AP Human Geo 1.3-1.4 Flashcards
Globalization
Force or process that involves the entire world and results in making something worldwide in scope
transnational corporation
conducts research, operates factories, and sells products in multiple countries
distribution
arrangement of a feature in space (are things numerous or scarce? close together or far apart?)
denisty
frequency in which something occurs in space
- 2 features: number of a feature and land area (a large number of a feature doesn’t always equal a large density)
- high population doesn’t always equal high poverty
concentration
extent of feature’s spread over space
- clustered = close together
- dispersed = far apart
pattern
geometric arrangement of objects in space
- many objects form linear distribution
- grid pattern
structuralist geography
how the powerful dominate society; how dominated groups occupy space; confrontations between groups
humanistic geography
emphasizes way that individuals form ideas about places and give them symbolic meanings
behavioral geography
emphasizes importance of understanding psychological basis of individual actions in space
- ex. distinctive spatial patterns are made by actions and attitudes of cultural groups and society
uneven development
the wealth gap between peripheral nations and core regions; has a lot to do with technology and is a result of hierarchical diffusion
core region
North America, Europe, Japan
peripheral nations
Africa, Asia, Latin America
- have large population and population growth but don’t have as advanced technology
assimilation
process in which a group’s cultural features are made to resemble those of another group
*The culture of one group can dominate the culture of another group
acculturation
changes in culture that result from groups meeting
*Groups retain their cultures
syncretism
combination of 2 groups into a new cultural feature
*Formation of a new culture
diffusion
process by which a feature spreads across space from one place to another (usually spread from a hearth)
hearth
where something (and innovation or idea) originates from
- ex. Covid’s hearth is Wuhan, China
relocation diffusion
spread of an idea through physical movement of people
- ex. Conquistadors bringing Spanish and European innovations and goods to the Americas
expansion diffusion
spread of a feature from one place to another in an additive process
- contagious
- hierarchical
- stimulus
contagious expansion diffusion
rapid widespread diffusion of a characteristic throughout the population
- ex. the flu, Covid, Islam spreading from Mecca
hierarchical expansion diffusion
spread of ideas from a person of power to other people
- spread from politicians elites/influencers, corporations, etc.
- ex. clothing fads, hip-hop
stimulus expansion diffusion
spread of underlying principle even if a characteristic refuses to spread
- ex. IPhone features going to other companies, McDonalds-Hindu
network
a chain of communication that connects places
- ex. airline hubs
distance decay
diminishing contact between people due to distance
- decreasing due to technology
space-time compression
describes reduction in time it takes for something to reach another place
- makes it easier for us to know things sooner
resource
a substance in an environment that’s useful to people, economically and technologically feasible to access, and acceptable to use.
sustainability
use of resources so that they’ll be available in the future
renewable resource
produced in nature faster than it’s consumed
non-renewable resource
produced in nature slower than it’s consumed
3 pillar of sustainability
- environmental pillar
- society pillar
- economic pillar
environmental pillar
conservation and preservation of resources
conservation
sustainable use and management of earth’s resources
* compatible with development
preservation
maintenance of resources in their present condition
*non-humancentric
society pillar
society must make sustainable choices
economic pillar
some goods don’t reflect their environmental price. Prices of resources depend on society’s technology.
aibiotic
- 3 systems of earth: atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere
- systems composed of non-living or inorganic matter
biotic
- 1 system of earth: biosphere
- system is composed of living organisms
atmosphere
- “atmo” = air
- thin layer of gases surrounding earth
- climate
- breathable air
hydrosphere
- “hydro” = water
- all water on and near earth’s surface
- 97% of the world
lithosphere
- “litho” = stone
- earth’s crust and a portion of upper mantle below the crust
- earth = core, mantle, crust
- mountain chains, continents, ocean basins
- geomorphology = study of earth’s land-forms
- use of topographic maps
climate
- long term average weather condition at a particular location
- tracked by koppen system (5 climates; A->E)
A = humid low latitude
B = dry (divided by temperature and precipitation)
C = warm mid-latitude
D = cold mid-latitude
E = polar
biosphere
- “bio” = life
- all living organisms on earth (plants, animals, micro-organisms)
ecosystem
a group of living organisms and the aibiotic sphere they interact with (ecology = study of ecosystems)
erosion
occurs when soil washes away in the rain or is blown away. Farmers impact erosion and should avoid: farming on steep slopes, too much plowing, and using crops with shallow roots
depletion of nutrients
when plants withdraw more nutrients then can be naturally created. Farmer need to plant different/rotate crops to renew soil resources.
environmental determinism
- Humboldt and Ritter
- belief that physical environment causes social development
- ex. climate (migration)
- emphasizes use of natural science tools
possibilism
- the physical environment can limit human actions but people can change this
- used by modern geographers
- rejects environmental determinism
- ex. crops, culture/social norms
polder
land created from draining water from the area
- used for agriculture
