Hildebrant, Human Geography for the AP® Course 1e - Module 37

Green Revolution

The U.S.-supported development of high-yield seed varieties that increased the productivity of cereal crops and accompanying agricultural technologies for transfer to less developed countries

crossbreeding

The act of mixing different species or varieties of plants or animals to produce hybrids

hybrid

The offspring of two plants or animals of different species or varieties

double-cropping

Planting another crop on the same plot of land as soon as the first crop has been harvested

multicropping

Planting two or three crops per year on the same land

hierarchical diffusion

Occurs when ideas leapfrog from one important person, community, or city to another, bypassing other persons, communities, or rural areas

cassava

A root vegetable native to South America

sorghum

A grain plant native to northeast Africa

endemic

Native to or characteristic of a certain environment

environmental contamination

Chemical residue that builds up with each application of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides

soil salinization

The concentration of dissolved salts in the soil

soil salinity

A measure of the concentration of dissolved salts in the soil; high soil salinity results from poor irrigation practices