Do Now: Does geography shape culture or does culture shape geography? Choose one side and argue why you feel that way.

Aim: How has geography affected the way early people developed?

Tuesday – September 17, 2013 Mr. Lombardi

H.W. #2• Landforms and Waterways handout:– Complete the task– Due TODAY

• Geography Exam– Friday September 20– 34 multiple choice Regents questions– Bring pencils

Why Study Geography?• Sets the stage for history• Geography -> human adaptation -> unique culture• We have different cultures and characteristics

based on our geography.• Adaptations and innovations

Eurasia• 1 large landmass• No natural barriers• Large animals

– Horses, cows, pigs

• Central location to Africa– 3-way trade

• First to be settled

Americas• 1 large landmass

– Connected by an isthmus (Central America)

• Andes Mountains• Narrow, funnel-shaped• Last to be settled

Major Geographic Features of The Americas• Mountain Ranges: Appalachians, Rocky

Mountains, Sierra Nevada, Andes.• Rivers: Ohio, Mississippi, Missouri, Colorado, Rio

Grande, Orinoco, Amazon, Rio de la Plata• Plains: Great Plains, las Pampas• Oceans: Atlantic, Pacific• Gulfs and Seas: Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea• Islands: Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Greater

Antilles, Lesser Antilles, Bahamas, Galapagos• Peninsulas: Florida, Baja California, Yucatan

Key Countries of The Americas• United States• Canada• Mexico• Cuba• Venezuela• Colombia• Brazil• Argentina• Chile

Major Geographic Features of Asia• Mountain Ranges: The Urals, Himilayas and the

Hindu Kush.• Plateaus: Deccan, Tibetan• Rivers: Huang Ye (Yellow River), Yangtze,

Brahmaputra, Ganges, Indus, Tigris, Euphrates.• Plains: Steppes of Russia• Oceans: Pacific Ocean, Sea of Japan, East China

Sea, Yellow Sea, South China Sea, Indian Ocean Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal

• Islands (Archipalegos): Japan and Indonesia

Key Countries of Asia• China – largest population in the world (estimated

1.2 billion people)• India – second largest population in the world

(estimated 1 billion people)• Indonesia – largest Muslim population in the

world• Japan – second largest economy in the world• Russia – largest country (in area) in the world.• Saudi Arabia – largest oil reserve in the world• Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan – important countries

for the United States following the 9/11 attacks

Summary• How have landforms in the Western

Hemisphere shaped the way people live in the Americas?

• Look at your answer to today’s Do Now. – What new evidence supports your view?– How have your views changed?

Important links

1. John Bowne website – www.johnbowne.org 2. Regents Prep – www.regentsprep.org

1. Which environmental issue most concerns Central Africa, the Amazon River Basin, and the Malay Peninsula?

1. Nuclear contamination2. Desertification3. Deforestation4. Overpopulation

2. In Latin America, the deforestation of the Amazon rain forest led to

1. Environmental dangers2. The maintenance of a traditional way of life3. The discovery of new medicines4. Overpopulation in rural areas

3. In the 1990s, what was the most severe threat to the physical environment of Brazil, Costa Rica, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire)?1. Spread of urban centers2. Destruction of the rain forests3. Nuclear waste disposal4. Increased immigration

4.

5. During the 1990s, the Sahel regions of Africa has been faced with problems resulting from

1. The lack of rainfall from the monsoons2. The effects of acid rain3. Water pollution 4. Increasing desertification

6. A negative impact of the use of modern technologies is that 1. Levels of air and water pollution often

increase2. Economic opportunities are frequently

limited3. Contacts with other cultures decrease4. International trade is limited

7. Deforestation, acid rain, and the greenhouse effect are major world problems that indicate a need for 1. The development of mass transit systems in

developing nations2. An increase in the worldwide production of

oil3. A reduction in crop production in some areas

of the world4. Cooperation between nations to reduce

pollution and environmental destruction

8. The problems created by the deterioration of the Earth’s ozone layer and increases in the amounts of acid rain suggest a worldwide need for

1. Rapid industrialization of developing economies

2. Better health-care programs3. Nuclear-powered electric generating facilities4. Stricter pollution regulations