Blue_Book_Questions.docx

10-13 ?We?re coming to the Americas? (Area, Population, and Physical Environment of Latin America) What is the size of the area and what is the location of Latin America? How do the terms ?mainland and rimland? and ?core and hinterland? describe the population distribution of Latin America? Size: 85 degrees long and 83 degrees wide, nearly 5,900 miles from north to south Located: south east of the United States of America, making it closer to Africa Mainland ? geographical alignment, normally a highland, smaller of the two as far as population, known for its good soil Rimland ? geographical alignment, larger of the two holding 2/3 of Latin Americas population, located about the coasts and highlands (more fragmented) Cities on the rim are the core because that is where the most power is and the most of the population Hinterlands are the less populated areas What is the pattern of population growth and urbanization? Latin America is in the second stage of the Demographic transition ? LDCs have relatively high birth rates and low death rates due to advances in the spread of medical technologies Average of 1.5% population growth (.3 being the lowest and 2.8 being the highest percent) 76% is urban ? people are leaving the rural areas and going to the cities, the poor are seen on the outskirts of the cities There are megacities (largest cities) and shantytowns (outer edges where there are poorer populations) How have humans adapted to the various aspects of the physical geography of Latin America? What is altitudinal zonation and how does it connect human activities and physical realities? They have learned to grow different agriculture on the different elevations Altitudinal Zonation ? pattern in South America (mostly look at undifferentiated highland climate, different things happen at different altitudes) Tierra Helada (highest altitudes) ? ice land Paramos ? basins able to have some agriculture, alpine meadows Supports some grain and livestock Valuable minerals Tierra Fria ? cold land Subsistence; marginalization High plateaus, basins, valleys, and mountain slopes Largest area is in the Andes Begins at 6,000 feet and goes upward to the upper limit of agriculture ? represented by hardy crops like potatoes and barley; and the tree line ? upper limit of natural tree growth at 12,000 feet Tierra Templada ? temperate land Coffee zone; European favor this area, not too cold and not too hot Contains the rugged western mountain ranges Lowland products reach their uppermost limits here Guatemala City, San Salvador, Tegucigalpa, San Jose Tierra Caliente ? hot land Area of tropical plantations (citrus, banana, chocolate) Zone embracing the tropical rainforests and tropical savanna climates Reaches up to 3,000 feet above sea level Slave trade prominent here 10-18 ?Emerging Latin American? (Culture, Economy, and Politics) How are the various ethnic groups distributed and what influences have they had on the cultural landscape? How did the European Conquest change the human geography of Latin America? How does poverty appear on the landscape? What are the two systems of agriculture, latifundia and minifundia, and how are the expressed? What is the pattern of minerals, mining, and manufacturing? How have trade relationships with the world been changing, particularly after NAFTA and CAFTA? Why would the countries of Latin America be called emerging economies? How does tourism affect the cultures and economies? What is the Geopolitical ?Dance? and how might any given country of Latin America indicate this pattern? How are geopolitical and environmental issues linked? What is the historic role of the USA with regard to Latin America? Why has it been referred to as the ?backyard? of the USA? What is the geography of drug trafficking? 10-20 ?South of the Border? (Geography of Mexico) What are the signatures of the three Historic Eras of Mexico (Native, Colonial, and Mexican)? Native: indigenous era, highly developed with larger empires and civilizations that were 1,000 years old, built architecture and religion Triple alliance: (Aztec was the capital), got all the groups to work together and round Lake Texoco, gathered resources to build up cities (mounds of dirt that were made into islands) ? largest was Tenochtitlan Colonial: when the Spanish arrived (16th to early 19th century) Territory of Spain, reshaped the cultural landscape (new plants and animals) Empires had a stratified system but the Spanish took them over Mexican: got out from under Spain When the country of Mexico was formed (1821) Revolution and independence from Spain What are the general geographic characteristics of Mexico? What are the major regions of Mexico? Where are they and how are they indicated? Mexican Plateau ? higher elevations in the south, lower in the north Balsas depression, lowland area surrounded by mountains Southern highlands Isthmus of Tehuantepec (marrow between Mexico and central America) Coastal lowlands ? greatest extent is on the gulf of Mexico, also on the pacific side Baja California Peninsula ? western side that lies on a fault line What are some of the highlights of the political geography of Mexico? How is Mexico?s economy changing? What is a maquiladora? 10-25 ?The Caribbean Beat? (Central American and the Caribbean) How do the physical realities of Central America interact with the culture, politics, and chancing economy? How would one describe Central America agriculture? Physical realities: volcanic mountains and tropical conditions Culture: richer colonials and poorer indigenous people Politics: the geopolitical dance (bounces back and forth), recently democracy but not all stable Economy: from bananas to tourism and manufacturing Do have political and economic issues Agriculture: plantation with coffee, bananas, citrus fruits and coconuts What has been the historic importance of the Panama Canal? History: Shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans 1846 ? Colombia(which then controlled Panama) and the United States signed a treaty supporting a project to cut the isthmus 1878- Colombia granted permission to a French firm to build a canal across the isthmus , went bankrupt in 1889 and was followed by another French attempt that also failed 1903 ? panama broke away from Colombia 1904 ? construction began and it is still expanding today What are the major aspects of the physical geography of the Caribbean? Greater Antilles: central mountains and coastal lowlands (Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico) Lesser Antilles: low, flat, limestone and/or coal based (Bahamas), volcanic (leeward and windward) Tropical; orographic precipitation (windward side gets moisture and leeward is desert like) Volcanic cones and coral reefs What are the historic cultural imprints of the people and landscape of the Caribbean, and why are they where they are? How did colonialism get expressed as ?Europe met the Indigenous people met Africa?? Colonialism brought together European, indigenous and African people in a multicultural microcosm Europeans (Spanish mainly) brought over Africans as slaves; also would bring resources and materials and goods back to their homeland Why might one describe the Caribbean as a multicultural microcosm? It is populated with Spanish, French, British, Dutch, north America, Asia, and African peoples and it has a lot of religious diversity What are the ?blessing and curses? of tourism? What are the other aspects of the Caribbean economy? Blessings: foreign exchange enters the country, major investment for recreational activities and infrastructure, promotes preservation of native crafts and historic landscapes Curses: a lot of the capital gain belongs to transitional businesses, local people do most of the work but aren?t paid well, pressure on space and natural resources Agriculture is a mainstay in economy, bananas, coffee, spices, citrus fruits and coconuts 10-27 ?Mountains of Problems? (The Andean Countries) p. 572-581 What are the major geographic regions of South America? What are the common traits shared across the Andes? What are some of the distinctive cultural landscape signatures of the Andes? 11-1 ?Big Kid on the Block? (Brazil) How does Brazil fit into the overall geographic dynamics of South America? How does Brazil?s size and resources affect its relationship with the other countries of South America? Of the world? Why are there unique environmental regions in Brazil? What are the developmental eras of Brazil and what has been their lasting importance? How does the geography of the Amazon contribute to the character of Brazil? Why might this be a new age for Brazil? How does agriculture fit into the global economy? 11-3 ?South America?s ?Down Under?? (The Southern Mid latitude Countries) What are some of the political struggles of the Southern Cone? Why are Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Paraguay described as the ?Southern Powers??