two points on Earth; particularly useful in navigation by sea or air where direction is important.

Substitution Principle

Principle that maintains that the correct location of a production facility is where the net profit is the greatest. Therefore in industry, there is a tendency to substitute one factor of production (e.g., labor) for another (e.g., capital for automated equipment) in order to achieve optimum plant location.

Secondary Sector

Processes the raw materials extracted by the first sector.

Title of Map

Provides a description of the purpose of the map as well as the area of focus.

State

Refers to a physical place; it is any area with defined borders, a permanent population, and a relatively effective government and economy.

Special Economic Zones

Region offering special tax breaks, eased environmental restrictions, and other incentives to attract foreign business and investment.

Four Main Categories of Geography

Regional Studies, Topical Studies, Physical Studies, and Human Studies

Agglomeration

Related industries often are developed near each other in order to share resource costs.

Renewable Resources

Resources that are virtually unlimited; they can be grown and regrown. Examples - wind, sun, and plants.

Nonrenewable Resources

Resources that cannot be replaced once they are consumed. Example - iron ore, coal and petroleum.

Most common compromise maps are ________ and ________.

Robinson Projection and Winkel Tripel Projection

Seas

Salinated water; smaller than oceans and surrounded by land.

Biotechnology

Scientific modifications to seeds and fertilizers.

Scatter Plots

Show the relationship between two sets of data to allow for broader comparison.

Concentric Zone Plot

Shows urban social structures.

Culture Traits

Single aspects of a culture, like shaking hands in greeting, or eating with a fork.

Globes

Spherical representations, or models, of the Earth. They show the correct size, shape, and location of land masses, and the accurate distance between places on Earth.

Elongated States

States that are long and thin.

Satellite States

States that are technically independent, but are heavily controlled by another, powerful state.

Fragmented States

States that consist in several pieces; example, Indonesia is comprised of 16,000 islands

World Systems Analysis Theory

States that the global system is a capitalist system interlocked by competition, both political and economic.

Structural Adjustments

Stipulations that require the country receiving an international loan to make economic changes in order to use the loan.

Geometric Political Boundaries

Straight-line boundaries that do not relate to the cultural or physical features of the territories involved.

Geography

Studies the physical space of the earth and the ways in which it interacts with, shapes, and is shaped by its habitants.

Grid System

System on globes or map used to identify location. The earth is divided by imaginary, equidistant lines running vertically and horizontally to create a grid.

Scale of Map

Tells the reader the relationship between the unit of measurement used on the map and real distances on the earth.

Comparative Advantage

The ability of a country to produce a good at a lower cost than another country can.

Milkshed

The area surrounding the market in which fresh milk could be safely transported.

Transition Zones

The areas between regions. They are marked by a greater diversity of cultural traits; furthermore, they more often experience conflict.

Climate

The average weather for a specific location or region. It is based on monthly and yearly temperatures, as well as the length of the growing season.

Delimitation

The boundary must be drawn onto a map.

Definintion

The boundary must be legally described. This is where most of the negotiation between states takes place.

Demarcation

The boundary must be marked, in some way, on the physical landscape.

Administration

The boundary must be policed and enforced.

Basins

The bowl-like land that catches water and directs it toward a river.

Ranching

The commercial grazing of animals; focuses on one animal byproduct.

Ecosystem

The communities of living organisms and nonliving elements of an area.

Balkanization

The disintegration of a state into smaller pieces.

Friction of distance

The extent to which distance interferes with the spatial interaction.

Subsistence Farming

The farmer grows only enough food to feed his own family.

Deltas

The flat plains created by deposits from diverging branches of a river.

Culture

The human characteristics of a place. These include the shared values, language, and religion of the people living in a location or region.

Cultural Landscape (Built Landscape)

The impact a culture has on its environment: what kind of buildings or infrastructure did it create?

Latitude

The lines that run horizontally around the Earth, parallel to the equator.

Longitude

The lines that run north and south from pole to pole. Also called meridians.

