| A | B |
|---|
| Lithosphere | The outside shell of the earth-made up of the crust and the upper mantle. |
| Tectonic forces | The movement of the tectonic plates that can create mountains, rift valleys, and earthquakes. |
| Earthquakes | These are caused by movement in the plates of earth. |
| Erosion | When rock, sand, and soil are broken down and carried away. This can create canyons, valleys, hills, and plains. |
| Landforms | Refers to natural features of the landscape such as mountains valleys, hills, plains |
| Soilbuilding | The processes such as weathering, erosion, or deposits that affect the quality of the soil. |
| Hydrosphere | The part of the earth covered by water. |
| Ocean Currents | The movement of the ocean's water that affects climate in different regions of the world. |
| Water Cycle | The process by which water on the earth's surface moves from evaporation to condensation to precipitation. |
| Precipitation | Where water returns to the ocean and land through rain. |
| Tsunamis | When an earthquake occurs under or near the ocean it can create a massive wave known as a tsunami. Japan was hit with a tsunami in 2011 |
| Monsoons | Seasonal winds most often associated with South Asia. Heavy rains fall as a resut of monsoons causing flooding and hardship for individuals living in low lying areas. |
| Floods | Usually indicate a temporary covering of land by water that is not normally covered by water. This can occur from intense rains and/or the overflow or break of a levee. Hurricane Katrina caused flooding in New Orleans, Louisiana in 2005. |
| Tides | Created by the relationship between the Earth and the Sun. The result of the moon's gravitational pull on the earth's surface. |
| Atmosphere | (Sky) weather and climate |
| Earth/Sun relationship | The tilt of the earth causes parts of Earth to receive more or less sunlight throughout the year causing seasons. Climate is most affected by latitude and elevation. |
| El Nino | Increased rainfall across the southern tier of the U.S. and Peru, which has caused destructive flooding. Drought in the West Pacific, sometimes associated with devastating brush fires in Australia. |
| Biosphere | Refers to life on earth such as climates and plants and animals in a region. |
| Desertification | The expansion of desert like conditions to areas of arable land. Ex: grassland areas near the Sahara desert is turning into deserts. (SAHEL) |
| Gross Domestic Product per capita | Value of goods and services produced in a year in a nation by the average person. |
| Life expectancy | Average number of years a person is expected to live. |
| Literacy rate | Percentage of people who can read and write in a county. |
| Infant Mortality | Number if infants who die out of every 1000 born. |
| Human Development Index | Refers to the level of development of a country. |
| Less Developed Nations (LDC) | Any country that has not experienced an industrial revolution. |
| Newly Industrialized Nations (NIC) | Economy still focused on manufacturing. |
| More Developed Nations (MDC) | Economy is focused on service industries with a well defined support infrastructure. |
| Urbanization | Refers to the growth of cities as more people leave rural areas to move to the cities. |
| Push Factors | Factors that cause people to move from one area to another such as war, job losses, ethnic persecution, or famine. |
| Pull Factors | Factors that cause people to move from one area to another such as more freedom, better job opportunities, and more rights in a democracy. |
| Globalization | The increasing relationships of individuals, culture, and economic activity around the globe. |
| Standard of living | Refers to the level of wealth, material goods, and services that are available to people or nations. |
| Pandemics | An epidemic of an infectious disease that affects a large number of people in other countries or continents. |
| Sustainable development | Refers to using resources in a way that benefits todays' needs as well as future needs. |
| Renewable resources | Resources that can renew themselves over time. Ex. planting trees to replace the one's that have been cut down. |
| Non-renewable resources | Resources that can only be used once. Ex. burning fossil fuels such as coal and oil. |
| Region | An area of the earth's surface with similar characteristics that could be either physical or human. |
| Formal region | Usually has clear boundaries and a limited number of related characteristics such as Latin America and Europe. |
| Perceptual region | Usually refers to people's perception (what they believe) about an area. They may not all use the same characteristics. Ex. Midwest region of the United States. |
| Functional region | Usually organized around a set of interactions or connections between people and places. Ex. Dallas/Ft. Worth region |
