North America

Key Terms:

Acid Rain- Acidic precipitation that has formed through the interaction of
rainwater or moisture in the air with sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides
emitted during the burning of fossil fuels

Aquifer- a natural underground reservoir

Baby boomer- a member of the largest age group in the North America, the
generation born in the years after the World War II, from 1947 to 164, in
which a marked jump in the birthrate occurred

Boreal Forests- northern coniferous forests

Brown Field- an old industrial site whose degraded conditions pose obstacles
to redevelopment

Clear-cutting- the cutting down of all trees on a given plot of land,

regardless of age, health, or species

Digital Divide- the discrepancy in access to information technology between

small, rural, and poor and large, wealthy cities; major government research
laboratories; and universities

Economic Core- the dominant economic region within a larger region;

specifically, southern Ontario and the north central part of the United
States

Fall Line- a line of waterfalls and rapids tt cannot be crossed boats

Government Subsides- amounts paid by the government to cover part of the

production costs of some products and to help domestic producers to sell
their goods for less than foreign competitors

Hispanic- a loose ethnic term that refers to all Spanish-speaking people

from Latin America and Spain; equivalent to Latino
Hub-and-spoke Network- the organization of air service in North America
around hubs, or strategically located airports used as collection and transfer
points for passengers and cargo traveling from one place to another.

Information Technology- the part of the service sector that relies on the
use of computers and the Internet to process and transport information,
including banks, software companies, medical technology companies, and
publishing houses

Interstate Highway System- the federally subsidized network of highway in

the United States

Latino- a loose ethnic term that refers to all Spanish-speaking people from
Middle and South America and Spain; equivalent to Hispanic

Loess- windblown dust that forms deep soils in North America, central
Europe and China

Long-lot System- a system of long narrow plots of land stretching back from
the edge of the St. Lawrence River, which gave French Canadian settlers
access to resources extending inland from the river

Maquiladoras- foreign-owned factories, often located in Mexican towns just

over the border from U.S. towns, that hire people at low wages to assemble
manufactured goods that are then sent elsewhere for sale; now also used for
similar firms in either parts of Mexico and Middle America

Megalopolis- an area formed when several cities grow to the extent that
their edges meet and coalesce

Metropolitan areas- cities with a population of 50,000 or more and their

surrounding suburbs

Nodes- small regions with extremely dense populations

Nuclear Family- a family group consisting of a father and mother and their
children
Ogallala Aquifer- the largest North American natural aquifer, which
underlies the Great Plains

Pacific Rim- all of the countries that border the Pacific Ocean on the west
and east

Permeable National Borders- borders subject to easy flow of people and

goods

Quebecois- French Canadian ethnic group or members of that group; also; all
citizens of Quebec, regardless of ethnicity

Service Sector- economic activity that amounts to doing services for others

Smog- a combination of industrial air pollution and car exhaust (smoke + fog)

Taiga Forests- sub arctic forests

Thermal Inversion- a warm mass of stagnant air that is temporarily trapped

beneath heavy cooler air

Tundra- a treeless area between the ice cap and the tree line of arctic
regions, which has a permanently frozen subsoil

Urban Sprawl- the encroachment of suburbs on agricultural land

Outline 3 - North America

Complex continent
Stretches from Rio Grande to Artic Circle
Many time zones
Primary language is English
Politically very simple
Mountains, plains, wetlands- everything
background

Physical Regions and Natural Resources

Atlantic/Gulf Coastal Plain
Area that extends from about New York City to the Carolinas to Virginia
Broadens in width- towards south and travels close to the Rio Grande
topography and formation
Rich ground water resources
Extensive areas of wetlands- where water is near earth’s surface
land uses
In LA- wetlands are the first level of protection for hurricanes
resources - oil
Important resources - LA & TX
3% LA
22% TX

http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/info_glance/petroleum.html

Appalachian System
Appalachian Mountains
Stretches from Maine to Georgia
Oldest mountain in this country
Mt Mitchell is the highest point
Copper, zinc, and zirconia’s
southern section and resources
Southern section- abundant amount of rainfall- 60 inches a year
Hydro-electric power
mid section
Area produced by folding of tectonic plates(?)
Ridge and valley zone
rivers and fall zone
Trellis drainage system/pattern
Snow
Piedmont- sloped off to the coastal plain
Fall zone- waterfalls
northern section
New England mountains very different- glaciers carved plateaus
Glaciers come from
Appalachian Plateau
Plateau- Cumberland-TN
Allegheny-PA
Limestone- rugged area
coal production
Coal- KY, WV, MY, PA, OH
80% of coal mined from Allegheny Plateau
1.4 billion tons of coal a year- WV
2 in production
nd

