AP Human Geography Summer Assignment Page 1

AP Human Geography 2017-2018 Summer Assignment

Why are humans important?

You are one.

Why is geography important? You live on the planet.

“Only 25% of American students have passed their geography test. Really? Even the ones living in West Dakota?” ---Stephen Colbert, Tweet, July 2011 -International surveys have consistently ranked American high school students last in geographic knowledge, compared with their counterparts in other developed countries. -30% of young Americans could not find the Pacific Ocean, the world’s largest body of water; more than half were unable to locate India. -70% of young adults in the United States could not find their own country on a map of the world. (OMG. OMG. OMG. OMG.) TASK You will find attached four articles/video links from various sources. Each one was chosen for a reason, and each relates to one or more of the units we will study throughout the year. Each article/link will be followed by questions or tasks that you are to address. When answering the questions, use evidence from the article coupled with your own analysis. There are opportunities for you to further your own opinion/understanding. Before each article there is some contextual information linking the reading to things we will be studying in class. Read these contextualizing hints BEFORE the article. THE RESPONSES TO THE FOUR READINGS/VIDEO LINKS WILL BE COLLECTED ON THE FIRST DAY OF CLASS. PLEASE TAKE YOUR TIME TO COMPLETE THIS ASSIGNMENT AND DO IT WELL. START THE YEAR OFF RIGHT PLEASE REMEMBER, THE RESPONSES TO ALL FOUR ARTICLES/LINKS MUST BE TYPED!! Reading #1: Human and Environmental Interactions. For all of human history, man has been facilitated by and limited in part by his environment. Earliest man modified his environment in simple ways, but as human life overtime grew more complex, so have those modifications. The following link takes you to fifteen satellite photos that illustrate massive examples in which people have modified their environment to suit their needs. http://www.vox.com/2015/4/7/8352381/anthropocene-NASA-images Instructions Look through the fifteen images from the link and select 5 images you feel have the most impact. Describe the change you see. Responses must be typed.

AP Human Geography Summer Assignment Page 2

The following is an example.

Listening/Watching #2- Migrations and Intensification: Crash Course Big History #7 This YouTube clip is produced by the Green brothers and fits TONS of history into 14 minutes. It covers some of the really big picture ideas of early human history. Despite being so long ago the long term events and processes described have a major impact on the way that we view modern cultural geography. The Greens talk FAST, don’t hesitate to stop and rewind! Is there a term or a phrase that one uses that you’re unfamiliar with? Pause the clip and look it up. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oy2XJMczUNc Answer the following questions during/after viewing the clip. It might take a few views. Responses must be typed. How have people made a living for the majority of human history? What caused the first big human migration? Why was the advent of agriculture (purposeful tending of crops/animals) such a massive shift in human activity? When Hank Green speaks about “states” what is he referring to? Where were the world’s first states? Who were Thomas Hobbes and Jean Jacques Rousseau? Why do you think writing is linked to agriculture? Explain. What is “carrying capacity”?

Brazilian Rainforest

Description- The photographs show a space of over 100 kilometers of rainforest. The 1975 photo is almost entirely green whereas the photo from 2009 shows expanding lines of what we can assume are cleared areas. The 2009 photo is almost entirely light brown.

Opinion- Although clearing forests is in no way a new activity, the extent and rapidity that is demonstrated in this photo set is mind blowing. I can only imagine that this type of clearing occurs because of rapidly expanding populations. Rainforest soil isn’t great for agriculture so once the cleared area is farmed for a while, new areas must soon be cleared. This doesn’t seem to be sustainable in the long term.

AP Human Geography Summer Assignment Page 3

Reading # 3 - Globalization One of the major themes of the course is the topic of globalization – a term that is used very often and has multiple meanings. For our purposes, define globalization as the interconnectedness of different places in the world. This means that various places on Earth that were once isolated from one another now interact, sometimes on a daily basis. This interaction can be between individuals. Imagine two people in different continents communicating via Twitter or Snapchat. The interaction can also be between countries in one of the following ways. Economic (trade, multi-national corporations like McDonald’s or Wal-Mart) Political (warfare, organizations like the United Nations, NATO, or the European Union) Social/Cultural Elements/Values like clothing, music, social media, language, or food. Globalization can be polarizing. Some people think it is awesome and others see it more negatively. Read the article, “How India Became America” from the New York Times and answer the questions at the end using the information above and the article. If you need to do any outside research to help familiarize yourself, do so! http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/opinion/sunday/how-india-became-america.html Responses must be typed. Questions: How does the title of the article itself describe the idea of globalization? Explain. Describe in detail at LEAST three different ways that the author claims that India is becoming more Americanized. Based on the article and your own feelings, describe how globalization of culture can be both positive and negative for individuals and their cultures.

