AP Human Geography Semester 1 & 2 Definitive Review (Units 1-7)
Unit 01: Foundations of Geography
Human Geography vs. Physical Geography: - Human Geography: Focuses on culture, agriculture, industrialization, and demographics. - Physical Geography: Focuses on landforms, climate, vegetation, and soils.
Map Projections & Distortion: - Mercator Projection: Shapes are accurate; very common for navigation and sea travel because it provides true directions. It distorts area and distance the least relative to other maps. - Robinson Projection: Continents appear similar to the globe with minor distortions overall. However, shapes near the poles allow for flatness and distances at the poles are incorrect. This is the most common projection.
Map Scale: - Definition: The relationship between size on a map and actual size. - Scale Levels: Ranges from local (large scale) to global (small scale). - Expression: Can be expressed visually, as fractions/ratios, or verbally.
Time and Space: - Time-Space Compression: The ability to move an item from one place to another and the acceleration of that process via transportation advancements. - Time-Space Convergence: Increased interaction of cultures through the internet, leading to the use of English as a global language (music, Hollywood). - Summary: Both factors make the world feel "smaller."
Spatial Diffusion: - Relocation Diffusion: Spread through physical movement (e.g., Spanish explorers). - Expansion Diffusion: Includes: - Hierarchical Diffusion: Spread from nodes of authority (e.g., fashion moving from big cities like Atlanta/Chicago to smaller towns like Tulsa/Valdosta). - Contagious Diffusion: Rapid, widespread diffusion throughout a population. - Stimulus Diffusion: Spread of an underlying principle despite a specific trait being rejected (e.g., McDonald's in India uses paneer instead of beef).
GIS vs. GPS: - GPS (Global Positioning System): Uses satellite navigation to provide exact location and data. - GIS (Geographic Information Systems): Maps geographical data to assist in decision-making for businesses and governments.
Sequent Occupance: The notion that successive societies leave their cultural imprints on a place, contributing to a cumulative cultural landscape (e.g., New York City from 1600 to present).
Unit 02: Demographics and Migration
Population Density: - Arithmetic Density: Total number of people divided by land area. It does not reflect distribution. - Physiological Density: Total number of people divided by total area of arable (farmable) land. Shows the strain on land for food production. Case study: Egypt has an arithmetic density of but a physiological density of . - Agricultural Density: Ratio of farmers to arable land. More Developed Countries (MDCs) have lower density due to technology; Less Developed Countries (LDCs) have higher density because most people must farm for their own food.
Thomas Malthus: - Malthusian Theory: Population grows exponentially (J-Curve) while food grows linearly. This leads to a "Malthusian Crisis" (starvation). - Negative Checks: Famine, disease, and war check population growth.
Demographic Transition Model (DTM): - Stage 1: High Crude Birth Rate (CBR) (no education) and high Crude Death Rate (CDR) (famine/disease). No growth. - Stage 2: High CBR and falling CDR due to mass food production (e.g., LDCs). - Stage 3: CBR falls as women gain rights; CDR falls with healthcare. Expanding growth. - Stage 4: Zero Population Growth (ZPG). Career-oriented women and outstanding healthcare. - Stage 5: Negative growth due to delayed families and focus on careers.
Population Pyramids: - Triangle (Fast Growth): Poor countries with high birth rates and lack of education/wealth. - Coke Bottle/Kite (Slow/Negative Growth): Wealthier countries like Japan (forecast for 2055 shows a kite shape).
Population Policies: - China: implemented the One Child Policy (1979) using free birth control and sterilization. Resulted in males per females. - India: No strict state program, though clinics exist. Banned finding out baby gender to prevent female infanticide. Projected to be the most populous country by 2050.