KY- 1.1 billion

PA- 73 million
Central lowland- west of Allegheny
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/statepro/imagemap/usaimagemap.htm
Central Lowland
topography
agricultural soils
minerals
major rivers

Cordilleran province
Rocky Mountains
source of western rivers
rain shadow

Intermontane Regions
rugged terrain
water resources issue

Pacific Coastlands
coastal mountain chains and valleys
rainforest in Pacific NW
 California oil
http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/info_glance/petroleum.html

Climate and Landforms

Mountains, Central lowland, and weather patterns

cold fronts
tornado alley
rain and rain shadow

Natural Resources - Forests

Preserve enough to reproduce
Preservation- preserve land/resources, national parks

depletion of resources 19th century

sacrifice zones
conservation forestry
Wise use- sustained use

Land Use Change

America is known for its abundance of land resources
Territory with unlimited space
American dream- to own your own land

Agricultural land use

crop land loss
Loss of agriculture land since the 1940’s
Loss 47 million acres
California- 3 million
In a half of a century
crop land expansion

Land use and resource exhaustion

A tremendous increase of and from 1949-1997 along the Mississippi river
valley
agriculture and groundwater
Ogallala Aquifer
water mining
 conservation practices

Urban Expansion
Urban- 0.1-1 unit/acre
Exurban - 0.25-0.1 unit/acre
Rural - <1/40 acre
Urban- city-suburbs
Exurban- fringe
Rural-
In 2000-exurban expansion
West of the country- rural
urban population growth
75- 80% live in cities
urban sprawl
land use change

Industry

Changing geography of manufacturing

Abundance of coal and furl
5 tons of coal to process every iron ore
Raw material <location>
Iron, steel
manufacturing belt
raw material orientation and decline
consumer orientation expansion
Locate near consumers

Manufacturing employment
concentration in manufacturing belt
shift to south
shift out of the country

Industrial Waste
Chemical industry- toxic waste
Acid rain falls
westerly winds effect the acid rains in the northeast
Decay building-kill fish life
Air population
Reducing sulfur
Impacts on the Environment
Superfund- federal program that tries to clean up toxic waste sites
air pollution - acid rain
hazardous waste sites
brownfields
Sites where there may be fear of being toxic- where industry no longer
operates- unproductive
Ethnic Geography

Homelands - definition
A place with shared characteristics
Ex- Acadiana- people that dominate the area
Place associated with particular people

People
Mormon population
Hispanic population
Place
bonding with place
Control of Place
Quebec
St. Lawrence river
Seigneur or long lot l l H l + l H l l
River l
l H l H l H l

Created a dense rural settlements

French allowed for partible inheritance
Inheritance created/ allowed increasing density
Native American reservations in southwest
reservations
reservation life
recent developments
water rights
Quebecois
Powerful political movements- quiet revolution
People stopped calling themselves
French Canadian- started
Calling themselves- Quebecois
Separate retirement system- dominate their own political economy
Took over school system- made it a French school system
Promoted business education
1969 event- Quebecois was a national battle- passed a law making French
second official language- making Canada
A bilingual nation
All government documents had to be printed in two languages
A lot of violence with politics
1980- referendum- a sovereign association in Canada
Quebec would operate as a separate place
Semi- independent
Constitution ties would be sovereign
Vote in spring 1980- 59.5% against sovereign association
1995- another referendum
Vote to declare Quebec Independent
50.5% against
Wave of foreign immigration into Quebec

Hydro-Quebec
Huge corporation that sells electrical power
Sold to united states- NE
49 electrical power plants
3 ½ million
Clean- no pollution- no green house gases
Environmental impacts- no fresh water for Hudson and james bay
Human health impact
Occurs naturally in the rocks
98% rely on this power

Tejano South Texas

Area with two Mexican populations
70% speak Spanish
1845 stayed in place
Lonestair-John Stales
Panic about immigrants coming in
 Hispanic population
Landscapes and traditional culture
Shaping the landscape
-plaza- focused on- center of town- focus of social activity
Open air markets

Cultural Traits
Music- conj unto
Festival
Food ways- salsa- fajita

THE WEST
Arid- not much rain
Cannot support intense agriculture without irrigation
Much of the land is owned b the federal government
275 million acres owned by the federal government
Very thinly settled
Very different environment setting than east

Distinctive features
cowboys
Ranching in the West
Origins
CA ranching- by Spaniards
Wealthy owned huge tracks of land
TX- open range- dominate form fo ranching land owners have a small home
ranch then rely on open range- most of the west- open range- federal land-
lease it
Policy
1937- Taylor Grazing Act- said every rancher had to have a home ranch to
have federal land leased to them
Eliminated

