AP Human Geography Key
Issue Answers
Chapter 1; key issue 1
• How Do Geographers Address Where Things Are?
• Geographers address where things are by the use of maps and the
things position in relation to other things. Geographers use maps to find
where things are by the use of the lines of Latitude and Longitude,
invisible lines that divide the world into one giant graph. Some
contemporary tools include GIS (geographic information system), and
remote sensing. GIS is a computer system that capture store, query,
analyze, and display geographic data.
Chapter 1; key issue 2
• Why Is Each Point On Earth Unique?
• Place- the unique location of a feature, such as a city or towne
• Regions- areas of unique characteristics, such as the difference between
the South American rainforest and the Kalahari Desert
Chapter 1; key issue 3
• Why Are Different Places Similar?
• Scale: from local to global
• Space: distriution of features
• Connections between places
• Also the globalization of charactoristics of one group of people to
others. An example of this is the diffusion of jeans from North America
being prevalent in the Middle East
Chapter 2; key issue 1
• Where Is The World's Population Distributed?
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Population concentrations, the density or how many and how close do people
live in correlation to each other
Sparsly populated regions, the dry arid landscape of the Kalahari will not be
home to many people such as in places that have a milder climate and more
rain fall with chances for jobs and liesure
Population density, how many people of a certain race, ethnicity, or religion
live in cimparision to other groups
Chapter 2; key issue 2
• Where Has The World's Population Increased?
• Natural increase (NIR)- the percentage by which a population grows in a
year. Find by subtracting Crude Birth Rate from Crude Death Rate
• Fertility-TFR(total fertility rate)- the number of births in a society
• Mortality-IMR(infant mortality rate)- the annual number of deaths of
infants under one yearof age
Chapter 2; key issue 3
• Why Is Population Increasing at Different Rates in Different Countries?
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Countries are in different stages of the demographic transition model
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Lesser developed countries are in stage one or two which is characterized by high population
due to lack of family planning and the low wages of work. Thus more people are needed to
be able to make enough money and where do these people come from? Children, a
wonderful source of free labor.
Chapter 2; key issue 4
• Why Might the World Face an Overpopulation Problem?
•
Based on Thomas Malthus, the human race would grow so much that there would not
be enough food to feed everyone and some people or all the people would starve.
What he did not count on however was the technology that has been put into food
production. These include reverse desertification and the ability for one person being
able to irrigate several hundred acre plots of land. So we are doing ok so far and thanks
to lesser developed countries becoming more developed they too are starting to
produce more food for their people or trade resources for food.
Chapter 3; key issue 1
• Why Do People Migrate?
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Many people migrate for better job opportunities because generally the better job one
has the better one’s quality of life is
For fear of prosecution. Many people leave an area because the land is war torn, are
wanted for unfair prosecution, and the crime rate and violence in an are can force
people out.
Chapter 3; key issue 2
• Where Are Migrants Distributed?
•
Migrants are often distributed by where the most economic opportunities are. Places
such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and Europe (ten years ago) were places of
huge economic success. An example of this is during the American Industrial
Revolution, many Europeans moved to the United States for economic opportunities
they lacked in Europe.
Chapter 3; key issue 3
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Why Do Migrants Face Obstacles?
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Migrant face obstacles such as Immigration policies of host countries. Such as the United
States, the US has a quota that when filled for that year no other people can immigrate in
legally.
Cultural problems leaving their own country. Sometimes countries do not want their people
to leave for fear of what they may say about the internal integrity of that state. Examples of
this include Cuba, North Korea, and West Germany.
Migrant also face physical barriers such as mountains, oceans, and deserts. These however
are now not as much as a problem due to the invention and commercialization of the
airplane.
Chapter 3; key issue 4
• Why Do People Migrate Within a Country?
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People may migrate within a country due to political strife in a certain area that they
wish to get away from. AN example of this is Cyprus. In the north there are the Greeks
and in the south there are the Turks. In the middle there are often open conflicts which
is why there is a armed gate/wall dividing the to ethnicities.
Chapter 4; key issue 1
• Where Do Folk and Popular Cultures Originate and Diffuse?
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Folk culture generally originates in semi secluded areas and do not diffuse far unless
they become part of popular culture. Folk culture includes folk art, folk dancing, and
more well known folk music.
