Global Cities Midterm

Absolute Location

The exact position of a place on the Earth's surface, typically given in coordinates (latitude and longitude).

Acculturation

The process by which one culture adopts some elements of another culture, often through contact or interaction.

Assimilation

The process by which a group of people becomes absorbed into another culture, losing some or all of their original cultural identity.

Cartography

The art and science of making maps.

Cultural Landscape

The human-modified landscape that reflects cultural beliefs, practices, and values.

Density

The frequency or number of occurrences of something within a given area.

Diffusion

The process by which an idea, innovation, or cultural trait spreads from its hearth to other areas.

Distribution

The arrangement or spread of a phenomenon across the Earth's surface.

Equator

The imaginary line around the middle of the Earth, equidistant from the North and South Poles, at 0° latitude.

Five Themes of Geography

Location, Place, Region, Human-Environment Interaction, and Movement.

Formal Region

A region defined by one or more shared characteristics, such as language, climate, or political boundaries.

Functional Region

A region defined by a central point or node and the surrounding areas affected by it, such as a city and its suburbs.

Geography

The study of the Earth's surface, environments, places, and spaces.

Globalization

The process by which businesses, cultures, and societies become interconnected and interdependent on a global scale.

Hearth

The origin or point of diffusion of an idea, innovation, or cultural trait.

Latitude

The distance north or south of the Equator, measured in degrees.

Longitude

The distance east or west of the Prime Meridian, measured in degrees.

Prime Meridian

The meridian at 0° longitude, which divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.

Projection

A method of representing the curved surface of the Earth on a flat map, often distorting size, shape, or distance.

Relative Location

The position of a place in relation to other places or landmarks.

Scale

The ratio of a distance on a map to the corresponding distance on the ground.

Toponym

The name given to a place on Earth.

Vernacular Region

A region defined by the perceptions or feelings of people, often based on cultural or regional identity.

Demography

The study of population characteristics, including size, growth, distribution, and density.

Crude Birth Rate (CBR)

The number of live births per 1,000 people in a given year.

Population Distribution

The pattern of where people live across the Earth's surface.

Crude Death Rate (CDR)

The number of deaths per 1,000 people in a given year.

Population Density

The number of people per unit of area, typically per square kilometer or mile.

Demographic Transition Model (DTM)

A model that describes the changes in population growth as a country industrializes, moving through four or five stages.

Natural Increase Rate (NIR)

The rate at which a population is growing, calculated by subtracting the crude death rate from the crude birth rate.

Arithmetic Density

The total number of people divided by the total land area.

Stages of the DTM

The stages represent population change as countries industrialize, from high birth and death rates (Stage 1) to low birth and death rates (Stage 4 or 5).

Total Fertility Rate (TFR)

The average number of children a woman is expected to have during her lifetime.

Infant Mortality Rate

The number of infant deaths (under 1 year old) per 1,000 live births in a given year.

Life Expectancy

The average number of years a person can expect to live, based on the current mortality rates.

Population Pyramid

A graphical representation of the age and sex structure of a population.

Ecumene

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

Less Developed Countries (LDC)

Countries with lower levels of industrialization, lower human development index (HDI), and lower standards of living.

Dependency Ratio

The ratio of people in a population who are not in the labor force (young and elderly) to those who are.

More Developed Countries (MDC)

Countries with higher levels of industrialization, higher human development index (HDI), and higher standards of living.

Zero Population Growth

A condition where the birth rate equals the death rate, resulting in no overall population growth.

Anti-Natalist Policies

Policies aimed at reducing the birth rate, often implemented to control population growth.

Pro-Natalist Policies

Policies aimed at encouraging people to have more children to increase the birth rate.

Epidemiological Transition Model

A model that explains the changes in population health and mortality rates, typically tied to economic development.

Culture

The beliefs, behaviors, and traditions shared by a group of people.

Habit

A repetitive act that an individual performs regularly.

Custom

A repetitive act of a group of people, often reflecting cultural traditions.

Norm

A societal rule or standard that defines acceptable behavior.

Folk Culture

Traditional, localized culture that is typically rural, conservative, and focused on maintaining customs and traditions.

Popular Culture

Modern, urban culture that is widespread and rapidly changing, often influenced by mass media.

Cultural Landscape

The visible imprint of human activity on the physical environment, reflecting cultural practices and values.

Material Culture

The physical objects, resources, and spaces that people use to define their culture.

Nonmaterial Culture

The intangible aspects of culture, such as beliefs, values, and customs.

Cultural Hearth

The place where a cultural trait or idea originates and begins to spread.

Taboo

A cultural or social practice that is strongly prohibited or forbidden.

Cultural Relativism

The belief that a person's culture should be understood based on that culture's own values, rather than judged against the criteria of another culture.