AP Human Geography CED Notes
AP Human Geography CED Notes
1. Introduction to Maps
Learning Target: Identify types of maps, the types of information presented in maps, and different kinds of spatial patterns and
relationships portrayed in maps.
● Reference maps are designed for people to refer to for general information about places. The two main reference maps are political
and physical
● Thematic Maps are used as a communications tool – tell us how human activities are distributed
absolute and relative Clustering: Grouped/bunched Dispersal: appears to be Elevation: using levels of how high/low
distance and direction together distributed over a wide area something is located on the land
Goode
Mercator Map Robinson Map Continent sizes are accurately c
Shape and directions of countries Everything is distorted in small portrayed Shape of countries especially near the
are fairly accurate amounts Directions and distant aren’t equator are distorted
Greatly distorted toward poles accurate
2. Geographic Data
Learning Target: Identify different methods of geographic data collection.
Geospatial Data: all information including physical features and human activities
Geographic information system (GIS) is a computer system for capturing, storing, checking, and displaying data related to positions on
Earth's surface
GPS stands for Geographic Positioning System: This system uses data from satellites to pin-point a location on earth and help people
find their way to a destination.
Remote sensing: refers to the process of taking pictures of the Earth's surface from satellites (or, earlier, airplanes) to provide a greater
understanding of the Earth's geography over large distances.
● Spatial information can come from written accounts in the form of field observations, media reports, travel narratives, policy
documents, personal interviews, landscape analysis, and photographic interpretation.
4. Spatial Concepts
Learning Target: Define major geographic concepts that illustrate spatial relationships.
Absolute location: The precise spot where something is located
Relative Location: where something is in relation to other things
Space: extent of a area and can be in a relative and absolute sense
Place: refers to the specific human and physical characteristics of a location.
Distance Decay: a geographical term which describes the effect of distance on cultural or spatial interactions
Time-Space Compression: is the increasing sense of connectivity that seems to be bringing people closer together even though their
distances are the same
Pattern: The geometric or regular arrangement of something in an area
5. Human-Environmental Interaction
Learning Target: Explain how major geographic concepts illustrate spatial relationships.
Sustainability: the goal of the human race reaching equilibrium with the environment; meeting the needs of the present without while
also leaving resources for future generations
Natural Resources: a physical material constituting part of Earth that people need and value
Environmental Determinism: How the physical environment caused (determined) social development
Possibilism: the physical environment may limit some human actions, but people have the ability to adjust to their environment
6. Scales of Analysis
Learning Target: Define scales of analysis used by geographers explain what scales of
analysis reveal
Scale: the relationship between the distance on the ground and the corresponding distance on a
specific map - also a concept describing how "zoomed in" you are while studying a geographic
trait (Global (Globalization), Regional, National, State, and Local)
Scale of Analysis: how zoomed in or out you are when looking at geographic data
7. Regional Analysis
Learning Target: Describe different ways that geographers define regions.
Region: a place larger than a point and smaller than a planet that is grouped together because of a measurable or perceived common
feature
Formal Region: a region that is based quantitative data data (that can be documented or measured) - all government areas are this
because they share a government (Example: Wisconsin)
Functional Region: a region based around a node or focal point - terrestrial radio broadcasts are an example of this (example: Radio
station broadcast area, DC metro)
Vernacular (Perceptual) Region: an area that shares a common qualitative characteristic, it's only a region because people believe it's a
region (example: midwest)
Stage 2: Receding
Pandemics.
A pandemic is an
epidemic that occurs
over a wide geographic
area and affects a very
high proportion of the
population – whole
country or world wide
--improved sanitation,
medicine and better
nutrition
Stage 3: Degenerative and Human-created diseases: Characterized by a decrease in infectious diseases (polio, measles) but increase
in Chronic disorders associated with aging. Two especially important chronic disorders are heart disease and cancer
Stage 4: Delayed Degenerative: The major degenerative causes of death - cardiovascular diseases and cancers, but with extended life
expectancy. Medicine helps make cancer spread more slowly or stop
▪Better life choices, diet, exercise, reduce use of tobacco and alcohol
However, there has been recent consumption of non-nutritious foods and less exercise which has resulted in obesity in many areas
6. Malthusian Theory
Learning Target: Explain theories of population growth and decline.
Malthus Theory: While population increases geometrically, food supply increases arithmetically (population will increase more quickly
than food supply)
Neo-Malthusian theory : earth's resources can only support a finite population --Pressure on scarce natural resources leads to famine
and war --- Advocate for contraceptive and family planning in order to keep population low and protect resources and prevent famine
and war.
