Latin America and Earth's Surface Exploration

1. Chapter 2 & Latin America

2. Surface of the Earth - Hydrosphere- 70% of the earth’s surface is water. - Lithosphere- 30% of the earth’s surface is land. - atmosphere- layer of gases • - Gases: Nitrogen (78%), Oxygen (21%), and Other Gases (~1%) • - biosphere- the part of earth that supports life.

3. Continental DriftHow?

4. Constant Motion • Inner Core- Hot, but solid (why?) • Outer Core- Hot, but liquid • Mantle- Liquid Magma and Solid (Rock) • Convection • Crust- Continents and Ocean Basins (tectonic plates)

5. Internal Forces • Internal plate movement has defined the earth’s surface. • mountains (subduction) • trenches (accretion) • ridges (spreading) • faults (faulting)

6. External Forces-Erosion: The wearing away of the earth’s surface. • Wind • Glaciers • Water

7. Earth’s Water • The total amount of water always remains the same, but it is in constant motion. • Water Cycle: • the catalyst => The SUN • Liquid to Evaporation to Condensation to Liquid • 97% of the world’s water is salt water (4 oceans: Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic) • Also Salt Water: Seas, Gulfs, Bays (partially enclosed by land) • PROBLEM?

8. Solution • Desalination: refers to the process of removing salt and minerals from salt water. • Problem?

9. Bodies of Fresh water • 3% of water is fresh 1.5% is in glaciers and ice caps • .5% is underground (aquifers) • less than 1% is in rivers, lakes, and streams

10. Latin America • Name is derived from Latin languages (Spanish and Portuguese- Line of Demarcation)

11. Middle America or Central America (Mexico through Panama- 7 countries)

12. The Caribbean- West Indies • 3 chains: Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles and Bahamas

13. South American Continent

14. Mountains • Sierra Madres and Andes • creates cooler climates • limited cultural diffusion • cultural diffusion: spread of cultural traits from one culture to another. • Rain Shadow: - Creates Atacama Desert

15. Atacama Desert

16. Amazon River • second largest river on earth • 10X as much water as the Mississippi. During certain seasons, it gets 7 miles wide. • important to shipping and trade (but also an obstacle) • creates Amazon Basin with connecting rivers

17. Amazon Rainforest- dense cover (canopy) • 1/3 of South America • Shelters more species of life than any other habitat on earth • creates problems for economic development, and therefore faces deforestation.

21. Population • About 580 Million People (but with high population growth) • Populated rim- population density is highest along a continent’s coastline.

22. Primate Cities: an urban area which dominates an entire country’s economic and political affairs. • EXP: Mexico City, Havana, Caracas

23. Original Civilizations • Aztecs: Central Mexico • tenochtitlan • created chinampas- floating islands for planting food. • Incas: Peru • cuzco- capital • quipu- a series of colored knots as a form of accounting • Maya: Mexico and Yucatan Peninsula • Mathematics based on 20 with 0

27. Chinampas

28. Mayan Math

29. Primarily Catholic- Why?

30. Latifundia is quickly replacing minifundia • Small family owned farms being replaced by big agribusiness.

31. Farm Land

32. Obstacles to Industrial Growth • Rain forest and Mountains • Amazon is a catch 22. • political instability