Core

The location of the concentration of power.

Prime Meridian

The meridian, designated at 0° longitude, which passes through the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England.

Compromise Map

The most commonly used maps. they distort all four properties to some degree in order to minimize distortion overall.

Density

The number of people in a particular area.

Carrying Capacity

The number of people the area can support.

Relative Location

The object in question is positioned in relation to something else.

Migration Diffusion

The original adopters move but the idea or trait lasts only a short while in the new place.

Relocation diffusion

The original adopters move from the hearth to a new place, taking their ideas with them. Example - Mormons moved west from New York State to Illinois and then to Utah.

Migration

The permanent relocation of an individual or group from one home region to another region.

Material Components of a Culture

The physical artifacts that can be left behind, like a bowl or religious icon.

Domino Theory

The political theory that if one nation comes under Communist control then neighboring nations will also come under Communist control.

Outsourcing

The process of moving production to a different country.

Space-time compression

The reduction in the time it takes for something to reach another place. Example - Earthquake and tsunami in Japan had significant consequences as far away as Chicago.

Territorial Morphology

The relationship between a state's size, shape and location and its political situation.

Formal Region

The shared characteristics define the region. Example, the Middle East is a formal region, as the area has common physical and cultural traits.

Migration Streams

The specific spatial movement from the starting location to the destination.

Hierarchical Diffusion

The spread of an idea from persons or nodes of authority or power to other persons or places.

Cultural Diffusion

The spread of ideas, customs, and technologies from one people to another. Sometimes this occurred through inheritance.

Spatial Diffusion

The spread, or movement, of people, things, and ideas across space.

Deglomeration

The spreading out of industries because of traffic, restricted labor pools, over-taxed resources. They also move to places with lower labor costs, even though it may incur higher transportation costs.

Political Geography

The study of a political organization - another human characteristic of place.

Demography

The study of human population.

Geopolitics

The study of the interaction between states, politically and territorially.

Economy

The system by which a country produces, consumes, and distributes resources and goods.

Non-Material Components of a Culture

The thoughts, ideas, and beliefs of a people, like their code of law or their religion.

Globalization

The trend of increasing interdependence and spatial interaction between disparate areas of the world economically, politically, and culturally.

Humid Continental Climate

The true four-season climate. Summers are warm to hot and usually humid. Winters range from cold to extremely cold, and precipitation is distributed evenly throughout the year. This climate is best for farming.

Sustainable Development

The use of natural resources and the growth of new ones at a rate that can be maintained from one generation to the next.

Development

The use of technology and knowledge to improve the living conditions of people in a country.

Gross National Product

The value of goods and services owned and produced by citizens of a country, regardless of where those goods and services are produced.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The value of the total outputs of goods and services produced in a country in a given period of time.

Spatial interaction

The ways in which different places interact with one another through the flow of people, goods, or ideas.

Stage Five

Theoretical stage; the decline in CBR continues, leading eventually to a negative RNI. Many countries in Western Europe and Japan are facing such graying populations.

Organic Theory

Theory that states are essentially living organisms that feed on land.

Open-lot System

There was one plot of land for the community, and all members worked in it to provide for themselves and their families.

Large-scale grain production farm

These are farms that focus solely on the production of one to two key grain crops.

Perceptual Region

These areas are grouped not by actual commonalities, but by perceived ones. Example, Africa is often addressed as a single region, even though the continent has a large number of differing cultural systems and physical characteristics.

Settlements

They are the cradles of culture. They allow for the development of political structures, the management of resources, and the transfer of information to future generations.

Underpopulation

They have a much greater carrying capacity than their population uses.

Humid Subtropical Climate

This climate receives warm ocean currents and warm winds year round, leading to a climate that is warm and moist. The summers are long and wet, and the winters are short and mild.

Self-Sufficiency Approach

This is based on the idea that a country can only develop if the country provides for its people itself, rather than relying on outside aid and support.

