Exam Study Notes

Units to Study

• Units 1, 4, and 6.

Key Terms and Concepts

• Subsistence Farming: Farming primarily for personal or local consumption.

• Commercial Agriculture: Farming for profit, often involving large-scale operations.

• Township and Range: A rectangular land survey system used in the United States, dividing land into townships (6x6 miles) and ranges.

• Urban Agglomeration: An extended city or town area comprising the built-up area of a central place and any suburbs linked by continuous urban area.

• Creolized Language: A stable, natural language developed from a mixture of different languages at a single point in time.

• Combination of Languages: This refers to the creation of pidgins and creoles, where elements of different languages mix, often due to trade or colonization.

• Resource for Electricity in the US: The most used resource is natural gas followed by coal.

• Urban Planning in the US: City development and design focusing on land use, infrastructure, and environmental considerations.

• Gross National Income (GNI): The total domestic and foreign output claimed by residents of a country, comprising gross domestic product (GDP) plus factor incomes accruing to residents from abroad, less the income earned in the domestic economy accruing to persons abroad.

• Lowest Fertility Rate: The lowest fertility rates are typically found in developed countries or regions with high levels of education, urbanization, and access to healthcare.

• Blockbusting: A real estate practice where agents encourage white residents to sell their homes at a loss by implying that racial minorities are moving into the neighborhood, leading to property value decline.

  • Consequences: Panic selling, decreased property values, racial segregation.

  • Opposite of Consequences: Integration, stable property values, diverse communities.

• Diffusion of Christianity: The spread of Christianity from its origin through various forms of diffusion (relocation, expansion, hierarchical, and contagious).

• Characteristics of Hinduism: A diverse range of philosophies, beliefs, and rituals including dharma, karma, reincarnation, and the worship of multiple deities.

• Shatterbelt: A region caught between stronger colliding external cultural-political forces, under persistent stress, and often fragmented by aggressive rivals.

• Demographic Transition Model: A model that describes population change over time as a country develops.

  • Birth, Death, and Population Growth: The model consists of stages characterized by changes in birth rates, death rates, and overall population growth. High birth and death rates characterize stage 1; declining death rates and high birth rates characterize stage 2; declining birth rates and low death rates characterize stage 3; and low birth and death rates characterize stage 4.

• Types of Maps: Reference maps, thematic maps, isoline maps, dot density maps, proportional symbol maps and cartograms.

• Religions and Regions of Origin: Identifying major religions (Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism) and their respective geographic origins.

• Negative Relationship with Economic Development: Factors such as corruption, political instability, lack of infrastructure, or resource curse can hinder economic development.

• Language Appearance (Arabic vs. Hindi): Different scripts, alphabets, and writing directions.

• Countries with No Population Growth: Countries with a total fertility rate at or below the replacement level (2.1 children per woman) may experience zero or negative population growth.

• Boundary of Congressional Districts: Determined through redistricting, often influenced by political factors (gerrymandering).

• Manufacturing Company Merger: When a manufacturing company merges with a supply or production company, this is called vertical integration.

• Countries Divided by Cultural/Ideological Conflict: Examples include North and South Korea, and formerly East and West Germany.

• Land Values and Population Density: Land values typically increase with higher population density due to greater demand for limited space.

• Development of Urban Land: Processes include suburbanization, gentrification, and urban sprawl.

• Colonization by France: Identifying regions and countries that were formerly colonized by France (e.g., parts of Africa, Southeast Asia, North America).

• Alfred Weber: German economic geographer known for his theory of industrial location, which seeks to explain and predict the optimal location of industries based on factors such as transportation costs, labor costs, and agglomeration economies.

• Analysis of Location Decisions: Examining factors that businesses consider when choosing a location - proximity to markets, access to resources, labor costs, transportation, and government policies.

• Decolonization: The process by which colonies become independent from colonizing nations.

• Pan-Africanism: A movement promoting the unity of all people of African descent.