7. Population Policies
Learning Target Explain the intent and effects of various population and immigration policies on population size and
composition.
Antinatalist policies - when a country provides incentives for people to have fewer children (sometimes including punishments)
Pronatalist policies - when a country provides incentives for people to have more children
Immigration policies - States can set up policies that make it easier or harder for people to immigrate to their territory (quotas and
accepting or refusing refugees into the country
8. Women and Demographic Change
Learning Target: Explain how the changing role of females has demographic consequences in different parts of the world.
Contraception: methods of preventing pregnancy
9. Aging Populations
Learning Target Explain the causes and consequences of an aging population.
Dependency ratio - the ratio of the number of people not in the workforce (dependents) and those who are in the workforce (producers)
- useful for understanding the pressure on the producers
Life expectancy - the average number of years a person born in a country might expect to live
Ravenstein’s Laws of Migration
1. The majority of migrants go only a short distance 7. Most migrants are young adults, families rarely migrate
2. Migration proceeds step by step (Step Migration) out of their country
3. Migrants going long distances generally go to large 8. Large towns (Urban areas) grow more as a result of
economic centers migration than natural increases (Births)
4. Each migration stream produces a compensating 9. As infrastructure improves (business, roads, industries)
counter-stream migration increases with it
5. Natives of towns are less migratory than those of rural 10. The major directions of migration is from the rural
areas - people who live in urban areas are less likely to (agricultural) to urban (centers of industry and
migrate commerce)
6. Females are more migratory within their area of birth, 11. The major causes of migration are economic (seeking
but males migrate more frequently internationally jobs and opportunity
8. Effects of Diffusion
Learning Target: Explain how the process of diffusion results in changes to the cultural landscape.
Acculturation: adoption of cultural traits, such as language, by one group under the influence of another
Assimilation: the process of a person or group losing the cultural traits that made them distinct from the people around them
Multiculturalism: when various ethnic groups coexist with one another without having to sacrifice their particular identities
Syncretism: the blending traits from two different cultures to form a new trait
Market Gardening (Intensive) Southeastern US, California, Southeastern Climate: Warm Mid-Latitude
Some of the fruits and vegetables are Australia Types of Crops: Fresh fruits and
sold fresh to consumers, but most are vegetables, lettuce, broccoli, apples,
sold to large processors for canning oranges, tomatoes
or freezing
Plantation Agriculture (Intensive) Climate: Tropical
A plantation specializes in one crop Types of Crops: Commodity & speciality
that is transported for sale on the crops such as cacao, coffee, rubber,
global market. sugarcane, bananas, tobacco, tea,
coconuts & cotton.
Ranching Climate:Drylands/Desert
Commercial grazing of livestock. Types of Livestock: Cattle, Goats, Sheep
Eventually they will be sent to feedlots
and then be sent to slaughter.
Commercial Grain Farming (Extensive) Climate: Mid-Latitudes, too dry for mixed
Crops are grown primarily for human crop & livestock
consumption.Farms sell their output to Types of Crops: Wheat
manufacturers of food products, such
as breakfast cereals and bread.
Biotechnology: is the application of scientific techniques to modify and improve plants, animals, and microorganisms to enhance their
value.
6. Agricultural Production Regions
Learning Target: Explain how economic forces influence agricultural practices.
Subsistence Agriculture: only enough food is cultivated to survive (no surplus)
Commercial Agriculture: the production of crop for sale and profit
Monoculture: Growing one crop in a farm system at a given time
Mono-Cropping: Growing one crop in a farm system year after year.
Bid-rent theory: a geographic theory that states the price and demand for real estate
change as the distance from the central business district (CBD) increases
7. Spatial Organization of Agriculture
Learning Target: Explain how economic forces influence agricultural practices.
Commodity Chain: activities involved in the creation of a product: design, production of raw
materials, manufacturing and assembly, distribution
Agribusiness: system of commercial agriculture that links various industries to the farm
Economies of scale: cost advantages that come producing a large amount of an item
8. Von Thünen Model
Learning Target: Describe how the von Thünen model is
used to explain patterns of agricultural production at
various scales.
Von Thünen’s model: helps to explain rural land use by
emphasizing the importance of transportation costs associated with distance from the market
Von Thünen’s rings distribute various farming activities into concentric rings around a central market
city.
⊳ Dairy and gardening is close to the center because it is a perishable good, where the farmer
can maximize the profit, intensive agriculture
⊳ Forests are close to the market, because people need it for fuel and This needed to be close
and is expensive to transport
⊳ Extensive agriculture (grains, field crops) do not perish as quickly as vegetables and milk and
need plenty space to grow
⊳ Livestock and ranching further from the market for cheap land (need more of it and
transportation is cheap)
9. The Global System of Agriculture
Learning Target: Explain the interdependence among regions of agricultural production and consumption.