Other Federal Lands

70%- federal owned land
managing agencies and policies
Several agencies that manage this land (VIRO)
recreation
 wilderness
US forests service
Leases land for farming
National park service
18 million acres under their control
Agribusiness
2% of the population live on farms
Family farming to corporate farming
changing agriculture in US
production efficiencies
crops as commodities
prices

Movie Notes
Relative Location

Boston
many ethnic people
World leader in high tech education, manufacturing
To many poor neighborhoods
South Boston- Roxbury- Chinatown
Geographic information systems
Empowerment zone
Central business

Chicago
Suburban sprawl
Edge cities- rapidly growing cities
Farmland loss
Farmland has everything going for it- weather- good dirt- gravel
underneath
People after farmers money for their land

Montreal- Vancouver
non-English societies
2 sides
West- nonspeaking English- working class
East-wealthy
Asian immigration
Harsh northern climate

Pre-Test
Process that created the Great Lakes- Glaciations

TheNorth American region that was regarded as the main source of

manufactured goods in the late 19th century-The old Economic Core

Represents a primary difference between the system of government in the

United States and that of Canada- In practice, the powers of Canada’s
federal government are less extensive than are those of the U.S.
government

How the North American agricultural system changed in the past several
decades-The numbers of people employed in agriculture have declined

North American ethnic group that experiences lower life expectancies,

higher unemployment rates, and lower levels of academic achievement than
other Americans- African Americans

The sector of the economy that do most North Americans work-Service

The main goal of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)-
increase the level of trade between Canada, the United States, and Mexico

North American regions contains the largest percentage of government-

owned land-Continental Interior

Bestdescribes the geographic pattern of hazardous waste disposal in the

United States- a disproportionate amount is disposed of in the American
South and in locations inhabited by poor populations

Canadian province that was home to the Quiet Revolution, the movement
that led to a referendum in that province that threatened independence
from Canada- Quebec

How the text describes the changing population distribution in North

America- the pattern-Older Americans and African-Americans are moving
south while Hispanic and Asian-Americans are moving into the middle and
northeast parts of North America
Regardingthe Hispanic and Latino- Both terms refer to all people form
Latin America and Spain

Not mentioned in the textbook as being influential in increasing the

globalization of Americans’ lives- Government distribution of migrant
workers to American cities

Accuratelydescribes the climate of Southeastern North America-

Temperate, mid-latitude, Moisture all year

Hasa significant influence on the climates and weather conditions in North

American- the large size of the continent

Group of people the textbook cites as the major initiators of the

transformation of geography, vegetation, and cultural orientation of North
American and North Americans- Europeans

Beringland bridge formed- during the last ice age, sea levels were low
enough to expose the large bridge of land connecting North America with
Asia

Is a factor that contributed to the demise of Native American populations

at the time of Europeans settlement- European had technologically advanced
weapons compared those of the Native Americans

The main components of the Northern colonies (Northeast United States

and Southeast Canada) in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries
(1600s and 1700s)- Manufacturing industries were beginning to supply North
American markets as well as markets abroad with goods such as pottery,
glass, and textiles

Name that has been given to the organized relocation event during which
the Cherokee Indians were forced by soldiers to reservations in Oklahoma-
The Trail of Tears
Term used to describe the unique organization of airports in North America
making single day travel between any two points possible- Hub-and-spoke
network
Economic base of North America has recently shifted from manufacturing
to a ____ economy- Service Sector

Describes the difference between the health care systems of Canada and
the United States- Canada’s health care system fares better than that of
the United States especially in rates of infant mortality and overall life
expectancy

Describes the transition of national origins of the United States immigrants

from 1820-1998 -It has shifted from mainly European to larger proportions
of Asian and Latin American immigrants

The resource was once the major economic draw for Europeans to locate in
the New England colonies- Abundant Fish

Citylocated within the Old Economic Core and was probably an important
port city for transporting goods- Detroit, MI

Partof the North America has been most affected by acid rain- The
northeastern border of Canada and the United States

The North American sub regions described in the textbook has the highest
concentration of families living below the poverty line- The American South

The most likely reason that soil erosion is such a serious problem in the
Great Plains- Cattle loosen the soil with their hooves making it more easily
carried away by wind and water

World region that is the pacific Northwest becoming increasing connected

with in terms of trade and immigration- Asia

Textbook Notes

The family farm is no longer the basic unit of American society, the rural
farm communities are shrinking. Manufacturing jobs that once provided a
high standard of living are moving out of North America, leaving those who
are ill-equipped to take the new high-tech jobs with little but low-wage
service employment

There are rapid changes in employment levels, in the location of jobs across
the continent, and in the availability of investment funds. Immigrants have a
central role in these changes, some entering at the low skill end to take up
jobs that Americans no longer wish to fill, other entering at the high skill
end to take jobs for which there are too few qualified Americans. These
immigrants are changing the face of America, increasing its multiethnic hue.

