Industrial Revolution and Economic Geography Flashcards

Industrial Revolution

Began in England around the turn of the 18th century, then spread to Germany, France, and other nearby countries.
Europe was the first place in the world that became industrialized.
The United States and some countries in North and South America followed soon after.
Levels of development vary due to the timing of industrialization; it began ~225 years ago in Europe, but only ~70 years ago in colonized regions.
Colonized regions were focused on resource extraction and therefore couldn't industrialize until they gained independence.
Industrialization increased the efficiency of manufacturing and agriculture leading to:
- Increased urbanization.
- Increased colonization and imperialism to obtain more resources.

Primary Sector: Extraction of raw materials.
- Examples: mining, ranching, forestry, fishing, farming, oil drilling.
- Even highly technological extraction industries (e.g., oil drilling) are considered primary.
Secondary Sector: Processing raw materials into finished goods.
- Oil refineries convert crude oil into usable products.
- Diamonds are cleaned and turned into jewelry.
- Examples: textile manufacture, food processing (canning tomatoes into spaghetti sauce).
Tertiary Sector: Offering services (intangible goods).
- Examples: teachers, doctors, transportation (Uber drivers, cargo ship operators from China to Los Angeles).
- Important: Transportation is a crucial but often overlooked part of the tertiary sector.
Quaternary Sector: Knowledge-based economy; research and development.
- Examples: lab researchers, marine biologists.
- Focus is on advancing knowledge and technology.
Quinary Sector: Highest levels of decision-making in society and the economy.
- Examples: government executives, CEOs, school superintendents.
- Decisions made in this sector impact all other sectors.

A model for determining the optimal location of a manufacturing facility based on minimizing transportation costs.
- M = Market.
- R = Raw materials.
Bulk-Reducing Industries: Factory located closer to raw materials to reduce transportation costs.
- Raw materials are more expensive and/or difficult to transport than the finished product.
- Examples: copper wiring, steel, timber (logs to cut wood).
Bulk-Gaining Industries: Factory located closer to the market because finished product is bulkier or more difficult to transport.
- Finished products gains bulk or becomes difficult to transport after production.
- Examples: cars, furniture, bottled beverages.
Agglomeration: Clustering of similar or competing industries in one location.
- Seen with car dealerships along interstates and fast-food restaurants at intersections.
- Factories may also cluster near shared material sources.

Optimal location is the best spot to sell from, once someone claims it, you must position yourself right nest to them.
Positioning one's business near competitors to negate locational advantage.
- Example: Ice cream vendors on a beach, car dealerships along an interstate.
- Competition then shifts to prices, car types, and services.

Outdated measures focus solely on money, such as GDP, GNP, and GNI per capita.
- They don't reflect how wealth is used or distributed.
The United Nations uses the Human Development Index (HDI).
- Includes education, health, standard of living, gender equality, and income inequality (Gini coefficient).
- Education, health, and standard of living should be high.
- Inequality should be low.
HDI ranges from 0 to 1, with higher scores indicating better development (e.g., Sweden ~0.97).
Gender Inequality Index (GII) evaluates women's reproductive health and empowerment.
- Reproductive health: maternal mortality rate, adolescent fertility rate.
- Empowerment: women's representation in government and workforce participation.
Gini Coefficient: Measures income inequality (gross inequality of national income).
- Compares GNI per capita between men and women.
- A smaller gap indicates more equality.

Wallerstein's World Systems Theory: Core-periphery model (dependency theory).
- Core benefits from low-cost labor and resources in the semi-periphery and periphery.
- Core manufactures high-tech goods and provides services that the periphery lacks.
- Core countries may act to maintain this dependency for their own economic gain.
Rostow's Stages of Economic Growth: International trade theory with five stages.
- Traditional Society: subsistence farming.
- Preconditions for Take-off: agricultural surplus enables diversification.
- Take-off: industrialization and urbanization (dual economy).
- Drive to Maturity: diversification and reduced commodity dependence.
- Age of Mass Consumption: shift to tertiary sector (core).
- No clear path from stage to stage.

Definition: Ability of a company or country to produce goods/services at a lower cost than others.
- Can be achieved through outsourcing, special economic zones, and access to resources/technology.
- Example: Peru's easier lithium processing gives it an advantage over Bolivia.

Definition: When two places benefit from trading specific goods or resources.
- Example: Kazakhstan exports agricultural goods to China; China exports machinery/technology to Kazakhstan.
- China and Vietnam trading agriculture and livestock.
Competitive Advantage: Ability to gain the edge by lowering cost more than others.

Moving jobs to countries with lower labor costs (lower standards of living, lower education levels, lower-skilled workers).
- Finished products are then sold in core countries.

The belief that interconnectedness and reduced trade barriers lead to global improvement.
- Examples: OPEC, EU, USMCA, Mercosur.
- Opening borders promote free flow of products, development, and economic growth.

Areas within a country with different rules to attract foreign investment.
- Lower taxes, fewer labor restrictions.
- Criticism: Workers may not benefit; benefits primarily go to companies and the host country.
- China's SEZs spurred economic growth since the 1980s.
Free Trade Zones: Eliminate tariffs and trade barriers; promote intensive manufacturing and break-of-bulk points (e.g., Singapore).
Export Processing Zones: All manufactured goods must be exported; prevents competition with local industries and forces goods out of the country.

Site and situation factors.
Break-of-bulk points and containerization.
Women's role in development (agriculture and industry).
Microlending: Small loans (e.g., $10-20) primarily for women in rural areas (high payback rate).
International division of labor: where manufacturing, agriculture, and high/low-skilled work occur.
Four Asian Tigers: Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, and Hong Kong.
BRICS: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa.
Fordist vs. Post-Fordist production: assembly line vs. automation.
Economies of scale: Increased production leads to greater profit (enabled by containerization and global supply chains).
Just-in-time delivery: Efficient planning to minimize waste and maximize profit.
Sustainable development and ecotourism.
Sustainable Development Goals: environmental, social, and political goals.