People Far and Near (Discussion Notes 1-1) I. Technology Shrinks the World A. Modern technology has brought the world closer together. B. Inventions are changing the world and is changing faster every year. (Example: Internet) II. The World Next Door A. Ethnic Group is a group of people who have a common origin and share a language and history. B. Minority Group is a group of people whose culture, race,sex or ethnic origin is different from most people in the region. C. The Majority Group controls most of the wealth and power, but is not always the largest group.

Understanding Culture (Discussion Notes 1-2) I. What is Culture? A. Culture is the way of life of people who share similar beliefs and customs. This also includes government, food, music, etc. B. Judging other people based on one’s own culture and standard is called ethnocentrism. C. Cultural Borrowing is when one group people adopts another group’s cultural traits. D. Cultural Diffusion is how a culture spreads its knowledge and skills from one place to another. How? II. Important Lessons in History A. History is the story of the past. It can also tell how the past influenced the present.

III. Government A. People need rules in order to live together without conflict. B. Limited Government set the limit on the power of the government officials. 1. Democracy is where the people elect officials to make and enforce laws. C. Unlimited Government gives power to the ruler(s). 1. Dictatorship is a one person ruler. 2. Absolute Monarchy is kings and queens born into power. IV. Economic Systems A. Traditional Economy - people meet their needs based on traditional customs.

B. Command Economy is when the government makes all the decisions. C. Market Economy is when individuals decide what to produce and how much to produce. D. Mixed Economy is a blend of several economies. (most nations have this) V. Differences in Development A. Countries differ in how much manufacturing and industry they have in their country. B. Countries that are working towards industrialization are called developing countries. C. Many corporations from industrialized countries are building plants in developing countries.

Discussion Notes 1-3 Patterns in Today’s World I. Human Migration A. Throughout the world, people migrate, or move, in big numbers. B. When people leave villages and move to cities its called urbanization. C. Most people move to cities to find jobs. II. Population Growth A. There has been a rapid increase in the world population in recent years. B. A rapid increase in population means fewer resources, water shortages, and lack of food.

Discussion Notes 2-1 (Thinking Like a Geographer) I. A Geographer’s View of Place A Geographers study places and observe the human characteristics of a person living in that place. B. Geographers also study how people interact with their environment and look areas that share common characteristics (regions). II. The Tools of Geography A. Maps and globes are tools geographers use organize information of a place. B. The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a special device that receives a signal from a satellite that gives a location (lat./long). C. The Geographic Information Systems (GIS) helps gather data that is used for special maps.

III. Uses of Geography A. Geographic information is used in planning. B. Geographic information is used to plan new services, handle disasters, and how much housing to allow. C. It can also be used to manage our natural resources so we don’t run out. Discussion Notes 2-2 (Physical Geography) I. Force Beneath the Earth’s Surface A. Plate Tectonics- theory that the earth is made up of plates, huge slabs of rock that move. 1. Plates collide (convergent) = mountains and volcanoes 2. Plates slide along (transform) = earthquake and fault 3. Plates pull apart (divergent) = Mid-Atlantic Ridge

II. Types of Landforms A. Plains are low-lying flat land. Plateaus are also flat but have higher elevations. B. A valley is a stretch of land lower than the land on either side. Canyons are steep-sided lowlands that rivers cut through. III. Bodies of Water A. 70% of the earth’s surface is water. Only 2% of the water on the earth is fresh water and 80% of that is frozen in glaciers. IV. Climate A. Climate is the usual, predictable pattern of weather over a long period of time. Water, wind, and land may influence climate.