Global Supply Chain: a worldwide network to maximize profits in production
Export commodity: goods sent from one country to another for sale ( Some countries have become highly dependent on one or more
export commodities including Haitian coffee, Sri Lankan Tea, and Cuban Sugar)
10. Consequences of Agricultural Practices
Learning Target: Explain how agricultural practices have environmental and societal consequences.
Pollution: process by which soil is contaminated by chemicals
Land cover change: process by which agricultural areas are lost to development
Conservation: the protection of wildlife and natural resources
Deforestation: human-driven and natural loss of trees for not forest use
Desertification: the process of a dry area becoming drier and losing vegetation
Irrigation: moving water to where you need it
Draining Wetlands: drainage for agricultural practices
Pastoral nomadism: herding animals and migrating with them to find pasture areas without a permanent pasture area
Soil salinization: the slow build up of salt in soil, particularly in irrigated areas, that makes soil unable to grow plants
Terrace farming: method of growing crops on the sides of hills or mountains by planting on man-made steps (terraces)
Changing Diets: MDCs continue their demand for meat, LDCs see an increase in their demand for meat, as well as convenient,
processed food.
11. Challenges of Contemporary Agriculture
Learning Target: Explain challenges and debates related to the changing nature of contemporary agriculture and
food-production practices.
Agricultural Biotechnology: the use of scientific tools and techniques to modify plants and animals (Pesticide resistant crops,
Antibiotics, Biofuels)
GMO: plants or animals whose DNA has been genetically modified, often through a combination of DNA from similar plant or animal
species for desired traits.
Aquaculture: raising of fish and shellfish in ponds and controlled saltwater hatcheries raising of fish and shellfish in ponds and
controlled saltwater hatcheries
Value Added Foods: foods that have increased in value due to alterations in production, size, shape, appearance, location, and/or
convenience
Organic Farming: crops produced without the use synthetic or industrially produced pesticides and fertilizers or genetically engineered
seeds
Fair Trade: trade between MDC and LDC in which fair prices are paid to the producers
community-supported agriculture (CSA): individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that growers and consumers provide
mutual support
Urban farming: integrating growing crops or raising animals into an urban ecosystem
Dietary Shifts: movement from processed foods, meat, and sugars towards one more based in fruits and vegetables
Food Insecurity: the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food
Food Desert: geographic area where large grocery stores are scarce or missing and residents have limited access to fresh nutritious
foods. Typically found in urban, low-income neighborhoods
Weather: agricultural production is affected by high temperatures, drought, flooding, storms, freezes
12. Women in Agriculture
Learning Target: Explain geographic variations in female roles in food production and consumption.
● Women are frequently denied loans or financial support, cannot afford tuition or fees; or rural communities lack funding to
provide schools.
● Women may be unable to obtain or access inputs to improve productivity (e.g., land, animals, equipment, seeds, fertilizer, or
infrastructure).
● Women practicing subsistence agriculture may not be able to generate a surplus.
● Impacts of exposure to environmental hazards (agricultural pollution, chemicals, groundwater pollution) that cause health
problems for women and children which have an economic impact (household, local, or national scale).
● In many societies women hold agricultural knowledge and skills passed down to daughters.
● In many societies women represent a spiritual ideal of fertility that is tied to beliefs regarding agricultural productivity.
● Laws and government policies prevent women from acquiring land tenure, owning, or inheriting land.
● Women may lack access to political processes (voting), and institutions (representative government); or females lack political
power to improve law and policy affecting women’s issues.
Empowering and investing in rural women has been shown to significantly:
▪ Increase productivity
▪ Reduce hunger and malnutrition
▪ Improve rural livelihoods
World City Dominant City in Terms of Economic Standing New York, London, Tokyo
Megalopolis An extended Conurban Area, Consisting of BosNYwash (the Area from BOSTON to NEW YORK to
Several Cities WASHINGTON DC)
Alpha City Primary Regional Nodes in the Global Economy New York, London, Hong Kong, Sydney
(Similar to World Cities)
Beta City Secondary Regional Nodes in the Global Economy Washington DC, Dallas, Berlin, Wuhan
(One Step Down from Alpha)
Gamma City Tertiary Regional Nodes in the Global Economy Cleveland, St. Petersburg, Austin, St. Louis
(One Step Down from Beta)
Source: fivable
Cities are connected globally by networks and linkages:
Transportation Services: those activities designed to assist a person to travel from one place to another to obtain services or carry out
life’s activities.