Stage One - Traditional Society

This is when an economy consists mostly of subsistence farming with little trade or industry.

Stage Three - Takeoff

This is when the shift from subsistence of farming to industry begins.

Steppes (Prairie)

Those areas of continents far from the ocean; these are dry flatlands with minimal rainfall; summers are hot and winters are often very cold.

Four main tools maps have to aid the reader in understanding;

Title, scale, grid, and legend.

Assimilates

To absorb or adapt fully.

With the development of cities, three types of areas emerged:

Urban, suburban, and rural

Population Equations

Used by demographers to analyze changes in population.

Geographic Models

Used by geographers to recognize and understand spatial patterns.

Absolute Location

Used in formal geographic settings. It is described by its position on Earth.

Isothermal Map

Used to illustrate ranges of temperature.

Extensive subsistence farming

Uses a large amount of land to farm food for a family.

Intensive Subsistence Farming

Uses a small amount of land as efficiently as possible to feed a family.

Capital Intensive

Using more capital than labor in the production process.

Folk Cultures

Very specific or regional culture.

Marshes

Wetlands that are frequently inundated with water.

Region

What do different areas have in common and why?

Place

What is it like there? What are its qualities and characteristics?

Overpopulation

When a country exceeds its carrying capacity.

Forced migration

When a group of people is forcibly removed from their home and brought to a new region.

Double-cropping

When farmers plant two subsequent crops in the same field in a single year.

Sequent Occupancy

When one culture left an imprint on a place that was then used by the next culture to inhabit the place.

Cultural Convergence

When two cultures adopt traits of each other and become increasingly similar.

Location

Where is it specifically located?

Possibilism

While the environment does replace restrictions on the options available to a group of people, it is still ultimately the people who make the choice.

Two organizations that offer loans in exchange for changes to a country's economic structure:

World Bank and the International Monetary Fund

Which of the following statements best illustrates the geographic theme of place? a. Northern Mali is primarily composed of desert. b. St. Louis is approximately 300 miles from Chicago. c. Beijing is located at approximately 40 degrees N and 116 degrees E. d. English is the dominant language in North America as well as Australia.

a. "Place" answers the questions: What is an area like? What are its defining features? This identifies the primary physical characteristic of a specific area.

A congressional district is an example of which kind of region? a. a functional region b. a formal region c. a perceptual region d. a node region

a. A congressional district is a region with a common purpose - representation in Congress.

Which of the following events would be considered a pull factor for migration? a. the opening of a new factory in a different town b. a drought in the home region c. an increase in terrorist activity in the home region d. the construction of a high-speed train between the hometown and the nearest city.

a. A new factory would provide jobs and encourage migration into the area.

According to Agricultural Location Theory, what is the relative location to the city of a dairy farm and a mixed crop-livestock farm that specializes in cheese and butter? a The dairy farm will be closer to the city. b. The mixed crop-livestock farm will be closer to the city. c. They will equidistant from the city. d. Their distance from the city cannot be determined with the information given.

a. Because the dairy farm is a more intensive farming practice that requires less land, it will be located closer to the city. It also carries a greater risk of spoilage (milk vs. butter and cheese), so it requires a shorter distance to market.

Purchasing Power Parity is a better measure of economic development than Gross Domestic Product because a. PPP allows for direct comparisons of what money can acquire in different countries. b. It is based on more accurate numbers than GDP. c. GDP is only calculated every ten years, whereas PPP is annual. d. PPP takes into account class differences in quality of life.

a. By looking at the ratio of the cost of certain items (or groups of items) in different countries, PPP gives a more accurate comparative measure of development.

In a conformal map, areas are represented accurately in terms of which of the following? a. shape b. size c. direction d. all of the above

a. Conformal maps are designed to ensure the shape of all land masses are correct.

Which of the following is NOT an accurate description of a mental map? a. Mental maps always reflect a personal location. b. Mental maps can be based in both fact and perception. c. Mental maps are studied in order to understand different cultures. d. Mental maps can be based on both direct and indirect understandings of a place.

a. Mental maps can reflect locations personal to the individual, but people also develop mental maps of entire cities, regions, and the world.

