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GPH 314 Global Change Midterm Questions and
Correct Answers/ Latest Update / Already Graded
Geography is defined not by its object of study, but by its perspective. A
geographical perspective in this course:
Ans: -Embraces interdisciplinary.
-Identifies and explains spatial patterns.
-Interrogates the human-environment condition
"Environment Determinism"
Ans: The environment determines the structure of society. Has a negative
connotation; was a reason for white imperialists to justify imperialism and
colonizing other territories.
What is the "Anthropocene"?
Ans: It is a geological time scale of how human have overpowered nature
throughout history. Population growth has allowed humans to surpass nature by
rate and quantity.
Phases of the "Anthropocene"
Ans: 1) Creation of Fire 2) Domestication of Plants/Animals 3) Industrialization
4) Unknown
What would these be considered? Stone Age: Lasted 100,000 years, Early
Civilization: Lasted 10,000, Modern Era: Lasted 1,000, Planetary Phase: May last
100) Duration of each successive era decreases by a factor of ten.
Ans: Contours of historical change
What is the "S" Curve?
© 2025/ 2026 | ® All rights reserved
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Ans: Not Linear (unsteady)...Change is rapid then stable.
Bottom - Take off
Middle - Acceleration
Top - Stabilization
What are all these events cataloged under?
1500s-people came across the Atlantic with plants and animals. Europeans
brought over horses
Wars broke out...bison vanished
Native Americans forced to live on reservations
Cattle became livestock...settlers plowed the land and grew corn/wheat
Railroads were built and crops suffered due to lack of rain
1930s...bad drought and dust storms (dust bowl)
People pumped groundwater to use on the farms
Farmers and Native Americans live on the plains
Ans: Great Plains Settlement History
William Cronon's point on narratives
Ans: Storytelling is an exercise of power, therefore, no objective or impartial
story. How people narrate the environment and perhaps to their own benefit,
take into account from a historical view...either we work with our environment
or take morals/lessons from environmental changes
Declensionist:
© 2025/ 2026 | ® All rights reserved
GPH 314 Global Change Midterm Questions and
Correct Answers/ Latest Update / Already Graded
Geography is defined not by its object of study, but by its perspective. A
geographical perspective in this course:
Ans: -Embraces interdisciplinary.
-Identifies and explains spatial patterns.
-Interrogates the human-environment condition
"Environment Determinism"
Ans: The environment determines the structure of society. Has a negative
connotation; was a reason for white imperialists to justify imperialism and
colonizing other territories.
What is the "Anthropocene"?
Ans: It is a geological time scale of how human have overpowered nature
throughout history. Population growth has allowed humans to surpass nature by
rate and quantity.
Phases of the "Anthropocene"
Ans: 1) Creation of Fire 2) Domestication of Plants/Animals 3) Industrialization
4) Unknown
What would these be considered? Stone Age: Lasted 100,000 years, Early
Civilization: Lasted 10,000, Modern Era: Lasted 1,000, Planetary Phase: May last
100) Duration of each successive era decreases by a factor of ten.
Ans: Contours of historical change
What is the "S" Curve?
© 2025/ 2026 | ® All rights reserved
, 2 | Page
Ans: Not Linear (unsteady)...Change is rapid then stable.
Bottom - Take off
Middle - Acceleration
Top - Stabilization
What are all these events cataloged under?
1500s-people came across the Atlantic with plants and animals. Europeans
brought over horses
Wars broke out...bison vanished
Native Americans forced to live on reservations
Cattle became livestock...settlers plowed the land and grew corn/wheat
Railroads were built and crops suffered due to lack of rain
1930s...bad drought and dust storms (dust bowl)
People pumped groundwater to use on the farms
Farmers and Native Americans live on the plains
Ans: Great Plains Settlement History
William Cronon's point on narratives
Ans: Storytelling is an exercise of power, therefore, no objective or impartial
story. How people narrate the environment and perhaps to their own benefit,
take into account from a historical view...either we work with our environment
or take morals/lessons from environmental changes
Declensionist:
© 2025/ 2026 | ® All rights reserved