Communication Systems: advanced communication systems that provide immediate access to information.
Business Services: services which serve as links to the corporate headquarters of international companies.
4. The Size and Distribution of Cities
Learning Target:Identify the different urban concepts such as hierarchy, interdependence, relative size, and spacing that are useful for
explaining the distribution, size, and interaction of cities.
Rank-Size Rule: the country's nth-largest settlement is 1/n the population of the largest
settlement. Describes a certain statistical regularity in the city-size distributions of
countries and regions. Example: US cities
Primate City: an urban area that dominates its country's economy, culture, and political
affairs and is more than twice the population of the next largest city. Example: London,
Paris, Bangkok
● Pro: can attract international trade and business, Con: all services in one area
Christaller’s central place theory: explains how services are distributed and why a
regular pattern of settlements exists
Central place: a settlement that makes certain types of products and services available
to consumers
Threshold: the # of people required to support businesses
Range: the distance people will travel to acquire a good
Low-Order central place functions: are used by consumers on a regular/daily basis and, as a result, people are not willing to travel far
to use them (Walgreens, gas station, grocery store)
High-Order central place functions: are used less frequently by consumers and, as a result, people are willing to travel further for it.
(baseball games, football games, hospitals)
Gravity Model: interaction of places based on their population, sizes, and distances between them
● The greater the number of people in an area, the greater the number of potential customers for a service.
● The farther people are from a particular service, the less likely they are to use it.
● Spatial interaction between places increases as the size and importance of places becomes greater and decreases as the
distance between them grows.
5. The Internal Structure of Cities
Learning Target:Explain the internal structure of cities using various models and theories.
Urban Model
Concentric-Zone Model - Urban model by Burgess; divides the Sector Model - Created by Homer Hoyt. Zones expanded
city into five concentric zones, defined by their function, centered outward from the city center along transportation corridors
around the CBD. Based on Chicago. creating a wedge shape. As growth occurs, similar activities stay
in the same area and extend outward.
Multiple Nuclei Model - was created by Chauncey Harris & Galactic (peripheral) City Model - it consists of an inner city,
Edward Ullman in surrounded by large suburban residential and business areas
1945 for developed and tied together by transportation nodes (edge cities)
countries and large
expanding cities. The
CBD is scattered into
several nodes, with
transportation hubs
near industries and
airports. Low income
housing is found
near workers while
high income housing
is found in elite
districts.
Latin American City Model: Model developed by Griffin and Ford African City Model - Created by Harm DeBlij - fast growing cities
attempting to generalize Latin American cities. Mall, spine, with three CBDs: Colonial CBD, Traditional CBD, and Market CBD.
disamenity zone, etc. The quality of residence gets poorer the farther from the CBDs.
Lacks elite, middle class, or gentrification zones which shows a
lack of development. Ethnic neighborhoods reflect tribalism that
exists throughout Africa.
Southeast Asian Model -This model was developed in 1967 by The bid rent theory- is a geographical economic theory that
T.G. McGee. McGee studied several cities in Southeast Asia and refers to how the price and demand for real estate change as the
discovered that they shared certain aspects of land-use. Some distance from the central business district increases.
similarities include:
Old colonial port
zone surrounded by
a commercial
business district,
Western commercial
zone, Alien
Commercial
Zone(dominated by
Chinese merchants),
No formal central
business district
(CBD,) Hybrid sectors,
& zones growing
rapidly New
Industrial parks on
the outskirts of the
city
7. Infrastructure
Learning Target:Explain how a city’s infrastructure relates to local politics, society, and the environment.
Infrastructure: the basic physical and organizational structures and facilities (e.g., buildings, roads, and power supplies) needed for the
operation of a society or enterprise.
The location and quality of a city’s infrastructure directly affects its spatial patterns of economic and social development.
● Economic development and interconnection within urban areas are dependent upon the location and quality of infrastructure
(for example, public transportation, airports, roads, communication systems, water and sewer systems).
● The fastest growing cities are found in developing countries which have just recently just industrialized. While residents in
both New York City & Moscow have an elaborate airport, road, water, and communication systems, these rapidly growing cities
are having issues keeping up with the demands of population increases.
● In developing countries, modern technologies in transportation and public facilities are not very available. While all cities in
developing countries are different culturally, most share a few similarities other than not being able to keep up with these
public services and infrastructure. Secondly, some are ancient, but almost all have a colonial legacy, established to serve the
needs of the colonizing country
● Third, many of these cities have a large number of migrants illegally living on the outskirts of the city, called
squatter‐settlements, and finally, some governments have responded by moving the national capital away from the
overcrowded primate city to a new location. This action is called forward capitals.