Migration: - Push Factors: Unfavorable characteristics (e.g., Rwanda genocide, Potato Famine). - Pull Factors: Favorable characteristics (e.g., jobs, safety). - Refugees: People fleeing war or persecution (e.g., Syrians in 2013, Kurds in 1991). - Interally Displaced: Millions moved from New Orleans to the Southeast after Hurricane Katrina (2005). - Types of Movement: - Cyclical: Short-term, closed route (commuting). - Periodic: Lengthy return date (college, military, transhumance). - Migratory: Permanent relocation. - Transnational Migration: Maintaining networks in both the origin and destination country; involves sending remittances.
Unit 03: Culture
Pop Culture vs. Folk Culture: - Pop Culture: Widespread, dynamic, typically urban/suburban. Uses manufactured materials (glass, steel). Leads to "placelessness." - Folk Culture: Localized, static, remote locations. Uses local materials (mud, stone, wood). Landscape remains unique.
Toponyms: Place names reflecting migration history, values, historical events, or physical character (e.g., New England, Grand Canyon).
Languages: - Classification: Family (Indo-Euro , Sino-Tibetan ) -> Branch (evolved from common origin) -> Group (common words). - Diffusion Theories: - Conquest Theory: Groups take over areas and replace languages. - Agriculture Theory: Spread of language followed farming migration from Anatolia. - Evolution: Language Divergence (dialects due to isolation) vs. Language Convergence (contact between isolated languages).
Religions: - Universalizing: Appeal to all, individual founder, spread by missionaries (Christianity: Hearth Israel; Islam: Hearth Mecca; Buddhism: Hearth India). - Ethnic: Tied to a place, unknown source, clustered (Hinduism, Judaism). - Architecture: Religious sites have distinct footprints (e.g., Greek Orthodox crosses, Islamic mosques, Buddhist temples).
Unit 04: Geopolitics
States and Nations: - State: Geographically organized political unit with a government (country). - Nation: Group of people with shared culture and history (e.g., Maasai Tribe). - Nation-State: A state with a homogeneous nation (Japan, Iceland). - Stateless Nation: A nation without a recognized state (Kurds, Palestinians). - Multinational State: Contains two or more nations (Russia, former Yugoslavia).
Political Entities: - Autonomous Region: Freedom from external authority (Taiwan internal affairs). - Semiautonomous: Limited control; restricted by a larger state (Native American reservations, Hong Kong). - Sovereignty: Power over domestic affairs and protection from abroad.
Boundaries: - Natural: Based on physical features (Rio Grande, Parana River). - Geometric: Lines of latitude/longitude. - Origins: - Antecedent: Existed before settlement (rivers). - Subsequent: Drawn between cultural groups. - Superimposed: Forced by colonial powers (Berlin Conference). - Relic: Non-functioning but visible (Berlin Wall). - Chokepoints: Locations like Panama Canal, Strait of Gibraltar, Suez Canal, and Strait of Hormuz.
Devolution: Movement of power from central to regional governments (Catalonia, Spain; Honolulu, Hawai'i).
Supranationalism: or more states working toward shared goals. - Examples: UN (dispute arbitration), EU (trade), NAFTA/USMCA (North American trade), NATO (military alliance), ASEAN (SE Asia cooperation), Arctic Council (climate/sustainability).
Unit 05: Agriculture
The Three Agricultural Revolutions: - 1st Revolution: Domesticated plants in the Fertile Crescent years ago; animals domesticated years ago. Led to sedentary lifestyles and urban takeoff. - 2nd Revolution: Just before the Industrial Revolution (). Included crop rotation, seed drill, mechanization (internal combustion engine), and high-yield fertilizers. - 3rd Revolution (Green Revolution): Began in the . Involved genetic manipulation (GMOs) of corn, rice (IR8, IR36), and wheat to increase yields and resist pests.
Columbian Exchange: The spectacular ecological event after involving the commingling of Old and New World plants/animals/bacteria. New World exports: Potato, Tomato, Corn. Old World imports: Livestock (Horses, Cattle), Grains (Wheat, Rice), and Diseases (Smallpox, Malaria).