The majority of people in the world today live in a. urban areas b. suburban areas c. rural areas d. megalopolises

a. More than half of the world's population lives in cities.

The mountains surrounding Switzerland create which kind of boundaries? a. physical boundaries b. relict boundaries c. geometric political boundaries d. superimposed boundaries

a. Mountains are an example of physical boundaries because they are part of the landscape.

The Industrial Revolution impacted agriculture in all of the following ways EXCEPT: a. The emergence of the feudal system created more labor-intensive farming. b. Increased technological innovations led to more efficient farming and greater production. c. The rise of capitalism led to individualization of farmland. d. The demand for food made growing crops for the market more profitable.

a. The feudal system was ending as the Industrial Revolution got underway, and farming actually became less labor-intensive with the introduction of new machinery.

Which of the following areas has the highest population density? a. India b. United States c. Germany d. Belgium

a. The second biggest population in the world is Southeast Asia (the first is East Asia.)

Poland is considered a buffer state because of its location a. sharing a border with seven other states. b. between Germany and the Soviet Union during World War II. c. on the Baltic Sea. d. in Eastern Europe.

b. A buffer state is a state that lies between two states in conflict. A great deal of fighting took place in Poland during World War II as a result of the conflict between Germany and the Soviet Union.

The Basque people of Spain are an example of a. a nation-state b. a stateless nation c. a multinational state d. a divided nation

b. Having a distinct culture complex from the rest of Spain, the Basque people make up a separate nation. However, as they do not have their own state, they are considered a stateless nation.

Overpopulation is most likely to occur in which stage of the Demographic Transition Model? a. Stage One b. Stage Two c. Stage Three d. Stage Four

b. In Stage Two, the crude death rate declines (as a result of medical advancements), but the crude birth rate remains high. This leads to high population growth, putting the country at risk of overpopulation.

Which region of the world shared least in the benefits of the Green Revolution? a. Southeast Asia b. Africa c. Central America d. Europe

b. Most Green Revolution crops cannot be grown in Africa, and little research was done on millet and sorghum, the most common grains used in African countries.

Special Economic Zones attract multinational corporations by doing all of the following EXCEPT a. offering them tax breaks. b. providing them space for their headquarters. c. lessening environmental standards. d. loosening labor laws.

b. Most MNCs headquarter their companies in MDCs, and only use the LDC's SEZ for production purposes.

Which of the following statements is an example of cultural diffusion? a. Russia has the most lumber in the world. b. There is a Starbucks at the Mall of the Emirates in Dubai. c. Chopsticks are a key utensil in China. d. Spanish is the official language of Spain.

b. Starbucks began in the United States, and is distinctly American. Its existence - and popularity - in Dubai is an example of cultural diffusion.

All of the following are accurate descriptors of the First Agricultural Revolution EXCEPT: a. Humans began to settle in stationary communities. b. Humans began to use technology to increase production of food. c. It led to the development of a more stable food supply. d. It allowed for significant population growth.

b. The First Agricultural Revolution resulted from humans learning how to gather and replant seed to grow crops. Technology did not play a significant role.

How does the UN Human Development Index differ from other measures of economic development? a. It focuses on the gap between the wealthy and the poor in a country. b. It considers non-monetary factors like healthcare, literacy rates, and education. c. It only examines the top fifty and bottom fifty nations in the world. d. It is the only measure focused on comparative economic growth.

b. The HDI defines development as the expansion of choices for the people. As a result, it looks at many factors, many of which are non-monetary.

To determine the distance between Tokyo and Shanghai on a map of Asia, which of the following parts of the map would be used? a. compass rose b. scale c. legend d. grid

b. The scale shows the ratio between distance on the map and true distance.

