Human Geo Test 1 Study Guide

What is meant by remittance?

Transfer of money by migrant workers from the country into which they immigrated to people in the country from which they emigrated.

What is the primary reason for illegal immigration to the United States?

Economic opportunity

Countries with slow population growth but strong economies commonly experience out-migration. True or False

False

What is net migration

The difference in a given place between the level of immigration and the level of emigration - difference between the number of immigrants entering a country and emigrants leaving it.

Examples of forced migration

• Refugees fleeing war

• People displaced by ethnic cleansing

• People fleeing political persecution

• Slavery

• People forcibly relocated by governments

Examples of voluntary migration

• Moving for a better-paying job

• Moving to attend college

• Moving to be closer to family

• Retiring to another location

• Moving for better housing or quality of life

The UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) identified 3 groups forced to migrate for political reasons. Who are they?

• Refugees

• Internally displaced persons (IDPs)

• Asylum seekers

   What are the two major outcomes of suburbanization?

• Urban sprawl — expansion of urban development into surrounding areas.

• Decentralization of population and economic activity — people and businesses move from central cities toward suburbs.

Regarding migration, what is an intervening obstacle?

something that makes migration more difficult or prevents a person from reaching their intended destination.

1- Which statement is FALSE?

1- Refugees have engaged in forced migration

Forced migration can be caused by "cultural" factors such as ethnic cleansing, warfare, or persecution

Migration from rural to urban areas is called counterurbanization.

Historically, the center of population in the United States has moved a long distance to the west but not a long distance to the south.

In recent decades, the most important type of internal migration within the United States is from urban to suburban areas.

The most prominent type of intraregional migration in the world is _____ to _____.

Rural to Urban in developing countries, Urban to Suburbs in developed countries.

In the United States, the largest percentages of Americans move from _____ to ______.

Urban to Suburban areas

What is meant by counterurbanization?

movement from urban areas toward rural or countryside areas.

Which of the following statements is FALSE

Migration from an urban to rural/countryside area is known as counterurbanization.

The three major kinds of push factors are political, economic, and environmental.

The most common environmental threat to people comes from too much or too little water.

Most migration occurs because of a combination of push and pull factors.

Countries with slow population growth but strong economies commonly experience out-migration.

What was/is the main motivations of the historic European and current Latin American immigrants to the United States?

economic opportunity, particularly the search for jobs, higher wages, and a better standard of living.

A boy migrated from Honduras through Guatemala and Mexico, then entered the United States without immigration documents, because members of his ethnic group were being targeted for torture or assassination in his home country. Although the U.S. government does not grant the boy refugee status, his case is an example of international and ________ migration.

Forced migration.

The most important pull factor for migrants to North America today is  ___________.

Economic opportunity/jobs.

The migration transition model predicts that international migration reaches a peak at ________ of the demographic transition.

stage 2

Examples of events that would be considered migration pull factors

• Better-paying jobs

• Economic opportunity

• Political freedom

• Better education

• Better healthcare

• Family reunification

• Greater safety

• Better quality of life

What is migration?

A form of relocation diffusion involving permanent relocation of people to a new location.

What is mobility?

All types of movements of people between locations.

Define total fertility rate

The average number of children a woman will have throughout her childbearing years.

In comparing Malthus's theory to actual world food production and population growth during the past half-century, what is the principal difference?

Malthus predicted that population would grow faster than food production, eventually producing widespread famine.

In reality, food production has generally increased faster than population, largely because of technological improvements in agriculture.

In contrast to more developed countries, less developed countries entered Stage 2 of the demographic transition through ____________________.

a decline in death rates, as this is the stage of receding pandemics as a result of improved sanitation, nutrition, and medicine.

How would a decline in a country's crude birth rate affect its population doubling time?

A decline in the crude birth rate would cause the population doubling time to increase.

In other words, the population would take longer to double.

Which country once included controversial sterilization camps as part of its national family-planning program?

India

A possible stage five epidemiological transition is the stage of ________________

a very low CBR, an increasing CDR, and therefore a negative NIR - relatively few young women in childbearing years

What is the principal reason for declining natural increase rates in less developed countries today?

declining birth rates/fertility rates as countries undergo demographic transition.

Define crude birth rate

The total number of live births in a year for every 1,000 people alive in the society.

What is the main explanation for generally higher crude death rates in developed countries than it is in developing countries?

Developed countries tend to have older populations. Since older people have higher mortality rates, the overall crude death rate can be higher even though developed countries generally have better healthcare and lower mortality at younger ages.

Which long-term benefit is emphasized in leading approaches to reducing birth rates?

improving the education, economic opportunities, and status of women, along with access to healthcare and family planning.

Total fertility rate is generally higher in developing countries.

True

Understand the concept of infant mortality rate.

The infant mortality rate (IMR) is the number of deaths of infants under one year of age per 1,000 live births in a given year.

A high IMR generally indicates poorer healthcare, sanitation, nutrition, and living conditions.

Country X has a crude birth rate of 40 and a crude death rate of 15, while Country Y has a crude birth rate of 20 and a crude death rate of 9. Which country has a higher natural increase rate?

• X: 40 − 15 = 25 per 1,000

• Y: 20 − 9 = 11 per 1,000

Country X has the higher natural increase rate.

Country X has a crude birth rate of 40 and a crude death rate of 15. In what stage of the demographic transition is this country?

Stage 2.

It has a very high birth rate and a declining but still relatively high death rate, producing rapid natural increase.

The highest natural increase rates are found in countries in which stage of the demographic transition?

Stage 2.

Death rates fall rapidly while birth rates remain high.

Which combination of environmental factors is likely to be densely populated?

Fertile soil + adequate water + moderate climate + relatively flat terrain.

These conditions support agriculture and human settlement.