Source: fivable
8. Urban Sustainability
Learning Target:Identify the different urban design initiatives and practices.
Smart-Growth: urban planning that avoids urban sprawl and focuses on long term implications with sustainable design initiatives and
guides development into more convenient patterns and into areas where infrastructure allows growth to be sustained over the long
term.
New Urbanism: walkable blocks and streets, housing and shopping in close proximity, and accessible public spaces.
Greenbelts: areas of undeveloped land around an urban area. A green belt usually includes running and biking paths and tends to
incorporate many tunnels and small gardens. Green belts also limit the sprawl of urban areas.
Slow-Growth Cities: slowing a city’s growth to limit the problems associated with growth and improve sustainability.
Learning Target:Explain the effects of different urban design initiatives and practices.
De Facto Segregation: Racial segregation that happens by fact rather than by legal requirement
Positives of Urban Sustainability: Reduction of sprawl, improve walkability and transportation, improved and diverse housing options,
and improved livability and promotion of sustainable options.
Negatives of Urban Sustainability: Increased housing costs, possible de facto segregation, and potential loss of historical or place
character.
9. Urban Data
Learning Target:Explain how qualitative and quantitative data are used to show the causes and effects of geographic change within
urban areas.
● Quantitative information about a city’s population is provided by census and survey data and provides information about
changes in population composition and size in urban areas.
● With this data from the census, lawmakers can create maps to look at residential and racial segregation
● Qualitative data from field studies and narratives provide information about individual attitudes toward urban change.
● Maps commonly show ethnicity of neighborhoods and other characteristics like predominant gender.
Primary Extraction of raw materials Mining, fishing, lumber, agriculture, etc Cotton Farmer
Secondary Processing natural materials into Manufacturing, construction, utilities, T-shirt manufacturer company
finished goods etc
Tertiary Offering services to consumers Retail, tourism, entertainment, etc T-shirt Store
Quaternary Research and administration involved finance, insurance, marketing, and Researcher on how to make
often associated with technological wholesaling. t-shirts stainless
innovation
Quinary The highest levels of decision-making CEO, school superintendent, etc CEO of the T-shirt Company
in a society or economy
Site Factors: industrial location factors related to the costs of the factors of production inside the factory
● Land - cheap land (cheaper in suburbs and rural areas right outside of urban ones), want to be close to highway and other
transportation routes
● Capital - Funds to establish new factories or expand existing ones. Most important site factor in certain industries (high-tech).
More difficult for developing countries to gain access to capital
● Labor - most important site factor globally
Labor-intensive industry: wages and other compensation paid to employees
constitute a high percentage of expenses
Break-of-Bulk-Point: A location where transfer is possible from one mode of
transportation to another (cargo ship to train)
Weber’s Least Cost Theory: Minimize three categories of costs to increase profits:
Transportation (weight and distance), Labor (cheap labor), and Agglomeration
● Bulk Gaining -makes something that gains volume or weight during
production. To minimize transportation costs, they focus on proximity to
markets.
● Bulk Reducing -Makes something that loses volume or weight during
production. To minimize transportation costs, they focus on proximity to
inputs
● Agglomeration: clustering of productive activities and people for mutual
advantage (example: mall)
1. labor, transportation (including shipping containers), the break-of-bulk point, least cost theory, markets, and
resources influence the location of manufacturing such as core, semi periphery, and periphery locations.
3. Measures of Development
Learning Target: Describe social and economic measures of development.
Essential Knowledge:
1. Measures of social and economic development include Gross Domestic Product (GDP); Gross National Product (GNP); and Gross
National Income (GNI) per capita; sectoral structure of an economy, both formal and informal; income distribution; fertility rates;
infant mortality rates; access to health care; use of fossil fuels and renewable energy; and literacy rates
2. Measures of gender inequality, such as the Gender Inequality Index (GII), include reproductive health, indices of empowerment,
and labor-market participation.
3. The Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite measure used to show spatial variation among states in levels of
development.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP):The value of the total number of goods and services produced in a country in a given time period
(normally one year).
Gross National Product (GNP): The Gross National Product is one of the most widely used and quoted statistics in economic geography,
particularly in popular parlance. It refers to the total monetary value, in US dollars, of all the goods, services, and investments produced
by a country in a year.
Gross National Income (GNI) per capita: The value of the output of goods and services produced in a country in a year, including money
that leaves and enters the country.
Gender Inequality Index (GII): A measure of the extent of each country's gender inequality.
Human Development Index (HDI, literacy rate, fertility rates, infant mortality rates): Indicator of level of development for each country,
constructed by the United Nations, combining income, literacy, education, and life expectancy.