Which of the following is an example of a nonmaterial component of a culture? a. a statue of Buddha b. the teachings of Aristotle c. a newspaper from October 29, 1929 d. a medieval sword

b. While Aristotle's physical writings would be material components, his actual teachings are nonmaterial.

Which of the following is an advantage of globes over maps? a. Globes provide more detailed information. b. Globes can be used to show a variety of sizes of areas. c. Globes are accurate models of the Earth without distortion. d. Globes show elevation levels in addition to size, shape, and location of areas.

c. A globe is a model replica of the earth.

The Substitution Principle states that: a. Corporations headquarter their economy in one country and produce their goods in another. b. Companies can invest money directly into a country's economy. c. Companies will accept increased transportation costs in exchange for decreased labor costs. d. New industrialized countries switch from hosting production to focusing on new cutting edge industries.

c. Although outsourcing leads to higher transportation costs as companies have to pay to get finished goods back to their markets, the reduced cost of labor is enough to offset it. This is called the Substitution Principle.

What is a disadvantage that results from a primate city? a. The primate city has limited access to political power. b. A primate city creates a multi-core state. c. A primate city has a disproportionate share of a state's resources. d. A primate city is particularly vulnerable to invasion and conflict.

c. Because of its concentration of power, primate cities also have a much greater share of a country's resources.

A geographer visits a village along the Amazon River and collects information about the role the river plays in the culture of the village. This is an example of a. a descriptive statistic b. a geographic information system c. primary geographic data d. secondary geographic data

c. Because the geographer is collecting the data on the river him or herself, this is primary geographic data.

Which of the following types of commercial farming are most capital intensive? a. dairy and ranching b. ranching and plantation farms c. large-scale grain production and dairy d. plantation farms and large-scale grain production

c. Both large-scale grain production and dairy are highly mechanized, requiring significant capital investment.

Which of the following is true of MDCs? a. They have GDP per capita in excess of $20,000 b. They are concentrated in Western Europe and North America. c. both A and B d. neither A or B

c. Both statements about MDCs are accurate descriptors.

Which of the following farming techniques would most likely be used in a Vietnamese rice field? a. intertillage b. slash-and-burn c. double-cropping d. shifting cultivation

c. Double-cropping is the intensive subsistence farming practice of planting subsequent crops within the same year. Vietnam's climate is ideal for this type of farming.

Settlements developed near rivers would most likely a. be designed in a circular fashion a few miles away from the river. b. be built into nearby hills c. be long and narrow to follow the shape of the river d. have clear access to land trade routes.

c. In order to maximize the resident's access to the water, the settlement would grow along the bank of the river.

Migration patters are an example of which geographic theme? a. location b. place c. movement d. region

c. Migration patterns show how people, or animals, move in and out of different areas.

Which of the following is NOT a physical characteristic of Switzerland? a. mountain chains on both the northern and southern sides of the country. b. three river valleys c. It shares borders with Germany, France, Italy, Austria, and Lichtenstein. d. over 1400 lakes

c. Political borders are man-made, and therefore are considered human characteristics of a place.

The diffusion of smartphones within the United States is an example of which kind of diffusion? a. stimulus diffusion b. relocation diffusion c. hierarchical diffusion d. contagious diffusion

c. Smartphones were first adopted by those who could afford them (because the price point was prohibitive for others) and who were in a position of power. They then diffused through economic levels as the prices changed and companies provided opportunities to make them more affordable.

The United States became involved in what was essentially a Korean civil war (resulting in the Korean War), primarily because of which geopolitical theory? a. Organic Theory b. Heartland Theory c. Domino Theory d. Irredentism

c. The Domino Theory states that if one country falls to communism, the rest around it will as well. Once communist forces began to gain power in the north, US officials became concerned that all of the peninsula - and then the rest of Asia - would become communist.

Which ecosystem experiences extreme temperatures - both hot and cold - in a single day? a. tundra b. rainforest c. desert d. savannah

c. The desert has extreme heat during the day and extreme cold at night.

