ap human unit 7

site

The physical character of a place

situation

the location of a place relative to other places; relative location

Urbanization

An increase in the percentage and in the number of people living in urban settlements.

Suburbanization

Movement of upper and middle-class people from urban core areas to the surrounding outskirts to escape pollution as well as deteriorating social conditions (perceived and actual). In North America, the process began in the early nineteenth century and became a mass phenomenon by the second half of the twentieth century.

Megacity

City with more than 10 million people

Metacity

A city with a population over 20 million; includes multiple dense centers, suburbs, and greenspace

sprawl

Development of new housing sites at relatively low density and at locations that are not contiguous to the existing built-up area of a city; to spread out

Decentralization

the power and influence of a city has moved away from one central core (central business district) to multiple locations around the urban area

Edge City

distinct sizable nodal concentration of retail and office space of lower than central city densities and situated on the outer fringes of older metropolitan areas; usually localized by or near major highway intersections

Exurbs

areas of new development beyond the suburbs that are more rural but on the fringe of urbanized areas

Boomburbs

Rapidly growing suburban cities

Globalization

the process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale.

world city

Dominant city in terms of its role in the global political economy. Not the world's biggest city in terms of population or industrial output, but rather centers of strategic control of the world economy (New York, London, Tokyo, etc…).

rank-size rule

A pattern of settlements in a country, such that the nth largest settlement is 1/n the population of the largest settlement; i.e. the 4th largest city is 1/4 the population of the largest city

primate city

a city that dominates a country's economy, culture, and government and in which population is concentrated; usually the capital; this city is also more than twice the size of the next largest city in a country

Gravity Model

A model that holds that the potential use of a service at a particular location is directly related to the number of people in a location and inversely related to the distance people must travel to reach the service.

Christaller's Central Place Theory

A theory that explains the distribution of services, based on the fact that settlements serve as centers of market areas for services; larger settlements are fewer and farther apart than smaller settlements and provide services for a larger number of people who are willing to travel farther.

Interdependence

A relationship between countries (or cities) in which they rely on one another for resources, goods, or services

Central Business District (CBD)

The downtown or nucleus of a city where retail stores, offices, and cultural activities are concentrated; building densities are usually quite high; and transportation systems converge.

Burgess Concentric Zone Model

This model was devised in the 1920s by Ernest Burgess to predict and explain the growth patterns of North American urban spaces. Its main principle is that cities can be viewed from above as a series of concentric rings; as the city grows and expands, new rings are added and old ones change character. Key elements of the model are the central business district and the peak land value intersection.

Hoyt Sector Model

the theory of urban structure that a city develops in a series of certain sectors, instead of rings.

Harris-Ullman Multiple Nuclei Model

Model developed for a North American city, shows loss of dominance of CBD; the traditional influence of the CDB is decentralized and moved to multiples nodes around the city

Galactic City Model

represents the post-industrial city with its several, dispersed business districts. This model represents a distinct decentralization of the commercial urban landscape as the economy has transitioned to services as the leading form of production. Manufacturing has declined significantly and become specialized.

Bid rent theory

geographical economic theory that refers to how the price and demand on real estate changes as the distance towards the Central Business District (CBD) increases.

Latin American City Model

Developed by Ernst Griffin and Larry Ford. Blends traditional Latin American culture with the forces of globalization. The CBD is dominant; it is divided into a market sector and a modern high-rise sector. The elite residential sector is on the extension of the CBD in the "spine". The end of the spine of elite residency is the "mall" with high-priced residencies. The further out, less wealthy it gets. The poorest are on the outer edge.

Southeast Asian City Model

Terry (T.G.) McGee developed a model showing similar land-use patterns among medium sized cities of Southeast Asia. Its focal point is the old colonial port zone. The model also does not find any CBD in Asia, but rather he found elements of the CBD present as separate clusters surrounding the port zone.

African City Model

model that suggests that African cities have more than one CBD; often a traditional CBD, a CBD that reflects the colonial era; and a modern CBD