Europe
MapQuest--European
Atlas
Click
on the Above to View Individual European States and Information About Each
Task #1
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St. Joseph, Missouri |
London, United Kingdom |
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St. Joseph, Missouri |
Berlin, Germany |
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St. Joseph, Missouri |
Denver, Colorado |
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St. Joseph, Missouri |
San Francisco, California |
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London, United Kingdom |
Paris, France |
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Paris, France |
Berlin, Germany |
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Oslo, Norway |
Rome, Italy |
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Paris, France |
Warsaw, Poland |
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Madrid, Spain |
Warsaw, Poland |
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Review the miles gathered from the above--- what can you say about Europe? Write this....
Task #2
How much money did I spend? The following table
indicates my expenses for a recent visit to several countries in Europe.
Your task is to convert the local currency into American dollars.
Use the following WebPage to convert the currency. Open "Foreign
Currency Converter." Look at it for several minutes to determine
how it works. Then make the following conversions.
Foreign Currency Converter
|
|
Amount Spent in Local Currency |
|
| London-Lunch |
5.50 GBP United Kingdom Pounds |
. |
| London-Hotel |
80 GBP United Kingdom Pounds |
. |
| Berlin-new shirt |
11.40 GDMGermany Deutsche Marks |
. |
| Rome-lunch |
15,268 Italian Lira |
. |
| Paris-hotel |
500 FRF |
. |
| Warsaw- cab ride |
120 PLZ |
. |
| Oslo-breakfast |
50 NOK |
. |
| Berne--motel |
62 CHF |
. |
| Brussels--ice cream |
117 BEF |
. |
......based upon the above... what are your thoughts? Conclusions? Perceived Problems? Write this.....
What makes Europe a unique geographic area of the world?
True/False
- The region we know as Europe is located at the western extremity of the Eurasian land mass. It's location provides for maximum efficiency for contact with the rest of the world.
- The world influence that Europe has today is a result of the centuries of global political and economic domination. Ultimately the countries located adjacent to the Pacific Rim may replace Europe's influence. The Security Council of the United Nations contains five members: Russia, China, United States, United Kingdom, France.
- Europe's nation-states emerged from durable power cores that formed the home office of the world's major colonial powers.
- Europe is marked by strong internal regional differences.
- For such a small area, Europe's shows some major differences in topographic, climatic, vegetative and soil conditions. Location of major mineral resources necessary to develop an industrial base are also located within the boundaries of Europe.
- Manufacturing traditionally have dominated the European economies. Industrial productivity has been high. The transfer of manufacturing from the small scale or home [cottage industry] to large scale manufacturing first took place in Europe. Levels of industrial development decline as one travels from west to east. Western Europe is industrial--Central and Eastern Europe tend to be more agricultural. Because of the size of the population, Europe must produce "goods" to purchase the food that it needs.
- Generally speaking [and compared to elsewhere in the world], Europe's population is healthy and well fed. Today it is experiencing a negative population growth. Europe includes one of the world's three largest population clusters.
- Europe's population is highly urbanized, highly skilled and well educated. Differences will be found as one travels from the west [Atlantic Ocean] to the east.
- An advantage that Europe has over some other regions of the world is its centralized efficient transportation and communications system.
- On the whole Europe is creating a supra-state or "the United States of Europe." On the other hand, within some of the current European states one will find strong internal separatist movements.
- In the past each European state or culture was relatively homogeneous. The cultural character of Europe has changed radically in the past years because of massive immigration from other regions of the world.
- Since 1989 the political character of Europe has changed significantly as the power and influence of the former Soviet Union has declined.
Text Study Guide
- p. 310 Study the map of Europe. Generally know the location of the different land forms. [You might download a map of Europe and create your own map that shows the physical regions of Europe.] Notice the dark green area south of the North Sea. What does the dark green represent? How is it possible for this to happen? Develop the "mental map" that depicts the region called Europe: Iceland to Moldova. Notice a "gray" region between Lithuania and Poland--- what "country" is this? How could this come about? From your study of political stability, how can you explain the existence of this "country" that is physically separated from the remainder of the country?
- As you read the chapter, begin to think about the "mosaic" of Europe. What does mosaic mean and how does it relate to this geographic region?
- What is the population of Europe? How many different states ae located within the region? What is a microstate? Europe has six microstates. What are these and where are they located? Look carefully on p. 310 and other maps of Europe.
- Notice that Europe might be considered to be a peninsula. How might this have worked to the historical advantage of Europe?
- Nationalism. What is it? How has it been good and bad for Europe?
