AP Human Geography Models

Demographic Transition Model• Geographer: Warren Thompson• Main Ideas: The process of change in a

society’s population.• Visual:

• Real Life Example:Denmark is in stage 4 of the DTM

Gravity Model

• Geographer: Based off of Newton’s Laws• Main Ideas: The movement of people,

information, and commodities between two places can be predicted

• Visual:

• Real Life Example: New York and London have a large “attraction”

Rostow’s Stages of Growth• Geographer: W.W. Rostow• Main Ideas: As a country develops it moves

through a series of stages.• Visual:• Ex: U.S.= Stage 5

Concentric Zone Model

• Geographer: E.W. Burgess• Main Ideas: A city grows outward in a series of

rings• Visual:• Real Life Example:• Chicago

Hoyt Sector Model

• Geographer: Homer Hoyt• Main Ideas: A city develops in a series of

sectors• Visual:• Real Life Example:Charlotte, NC

Multiple Nuclei Model

• Geographer: Harris &Ullman• Main Ideas: A city is a complex structure that

includes more than one center or node.• Visual:• Real Life Example: Los Angeles

Central Place Theory

• Geographer: Walter Christaller• Main Ideas: Services are distributed in a

regular pattern around settlements that serve as market centers.

• Visual:• Real Life Example:• Chic-fil-A locations around Charlotte

Model of Industrial Location

• Geographer: Alfred Weber• Main Ideas: Predicts where industries will locate

based on the least cost to them. • Visual:• Real Life Example:Soda bottling is nearthe market to savemoney on transportationcosts.

Agricultural Model

• Geographer: J.H. Von Thunen• Main Ideas: A pattern of 4 rings of agricultural

activity would develop around a city.• Visual:• Real Life Example:Intensive agricultural activities are located closerto the city.

Epidemiological Transition Model

• Geographer: Abdel Omran (not important)• Main Ideas: There is a pattern of the causes of

death as your move through the DTM• Visual:

• Real Life Example: Cholera is a big killer is stage 2

World Systems Theory

• Geographer: Immanuel Wallerstein• Main Ideas: Describes the spatial distribution of

world development• Visual:• Real Life Example:• Core: MDCs• Semi-Periphery:Asian Dragons, India, China• Periphery: LDCs

Domino Theory• Geographer: Promoted by the U.S. Gov

(Eisenhower first to use)• Main Ideas: If one country falls to communism, the

others around it would too• Visual:• Real Life Example:• U.S. used this idea to help justify involvementin the Vietnam war

Heartland &Rimland Theories• Geographer: Mackinder (H) &Spykman (R)• Main Ideas: H~ Control over land would be the key to

power, specifically E. Europe/ Eurasia. R~ whoever was in control of the periphery of Eurasia would be able to dominate the world

• Visual:• Real Life Example: H~ Communists wantedto dominate E. Europe & the U.S.Wanted to contain them R~ Vietnam & Korean WarsWere fought over control ofrimland areas

Malthusian & Neo-Malthusian

• Geographer: Thomas Malthus• Main Ideas: The population would eventually

become too big to be sustained by the world’s food supply/ resources

• Visual:• Real Life Example:Neo-Malthusians like PaulEhrlich are concerned about current carryingcapacity.

Bid-Rent Theory• Geographer: n/a• Main Ideas: As the distance from the CBD

increases in the concentric zone model, the price of land decreases.

• Visual:• Real Life Example:A factory would not locate inthe CBD

Rank-size Rule

• Geographer: n/a• Main Ideas: Acountry’s x largest settlement is

1/x of the population of the largest settlement.

• Visual:• Real Life Example:• U.S.– NYC, LA, Chicago, etc.

Hearths: Agricultural & Religious

• Main Ideas: Buddhism & Hinduism= S. Asia, Christianity & Islam= SW Asia.

Vegetative Planting= SE AsiaSeed Agriculture= W. India,N. China, Ethiopia, SW Asia,S. Mexico, N. Peru• Visual:• Real Life Example: The hearth of wheat andBarley is SW Asia

Ravenstein’s Laws of Migration• Geographer: Ernest Ravenstein• Main Ideas: In the 19th century, Ravenstein

wrote laws to help geographers study migration based on the reasons why people move, the distance they move, and their characteristics.

• Visual:• Real Life Example:The majority of migrantstravel a short distance

Renfrew’s Theory of Language Diffusion• Geographer: Colin Renfrew• Main Ideas: The diffusion of the Indo-European language family

came from Anatolia, which is where modern day Turkey is now located. From there, the language family diffused into Europe and South Asia with the spread of new agricultural technology from the 1st agricultural revolution.

• Visual:• Real Life Example:The Indo-European language has diffusedto 48 countries.

Agricultural Revolutions:• First Agricultural Revolution/Neolithic

Revolution - The domestication of plants and animals around 12,000 BC

Second Agricultural Revolution -- improved methods of cultivation, harvesting, and storage of farm produce stemming from the Industrial Revolution

Third Agricultural Revolution/ Green Revolution- international effort that was planned to eliminate hunger by improving crop performance. Development of genetically engineered crops (GE) or genetically modified organisms (GMOs) It began in the 1960s when a combination of technologies was made available to Mexico and countries in Asia in an effort to improve the diets of people in those regions.