• Neocolonialism: The use of economic, political, cultural, or other pressures to control or influence former colonies.

• Imperialism: A policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force.

• Irredentism: A political movement that intends to reunite a nation or reclaim lost territory.

• Border Formalities: A border that requires few formalities and encourages the free flow of people and products would ideally be open and facilitate trade and travel - such as the borders within the European Union.

• Gerrymandering: The practice of drawing electoral district boundaries to favor one political party or group over another.

• Megacity vs. Metacity:

  • Megacity: A city with a population of over 10 million.

  • Metacity: A conurbation of multiple cities forming a continuous urban area with a population exceeding 20 million.

• Definition of a State: A politically organized territory with a permanent population, defined boundaries, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states.

• Disadvantages of Hydroelectric Power: Environmental impacts (dam construction, altered river flows), displacement of communities, and high initial costs.

• Company Relocation to the South (US): Factors such as lower labor costs, weaker unions, and favorable business climates prompted companies to move operations from the Northeast and Midwest to the South.

• Population Growth Patterns Today: Uneven distribution with high growth rates in developing countries and slower growth or decline in developed countries.

• World Region Least Impacted by the Green Revolution: Sub-Saharan Africa.

• Christaller's Central Place Model: A spatial theory that attempts to explain the reasons behind the distribution patterns, size, and number of cities and towns around the world.

• Japan's Dependency Ratio: The ratio of dependents--people younger than 15 or older than 64--to the working-age population--those ages 15-64. A high dependency ratio can create economic challenges.

• Carl Sauer's Concept of Cultural Landscape: The idea that the landscape is shaped by human activity and reflects the values, beliefs, and practices of a culture.

• Physiological Population Density: The number of people per unit area of arable land, indicating the pressure a population exerts on agricultural resources. Physiological \, Density = \frac{Population}{Area \, of \, Arable \, Land}

• Economic Complementarities: When two regions or countries can benefit from trade because they have different resources or specializations that complement each other.

• Types of Diffusion and Definitions: Relocation, expansion (hierarchical, contagious, stimulus).

• Demographic Challenges: Aging populations, declining fertility rates, high dependency ratios, and migration.

• Population Pyramids: A graphical illustration that shows the distribution of various age groups in a population (typically males and females).

• Malthusian View of the World: Thomas Malthus's theory that population growth will eventually outstrip resource availability, leading to famine, disease, and war.

• Definition of a State: A politically organized territory with a permanent population, defined boundaries, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states.

• Primary Economic Activities: Involve the extraction of raw materials from the earth (e.g., agriculture, mining, fishing).

• Secondary Economic Activities: Involve the processing and manufacturing of raw materials into finished goods (e.g., manufacturing, construction).

• Tertiary Economic Activities: Involve the provision of services (e.g., retail, healthcare, education).

• Language Spoken in Canada: English and French (official languages).

• Nation-State: A state whose territory corresponds to that occupied by a particular ethnicity that has been transformed into a nationality.

• Identifying Grain Crops: Recognizing different types of grain crops from visual representations (wheat, rice, corn, etc.).

• Subsistence vs. Commercial Agriculture: Subsistence farming is primarily for personal or local consumption, while commercial agriculture is for profit.

• Commercial Ranchers in the Pampas: Cattle ranching is a significant commercial activity in the Pampas region of Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil.

• Indo-European Language Family: Includes major languages of Europe and those dominant in regions except: Regions where Indo-European languages dominate include Europe, the Americas, Australia, and parts of Asia. Excludes regions like Sub-Saharan Africa.

• GIS Stations: Geographic Information Systems; computer systems for capturing, storing, checking, and displaying data related to positions on Earth’s surface.

• NTMs for Chart Use: Notice to mariners.

• GPS Satellites: Global Positioning System; a space-based navigation system that provides location and time information in all weather conditions, anywhere on or near the Earth where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites.

• GNIS Entries: Geographic Names Information System; the official repository of domestic geographic names data.