- What does the term "cultural landscape" mean? Examples? Look through the book [pictures] and match the cultural landscape to the location within Europe.
- p. 313 Figure 8.3. Mental map. Where is Europe in relation to North America...what is Figure 8.3 showing you? How can so many people grow crops and survive at the high latitudes where they live?
- Sovereign What does it mean? Example. How does the discussion of last week about the US embassy in Iran relate to the definition of the word "sovereign"?
- On a blank European map, locate the "landform regions" of Europe.
- Moraine... what does it mean? What is it associated with? What is the map on p. 314 showing? What might a major difference be between the lands north and south of the red dotted line? How will this affect the general human developments north and south of the line?
- How have the Pyrenees Mountains been instrumental in creating or encouraging different "nations"? Who are the nations? Remember the difference between a "nation" and a "state"?
- What are the three major climates of Europe? Where are they located? What are some other locations within the world that will have similar climates?
- Locate on a map the five "seas" of Europe. What are the benefits of having these seas--- there will be several.
- p. 318 Notice the statement that the Danube and Rhone are connected with locks and canals. Find these two rivers on the map. What are the benefits of this "connection?" Where might one be able to travel?
- Polder--- what is it? where is it located? what benefits to this country come about because of the polders?
- Generally describe the environmental problems of west and east Europe. What are they? Where are they? Why are they? What is the problem in trying to eliminate them?
- The word "Chernobyl" is associated with...... Find Chernobyl on your map. What happened? What was the ultimate effect of the Chernobyl incident. [Somehow I missed the 1992 "Chernobyl" type event that occurred in Lithuania!]
- Acid rain. What is it? What causes it? Where is it in Europe? Any other parts of the world with the same problem?
- Iron Curtain. What was it? Where was it? When was it? [You may need to do some quick research on this... the description on p.321 doesn't tell you all you need to know.]
- Geographers are interested in the movement of ideas and people. P. 321 talks about migration. Describe the "out migration" and "in migration" of Europe over the centuries. How has both of the migrations caused problems for Europe over the centuries?
- On the map p. 322 draw a line that represents the two "axes of settlement" that are discussed in the textbook.
- Discuss the growth [or lack of growth] of population in Europe and relate it to the theory of demographic evolution that you studied several weeks ago. What are the traditional four stages of the theory of demographic evolution? p. 323.... also look at the other part of your textbook that deals with this topic.
- What incentives have been used in Europe to increase population growth? What explanations can be used to explain the negative population growth? Which explanation do you feel is the most significant?
- Guest workers. Where? Why? From? Results? Study the map on p. 325.... where do the guest workers come from? How have guest workers been good and not so good for Europe?
- Movement of peoples. What was the Schengen Agreement? Good and bad?
- What two factors account for the location of the major cities of Western Europe?
- How are many European cities different from American cities-- lots of answers to this.... relate the question to p. 329 of the text.
- How does the general culture of Europe, as compared to America, create a different cultural landscape in Europe. p. 330 top of page
- Language is important to people--- it binds people and divides people. Study p. 331 map. Where are the three major language groups in Europe. What might account for the location of the Celtic language groups? [p. 333] What might account for the location of the Magyar language group? How are the Finnish and people of Estonia "different" from most of the Europeans? [Watch the newspaper--- once a month or so you will see a little article about the Basque People--- who are they? What will the article relate to?] What explanation can be given to the wide separation between the western and eastern regions of the Romance language location?
- Cyrillic alphabet... what is this? where is this? what problems might it create? See Figure 8.22
- Religion. Along with language, religion can be and many times is "something" that will bind people and divide people. To understand the human geography of Europe, one must understand where the difference religions of Europe are located. Your textbook first uses as an illustration Northern Ireland--- what is the problem there and how does it relate to the human and political geography of the region--- remember that all the people of Northern Ireland are "the same" other than the church that they attend.
- What does the term "ethnic cleansing" refer to?
- What are the five major religions of Europe and where are they located. Develop a mental map of Figure 8.23.
- How does the geography term "hierarchical diffusion" relate to religion? What does the term mean--- this term can be associated with things other than religion.
- Thinking that Islam is a religion of the desert, how did Islam become a major player in Europe?
- How/why are all Christians of Europe not the same? Explain the differences and the regional differences.
- Where are the concentrations of Judaism in Europe?
- How does Orthodox Christianity differ from Roman Catholicism?
- NEW-- 19 NOVEMBER 2001......
- ****What is the history? How did it come to pass that the Jews became concentrated in Europe where they are? Jewish Pale: what, why, where? Migration of Jews since 1990--where?
- secularization-- what does this mean? why?
