Human Geo 13.4 Questions

Question 1

Descirbe the job skills of inner city residents:

Answer 1

They’re very disadvantaged in competing for jobs. Because few of them complete high school, they lack technical skills. In the past, they only would’ve been able to work in factories or filing clerks, but today these jobs require tech skills. Inner-city residents don’t even have access to the remaining low-skilled jobs (custodial, fast-food) because they’re in suburbs and poorly served by public transport.

Question 2

What challenges do inner-city families face?

Answer 2

Unwed mothers give birth to 2/3 of the babies in US inner-cities, and 80% of children there live with only 1 parent. Because of inadequate childcare services, single mothers may be forced to choose between working to make money and staying at home to take care of kids. If the father or another partner moves back home, the mother may lose welfare benefits.

Question 3

What are challenges to health and safety faced in inner-city neighborhoods?

Answer 3

Inner-city neighborhoods have a high % of a city’s serious crimes like murder, and a high % of both culprits and victims are people of color. This reflects the neighborhoods’ high rates of unemployment and addiction, and some drug users get money through criminal activities. Violence may erupt when 2 gangs fight over their boundaries of drug distribution.

Question 4

Describe services in inner-city neighborhoods:

Answer 4

They lack adequate police/fire protection, shops, and healthcare facilities. Food deserts are common in low-income inner-city areas, and central cities face a growing gap between the cost of needed services in these neighborhoods and the availability of funds to pay for them.

Question 5

What are 4 reasons why a deteriorated inner-city neighborhood is attractive?

Answer 5

1. Inner-city houses may be larger, more substantially constructed, and cheaper than houses in the suburbs.
2. Inner-city houses may posses attractive architectural details (ornate fireplace, cornice, high ceilings, etc)
3. Inner-city living eliminates the strain of commuting on crowded freeways or public transport for people who work downtown.
4. Inner-city neighborhoods are near theaters, bars, restaurants, stadiums, and other recreational facilities.

Question 6

What are revived consumer services?

Answer 6

Most consumer services locate in suburbs to be near to their residents, but some are returning to the inner city to meet day-to-day needs of residents of gentrified neighborhoods. Inner-city consumer services attract people looking for leisure activities. Several CBDs have combined new retail services with leisure services (like Boston’s Faneuil Hall Marketplace in renovated 18th century buildings).

Question 7

Why did public housing decrease in the US?

Answer 7

With lower funding levels, public housing decreased in the US between 1980 and 2010, as the number of households needing low-rent dwellings increased. In Britain, the same thing happened because the gov’t forced local authorities to sell public houses to residents, BUT they expanded subsidies to nonprofits that build housing for groups with special needs and the poor.

Question 8

How do cities help poor families?

Answer 8

Cities try to help poor families forced to move after their housing was demolished by reimbursing them, and they’re renovating old houses specifically for lower-income families (which also helps to disperse them throughout the city). However, some public housing projects were located in now gentrified neighborhoods, so new housing replaced them (that may be too expensive for former residents).

Question 9

Explain traffic congestion and solutions to help drivers avoid it:

Answer 9

The future health of urban areas depends on relieving traffic congestion. GPS is important in the design of intelligent transportation systems (either thru increasing road capacity or reducing demand), providing drivers with info so they can make smart decisions about avoiding congestion. Info about traffic congestion is transmitted through computers, devices, and monitors. We can get congestion alerts and alternatives on our GPS/Waze.

Question 10

In what 4 ways is demand to use congested roads being reduced?

Answer 10

1. Congestion charges: In London, drivers pay a congestion charge of up to $15 to drive into the central area between 7am and 6pm some days.
2. Tolls: In Toronto and CA, drivers are charged higher tolls to drive on freeways during congested times, recorded by transponders on a car.
3. Permits: In Singapore, a driver must buy a license and demonstrate ownership of a parking space in order to drive downtown in busy times.
4. Bans: Cars are banned from parts of the central areas of many European cities (Munich, VIenna, Zurich, etc.)

Question 11

Residents of large cities rely on taxis & rent-a-car companies for transport. Recently, they’ve increasingly utilized vehicle sharing services in what 2 ways?

Answer 11

1. Sharing with others a vehicle you own: People using their own car to transport passengers who arrange pickup through an app (mostly Uber)
2. Sharing with others a vehicle that no single individual owns: People who don’t own a vehicle but want to drive themselves short-term. In some cities, electric vehicles are parked in specially marked locations.

Question 12

How is autonomous driving possible?