Popular culture on the other hand often originates in densely populated areas that are
well known as cities of industry such as London, New York, and Paris. An example of
popular culture is fashion.
Chapter 4; key issue 2
• Why Is Folk Culture Clustered?
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Folk Culture is clustered because certain groups of people generally cluster together
because humans usually want to migrate to what is familiar to them. When people
migrate from an area they bring their customs and their heritage with them, and want
to be with people who share the same customs and heritage.
Chapter 4; key issue 3
• Why Is Popular Culture Widely Distributed?
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Popular Culture is widely distributed because everyone likes to “stay in the loop” or be
the one left out. An example of this is the type of housing in a area that spreads:
Elizabethan type houses, and Gothic style houses.
Chapter 4; key issue 4
• Why Does Globalization of Popular Culture Cause Problems?
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This causes problems because many countries such as England, France, Germany,
Poland, China, Japan, and many other older nations because they want to keep their
historic value but it is being threatened by popular culture such as malls, movie
theatres, and other shopping stores.
Chapter 5; key issue 1
• Where Are English-Language Speakers Distributed?
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English speakers are the most prevalent speakers except for Mandarin speakers.
However Mandarin speakers are clustered in China and English is the official language
in 45 countries. Two billion people live in an area where English is the official language
even of they do not speak it (that is one third of the world).
Chapter 5; key issue 2
• Why Is English Related to Other Languages?
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English is a part of the Germanic Branch of the Indo-European Branches of language.
This branch also includes German which makes it closer to English. Another branch of
the Indo-European languages are the Romance, Indo-Iranian, and Balto-Slavic. All of
these are related because they stem from a single language branch and so a single
language.
Chapter 5; key issue 3
•
Where Are Language Families Distributed?
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Indo-European family- 50% of all people speak it
Tibetan Family- about 20% of all people speak it
About 5% speak a language in each of the following
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Afro- Asiatic
Austronesian
Niger-Congo
Dravidian
• The Other remaining 10% speak languages belong to smaller language families
Chapter 5; key issue 4
• Why Do People Preserve Local Languages
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A language is part of someone’s identity and do not want to see their language
disappear. Local languages are being endangered by English because most
international businesses speak English it is degrading the need for a separate
language.
Chapter 6; key issue 1
• Where Are Some Religions Distributed?
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Only a few religions can claim adherence of large numbers of people . Religions are
distributed by Universalizing and ethnic.
Universalizing religions attempt to be global, to appeal to all people, wherever you
may live in the world, not just in one location or culture. Examples of this include Islam
and Christianity.
Ethnic Religion appeals primarily to one group of people living in one place. Examples
of this include Hinduism, and Judaism.
Chapter 6; key issue 2
• Why DO Religions Have Different Distributions?
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Some religions do not wish to spread in to other people such as Judaism and Hinduism.
Others have entire civilizations that supported the spread of their religion. Examples of
this include the Spanish Conquistadors, the Templars, and the Great Crusades
spreading the word of God through spears, swords, torture, blood, death, disease, and
threats for centuries.
Chapter 6; key issue 3
• Why DO Religions Organize Space In Distinctive Patterns?
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Religions organize themselves in different ways because of customs of the religion or
its people. In Islam a door to the home must face a certain way and with Native
American tribes the entrance to the tents must have faced the fire to scare away the
evil spirits.
Chapter 6; key issue 4
• Why DO Territorial Conflicts Arise Among Religious Groups?
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Conflict arises because in each of the three religions of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam
have a significant aspect in Jerusalem. For Christians that is believed where Christ was
put at the cross, but Catholics have the Pope in Vatican City so there is less tension.
However Between the Jews and the Muslims it has been an on going battle for the land
that was once Palestine, belonging to the Muslims, to Israel, which belongs to the
Jews.
Chapter 7; key issue 1
• Where are Ethnicities Distributed?
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Most ethnicities are distributed in clusters. This is shown in the dot distribution map on
page227 in An Introduction to Human Geography The Cultural Landscape: eighth edition
This is because people like to be around people like them. For example African
American like to be around other African Americans so probably wouldn’t move to
Cleveland, Ohio.
Chapter 7; key issue 2
• Why Have Ethnicities Been Transformed into Nationalities?
