1. Geography of the United States
Metropolis: A major city, especially the chief city of a country
or region: Chicago, the metropolis of the Midwest.
Megalopolis: an extensive concentration of urbanized settlement formed by a coalescence of several metropolitan areas. The term is commonly applied to the urbanized northeastern seaboard of the U.S. extending from Boston, MA to Washington, D.C.
Mega cities
A city with a population of greater than 10 million
A primate city is a major city that works as the financial, political, and population center of a country and is not rivaled in any of these aspects by any other city in that country. Normally, a primate city must be at least twice as populous as the second largest city in the country.

2. Physical Geography of the United States
Landforms- Physical Geography of the Earth
At over 3.5 million square miles, the United States is the third-largest country in the world.
Glacial activity and tectonic plate movement created the many landforms of the United States.
The Pacific Ranges and the Rocky Mountains mark the western region, with some elevations over 20,000 feet.
The flat landscape of the Great Plains lies in the center.
Going east, the geologically older, but shorter Appalachian Mountains extend to the Piedmont’s fertile plateau, then the Atlantic Coastal Plain hems the shore.
Question: How does Physical geography effect where people live?

3. Physical Geography of the United States
Water Systems
The many lakes, rivers, and tributaries helped encourage economic develop along their shores.
The Mississippi River in the east and the Colorado River and Rio Grande in the west form two major waterways.
The Continental Divide, a high ridge in the Rockies, determines the direction of river flow.
Formed when glacier basins filled with water, the Great Lakes are part of the St. Lawrence Seaway System, a series of waterways that connect to the Atlantic Ocean.

4. Physical Geography of the United States
Climate, Biomes, and Resources
The large size of the United States leads to many variations in climate and vegetation.
The oceans moderate temperature in coastal regions, while the interior experiences more extreme conditions.
Rich in natural resources such as water, timber, fish, minerals, and fossil fuels, the United States helped speed industrialization and become one of the most prosperous countries in the world.

5. Urbanization
The movement of people to, and the clustering of people in, towns and cities- a major force in every geographic realm today. Also when expanding cities absorb the rural countryside and transforms it into suburbs.

6. Question: What problems do we face in cities?
Urban Geography
The Nature of Cities
During the Industrial Revolution, people began moving in large numbers from rural areas to urban areas, and now over half the world's people live in cities.
Every city serves a variety of functions, including manufacturing, service centers, and retail, which are the economic base of the city, generating employment for large populations.
Urban areas have advantages, such as peoples' innovation and creativity, and challenges, such as overcrowding, crime, poverty, and pollution.
Question: What problems do we face in cities?

7. Urban Geography Patterns of Urbanization
Cities can grow or shrink in population depending on the need for industry or the supply of natural resources.
Central place theory is a spatial theory in urban geography that attempts to illustrate how settlements locate in relation to one another.
World cities play an important role in the global economic system.
New trends in cities include the development of suburban business districts and major diversified centers.

8. Urban Geography Challenges of Urban Growth
Rapid urban growth often strains a city’s capacity to provide services such as energy, education, health care, transportation, sanitation, and physical security.
Modern cities all over the world face many of the same problems: poor housing, homelessness, pollution, and social problems such as addiction, crime, and gang violence.
Rapid urban growth may lead to urban sprawl that might destroy open space, change the physical environment, or diminish the character of a community.

9. People and Their Environment: The United States
Managing Resources
Modern life poses a threat to the abundant natural resources in the United States.
Conservation efforts by citizens and from all levels of government have increased to ensure resources will continue to flourish in the future.
Resource management includes understanding and respecting the balances that exist in natural ecosystems.
Efforts to reverse the damage have begun but more is needed to achieve sustainable levels.

10. People and Their Environment: The United States
Human Impact
Acid rain and smog are consequences of human pollution of the air and water.
Water pollution speeds eutrophication, which encourages the excessive algae growth that depletes water’s oxygen and suffocates fish.
Projected water shortages could turn into droughts that cause billions of dollars in crop and livestock losses.

11. People and Their Environment: The United States
Addressing the Issues
The United States is continually improving its protection of the environment by using clean-air practices, searching for renewable sources of energy, and reducing waste.
Federal legislation, such as the Clean Water Act and the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, has helped restore water quality throughout the country.
The government is working to curb environmental damage by encouraging the use of renewable energy sources and offering incentives for companies to limit emissions.

12. Human Geography of the United States
History and Geography
The physical environment played a significant role in the development of the United States.
Native Americans, descendants of the first waves of migrations, occupied North America until the Europeans began immigrating in the 1500s.
After gaining independence, the country nearly doubled in territory, gaining valuable land and resources.
Industrialization and the great waves of immigrants who came to work in the United States made the population more mobile and urbanized.

13. Human Geography of the United States
Population Patterns
More than 315 million people live in the United States.
The aging of the population will cause challenges in government and health care costs.
Population is increasing in Sunbelt states as manufacturing has declined in the North and Great Lakes region.
Densely populated urban areas like the megalopolis between Boston and Washington, D.C. attract residents with economic opportunity.

14. Human Geography of the United States
Society and Culture Today
With its long history of immigration, the population of the United States is one of the most diverse countries in the world.
This diverse population, coupled with the core value of religious freedom, contributed to the wide range of religions practiced today.
The family remains important but the role of women is changing as more women seek employment and continue to outpace men in earning college degrees.
Art and music, like jazz, developed by blending the influences of the country’s vast immigrant communities.

15. Human Geography of the United States
Economic Activities
The free market economy in the United States helped establish its great economic power.
The economy has evolved from its agricultural origins to manufacturing to the postindustrial economy of today.
Good transportation and reliable communications networks are critical pieces that enable the economy to function.
The downturn beginning in 2008 caused by the subprime mortgage crisis is improving, but more growth is needed to return the United States to robust health.