The Human World

Population, Culture, Political and Economic Systems, Resources, Trade and the Environment

The Human World

World Population6.2 b people on earthUntil Industrial

Revolution world’s population grew slowly

Birthrate growing faster than death rate

Natural increase difference between birthrate and death rate

Improved healthcare, adavanced technology, better nutrition lower death rate

In industrialized countries this accompanied by low birthrate

Some countries have reached zero population growth

Developing world (Latin America, Africa, Asia) birthrate high

Large families (cultural feelings)

Why population rates vary

Population Growth

Challenges of Population GrowthFood SupplyUse resources

quicklyCan technology

keep up?

Negative Population GrowthDeath Rate exceeds

birth rateLate 1900’s in EuropeDifficult to keep

economy going- fewer workers

Import laborers causes tension between groups

Population DistrbutionHuman settlement is unevenLess than one- third of planet

inhabitedMost live near water, fertile soil

and climate make life sustainableAsia 60% of worlds populationEurope, N.A. most live in urban

areas

Determine how crowded a country is by how many live in a square mile or kilometer of land

Why is this not accurate? (p.78)

Population Density

Population Movement Migration movement

from one place to another (urban to rural areas, country to country)

Why? push and pull factors

Population moving to urban areas

Reasons- jobs, opportunity

War, environmental disaster, famine cause forced migration

Culture- way of life shared by a group of people

Includes: Language Religion Subgroups Government Economics

Global Cultures

Communicate information, share and pass on tradition, values

Unifies culture Worlds languages divided into language groups,

groups with similar roots

Language

Vary greatly around worldUnify people, provides sense of identityInfluences daily life- morals, values, holidaysReligious symbols, stories shaped literature,

arts

Religion

World Religions

Allow cultures to work together to meet basic needs

Family most important part of all cultures, makeup varies

Social class- rank based on wealth, ancestry, education, other criteria

Some include diverse ethnic groups (share common language, history, etc.)

Social Groups

Government reflects cultureAll maintain order, protection from outside

forces, supply services to peopleOrganized by levels of power (national, state,

local)Type of authority- single leader, small group

of leaders, representative leaders

Government

How cultures utilize resourcesHow cultures produce, obtain, use and sell

goods and services

Economic Activity

Culture Regions Culture regions share certain traits

Economic systems, forms of government, social groups, language

Share common history, art forms, religion

Cultural ChangeWhat creates cultural

change? Within- lifestyles, ideas,

inventions Outside influences- trade,

movement of people and war

Process of spreading new knowledge and skills from one culture to another cultural diffusion

Agricultural Revolution10, 000 years ago

people first settled in river valleys, established permanent settlements

Shift from gathering food to producing food agricultural revolution

3500 B.C. organized, city based societies with government, trade, art, science established (civilizations)

Culture Hearths First civilizations in areas called cultural hearths All emerged in areas with mild climate, fertile land and

were located near a major river or source of water Factors allowed people to grow surplus food

Surplus food allowed development of other economic activities- economic activities and trade

Increased wealth, formed complex governments and societies

Governments coordinated building projects, harvests and military defense

Creation of writing systems to record and transmit information

Specialization and Civilization

Causes of Change Contact between civilizations through trade

and travel Permanent migration Forced migration (slaves) Favorable conditions (climate, opportunity,

freedom) draw people from one region to another

Cause tradition, practices, beliefs to blend across cultures

Cultural Contacts

Industrial Revolution- 1750’s changes in production b/c of mechanization led to economic, social change

People left farms for jobs, working and living conditions improved

End of 1900’s Information Revolution links cultures across globe

Industrial and Information Revolution

Territory, population, sovereignty, freedom from outside control managed by governments

Make and enforce laws that bind people together

Governments reflect historic, cultural characteristics of each country

Most have different levels of government

Political and Economic Systems

RED indicates populistic system BLUE indicates democratic system. ORANGE indicates that political system of the country is now changing from populistic to democratic.

http://www.geocities.com/historymech/maps2.html WHITE means "not enough data to determine political system". GREEN indicates occupied countries (also "not enough data" to determine political system). Yellow dots mark countries that probably could become democratic in next few years.

Unitary SystemGives all power to a central governmentUsually small, not ethnically diverse United Kingdom, France

Federal System Power divided between states and central

government Each has sovereignty in certain areas U.S., Canada, Brazil, Australia, India

Government Systems

Types of Government Three major groups Autocracy- oldest most

common form of government

Achieve authority by inheritance, use of force

Types- totalitarian (single leader) controls all aspects of life, monarchy (king, queen) leadership inherited, have supreme power of government

Constitutional monarchy- monarch share power with elected legislatures

Types of GovernmentOligarchy- small group

holds powerPower from wealth,

military power, social position (sometimes religion)

Control decisions made by elected legislatures, give appearance of representing people

Usually suppress all political opposition

Types of Government Democracy- leaders rule with consent of citizens Citizens have ultimate power Representative democracy- elect people to make laws,

conduct government (legislature) Republic- all major officials elected, head of state

elected for certain term

Three Basic Decisions What and how many goods and services should

be produced How they should be produced Who gets the goods and services produced

Three types of economic systems1) Traditional 2) Market 3) Command

Economic Systems

Traditional EconomyHabit and custom define activityNot free to make decisions, do what was done

in the pastNot many left

Economic Systems

Market Economy (Capitalism) Individuals, private groups makes decisions Based on free enterprise (make what people will

buy) Free enterprise based on right to make a profit

w/o gov’t interference People decide where to work Mixed economy- gov’t supports and regulates

free enterprise, keep competition free and fair Gov’t influences economies by spending United States is an example

Economic Systems

Command EconomyGov’t owns means of production- land, labor,

capitalDirects all economic activityBelief that it is good for societyCitizens have no say in how money is spent

by gov’t

Economic Systems

Resources, Trade and the Environment

Natural Resources Two types- renewable,

nonrenewable Nonrenewable resources

– minerals, fossil fuels Need to be conserved Renewable resources-

hydroelectric power, solar energy, nuclear energy

Can be expensive, possible environmental consequences

Uneven distribution of resources affects global economy

Some countries develop economies based on their natural resources

World Economic Activities divided into four types

Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, Quaternary

Economic Development

Primary Economic Activity- taking and using natural resources, primary economic activity takes place near natural resources

Secondary Economic Activity- adds value to raw materials (manufacturing), activity occurs close to markets

Tertiary Activity- professional, wholesale or retail activities

Quaternary Activity- processing, management and distribution of information (white collar professionals)

Economic Development

Developed Countries- mfg., service industries employ most people

Commercial farming, don’t need as many people to grow food

High standard of living

Economic Development

Developing Countries- mainly in Africa, Asia, Latin America

Working toward manufacturing, mostly agricultural

Subsistence farmingMost people poor

Economic Development

Wealth in developed world leads to resentment

Militant groups form to strike back and heighten influence to promote change (terrorists)

Economic Development

Unequal distribution of resources causes global trade networks to develop

Multinational companies (MNC’s) stimulate trade

Based in developed countries, set up assembly operations in smaller countries to keep down labor costs, sell to developed countries

World Trade

World TradeBarriers to TradeCountries mange trade to

benefit themSet up restrictions on

goods from other countries (tariffs, quotas, embargoes)

Recent movement to free trade (removal of trade barriers)

Regions join together to remove restrictions (NAFTA, European Union)

Human economic activity has affected environment

Water, air, land pollutionDeforestationExpansion of human communities threatens

natural ecosystems (desertification is an example)

Need for more resources to support growing population and technology leads to degradation of environment

People and the Environment