Land Survey Systems: - Township and Range: Grid system ( sq mile sections) used in the US (Homestead Act). - Metes and Bounds: Uses natural features; found on the US East Coast. - Long Lot: Narrow parcels stretching back from rivers; found in Quebec (French influence).
von Thünen Model: - Assumptions: Flat land, no roads, self-sufficient city. - Rings: 1. Dairy/Horticulture: Perishable and expensive to ship (milkshed). 2. Forest: Heavy fuel/timber. 3. Grains: Requires more land; easier to store (Bid-Rent Theory). 4. Ranching: Needs most land; animals transport themselves. - Wilderness: Beyond the point of profit.
Agricultural Types: - Intensive: Low space, high labor/capital (Market Gardening, Plantation, Rice farming). - Extensive: High space, low labor/capital (Shifting Cultivation/Slash and Burn, Pastoral Nomadism, Ranching). - Agribusiness: Interconnected industry of production, processing, and distribution (e.g., Conagra Brands).
Consequences: Desertification (fertile land becomes arid), Salinization (salt residue from irrigation), loss of biodiversity, and deforestation.
Unit 06: Urban Geography
Urban Hierarchy: - Hamlet: < 500 people; no urban function. - Village: ; some specialization. - Town: . - City: . - Metropolis/Mega Region: million / million. - Metacity: million (e.g., Mumbai, Lagos).
Urban Rules: - Rank-Size Rule: The largest city is the size of the largest. - Primate City Rule: Largest city is more than twice the size of the second largest and represents national culture. - World (Global) City: Node in the global economic system (London, Paris, Zurich).
Urban Models: - Concentric Zone (Burgess): Functional circles; CBD at center. - Sector (Hoyt): Pie-shaped wedges based on transportation. - Multiple Nuclei (Harris/Ullman): Multiple centers; CBD loses dominance. - Galactic City: Sprawl and edge cities along beltways (Detroit model). - Urban Realms: Post-WWII; linked independent regions (Atlanta). - Latin American Model: Griffin-Ford; featuring a "spine" of elite residences and a "disamenity" sector of barrios/favelas.
Sustainability Initiatives: New Urbanism (walkable blocks, Halcyon-Alpharetta), Greenbelts (undeveloped land), and Brownfields (redeveloping hazardous/contaminated sites).
Unit 07: Development and Industry
Measuring Development: - GDP (Gross Domestic Product): Total value produced within borders. - GNP (Gross National Product): Total value produced by citizens (even abroad). - GNI (Gross National Income): Monetary worth produced plus income from outside investments. - HDI (Human Development Index): Combines life expectancy, GDP per capita, and knowledge (schooling/literacy). - GII (Gender Inequality Index): Measures reproductive health, economic status, and education equity.
Development Models: - Modernization (Rostow): stages: Traditional -> Preconditions for Takeoff -> Takeoff -> Drive to Maturity -> High Mass Consumption. - Dependency Theory: Structuralist view; Core countries limit periphery development (Dollarization). - World-Systems Theory (Wallerstein): Core (dominant), Periphery (dependent), Semi-Periphery.
Industrialization: - Industrial Revolution: Began in Northern England (late 1700s). Driven by coal, iron, and steam engine (James Watt). Affected iron, coal, engineering, transportation, and food processing (canning). - Fordism: Mass production at a single site (Detroit). - Post-Fordism: Flexible production, just-in-time delivery, and outsourcing to periphery. - Deindustrialization: Jobs move to cheaper labor regions (Rust Belt to Sun Belt transition).
Industrial Models: - Weber’s Least Cost Theory: Minimizing costs in raw materials, market, and transport. Includes Bulk-Gaining (closer to market) and Bulk-Reducing (closer to raw materials). - Hotelling Model: Locational interdependence; similar businesses agglomerate to capture the largest customer pool.
Commodity Dependence: A country is dependent if commodities are >60\% of exports (e.g., Cacao in Côte d’Ivoire, Cobalt in Congo). Risks include price fluctuations (Cobalt fell from to per ton).