geography MIDTERM Flashcards
What is the smallest continent
Australia
What is the largest continent
Asia
What are the seven continents
Asia Europe Africa North America South America Australia Antarctica
What kind of map displays elevation with different colors
Physical map
What kind of map displays countries or states with different colors
Political map
what kind of lines run north and south but measure east and west
Another name for them is meridians
Longitude lines
What lines run east and west but measure north and south
Another name for them is parallels
Latitude
What is the imaginary line that separates the earth into Southern and Northern hemispheres
Equator
What is the imaginary line that separates the earth into Eastern and Western hemispheres
Prime meridian
What is the name for a way to locate a certain place using longitude and latitude lines, addresses, streets, etc.
Absolute location
What is a way to locate a certain place using another place nearby in relation to the place you are looking for
Relative location
What are the four important map elements
Title
Scale
Legend/key
Scale
What are the five major oceans
Pacific Atlantic Arctic Indian Southern
What are the five themes of geography
MRHELP Movement Region Human-Environment Interaction Location Place
What percent of North America do the United States and Canada make up
4/5 or 80%
What percent of the United States’ population is Native American
1%
What percent of Canada’s population is Native American
3%
What are Canada and the United States sometimes referred to as because both were once colonies of Britain and both groups of citizens largely speak English
Anglo-America
What climates are shared by the United States and Canada
They both have moderate climates – an example is humid continental
What is different about the climates in the United States and Canada
The United States has much more natural disasters
Much of the US is milder, drier, and even more topical because we are South of 40° latitude
What are the four regions of the United States
South
Midwest
West
Northeast
What region is located along the equator and receives 100+ inches of rain per year
Tropical wet
What region is located along the equator on outer edges of Tropical Wet regions
They have two seasons: Summer (wet); Winter (dry)
Tropical wet and dry
What region is the transition between wet and dry regions
Sometimes, not very often, they get rain
Long droughts
Semi-arid
What region is located along 30 degree latitude lines
Cold water currents force dry air over land
Desert
What region is located between 30 and 45 degrees latitude
WEST side of continents
Mild weather (no extreme) due to ocean currents
Mediterranean
What region is located on the west-coast, mid-latitude
Influenced by the presence of mountains
Marine west coast
What region is located on east coasts between 20 and 30 degrees latitude
Minimal temperature change
Humid subtropical
What region is located in the interior of continents between 40 and 60 degrees latitude
4 seasons, drastic temperature changes
20-50 inches of precipitation.
Humid continental
What region is located in interior at high altitudes
Long extremely cold winters & short cool summer
Subarctic
What region is located along the Arctic Ocean
Some places in this region never thaw
Tundra
What region is located near the poles
Ice Cap
What region is usually found in mountain areas or plateau areas
Their temperature depends on elevation - warm to cold
Highlands
Where is Canada ranked in terms of largest land masses in the world
2nd
Where is the United States ranked in terms of largest land masses on the world
3rd
What are the territories of the United States
Puerto Rico Northern Mariana Islands Virgin Islands American Samoa Guam
How many provinces does Canada have
Three
What are the provinces of Canada
Alberta British Columbia Manitoba New Brunswick Newfoundland and Labrador Nova Scotia Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan
What makes up the pacific subregion of Canada
British Columbia
Yukon Territory
Northwest Territories
Nunavut
What are the Everglades
a huge swampland in Florida that covers about 4,000 square miles
What do you call a person who is of French-Canadian and Native American history
Métis
What is Canada’s westernmost province that is located within the Rocky Mountain range
British Columbia
What kind of government does Canada have
Parliamentary government
What is a parliamentary government
legislative and executive functions are combined in a legislature called Parliament
Who is the head of government; the majority party’s leader in government
Prime Minister
What is the capital of Canada
Ottawa
Where does Latin America span from
It spans from the Mexico’s southernmost border to Tiero del Fuego
What mountain range is part of a large chain that spans from the United States to Mexico
Rockies
What are the Andes Mountains called in the United States
Rockies
What are the Andes Mountains called in Mexico
Sierra Madre
What is the mist famous river system in Latin America
The Amazon
How much water does the Amazon river carry to the ocean
More than the next 7 largest rivers combined
Which regions make up the Greater Antilles Islands
Cuba
Puerto Rica
What is the capital city of Brazil
Brasilia
What is the economic heart and the biggest city on Brazil
São Paulo
What is the cultural city of Brazil
Rio de Janeiro
What is an ancient technique for growing crops on hillsides or mountain slopes using step-like horizontal fields cut into the slopes
Terraced farming
What consists of the basic support systems needed to keep an economy going, including power, communications, transportation, water, sanitation, and education systems
The more sophisticated this is, the more developed the country is
Infrastructure
What are areas of grasslands and rich soil found in South-Central America
Pampas
What are the reasons people might migrate called
One of them is a reason to move to another place and one is a reason to leave the place you are in
Push and pull factors
What is Brazil rich in because of it’s many rivers and other waterways
Hydroelectric power
What was signed in order to divide South America between Portugal and Spain
Treaty of Tordesillas
What are savannas with flat terrain and moderate rainfall that make them suitable for farming
Cerrado
What is the music that carnival takes place to
Samba
What is the most colorful feast day in Brazil
It is like Mardi Gras in Louisiana
Carnival
What is a military dictator or political boss called
Support for them usually comes from the military or the rich people
Caudillo
What is a government run by generals after a military takeover
Junta
What is it called whenever the climate of a place ch ages over time
It used to be called global warming
Climate change
What is the process of breaking up large landholdings and giving portions to peasants to farm
Land reform
What do they call it whenever an organization agrees to pay off a certain amount of government debt in return for the government protection of a certain rain forest
Debt-for-nature swap
What is the variety of organisms within an ecosystem
Biodiversity
What is the government that is ruled by the few, the rich, and the military
The leader of this is the caudillo
Oligarchy
What is the cutting down and clearing away of trees and forests called
Deforestation
Who was the leader that lead soldiers into Mexico and claimed land for Spain
Hernando Cortez
Who is the current president of Mexico
Enrique Nieto
What island did not receive full independence from Great Britain until 1962
This country is one that the majority language is English
Jamaica
What island has a majority language of Spanish
Achieved independence form Spain in 1898
Largest of the Caribbean islands with a population of about 11 million
Cuba
What is the Hispaniola island country that the slave revolt began in
In the 18th century, they were a French colony with a good sugar industry
By 1804, they achieved independence form Spain
Voodoo is practiced h
Haiti
What is practiced on the island of Haiti and involves spirits
We also have this in New Orleans
Voodoo
This is the movement for political and religious freedom that originated in Haiti
Rastafarian
What is an important trade agreement creating a huge zone of cooperation on trade and economic issues in North America
NAFTA
North American Free Trade Agreement
What percentage of Canadians have no religious affiliations
16%
What are the regions of Latin America
Spanish-speaking South America
Mexico
Central America
Brazil
What is life like in Latin America today
There is a large income gap in Latin America and the poor are not able to live their lives as fully as those who are rich
