AP Human Geography 12.1-12.2 Notes

Types of Services: The tertiary, or service sector, comprises various establishments such as shops, restaurants, hospitals, etc.
Definition of a Service: In geographic terms, a service is defined as any activity that fulfills a human want or need.
Economic Impact: Services generate more than 2/3 of the GDP in most developed countries, whereas this figure is significantly lower in developing nations.
Clustering of Services: Services are generally clustered in developed countries due to a higher population able to purchase services.
Definition of a Settlement: A settlement is defined as a permanent collection of buildings where people reside, work, and obtain services.
Favorable Location Factor for Services: Proximity to markets is considered the most favorable location factor for services.

The service sector is divided into three subgroups:
a. Consumer Services: Approximately 50% of all jobs in the U.S. fall under this category.
- Purpose: The main purpose is to provide services to individual consumers who desire them and can afford to pay for them.
- Four Main Types of Consumer Services: Recreation and Leisure, Retail, Health, and Education.
  b. Business Services: Around 25% of all U.S. jobs.
- Purpose: Facilitate the activity of other businesses.
- Three Main Types of Business Services: Professional services, transportation, and financial services.
  c. Public Services: Comprising about 10% of all U.S. jobs.
- Purpose: To provide security and protection for citizens and businesses.
- Types of Jobs: Includes federal, state, and local government positions.
Trends in Employment: All growth in U.S. employment has been in the service sector, while primary and secondary sector jobs have declined.
Job Increases: Within business services, the subcategory of jobs that have increased the most are professional services and transportation. For consumer services, the most significant job increases have occurred in healthcare, recreation, and entertainment.

Central Place Theory: This theory aims to explain the distribution patterns, size, and number of cities and towns globally. Developed by German geographer Walter Christaller in 1933, it posits that the countryside is flat with no barriers to impede movement.
Assumptions of Human Behavior:
1. Humans will purchase goods from the closest available source.
2. High demand for goods will lead to closer proximity of offerings to populations.
Definition of Central Place: A central place is defined as a market area surrounded by people attracted for the exchange of goods and services from surrounding areas.

Market Area (Hinterland): The area surrounding a service where customers are attracted.
Consumer Behavior: Most people prefer to get services from the nearest location; consumers at the edge of the market area are more likely to choose other locations for services.
Geographic Division of the U.S.: The contiguous 48 states are divided into 1721 functional regions centered around commuting hubs, known as daily urban systems.

Definition of Range: The range of a service is defined as the maximum distance people are willing to travel to access a service.
Perceptions of Distance: Range is often perceived in terms of time rather than physical distance (miles/kilometers).
Definition of Threshold: The threshold of a service is the minimum number of people needed to support and sustain that service.
Site Suitability: A suitable site for a service must have the potential to generate enough capital to justify its establishment.

Travel Decisions: Consumers are less inclined to travel to a distant store if the same merchandise is available nearby. Greater distances are traversed when:
a. Prices are lower.
b. Items are unavailable locally.
Hexagonal Patterns: According to central place theory, hexagons of various sizes represent a nesting pattern of settlements that range from hamlet to city.
Rank-Size Rule: In many developed countries, this rule asserts that a country's 4th largest settlement will have 1/n the population of the largest settlement.
Primate City Rule: Contrasting the rank-size rule, the primate city rule indicates that the largest city has more than double the number of people as the second-largest city.

Negative Impact of Primate City Rule: This can signify insufficient wealth within developing countries to sustain a full range of services.

Gravity Model of Spatial Interaction: This model suggests that larger places attract more migrants, and more distant locations have a diminished pull effect.
Purpose of Market Area Analysis: This is used in severe economic downturns to help determine which facilities to keep operational.
Prediction for Business Owners: The gravity model predicts the optimal location for a service as being directly related to the number of potential customers in the vicinity and their distance.
Consumer Behaviors in Gravity Model:
a. Greater numbers of nearby people increase the potential customer base for a service.
b. The farther people must travel to a service, the less likely they are to patronize it.

Definition of a Food Desert: An area that lacks sufficient access to healthy food options, particularly in low-income neighborhoods.

Definition of Periodic Market: A collection of individual vendors that come together to offer goods and services at specified times or days.
Advantages of Periodic Markets:
a. Makes services more accessible in rural or low-income areas.
b. Provides a wider variety of goods to residents in smaller villages.