Mobility- North Americans value the ability to move and to observe

different parts of their continent. This behavior is related to the
individualism that characterizes North American lifestyles. Links to family
and community are important; but migrating to a new geographic location is
accepted as a way to achieve individual fulfillment and financial success

Increasing multiculturalism- many new residents of North America come

from Middle and South America and from Asia. According to the 2000
census, Anglo-Americans are minorities in many North American cities, and
African- Americans will soon be outnumbered by Hispanic Americans

Changing population distribution- The middle of the country is losing

population as older Americans and African- Americans move south and
Hispanic Americans and Asian- Americans move into the middle, south, and
northeast, as well as other parts of the continent

Similar landscapes; regional differences- all major cities in Canada and the
United States have similar suburbs, office towers, malls, ethnic restaurants,
and home improvement centers. Yet, despite this sameness, there are
physical differences among regions and often stark cultural disparities
within regions. Over the past few decades, North Americans have become
more, rather than less, culturally and economically diverse.

Wealth and poverty- Although Americans as a whole are prospering more

than ever, the gap between rich and poor is widening. The number of
millionaires has risen sharply, but the 2000 census shows that even though
the number below the poverty line has decreased, there are still 37 million
poor (13 percent of the population) Children are more likely to be poor than
adults

Increasing connections to faraway places and events- on a personal level,

Americans can maintain daily relationships with individuals in virtually any
country on earth by using email. On a more abstract level, industries
contract and expand and jobs are rapidly lost and created as the global
economy shifts gears.

Growing relationship with Latin America- Two-way trade with Middle and
South America and one-way migration into North America, especially from
Mexico, are growing

The United States is being transformed by the immigrants it attracts from

around the globe. Companies and universities recruit highly skilled workers
to fill high-tech jobs. At the same times, a considerable flow of less-skilled
illegal migrants from Middle and South America take jobs at the lower end
of the pay scale. Immigration is also leading to an ethnic transformation.
According to data from the U.S. 2000 census, ethnic “minorities” together
constitute majorities in half the 100 largest U.S. cities. Census Bureau
projections show that all minorities combined will constitute a majority of
the U.S. population by 2060.

Hispanic is a loose ethnic (not racial) term that refers to all Spanish
speaking people from Latin America and Spain.

In Canada, the Quebecois, or French Canadians, are ethnic group that is
becoming assertively distinct from the rest of Canada. They are the largest
of an increasingly complex mix of minorities in that country, most of whom
are still content to be called simply Canadians

The most dramatic and complex North American landform is the wide
mountainous mass in the west known as the North American Cordillera. It
sweeps own from the Bering Strait in the far north, through Alaska, and all
the way to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico. The Rocky Mountain zone
of Canada and the United States is a major part of this broad swath of
mountains and basins. Along the eastern edge of the continent stretches a
less rugged formation called the Appalachians. Both mountain ranges
resulted from the collision of tectonic plates.

The wind deposited layer of soil, called loess, is often many yards deep; it
has proved particularly suitable for large-scale mechanized agriculture.

East of the Appalachians , a coastal lowland that is narrow in the north but
widens into a broad band toward the south stretches from Virginia to
Florida. From Florida, the coastal lowland sweeps to the west, joining the
southern reaches of the central lowland along the Gulf of Mexico. In most of
this area the slop is nearly flat, and there is a transition zone between land
and sea characterized by swamps, lagoons, and sandbars. Much of this
coastal lowland was formed from huge loads of silt deposited by North
America’s rivers during frequent floods. The Mississippi Delta has been
growing for more than 150 million years; it began at what is now the junction
of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers and has advanced 1000 miles south, filling
in much of the lower reaches of the central lowland and creating most of the
land of the states of Louisiana and Mississippi. Human activities such as
deforestation, deep plowing, and heavy grazing have added to the silt load of
the rivers.

Every major type of climate of earth, except for the truly tropical, exists
in North America. This huge expanse of land experiences widely different
temperature patterns from north to south, and different amounts of
humidity from the dry continental interior to the moist marine fringes.
North America’s landforms contribute to its climatic variety by influencing
the movement and interaction of air masses.