Happy Monday 11-10-2014

• On your desk: notes from front table, pen/cil, homework article (be prepared to report to class)

Warm-up: current events with Carl, EESP

agenda

• 1. Report on Homework articles • 2. Current events• 3. Notes/discussion: US /Canada Human Geo• 4. Work time: homework or study maps

• Map Test is Friday!! • All political and physical features from study maps

are testable.

Human Geography United States and Canada

• Describe the spatial distribution of population in US and Canada.

• (where are populations dense and sparse?)

Population Geography

• The population of the US is concentrated in the northeast.

• Why do you think this is? • Historically, this is the first place colonized by Europeans• Access to international transportation routes

• Canada is the world’s second largest country in area. The population of Canada is concentrated near it’s border with the U.S. Why do you think this is?

• Harsh climate and lack of farmland in the north• Access to economic markets of USA

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWNBlTyk88o

• How has US population changed over time?• Answer on notes.

• What will happen in the future?

=What is the HDI level US and Canada?=What does this tell about their infrastructure, health care, etc?

Population pyramidshow do US and Canada differ?

Canada’s population pyramid is inverted, meaning population is below replacement. Therefore NOT growing.US population is at replacement level.

• Though at replacement level, US population is still growing steadily every year? HOW??

http://www.census.gov/popclock/

IMMIGRATION!Check out the population clock for US and world

Economic Geography• Both the US and Canada have free enterprise economic

systems. • What is another word for this?• Capitalism• Canada is a major exporter of minerals and agricultural

products. It also has a large manufacturing and service industry.

• The US has the largest economy in the world and relies heavily on global trade.

• Sub-regions of the US focus on different industries. We will focus on regions later in the unit.

Northeast – financial center with a large transportation and trade network; was once the dominant economic area of the nation, but that has shifted in the last 50 years

Midwest – a major farming region and leading producer of industrial goods; contains the “Corn Belt” (Nebraska to Ohio)and the “Dairy Belt” (Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan)

West – livestock, mining, tourism and high tech industries in California’s “Silicon Valley”

South – historically an agricultural center but in recent decades new industries like high-tech, automobile, banking, and aerospace have been growing

Economic Geography

• Economic cooperation between the US and Canada is important to both countries.

• In 1992, the US, Canada, and Mexico signed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

• This eliminated tariffs (taxes on imports) on goods flowing between these countries.

• Trade increased dramatically but still remains controversial because some claim that free trade allow American companies to move factories to countries (especially Mexico) with lower wages and business costs, causing unemployment in the US.

MaquiladorasUS owned companies in Mexico, usually right across the border.

Why would they be built right across the border?

Political Geography/ Government

• USA• Government: Federal Republic? Democratic

Republic? Democracy?

• YES!

• Canada? Hmmmm.• Parliamentary Republic.• Also still has a Queen…

Political Geography

• Both Canada and the US are republics with a federal system.

• A federal system is a division of power between a central (national) government and state (called provinces in Canada) governments.

• The constitutions of both countries outline the powers that the national government holds and the powers that the state/provincial governments hold.

US President Barack Obama

Canadian Prime Minister: Stephen

Harper

Queen Elizabeth II

Canada’s ties to Great Britain have remained close. Britain’s monarch is also Canada’s monarch.

Political Geography• US states also play an important role in presidential elections. When

a state’s voters cast ballots for president, they are really choosing members of the electoral college, or electors.

• The number of electors from each state is equal to its members in the US House of Representatives and the US Senate.

• To win the election, a presidential candidate must win at least 270 of the possible 538 electoral votes.

• While each state has the same number of senators (2), the size of a state’s population determines how many seats that state gets in the House of Representatives. As a result, states with the largest populations have the most seats.

• Therefore, changes in the population of each state affect the distribution of political power in the country.

Electoral College Vote - 1920

Electoral College Vote - 2012

These maps show electoral votes per state.

They also show how voting patterns in the US have changed over time. Democrats (blue) once dominated elections in the South. Republicans (red) did better in the Northeast and West.

Shifts in migration patterns, political attitudes, and regional economics have all played roles in this change.

Political Geography• US has 50 states. Is that all of our country??• NO. The US is also consisted of….• territories and special districts• District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico,

Guam, American Samoa, theU.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands, and associated territorial waters and airspace.

• Canada has 10 provinces and 3 territories• The three northern territories are across the Arctic – Yukon, Northwest,

and Nunavut territories. While they do not live in provinces, residents in the territories still have considerable control over local issues.

• What are some similarities and differences in the political geography of the US and of Canada?

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyXOWOkjYKM

Where is Nunavut?

What do you think life is like there?

Cultural Geography

• USA: Homogeneous or Multicultural?

• Canada: Homogeneous or Multicultural?

• Multicultural YES!• Melting Pot or Mosaic?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xGu3QN_J-E

Cultural Geography - History• Both the U.S. and Canada were once populated with

Native Americans. • Europeans started settling the eastern coasts of both

nations in the early 1500’s. • The U.S. was settled mostly by British colonists

escaping religious persecution. These settlers created 13 colonies declared their independence from Britain in 1776 during the American Revolution.

• After independence, the U.S. will set up a republic system of government, first under the Articles of Confederation, which was replaced with the Constitution.

• How did political geography and economic geography drive the expansion of the United States?

• War and international relations• Use of slavery• Industrialization and railroads

CANADA Cultural Geography - History• Canada was also settled by European colonists, but the first

major power to settle Canada was France, not Britain. They established Quebec City on the St. Lawrence River in 1608.

• After a long war, however, the British will force the French settlers to leave and will then claim Canada in 1763. The British will then organize Canada into provinces and settle the eastern parts of the country.

• Much like the US, the population of Canada grew and moved westward through the 1800s. The British government will create the self-governing Dominion of Canada in 1867 which included Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick.

• Manitoba, British Columbia, and Prince Edward Island were added in the 1870s; Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905; Newfoundland in 1949; and Nunavut in 1999.

• Today, more than 33 million people live in Canada.

Canada: Language and Religion

• Because of it’s history • Language= English and French

• Religion= Christianity--- Protestant

• Except…..

• Quebec is different from the rest of Canada from its history of French settlement.

• Language- French• Religion- Catholic

• Quebec has threatened to secede from Canada.

US Cultural Geography – Language and Religion

Religion= Christianity

Can you relate US language and religion to immigration?

Religion in the USA

A Diverse Society

• The majority of Americans, about • 70% trace their heritage back to Europe.

– Due largely to Americans’ European ancestry, the majority of Americans are Christian.

• 13% trace their heritage to Latin America.– The 2nd most commonly spoken language in the U.S. is

SPANISH.• 12% are African-American.• 4% are Asian.• 1% are Native American.

What else makes up a country’s culture?

• US and Canada are both multicultural in their…• Music• Holidays• Food• Customs• Art• Literature• Sports……

US and Canada both love sports!

Assignment: Unit Atlas Questions

• P. 102• Answer in Complete Sentences!!!• Due Wed • Also you may study for map test Friday • Don’t forget to study the physical features and

cities too!!• www.ilike2learn.com• www.lizardpoint.com