the process by which loosened material is dissolved, loosened or worn away from one part of the earth's surface and deposited in other places.
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strip cropping
a row crop such as corn alternates in strips with another crop such as grass, or grass legume mixtures, that completely cover the soil and reduces erosion
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alley cropping
a form of inter-cropping in which several crops are planted together in strips or alleys of trees and shrubs that can provide fruit or fuel-wood
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rill erosion
surface water forms fast flowing little rivulets that cut small channels in the soil
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gully erosion
rivulets of fast flowing water join together and with each seceding rain cut the channels wider and deeper until they become dishes or gullies
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desertification
a process whereby the productive potential of arid or semi-arid land falls by 10% or more, this phenomenon results mostly from human activities
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salinization
the accumulation of salts
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conventional tillage farming
land is plowed and then the soil is broken up and smoothed to make a planting surface
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conservation tillage farming
special tiller break up and loosen the sub-surface of the soil without turning over the top soil, previous crop residues, or any cover vegetation
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contour farming
plowing and planting crops in rows that are ninty degress to the slope of the land rather than up and down the sloped contour of the land. Rows at as dams to slow water movement.
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windbreaks or shelterbelts
reduces wind erosion, long rows of trees are planted to partially block the wind
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green manure
fresh or growing green vegetation plowed into the soil to increase the organic matter and humus available to the next crop
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crop rotation
farmers using crop rotation may plant areas or strips with nutrient depleting crops one year; the next year however, they plant the same areas with legumes who's root nodules add nitrogen to the soil
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humus
partially decomposed organic matter
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infiltration
When water first penetrates the surface of the soil.
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leaching
as infiltration occurs, the water dissolves various soil components in upper layers and carries them to lower layers
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soil texture
relative amounts of different sizes and types of mineral particles; clay, silt, sand, or gravel
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loams
soils with roughly equal mixtures of clay, sand, silt and humus
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soil porosity
a measure of the volume of pores or spaces per volume of soil and the average distances between those spaces.
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soil permeability
the rate at which water and air move from upper to lower soil layers
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soil structure
how soil particles are organized and clumped together
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cation exchange capacity
A soil's ability to hold nutrient ions such as Ca2+, K+, and Mg2+ and exchange them with the soil solution, determined by the clay content of the soil.
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gully reclamation
restoring severely eroded land by planting shrubs, vines, & trees to stabilize the soil, channels to divert fast moving water, and check dams that will fill up with silt and gradually fill in the gullies.
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organic fertilizer
It is derived from animal or vegetable matter
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inorganic fertilizer
Consists of mined or synthetically manufactured mineral supplements. They are generally more susceptible to leaching and runoff and may be more likely to cause unintended off-site impacts.
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core
the innermost earth zone
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mantle
a thick solid zone surrounding the earth's core
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crust
the outermost and thinnest zone of the earth
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asthenosphere
the liquid region of the mantle, that flows like soft plastic
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lithosphere
the most outer part of the rigide mantle and crust
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plate tectonics
the theory explaining the movement of plates and the process that occurs at their boundaries
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continental drift
the theory that throughout earth's history continents have split and joined as continents have drifted back and forth along the earths surface
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divergent plate boundaries
plates move apart from each other in opposite directions
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convergent plate boundaries
plates are pushed together by internal forces
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subduction zone
where oceanic lithosphere is carried downward (subducted under the island arch or continent).
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transform fault
occurs where plates move in opposite but parallel directions along the fracture or fault in the lithosphere.
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igneous rock
can form below the earth's surface, or on it, when magma wells up from the upper mantle or deep crust, cools, and hardens into rock
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metamorphic rock
produced when a preexisting rock is subjected to high temperatures, high pressures, chemically active fluids, or a combination of those agents
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sedimentary rock
forms from sediment when preexisting rocks are weathered and eroded into small pieces, transported from their sources, and deposited in a body of surface water
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chemical weathering
the process in which rock is broken down by reactions involving oxygen, carbon dioxide, and water in the atmosphere and the ground.
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mechanical weathering
a large rock mass is broken into smaller fragments of the original material, similar to the results you would get get by using a hammer to break a rock into smaller fragments
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soil
complex mixture of eroded rock, mineral nutrients, decaying organic matter, water, air, and billions of living organisms (most of them microscopic decomposers)
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soil profile
cross-sectional view of the horizons
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soil horizons
series of zones in which mature soils are arranged
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O Horizon
the top layer, surface litter layer, it consists of freshly fallen undecomposed or partially decomposed leaves, twigs, crop wastes, animal waste, fungi, and other organic materials. Brown or black in color.
