Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for Geography for Secondary education

Characteristics of International Trade

Traditionally, the large commercial areas of the world have been the European Union, the US, and Japan. However, emerging countries such as China have begun to play a key role in international trade and the economy. Different regions of the world specialize in the production of different goods:

• Developed countries (mainly North America, Japan, and Europe) export manufactured and high-quality products, which provide high income.
• Less developed countries contribute to international trade with raw materials, agricultural products, and some basic manufactured goods, like textiles and craft products, which provide low income.

Moreover, many poor countries owe money to foreign financial institutions (external debt)...

SECONDARY SECTOR

Industry Overview

The secondary sector encompasses all activities that transform raw materials into finished goods. This sector plays a crucial role in economic development, as industrialization drives growth and prosperity. Developed countries typically have well-established industrial networks.

Types of Industries

Industries can be categorized based on their level of technological advancement and the intended use of their products.

1. By Degree of Innovation:

• Mature Industries: These industries, such as textiles, steel, and shipbuilding, emerged during the 18th and 19th centuries and utilize established technologies.
• Advanced Industries: Industries like biotechnology, microelectronics, telecommunications, and robotics represent

Medieval Trade Associations

Traders' associations consisted of groups of merchants from different cities. Two of the most important were the Hanseatic League and the leagues of Mediterranean traders. They established maritime routes for trade across the Mediterranean and Atlantic Oceans, as well as land routes that crossed Central Europe. At many points along these routes, they established fairs—large markets held at specific times of the year. The most important were located in Champagne, Flanders, Burgundy, and Northern Italy.

Hanseatic and Mediterranean Trade

The routes of the Hanseatic League passed through the Baltic, North Sea, and Northern European waterways. Wool, cloth, cereals, skins, honey, wood, fish, and salt were the primary products...

Independence of United States:

Between 1756 and 1763, England and France fought the Seven Years War. England won, leading to measures affecting the 13 colonies:

• It prohibited the advance of the French towards conquered lands.
• It reimplemented the commercial monopoly.

Towards an Independence State:

The British measures outraged the colonists, leading to boycotts and street disturbances. In 1774, the Continental Congress of Philadelphia met, followed by a second Congress in 1775, which decreed popular mobilization. On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was passed.

French Revolution:

Clergy: The state was divided into high and low clergy. The high clergy were mostly nobles, while the lower clergy came from common sectors. Nobility: Nobles...

Early Middle Ages

The Break-up of the Roman Empire

In AD 324, the emperor Constantine I founded the city of Constantinople on the site of Ancient Byzantium.

All people living beyond Roman borders were considered Barbarians.

• The Huns were nomadic animal herders who traveled across the Asian steppe. They attacked Germanic people.
• The Germanic peoples lived in the north and east of Europe. Many eastern tribes were nomadic. They were organized into tribes, each tribe had an assembly that elected a chieftain.

Romans built fortifications along the Rhine and Danube rivers.

Germanic tribes became a real threat in the 3rd century AD, when the Roman Empire suffered a serious economic and social crisis.

Some Germanic tribes carried out violent attacks on Roman...

Absolutism and the Decline of Feudalism in Europe

1. Absolutism and Parliament

• Absolutism: The king has all the power in society.
• Parliament: The king does not have all the power; the people have a say in government.

2. Economic Changes

2.1 Agriculture

• Agriculture became less productive.
• The land became less fertile due to frosts, heavy rain, and droughts.
• Demand for agricultural products decreased.

2.2 Craft Production

• Craft production continued to be regulated by associations called guilds.
• The domestic system allowed for cheaper products to be produced more efficiently.

2.3 Trade

• Spain, Portugal, Italy, England, and the United Provinces became important trading nations.

2.4 Taxes

• Ordinary people were taxed to pay for the military and luxuries of the court.

The Colonization of Africa

Causes of Colonization

• Finance capitalism: The rise of finance capitalism during this period led to the need for new markets and sources of raw materials and energy outside of Europe.
• White supremacy: White people felt superior to the indigenous people of Africa and believed it was their duty to bring their culture and religion to them.
• Overpopulation and unemployment: The growth of the population in Europe and the use of machinery in factories had caused high levels of unemployment, leading people to seek new opportunities abroad.

Steps of Colonization

1. Occupation: The land was occupied by conquest, thanks to the military advantage of the colonizers.
2. Administration: Political and administrative control was established by

Continents of the World

Europe

Relief:

• Alps
• Carpathians
• Caucasus
• Ural Mountains
• Great European Plain

Water:

• Rhine River
• Danube River
• Dnieper River
• Don River
• Volga River
• Lake Ladoga

Climate:

• Mediterranean
• Forest
• Continental
• High Mountains

Landscape:

• Mediterranean Forest
• Deciduous Forest
• Prairies
• Woodland

Fauna:

• Wild Pigs
• Eagles
• Foxes
• Bulls
• Rabbits

Asia

Relief:

• Himalayas
• Plateau of Tibet
• Mount Everest
• Siberian Plateau
• The Archipelago of Japan

Water:

• Yenisey River
• Lena River
• Yangtze River
• Amur River
• Euphrates River
• Ganges River

Climate:

• Dry
• Equatorial
• Tropical
• Desert
• Mediterranean

Landscape:

• Deciduous Forest
• Steppe
• Taiga
• Savanna
• Tundra

Fauna:

• Pandas
• Tigers
• Asian Elephants
• Bears
• Deer

Africa

Relief:

• Rifts
• Valleys
• Drakensberg
• Sahara Desert

Water:

• Nile River
• Niger River
• Congo River
• Lake Victoria
• Orange River

Climate:

• Mediterranean
• Desert
• Equatorial
• Tropical

• Depletion of resources and pollution: Large populations require significant natural resources, which leads to resource depletion, increased pollution, and environmental damage.

Unit 2: The Natural Dynamics of the Population

1. Birth, Death, and Fertility Rates

• Birth rate: The number of children born in one year in a specific location. It is calculated by dividing the number of births by the total population and multiplying by 1,000.
• Fertility rate: The number of births in one year relative to the number of women of childbearing age in that location.
• Death rate: The number of deaths in one year in a specific location. It is calculated by dividing the number of deaths by the total population and multiplying by 1,000.

2. Natural Increase vs. Real Growth

• Natural

The Transition to the Early Modern Period

Defining the Historical Periods

• The Early Modern Period began at the end of the Middle Ages, often marked by the discovery of America in 1492.
• The conquest of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks in 1453 is a significant marker, often cited as the end of the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire and a key transition point out of the Middle Ages.
• The Middle Ages is generally considered to have ended around 1453 or 1492, and the Early Modern Period concluded with the French Revolution in 1789.

Key Kingdoms and States

The political landscape included:

• Central European Powers: Holy Roman Empire, Kingdom of France, Kingdom of England, Kingdom of Sweden.
• Mediterranean and Eastern Powers: Ottoman Turks, Papal States, Duchies