• TIR Scanning Systems: Thermal Infrared Scanning.

• Maquiladoras: Factories in Mexico that operate under preferential tariff programs established to encourage manufacturing for export to the U.S.

• Edge City: A concentration of business, shopping, and entertainment that is located in the suburbs, away from the traditional downtown core.

• Nation-State: A state whose territory corresponds to that occupied by a particular ethnicity that has been transformed into a nationality.

• Median Line Principle: An approach to dividing and creating boundaries to areas of overlapping territorial claims. Often used in international waters.

• Network Cities: Cities that have developed complementary functions due to high-speed rail, highways, and communication systems.

• Dependency Ratio: The ratio of dependents--people younger than 15 or older than 64--to the working-age population--those ages 15-64. A high dependency ratio can create economic challenges.

• Nationless State: A group of people with a common identity and culture who do not have their own state (e.g., Kurds).

• Silicon Valley Tech Clusters: Agglomeration economies, knowledge spillover, specialized labor pool, venture capital.

• Religions Predominant in Sections of the U.S.: Identifying the dominant religions in different regions of the United States.

• US Winter Sources of Fruit: Identifying regions that supply fruit to the US during the winter months.

• Region with Smallest Percentage of Urban Population (20th Century): Identifying the region with the lowest urbanization rate at the end of the 20th century.

• Taboo: A social or religious custom prohibiting or forbidding discussion of a particular practice or forbidding association with a particular person, place, or thing.

• Demographic Transition Model: A model that describes population change over time as a country develops.

• Balkanization: The process of fragmentation or division of a region or state into smaller mutually hostile states or groups.

• Ethnocentrism: The belief that one's own culture is superior to others.

• Commodity Chain: A network of processes that extracts raw materials, transforms them into goods, and ultimately distributes them to consumers.

• Carl Sauer: Geographer known for his work on cultural landscapes and the impact of human activities on the environment.

• Ancient Culture Hearths: The regions where civilization first emerged (e.g., Mesopotamia, Nile River Valley, Indus River Valley, Yellow River Valley).

• Central Place Theory: A spatial theory that attempts to explain the reasons behind the distribution patterns, size, and number of cities and towns around the world.

• Centripetal vs. Centrifugal Forces:

  • Centripetal: Forces that unite a state (e.g., common language, religion, national identity).

  • Centrifugal: Forces that divide a state (e.g., ethnic tensions, regionalism, economic inequality).

• Diplomatic Records: Official documents and communications between countries.

• Functional Region: A region defined by a specific activity or interaction (e.g., a metropolitan area, a transportation network).

• Environmental Determinism: The belief that the physical environment determines human social development.

• Possibilism: The theory that the environment sets certain constraints or limitations, but culture is otherwise determined by social conditions.

• Commute Definition: Travel some distance between one's home and place of work on a regular basis.

• Perceptual Region: A region defined by people's subjective feelings and attitudes (e.g., the "Midwest", "the South").

• Formal Region: An area inhabited by people who have one or more traits in common (language, religion, etc).

• Conformal Region (Map Projection): Preserves shape and angle. Distorts area.

• Equal Area Region (Map Projection): Preserves area. Distorts shape.

• Map Advantages and Disadvantages: Understanding the strengths and limitations of different types of maps.

• Vernacular Region: A region defined by people's informal sense of place (e.g., "the Bible Belt", "the Sun Belt").

• Peripheral Regions: Regions that are dependent on core regions for economic and political power.

• Linguistic: Relating to language or linguistics.

• Lingua Franca: A common language used among people with different native languages for trade and communication.

• Spatial Organization: The arrangement of activities and phenomena across the Earth's surface.

• Industrial Agriculture: Large-scale, intensive farming practices that rely on mechanization, synthetic fertilizers, and pesticides.

• Devolution: The transfer of powers and responsibilities from a central government to regional or local authorities.

• Unitary State: A state in which the central government holds the primary authority.

• Federal State: A state in which power is divided between a central government and regional or local governments.