India and the United Kingdom have approximately the same arithmetic density. From this we can conclude that the two countries have the same ____________________.

number of people per unit of total land area.

This is what arithmetic population density measures.

Define physiological density.

the number of people per unit of arable/agriculturally productive land.

It helps indicate the pressure of population on agricultural land.

If physiological density is very high and arithmetic density is very low, then a country has

a small percentage of land suitable for agriculture, even if there seems to be plenty of space available for people to live in.

Name the four world regions where population is heavily clustered.

• East Asia

• South Asia

• Southeast Asia

• Europe

Which country currently has the highest population?

India

What is meant by ecumene?

The ecumene is the portion of Earth's surface that is permanently inhabited by humans.

What is meant by overpopulation?

A situation in which the number of people in an area exceeds the capacity of the environment to support life at a decent standard of living.

One important feature of the world's population with the most significant future implications is that the most rapid growth is occurring in the less developed countries.

Which geographic concept would best explain the popularity of electric scooters in recent years? 

Diffusion, specifically expansion diffusion.

What are the three types of expansion diffusion?

• Contagious diffusion — spreads rapidly from person to person or place to place.

• Hierarchical diffusion — spreads from influential people or places to others.

• Stimulus diffusion — the underlying idea spreads, but it is modified to fit local culture.

What is a hearth?

the place where a cultural trait or innovation originates.

Major effects of globalization of the economy

• Increased international trade

• Greater movement of capital

• Increased outsourcing

• Growth of multinational/transnational corporations

• Greater economic interdependence

• Increased specialization of regions

• Expansion of global production networks

• Increased competition between countries and regions

What are the main roles of transnational corporations?

Transnational corporations (TNCs) operate across national borders and organize production, investment, marketing, and distribution on a global scale.

They often:

• Establish factories or offices in multiple countries

• Move capital internationally

• Coordinate global supply chains

• Produce and sell products in multiple countries

• Take advantage of differences in labor, resources, markets, and regulations

What does culture mean?

The body of material possessions, customary beliefs, and social norms that together constitutes the distinct tradition of a group of people.

Examples of a formal region

A formal region has a common measurable characteristic.

Examples:

• A country such as Texas/the United States

• An area where a particular language is spoken

• The Corn Belt

• A region defined by a particular climate

• An area with a particular political boundary

  Examples of a functional region

A functional region is organized around a central point or activity.

Examples:

• A city's commuting zone

• the service area of a television station

• A newspaper's circulation area

• An airline's service area

• The area served by a hospital

Which characteristic would likely be included in the South as a vernacular region?

short summers

incomes above the national average

prevalence of Methodist churches

relatively dry winters

slang which may include "ya'll"

Which is the best reason why the state of Texas is considered a formal region?

Because it has clearly defined political boundaries.

With reference to geography, what is meant by distribution?

Distribution describes the arrangement of phenomena across Earth's surface.

Geographers often examine three characteristics:

• Density — how much of something exists in an area

• Concentration — how closely things are grouped

• Pattern — the geometric arrangement of things

With reference to geography, define a region.

A region is an area of Earth's surface that is defined by one or more distinctive characteristics.

Familiar with the four characteristics in defining the Midwest.

U.S. Census definition

At least 50% self-identify as a Midwesterner

Eastern broadleaf forest or prairie parkland ecosystem

At least 60% “like” a team in the MLB A.L. or N.L. Central Division

The coordinates 89 N latitude, 150 E longitude, are located near ___________

The North Pole / Arctic Ocean.

At 89° N, you are only about one degree south of the North Pole.

Define the site of a place.

Site refers to the unique physical characteristics of a place itself.

Examples include:

• Climate

• Landforms

• Soil

• Water

• Vegetation

• Elevation

Define situation.

the location of a place relative to other places.

For example, a city might be situated near major highways, rivers, neighboring cities, or trade routes.

You see the coordinates 10° N latitude, 5° E longitude, and can deduce that this location is near ________.

Nigeria, in West Africa.

To geographers, the spread of McDonald's around the world represents what types of globalization?

represents both economic globalization and cultural globalization.

• Economic: McDonald's operates through a global business network.

• Cultural: American food practices and consumer culture spread to other countries.

It is also an example of cultural diffusion.

What is cartography?

Cartography is the science and art of making and studying maps.

Familiar with the three fundamental elements of culture

• Material culture — physical objects people create and use.

• Nonmaterial culture — beliefs, values, norms, language, and ideas.

• Cultural landscape — the visible human imprint of culture on the physical environment.

Geographers are interested in scale, space and connection

• Scale: the level or extent at which a geographic phenomenon is examined.

• Space: the physical area or geographic dimension in which things exist and interact.

• Connection: the relationships and interactions between places and people.

    What is meant by projection?

A map projection is a method for representing Earth's three-dimensional, curved surface on a two-dimensional map.

Because Earth is spherical and maps are flat, every projection involves some degree of distortion.

What is meant by Geographic Information System (GIS)?

A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer-based system used to collect, store, analyze, manipulate, and display geographic/spatial data.

   1:24,000 is an example of what kind of scale?

A representative fraction (ratio) scale.

Define Human Geography

Human Geography is the study of the spatial organization of human activity and how people interact with and shape the Earth's environment.

It examines topics such as:

• Population

• Migration

• Culture

• Economics

• Politics

• Urbanization

• Settlement

• Human-environment relationships

Which of the following are the most common factors influencing the decision to migrate?

cultural freedom, environmental comfort, and economic opportunity

Based on recent demographic trends, the principal reason for declining natural increase rates in less developed countries is probably due to

declining crude birth rates.

The best definition of arithmetic density is

the total number of people divided by a given unit of area.

Map scale is best defined as

the relationship between the length of an object on a map and that feature on the landscape.