- What does the cultural landscape of Southern Europe look like? Why? Why the difference between the north and the south? {If you ever travel I-70 five hours west near Hays, Kansas--- what do you see on the horizon and why?}
- p. 337 Cultural contamination? What does this mean and how does it relate to Europe? Cultural nationalism--what does it mean and who is the major proponent of this? What has moved Europe to develop a more "European culture" rather than a French, German, Dutch, etc?
- p. 338 Ghettoization? What is the history of the word "ghetto"?... look in a 'good' dictionary for the etymology of the word. How does the original definition help explain the Jewish ghettos of Europe?
- Reverse migration--- where and why?
- How has the reverse migration created tensions within countries like France, Germany and the UK?
Geopolitical Framework: A Dynamic Map. p. 338
- How many independent countries?
- Nation-state--- what is this and why was the development unique in the world.
- "While Europe is becoming more unified, at the same time "disunity" is taking place in many states."--- Explain how and why. "Supranationalism"-- what does it mean?
- Six factors that changed Europe between the 1600 and 1900's.
- p. 340 "territorial accretion"? -- 4 items that prompted nation-state formation
- new states created after World War I--find on the map
- "irredentism"--- what is it? why has this term created problems in Europe?
- 3 competing ideologies in Europe during the 1930's
- From May 1945 until 1989 what part of Europe was dominated by the Soviet Union?--- be able to draw these on a map.
- Compare the 1945 map with the 1999 map... what new countries do you see? Where are they?
- The Soviets said that they needed a "buffer zone" between them and ______ What is a buffer zone? What territory provided them with this buffer zone?
- NATO vs. Warsaw--- what was this all about? What role did the "Berlin Blockade" and the "Berlin Wall" play in the Cold War?
- p. 343 What four things contributed to the end of the Cold War or the conflict between the Soviet Union and Western Europe/USA?
- The significant statement os President Gorbachev: " "
- Germany was reunited in 1990. What problems do you suppose have been a result of this reunification?
- About the same time that Germany was united, two other countries found themselves breaking apart.... the two countries were.... and the new countries were.....
- Why was the new membership in NATO after 1999 "rather interesting'?
- Yugoslavia: how has international politics and the interests of four different countries/groups of countries become intertwined in Yugoslavia? Look at Figure 8.34 p. 347
- "balkanization"--- what does it mean?
- Be able to explain the following two statements: "History is commonly reconstructed and reinvented to serve present-day actions and agendas." "Historical currents run both deep and shallow."
- When it was created, Yugoslavia had ___ religions, ___ languages and ____ alphabets. The dominant section of Yugoslavia was.... From 1945 to about 1989 Yugoslavia was able to maintain stability because.....
- Yugoslavia was divided into what countries? What is the problem with the way the map was drawn for Croatia?
Sample Test Questions
1.
Europe has relatively little environmental diveristy
2.
The western-most edge of the Alps is France.
3.
The Atlantic Gulf Stream makes Britain warmer than would be expected for
a country at this latitude.
4.
In general, western Europe has fewer environmental problems than doe seastern
Europe.
5.
In general, western Europe is more densely populated than is eastern Europe.
6.
Most guest workers in Germany arrived in the last years of the 1990's.
7.
France has had little difficulty assimilating the foreigners that have
immigrated there.
8.
The Catalan form of Spanish is spoken in Barcelona.
9.
The Magyar language group is best represented in Hungary.
10.
The Basque people of Norway have been leaders of creating new ways to explore
the seas.
11.
Spain is a predominantly Catholic country.
12.
Belgium is predominantly a Muslim country.
13.
In general, Roman Catholic churches and cathedrals are very plain in decoration
as compared to the Protestant churches.
14.
Countries as the Soviet Union found that the comman economies are less
efficient than the free-market economies.
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15.
Denmark is: west of Germany, west of Lithuania, east of France, south
of Switzerland
16.
This country is primarily located on the European Lowland: Italy,
Poland, Switzerland, Greece
17.
The most well-known mountain range in Spain is the --Alps, Dinaric Alps,
Carpathians, Pyrenees.
18.
The oldest rocks of Europe are located in _____________ because ___________
19.
Which European country has been most successful in dealing with its environmental
problems?
20.
Of the following countries, this one is most densely populated: Turkey,
Romania, the Netherlands, Spain
21.
Of the following countries, which has the smallest population: Italy,
Poland, Sweden, France
22.
Of the following countries, which is the most urbanized: Austria,
Belgium, Finland, Portugal
23.
The Ruhr is located in ______________ and early was developed as _____________
24.
Which of the following countries will the Jewish Pale not be located in?