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A Horizon
top soil layer, is a porous mixture of the partially decomposed bodies of dead plants/animals called "humus" and inorganic materials such as clay, silt, and sand. Very fertile soil that produces high crop yields.
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B Horizon
Contains most of a soil's inorganic matter and is mostly broken-down rock consisting of varying mixtures of sand, silt, and clay.
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C Horizon
weathered parent material.
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frost wedging
most important agent of mechanical weathering; water collects in pores and cracks of rock, expands upon freezing, and splits off pieces of rock
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zero population growth (ZPG)
when the number of births and immigrations is equivalent to the number of deaths and emigrations; there is no population growth
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(crude) birth rate
the number of live births per 1,000 people in a population in a given year
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(crude) death rate
the number of deaths per 1,000 people in a population in a given year
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replacement-level fertility
the number of children a couple must bear to replace themselves; slightly higher than 2 per couple
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total fertility rate (TFR)
an estimate of the average number of children a woman will have during her child-bearing years under current age-specific birth rates
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infant mortality rate
the number of babies out of every 1,000 born each year that die within a year of birth
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life expectancy
the average number of years a newborn infant can expect to live
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age structure
the proportion of the population (or of each sex) at each age level
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demographic transition
as countries become industrialized, first their death rates and then their birth rates decline
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pre-industrial stage
harsh living conditions lead to a high birth rate (to compensate for high infant mortality) and a high death rate; little population growth
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transitional stage
industrialization begins, food production rises, and health care improves. Death rates drop and birth rates remain high, so the population grows rapidly
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industrial stage
industrialization is wide spread; the birth rate drops and eventually approaches the death rate. Reasons for this include better access to birth control, decline in the infant mortality rate, increased job opportunities for women, and the high costs of raising children who don't enter the workforce until after high school or college. Population growth continues at a slow rate. Most developed countries are in this stage
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postindustrial stage
the birth rate declines even further, equaling the death rate and thus reaching zero population growth. Then the birth rate falls below the death rate and total population size slowly decreases. Emphasis shifts to sustainable forms of economic development
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population change
(births + immigration) - (deaths + emigration)
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annual rate of natural population change
(Birth Rate-Death Rate) / 1,000 people x 100
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or
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\= (Birth Rate-Death Rate) / 10
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baby boom period
Any period of a greatly increased birth rate
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echo boom
children of baby boomers
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pre-reproductive age
Ages 0-14
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reproductive age
Ages 15-44
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post reproductive age
Ages 45 +
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demographic trap
rapid population growth that may outstrip economic growth and overwhelm life-support systems "trapping" the country in the transitional stage of demographic transition.
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urban areas
towns or cities plus their adjacent sub urban fringes with populations of more than 2500 people (although some countries set minimum at 10000 to 50000 residents)
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rural areas
an area with a human population of under 2500 people
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degree of urbanization
percentage of an area's population that's living in an urban area
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urban growth
rate of increase of urban population
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sector city
a city in pie shaped wedges
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multiple nuclei city
developed around a number of independent centers or satellite cities
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megalopolis
places formed as cities grow outword and separate into urban areas
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urban heat island
patterns of air circulation that create a dust dome over the city
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dust plume
when wind speeds increase, the dust dome elongates downwind
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noise pollution
unwanted disturbing or harmful sounds that impair or interfere causes stress hampers concentration or work efficiency or causes accidents
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urban sprawl
dispersed automobile oriented cities with low population density
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individual transportation
such as cars motor scooters bicycles and walking
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mass transportation
mostly buses and rail systems
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rapid rail
which operates on exclusive rites of way on elevated tracks or tunnels
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suburban or regional trains
connect the central city with surrounding areas, or provide transportation between major cities in a region
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light rail
more modern versions of street cars which can run either with other traffic or on an exclusive rites of way
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land use planning
used to determine the best present and future use of each parcel of land in an area
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ecological land use planning
in which additional variables are integrated into a model designed to anticipate a region's present and future needs and problems
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zoning
in which various parcels of land are designated for certain uses
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concentric circle city
Central business District (CBD), deteriorating transition zone, worker's homes, middle-class suburbs, commuters zone; i.e. New York
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heavy rail
mass transit like subway, elevated railways, metro trains operating on excluxive right of way tracks
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greenbelt
A ring of land maintained as parks, agricultural, or other types of open space to limit the sprawl of an urban area
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smart growth
environmentally friendly development practices particularly those that emphasize more efficient infrastructure and less dependence on automobiles. (discourage urban sprawl, direct growth to certain areas, protect land and waterways,)
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urban growth boundary
geographical boundaries placed around a city to limit suburban growth within that city
Studied by 3 people
