The Americas Flashcards
North America Info
19.6m km2 - 4th largest
357m - 8th largest
79% urbanized
North America Exclusions
Greenland: territory of Denmark
Latin America: including Puerto Rico
Hawaii: Oceania
North American Climate
Diverse: Cold north vs tropical south
Variance in attitude, elevation, coasts
Bodies of water moderate temps
Hurricanes from Africa, Tornadoes from Gulf
North American Physical Features
Central Plains/Plateau
Eastern Mountains
Western Mountains
NA Physiographic Processes
Dozens of active volcanoes
Mountain building from plates
San Andreas fault
Erosion: Laurentide Ice Sheet scraped and deposited
NA Environmental Issues
California valley and Sierra Nevada - climate change providing less runoff for agriculture
NA Indigenous Settlement
First inhabitants via land bridge
Not sure when
Adapted their environment and practices resulting in diverse cultural groups
NA Immigration
Waves from Europe
1. Britain, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Asia, Latin America
NA Economy
Initially natural resources for Europe
19th/20th: industrialization
21st: services
NA Income inequality
Unequal growth over last 30 years
US: top 20% hold 50% of wealth, bottom 20% = 3%
NA Language and Religion
Plurality
English, Spanish, French
Increasing Cantonese, Korean, Punjabi, etc.
Many minority religions
NA Urbanization
Centres of manufacturing, now hubs of service
Some thrived in change, some didn’t
Some developed entirely through service (Atlanta, Phoenix)
Latin America Info
20 m km2 - 3rd largest
635m - 4th largest
80% urbanized - highest
LA Sub Regions
Mexico and Central America The Caribbean The Andes Amazonia Southern Cone
LA Climate
Lattitude 90* of difference Ocean circulation Elevation (orographic) Amazon vs Desert El Nino La Nina (cooling)
LA Mineral Resources
Gold, Silver, Copper, Oil, Natural Gas, Coal, Iron Ore
LA Physical Processes
Converging plates in Andes formed mountains
Transform Plates in Caribbean forms Volcanoes
LA Indigenous Settlements
Inca: along SA West Coast
Maya: Central America
Aztec: Mexico
50-100m in 1500
LA Colonialism
1500 European Contact
Alternate route to Far East and quest for knowledge/discovery
Spain, Portugal, Britain, Holland, France
Spain vs Portugal
1494 Line of Agreement Spain took West, Portugal East
Latin culture linked to Spanish/Portuguese
Columbian Exchange
Resources for finished goods
Colonization Goals
Economic Return
Spread of rleigion
Territorial expansion
LA Independence
Revolutions (US and France) led to LA revolutions
Authoritarian rule by local elite
LA Economy
Import Substitution led to development of manufacturing sector Supranational organizations (NAFTA) shifted Maquiladoras: export processing zones
LA Culture
Spanish and Portuguese
Primarily Catholic
Distinct subregions
LA Urbanization
Recent
Millions of rural poor into the cities (Favelas)