Which of the following statements is true about sustainable development? a. Sustainable development requires a prohibition on the use of nonrenewable resources. b. Sustainable development only applies to energy resources like wind, sun, oil, and coal. c. Sustainable development requires the proper management of renewable resources like trees and fish. d. Sustainable development contributes to the greenhouse effect and increases global warming.

c. The goal of sustainable development is to ensure resources are available to the next generation. Therefore, renewable resources must be managed to make sure consumption does not outpace the rate of replacement.

An owner of a grocery store is part of which sector of the economy? a. primary b. secondary c. tertiary d. quaternary

c. The tertiary sector sells and trades processed goods. Any store is part of the tertiary sector.

Canada produces more resources than its population can consume. This is an example of a. overpopulation b. carrying capacity c. under-population d. graying population

c. When a country does not have enough people to utilize its resources, it is underpopulated.

Which of the following is NOT a consequence of industrialization noted by geographers? a. significant changes to the physical characteristics of the area in which industrialization takes place. b. decrease in subsistence farming c. migration to suburban areas d. increasing importance of energy sources like coal and oil.

c. With industrialization, geographers note a rise in the migration of people from rural to urban areas, not suburban.

Newly Industrialized Countries (NICs)

countries that have undergone rapid and successful industrialization.

Which of the following is NOT an example of geographic study? a. patterns of volcanic eruptions b. climate change and global warming c. settlement patterns in Southern Europe d. the rise and fall of the American dollar

d. A study of the rise and fall of the American dollar does not address the question of Where? It is solely an economic question.

In Asia, the Green Revolution resulted in a. the introduction of new crops like wheat and barley. b. new farming techniques like terrace farming c. an increase in the importation of grain. d. a dramatic increase in rice production

d. As a result of high-yield rice developed during the Green Revolution, rice production increased by 66 percent in the 1980's.

The countries of West Africa remain LDCs because of their independence on Western MDCs developed during French colonization of the area. This statement most reflects which of the following? a. Rostow's Modernization Model b. World Systems Analysis Theory c. International Trade Approach d. Dependency Theory

d. Dependency Theory argues that colonization created a dependent relationship between LDCs and MDCs that cannot be broken due to the global economic structure.

During the late 1990's, Ireland had such a strong economy it was known as the "Celtic Tiger," attracting migration and investment. Recent Irish immigrants to the United States and even some Irish Americans began returning to their homeland with their families. This phenomenon is best explained by which of the following: a. the US's stage of development (Stage Four) based on Zelinsky's Model of Migration Transition b. the size of Ireland, based on the gravitation model of migration. c. Ravenstein's law that young adults are more likely to cross borders than families. d. Ravenstein's law that for every migration stream, there is a counter-stream.

d. Historically, the Irish fled poverty and oppression in Ireland, many settling in North America. The migration of Irish to Ireland from the United States constitutes a counter-stream to the migration stream of the Irish diaspora.

The country of Panama is an example of which of the following kinds of states? a. landlocked state b. compact state c. fragmented state d. elongated state

d. Panama is an elongated state because it is long and thin.

A scientist exploring Antarctica would most likely use which type of map? a. Equal Area projection b. Azimuthal Equidistant projection c. Conformal projection d. Gnomonic projection

d. The Gnomonic projection map allows for great circles and accurate straight-line directions. It is often used for mapping the poles.

The adoption of French as an official language throughout most of West Africa is an example of a. sequent occupancy b. cultural convergence c. cultural divergence d. acculturation

d. The adoption of French is West Africa as an official language is a classic example of a local culture overcome by a powerful force and taking on the traits of what would thus become the dominant culture. This occured wherever colonization took place.

Low Latitudes

from the equator to latitudes 23.5 north and south, 2 distinct climates tropical rainforest (equatorial lowlands), savannah (dry in winter, wet in summer) , desert (lies beyond the savannah to north and south)

Realms

the largest regions possible that help geographers examine global phenomena. They are based on clusters of human population, economic, political, cultural, and physical traits.