AP Human Geography Summer Assignment Page 4

Reading #4- Cultural Borders and Boundaries One of the major components of Human Geography is explaining how we define, delimit, and demarcate borders. Our organization of space and people can be political, cultural, economic, or social. In most cases it is all four. People’s perception of space and place is often contingent on your own experiences too! Where does the “bad” side of town start? This is a question that can elicit different answers from various people. When reading this article think about other regions that you might be familiar with. How would you define “Northern Virginia?” What characterizes Northern Virginia from Southern Virginia? Is it possible that someone would define the region differently than you would? http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/01/where-does-the-south-begin/70052/ Responses must be typed. Questions: What are some implications of the title of this article, “Where Does the South Begin?” The article identifies many different ways that are used to identify the South. For each of the following identify and explain some of the problems and some of the benefits of using the given variable to identify a border; survey/census, rivers ,religion, language, food, and politics. You can create a chart or a graphic organizer to communicate this information. Identify three facts you found the MOST interesting in this reading. Explain your connection to them. **This section is not due on the first day we return from summer break but I STRONGLY encourage you to work on it with your extra time. We will be completing Unit I on Physical & Political Geography in the first two weeks of the course and completing this section will allow you to get ahead on your work. Several students have asked me about maps. Do I need to know a lot about maps? What if I can’t use Siri? Is Waze an option? It is the expectation of the College Board in writing the AP Human Geography test that students have a good understanding of where places are. Remember, it is tough to talk about the rise of terrorism or discuss various religions if you have no idea where anything is on the map! Use the blank world map set below to this summer assignment to complete the mapping activity. Feel free to use to following link as a way to quiz yourself on your progress http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/Geography.htm

Expect a United States map quiz and the end of the second week of school. You will be tested on your knowledge of all 50 states, and the District of Columbia. The remaining map quizzes wil l be done throughout the first and second quarter and they will be announced in advance.

AP Human Geography Summer Assignment Page 5

Place the following locations on the individual maps. On the blank North America map: Label all 50 states (only 49 are shown on the map. You can leave off Hawaii—I think you got that one). The District of Columbia. All countries that border the US. The 10 Provinces, and 3 Territories of Canada. Label major bodies of water – Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Arctic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, Great Lakes (name them), Hudson Bay, Gulf of St. Lawrence. In the blank South America map: Label all 13 countries in South America Shade in the 2 landlocked countries. Trace the course of the Amazon River in blue. Label the Falkland Islands (British) e. Label major bodies of water – Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and the Caribbean Sea. In the blank Central America map: Label all 7 countries in Central America Draw a black line to represent the Panama Canal. On the blank Africa map: Label the 20 countries listed below. Each were selected for their relationship to this course. -Algeria -Libya -Egypt -South Africa -Ghana -Kenya -Botswana -Nigeria -Rwanda -Liberia -Sierra Leone -Chad -Tanzania -Mali -Niger -Ivory Coast -Zimbabwe -Madagascar -Democratic Republic of Congo -Ethiopia Label major bodies of water – Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and the Red Sea On the blank Middle East map: Label all countries with a dot. Shade Syria in red. Shade Iraq in blue. Shade Saudi Arabia in green. Label Israel, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Cyprus (no dots). Shade Israel in yellow. Label major bodies of water –Indian Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Caspian Sea, and the Persian Gulf. On the blank South Asia map: Label Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, and the Philippines Trace the course of the Ganges in blue.

AP Human Geography Summer Assignment Page 6

Shade in the area of the Himalayan Mountain Range and identify Mt. Everest. On the blank East Asia map: Label China, Japan, Korea (North and South), Mongolia, and Taiwan Trace the course of the Huang He (Yellow) and Yangtze Rivers in blue. Identify and label the Chinese cities of Beijing, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. Identify and label the cities of Kyoto, Osaka, Pyongyang, Seoul, and Tokyo, Label major bodies of water –Pacific Ocean, East China Sea, Sea of Japan, a n d t h e South China Sea. On the blank Europe map: Label the 20 countries listed below. Each were selected for their relationship to this course. -Germany -Great Britain -Russia -France -Italy -Ireland -Switzerland -Netherlands -Sweden -Norway -Finland -Belgium -Iceland -Poland -Greece -Hungary -Denmark -Austria -Romania -Czech Republic Identify and label the following major European cities: London, UK; Paris, France; Lisbon, Portugal; Madrid and Barcelona, Spain, Rome, Italy; Vienna, Austria; Berlin, Germany; Athens, Greece; Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia; Stockholm, Sweden; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Copenhagen, Denmark; Brussels, Belgium. Label major bodies of water –Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, North Sea, Baltic Sea, and the English Channel.

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South America 0 285 570 1,140 Miles

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