Earth's Landforms, Plate Tectonics, and Geographical Boundaries

Exogenic and endogenic forces that shape landforms on the Earth's surface.

Exogenic = external forces → weathering, erosion, deposition

Endogenic = internal forces → mountain building, earthquakes, volcanoes

The Earth's interior-four layers (chemical composition of layers; which layer makes up the largest portion of the Earth's volume? Which layer is the thinnest/thickest?)

Crust = rigid layer of solid rock

Mantle = mostly solid rocky layer; thickest layer

Outer core = made of iron, liquid

Inner core = made of iron, solid, dense

Differences between continental crust and oceanic crust.

Oceanic crust more dense but thinner

Continental crust less dense but thicker

What does the theory of continental drift state?

The continents are moving

Compare the theories of plate tectonics and continental drift (what the continental drift theory did not explain)

Explained 'why' the Earth's continents are moving

Explains why earthquakes, volcano and mountain ranges are where they are

What evidence did Alfred Wegener use to support his theory of continental drift?

Fossils of the same prehistoric animals or plants on several continents

Fossils/rocks in a region that seemed to have travelled from another climate

Why was Wegener's theory not accepted?

He did not understand the mechanism that explain how continents moved

What does plate tectonics explain?

The movements of the continents

Characteristics of the lithosphere and asthenosphere.

Lithosphere = crust and upper most solid mantle

Asthenosphere = the plastic liquid layer of the upper mantle

What is a tectonic plate?

Slab of rock made of the lithosphere that floats on the asthenosphere

Convection currents

Heating and cooling of the asthenosphere creates convection currents which in turn move the tectonic plates

Geographic locations of earthquakes volcanoes, and mountain ranges,

Along divergent plate boundaries

The location of the ring of fire. What is happening in the ring of fire?

Ring of Fire is the world's largest subduction zone, it is a string of volcanoes and sites of earthquakes.

It is located around the edges of the pacific ocean.

Three types of plate boundaries: characteristics; major activities that occur; and well-known examples for each type.

Divergent boundaries = plates spreading apart; seafloor spreading, form mountains (thru volcanic activity - magma rises up to fill gap), volcanoes, and earthquakes; Rift valleys in Africa (lowland region)

Convergent boundaries = plates pushing together; continental-continental convergence (folding) or oceanic-continental convergence (subduction zone - denser oceanic plate dives below); ring of fire

Transform boundaries = plates sliding past each other sideways; cause earthquakes and creates faults (large cracks); San Andres faultline

Rock age at a divergent boundary.

Youngest at the boundary, older as you move farther away

Convergent folding

Occurs when there is continental-continental convergence boundary

Subduction zone

Occurs when there is a oceanic-continental convergence boundary

The oceanic plate dives below the continental - as it heads deeper into the mantle it is heated, and melts creating active volcanoes

Fault

Result at transform boundaries

They are large cracks in the tectonic plate

Definition of weathering erosion, and deposition

Weathering: breaking down rocks into smaller pieces as a result of exposure to the environment (can be chemical or physical)

Erosion: transportation of sediments that have been broken down by weathering

Deposition: dropping off of sediments that have been weathered and eroded

Be able to distinguish between physical weathering and chemical weathering processes

Physical (Mechanical) weathering: breaking down rocks by physical forces, without changing its chemical composition

Chemical weathering: altering of rocks as a result of chemical reactions

Erosion by river; erosion by gravity

Water movement can erode the riverbed

Gravity causes erosion through landslides

River: When and where deposition and erosion occur in general

Deposition occurs on the inside bank of the river bend (where water moves slower)

Erosion occurs on the outside bank of the river bend (where water moves faster)

Three main economic systems: Socialism; communism; and capitalism and their characteristics.

Socialism = public or private ownership, aims to reduce gap between rich and poor (redistribution of wealth),

Communism = public ownership, government controls and owns everything, everyone equal

Capitalism = private ownership, right to keep profit, freedom of competition in a free market, rich and poor have large separation

Spectrum of mixed economies

Communism ←→ socialism ←→ capitalism

Planned systems (high govt. control) ←→ free market systems (low govt. control)

Characteristics of three economic sectors (primary secondary and tertiary sectors) and examples of economic activities in each sector.

Primary sector: raw materials (fishing, forestry, mining, agriculture)

Secondary sector: manufacturing, transformation of raw materials

Tertiary sector: services (finance, advertising, education)

Be able to classify different economic activities into one of the three economic sectors (i.e. examples of jobs in each sector).

just know

A sectoral evolution theory: How does it explain the economic development of a country? What is the limitation of this theory?

Preindustrial → industrial → postindustrial

Limitations: oversimplification of urban development,

What leads to the uneven development between different countries or regions?

Development takes place at different rates in different places

Unequal distribution of people, resources, wealth

Theories that attempt to explain the uneven development between countries.

Modernization theory, Dependency theory, World-Systems theory

The general relationship between natural resources and economic prosperity.

Natural resources provide a country with material that can be developed

What is a resource curse? In what case does a resource curse occur? In what case can a country avoid a resource curse?

Regions with large valuable natural resources often have worse economic performance

How do colonialism and neo-colonialism explain the uneven economic development between (former) colonies and (former) colonizer countries?

Colonizers created economic development that benefitted them but disrupted the pre-existing local economies

Be able to define GDP and GNI and know the differences and examples.

GDP (gross domestic product) = total dollar amount of all final goods/services produced within a country (guide to countries domestic economy)

GNI (gross national income) = total dollar amount of all final goods/services produced by a country's citizens/businesses, regardless of production location

Human development index (HDI).

HDI (human development index) = income + health + education; measures the standard of living

Be able to define a state and a nation.

State = a politically organized space

Nation = a group of people with

Four necessary elements of a state (pay particular attention to sovereignty and international recognition.

A permanent population,

defined territory,

government and sovereignty (sovereignty = a state's right to be able to govern itself),

and international recognition

Four necessary elements of a nation (pay particular attention to self-determination).

Common history,

shared beliefs and values (similar cultural characteristics),

a claimed traditional homeland,

desire for self-determination (self-determination = a nation's right to be able to govern themselves)

Nation-state; multi-ethnic state; and multi-national state: Definitions characteristics and examples respectively.

Nation-State = a singular nation of people who fulfill the qualifications of a state

Multi-ethinic state = a state that contains more than one ethnicity within its border (ex: the US)

Multi-national state = a state that contains more that one nation of people within its boarder (ex: soviet union)

Multi-state nation and stateless nation: Definitions characteristics and examples respectively.

Multi-state nation = nation of people who are distributed across multiple states (ex: south and north Korea)

Stateless nation = a nation of people who do not have an independent state of their own and complete control over a territory (ex: Palestine, Kurds)

Types of political boundaries.

Physical-political boundary = defined by physical features (ex: coast lines, rivers)

Geometric boundary = arbitrarily drawn by humans (ex: straight lines)

Cultural boundary = separates different cultures

Why does trying to establish cultural boundaries often lead to violence and conflicts?

Groups may be in direct competition for resources, power, territory, when political borders disregard cultural lines

4 different types of boundary disputes: Definitions and examples respectively (Be able to identify a type of boundary dispute when given an example).

Allocational dispute = dispute over resources (oil / water)

Operational dispute = dispute over how the boundary should function / administrate (illegal immigration, border crossing, etc.)

Definitional dispute = on the legal language of agreement (don't agree on whose land it is)

Locational dispute = dispute on the interpretation of where the boundary line is when the original boundary has shifted over time

Definition and characteristics of the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Exclusive economic zone (EEZ) = the area in which the state has the sole right to exploit the natural resources