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Ethnicities such as Indian have turned into Nationalities because in India the most
prevalent ethnic group is Indian. The same is true in many countries. This is also
because of a strong sense of Nationalism and the people want to be considered a
united term like American, Canadian, Chinese, Australian, etc.
Chapter 7; key issue3
• Why do Ethnicities Clash?
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Ethnicities often fight over land area. As an ethnic group you want to have a sense of
place. The Kurds do not have a specific place to call their own due to being
discriminated against by middle eastern countries. While other countries like those in
Africa fight over which country of ethnicity should have the resources that the land
provides such as water, oil, gold, silver, and precious gems and stones that could
provide revenue for that said ethnicity.
Chapter 7, key issue 4
• What Is Ethnic Cleansing?
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Ethnic Cleansing is a process by which a more powerful ethnic group forcibly removes a
less powerful one in order to create an ethnically homogenous region. Perhaps the
most famous of these is the Holocaust in which the Jews were persecuted by the
Germans. Another example of this is the Ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia.
Chapter 8; key issue 1
• Where are states located?
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AS recently as half a century ago the world had only about fifty countries. The term
country is a synonym of state. States cover the entire world except Antarctica. States
are every country and its borders that make up the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa,
Australia, North America, and South America.
Chapter 8; key issue 2
• Why do boundaries cause problems?
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Boundaries cause problems because not every country believes in the same boundary
system. Without obvious physical barriers like the water around Great Britian it is hard
to see whose land it whose unless you were to put a fence around it like around a
backyard but a lot bigger. Since these boundaries are easily disputed, they are which
usually causes conflict much like the one between the Us and Mexico when
determining where Texas ended.
Chapter 8; key issue 3
• Why Do States Cooperate With Each Other?
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States cooperate with each other because no state is completely independent and
each needs to import something that another state has such as food, metal,
technology, oil, or anything else. Also it is a lot easier as well as a lot less economically
taxing to cooperate than to fight over the land and treaties like NAFTA and
organizations like the EU make this process a whole lot easier.
Chapter 8; key issue 4
• Why has Terrorism Increased?
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Terrorism has increased because as western society has because more and more
advanced other countries seek to emulate us and take on charactoristics of western
society that some feel threated their own. This is shown through bin Laden;s 9/11
bombings. He attacked because he felt that the United States was endangering their
culture that had lasted through out many years and they felt that they had to do
something.
Chapter 9; key issue 1
• Why Does Development Vary Among Countries?
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Development varies because not every country has equal opportunities as others. For
example the United States has large land area that provides food, and schools that
educate people in to having better jobs. While countries like Mexico have large land
area but a high crime rate, and schools that do not match up with the one farther north
in most areas.
Chapter 9; key issue 2
• Where Are More And Less Developed Countries Distributed?
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More developed countries run above the Brandt-Line plus Australia. This includes the
United States, Great Britain, Germany, Japan, France, And others.
Less developed countries are below the Brandt Lane minus Australia. This is because
above the Brandt line most countries have progressed in the Demographic transition
model while those below have not.
Chapter 9; key issue 3
• Where Does Level Of Development Vary By Gender?
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Level of development by gender varies more so in the middle east because of their
religion women are held at a lower standard than men and are considered sub-par
sometimes even property and so are not given as good an education as males if any
and are pushed in to more homely duties like sewing and raising children.
Chapter 9; key issue 4
• Why Do Less Developed Countries Face Obstacles In Development?
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LCDs face obstacles in development because most less developed countries do not
have valuable resources or sometimes the means to get to them. Also in some LCDs
the money that does come in through the export of natural resources or labor is put in
the pockets of the corrupt government and little trickles down into the hands of the
people.
Chapter 10; key issue 1
• Where Did Agriculture Originate?
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It cannot be said which history or where agriculture began because it was before
recorded history but it was probably done by women. This is because in ancient
societies the women did the gathering and at some point along the way they decided
to stop going farther for food and instead grow some closer to the village.
Chapter 10; key issue 2
• Where are Agricultural Regions in Less Developed Countries?
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While plantations are in LDCs they are usually owned an operated by companies based
in MDCs. Major agricultural regions in LDCs are generally found near bodies of water or
where it rains enough because they do not have the technology of funds to pump
water in like in MDCs.
