World Geography definitions Flashcards
Evaporation
process by which liquid changes to gas
Condensation
the process by which water vapor changes from a gas into liquid droplets
Ecosystem
communities of plants and animals
Magma
liquid rock within the Earth
Weathering
the process by which rocks break and decay over time
Sediment
small particles of weathered rock
Erosion
movement of surface material from one location to another by water, wind, ice
Glacier
thick masses of ice, including great ice sheets and bodies of ice that flow down mountains like slow rivers
Plateau
an elevated flatland that rises sharply above nearby land on at least one side
Desalinization
process of removing salt from ocean water
Headwaters
first and smallest streams formed from the runoff of a mountain, eventually forming rivers
Tributaries
any smaller stream or river that flows into a larger stream or river
Humus
broken-down plant and animal matter in soil
Contour Plowing
plowing fields across a hill, rather than up and down the hill
Crop Rotation
the practice of planting different crops in a field in alternating years
Deforestation
destruction or loss of forests
Reforestation
the replanting of a forest
Aquifers
rock layers where groundwater is plentiful
Dialect
a regional variety of a language
Leaching
downward movement of minerals and humus in soils
urbanization
growth in the proportion of people living in towns and cities
population density
the average number of people living in an area; usually expressed as persons per square mile or square kilometer
natural boundary
boundaries that follow a feature of the landscape
Abyssal Plain
areas of the ocean floor where rocks gradually sink because they have no supporting heat below them; the world’s flattest and smoothest regions
Polytheism
belief in many gods
tariffs
a tax or duty to be paid on a particular class of imports or exports.
command economy
an economy in which production, investment, prices, and incomes are determined centrally by a government.
literacy rate
is the total percent of population who can read and write.
Birthrate
the number of live births per thousand of population per year.
market economy
an economic system in which production and prices are determined by unrestricted competition between privately owned businesses
mosque
Muslim place of worship
Fault
rock masses have broken apart and moved away from each other
Quota
in trade matters, limits on the amount of a product that can be imported
Monotheism
the belief in one god
refugees
people who have been forced to leave an area
culture
all the features of the peoples way of life
Nationalism
a feeling of pride and loyalty for ones country or culture group
death rate
total number of deaths each year for every 1000 people in a place
globalization
the process in which connections around the world increase and cultures become more alike
capitalism
an economic system in which businesses, industries and resources are privately owned
communism
an economic and political system in which the government owns or controls almost all the means of production
migration
the process of moving from one place to live in another
acculturation
process in which an individual or group adopts some of the traits of another culture
cultural boundary
boundaries that are based on culture traits
import
the goods a country brings in from different nations
export
the goods a country sells or trades with another nation
comparative advantage
the ability to produce something at a lower opportunity cost than another country can
protectionism
use of tactics that make imported goods more expensive than domestic goods
tariff
tax on imports. the goal is to make the price of imported goods higher than those produced at home
subsidy
a payment or other benefit given by government to help a domestic producer (U.S and Europe pays subsides to farmers)
balance of trade
a nation’s exports minus its imports (can be positive or negative)
Trade surplus
a positive trade balance
trade deficit
a negative trade balance
exchange rate
value of a nation’s currency in comparison to other nations currency. Determined by balance of trade
