U.S. Congress: The legislature of the federal government, divided into a Senate and a House of Representatives. Senate: Upper house of Congress, designed to represent state interests; this chamber consists of 100 members, two from each state. House of Representatives: Lower house of Congress, designed to represent the people; this chamber consists of 435 members, […]
The Declaration of Independence: Formal statement written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776 declaring the freedom of the thirteen American colonies from Great Britain. Popular sovereignty: The principle that a government derives its power from the consent of the people, primarily through their elected representatives. Federalism: A key constitutional principle that calls for the division or […]
Intelligence: The ability to solve problems, learn from experience, and use knowledge to adapt to novel situations. Aptitude tests: Tests designed to predict future performance in an ability. Achievement tests: Tests designed to assess current performance in an ability. Speed tests: Tests that assess quickness of problem solving by offering many questions in limited time. […]
Personality: The set of thoughts, feelings, traits, and behaviors that are characteristic of a person and consistent over time and in different situations. Type theory: A kind of personality theory that organizes people into different sorts of individuals. Trait theory: A kind of personality theory that lists classifiable characteristics that add together in different combinations […]
Quantitative research: Research that uses operational measurements and statistical techniques to reach conclusions on the basis of numerical data, such as correlational studies and experiments. Qualitative research: Research that does not rely on numerical representations of data, such as naturalistic observations, unstructured interviews, and case studies. Correlation coefficient: A number (symbolized by r) between −1 […]
Urbanized population: The number of people living in cities. Urbanization: The process by which people live and are employed in a city. Nucleated form of settlement: The type of settlement typical of urban areas in which the settlement is closely grouped around a central area of development. Core area: The center area of development. Dispersed […]
Economic geography: A field of human geography that studies economic development and the inequalities that are created. The main goal is to find out why the world is divided into relatively rich and relatively poor countries. Capitalism: An economic system in which businesses are owned by private individuals and companies who are free to decide […]
Farming: The methodical cultivation of plants and/or animals. Hunting and gathering: The first way humans obtained food. Nomadic groups around the world depended on migratory animals, wild fruit, berries, and roots for sustenance. Agriculture: The raising of animals or the growing of crops on tended land to obtain food for primary consumption by a farmer’s […]
Material culture: Anything that can physically be seen on the landscape. Built environment: Produced by the physical material culture, the built environment is the tangible human creation on the landscape. Nonmaterial culture: Anything on the landscape that comprises culture that cannot be physically touched (e.g., language and religion). Folk culture: The practice of particular customs […]
Demography: The study of population characteristics. Birth rate: The number of births per 1,000 people in the population. Death rate: The number of deaths per 1,000 people in the population. Population explosion: A crisis in which population growth occurs in countries ill- prepared to handle the growing numbers of people. Ecumene: The term for habitable […]