Chapter 10; key issue 3
• Where Are Agricultural Regions in More Developed Countries?
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Agricultural regions in MDCs are generally in low populated areas so that it is not
taking up space where people could live.
However it does not matter what terrain the area is in because pipes can be put in to
give vegetation the water it needs to survive. The things that MDCs do depend on is
the type of soil and the amount of sunlight.
Chapter 10; key issue 4
• Why Do Farmers Face Economic Difficulties?
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Farmers face economic difficulties because of the genetic engineering that is done to
the crops, the farmer must buy new seeds every year and replenish the soil to keep
production going.
Chapter 11; key issue 1
• Where Did Industry Originate?
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In the United Kingdom in the late 1700 starting the Industrial Revolution.
Chapter 11; key issue 2
• Where is Industry Distributed?
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Industry is distributed among North America, Europe, and East Asia. These are also
where the major cities of the world are located.
Chapter 11; key issue 3
• Why Do Industries Have Different Distributions?
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Industries have different distributions because not every country has easy access to
materials needed for every type of industry. For example coal is more readily accessible
in the US than in Japan.
Chapter 11; key issue 4
• Why Do Industries Face Problems?
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Industries face problems such as if no one wants to buy their product or if they do not
have the money to build factories or expand on them.
Chapter 12; key issue 1
• Where Did Services Originate?
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Three fourths of the workers in the United States are in services.
Services originated in an in between area of MDC and LDC because it acts as a
transition in to MDC because less of the work force is in the Primary sector which is
what LDCs use to start up their economy.
Chapter 12; key issue 2
• Why Are Consumer Services Distributed In a Regular Pattern?
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Because the uniformity of the design allows for more area that potential costomers
inhabit to be covered and for there to be a lesser concentration in those areas,
especially if there is limited competition.
Chapter 12;key issue 3
• Why Do Business Services Locate in Large Settlements?
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Because there are more people that the business can be accessable to and the more
revenue can come in which can then eventually lead to building the service into smaller
areas without much more of a risk because the smaller towne will have heard about the
service from people from the bigger city or will have heard about it some how which
will prompt people to go to it.
Chapter 12; key issue 4
• Why Do Services Cluster Downtown?
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The downtown area of cities is more clustered so the more people there are to visit the
service and the more of that service there are in the area the greater chance people will
visit the service.
Chapter 13; key issue 1
• Where Have Urban Areas Grown?
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In the MDCs because there are more jobs available there than in rural areas and in
LDCs most of the land is rural or what is urban is crime infested.
Chapter 13; key issue 2
• Where Are People Distributed Within Urban Areas?
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Where people are distributed depends on their needs
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In the center is the CBD which is were ell the bi businesses are
Out side of that is the zone of transit which are people that work in CBD
Outside of that is the Zone of independent workers’ homes
Outside of that is the Zone of better residences
Out side of that is the Commuter’s zone or suburbs
Chapter 13; key issue 3
• Why Do Inner Cities Have Distinctive Problems?
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De greatly to the high population density and lack of space the city builds up which
with so many people causes pollution.
Also with so many people there is more competition for jobs.
Also due to the high amount of people and low employment rates crime will increase.
Chapter 13; key issue 4
• Why Do Suburbs Have Distinctive Problems?
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Because so many people have been moving to them that crime eventually increase
there as well.
Also lack of space brings up prices of property and because people are moving away
from the city, the city gets less revenue and to eventually taxes get raised and people
will get paid less.
Chapter 14; key issue 1
• Why Are Resources Being Depleted?
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Because as the population is growing and more countries are becoming more
developed more resources are being used and some of them like oil are nonrenewable.
Chapter 14; key issue 2
• Why Are Resources Being Polluted?
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As countries become more industrialized the more waste is produced and when they
run out of safe storage they dump in to lakes and rivers, and the air pollution from cars
and factories make the air more and more likely to become acid rain.
Chapter 14; key issue 3
• Why Are Resources Reusable?
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Because they can be replenished in a relatively short time.
Chapter 14; key issue 4
• Why Can Resources Be Conserved?
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Because we have developed the technology to preserve food and create crops resistant
to harmful substances.