Answer 12

Current vehicles can drive hands-free, and can brake automatically, parallel park, & prevent unsafe lane changes. Autonomous driving depends on 2 elements: SLAM (simultaneous localization & mapping) pinpoints the vehicles precise location using sensors provided by LIDAR and GPS, and DATMO (detection and tracking of moving objects) identifies pedestrians, animals, and other vehicles in the route of the vehicle.

Question 13

The Society of Automotive Engineers identifies what 5 levels of autonomous driving?

Answer 13

1. Assisted Driving: Most vehicles currently have some of this; driver must always be ready (ex. cruise control).
2. Partially Automated: System deactivates upon takeover by driver. Braking, accelerating, & steering are automatic.
3. Highly Automated: Only automated on high-speed freeways, and the driver must pay attention and be prepared to take control.
4. Fully Automated: Requires no driver attention, but has a steering wheel/pedals in case of emergency.
5. Driverless: Humans do nothing except setting destination & starting up. No steering wheel/pedals.

Question 14

What are benefits and drawbacks of autonomous vehicles?

Answer 14

Autonomous vehicles are predicted to result in fewer accidents caused by human error, provide mobility for people, and decrease the safe distance between vehicles (more can fit on the road). Many problems created by them (like liability & insurance) are still unsettled. The most significant obstacle to them may be consumer acceptance (they’re all scared!).

Question 15

What are 3 key changes in the car of the near future?

Answer 15

1. Power Source: More vehicles will be electricity-powered, not petroleum.
2. Ownership: More vehicles will be shared, not owned by individuals.
3. Autonomy: More vehicles will operate with little or no effort by a driver.

Question 16

What 3 varieties of electrification exist?

Answer 16

1. Plug-in Hybrid: Where the battery supplies the power at all speeds; can be recharged either by a gas engine when the car is moving OR by plugging it into an outlet. Using a gas engine to recharge extends the range of the hybrid.
2. Fully Electric with Lithium Ion Battery: A fully electric, no gas, vehicle that won’t run when battery is discharged. In large cities, many garages/malls have recharging stations.
3. Hydrogen Fuel Cell: Hydrogen forced through a PEM (proton exchange membrane) can be combined w/ oxygen to produce an electric charge to power a motor. These cars are being used in a few large East & West Coast cities.

Question 17

-Strategies to reduce pollution & fossil fuel dependency in the years ahead vary among countries. US and UN scientists offered a strategy with what 3 key elements?

Answer 17

1. Sharp decrease in the use of the 3 fossil fuels
2. Increase in the use of renewable energy.
3. Use of carbon capture & storage (CCS), a process that involves capturing waste CO2, transporting it to a storage site, and depositing it where it won’t enter the atmosphere, normally underground.

Question 18

What is the impact on the shift away from fossil fuels in the US and the distribution of electricity sources by state?

Answer 18

Americans would rely on electricity for nearly all household activities/transportation. The challenge of reducing carbon footprint is hardest for LDCs, especially China (big manufacturing country, and there’ll need to be international cooperation and coordination. In the Pacific Northwest US, where hydroelectric is the main electricity source, recharging electric vehicles has a smaller impact on air quality than in the Midwest, and “greenest” alternative varies.

Question 19

Explain a problem that accompanies obtaining electricity for electric vehicles:

Answer 19

Electric vehicles must be plugged in, and the source of that electricity may not be sustainable (fossil fuels may be consumed to generate it at a power plant). In 2018, the US generated 27% of its electricity from coal and 35% from natural gas. Electric vehicles reduce consumption of petroleum (scarce and expensive), but more rapidly deplete natural gas or cause air pollution with coal.

Question 20

How can place be applied to urban places in China?

Answer 20

-A specific point on earth, distinguished by a particular characteristic. An urban area contains a collection of unique places (like the CBD and cultural residential areas). Shanghai’s Pudong district is a very distinctive urban place. It was farmland until 1993, when China’s gov’t designated the area to be the country’s center for international finance. Its population rapidly grew, & its high-rise buildings has become a common image of Shanghai.

Question 21

How can region be applied to urban places in China?

Answer 21

An are of Earth defined by one or more distinctive characteristics. Urban areas constitute regions with widely varying features. Shanghai’s metropolitan area has a population of 24 million. One of China’s most distinctive urban regions is Lhasa, capital of Tibet. For centuries, it was the center of Buddhist practice (home to Dalai Lama until 1959). The Potala Palace, his former residence (now a museum), dominates the region. Lhasa’s urban region is 1 of the highest in the world, framed by mountains.

Question 22

How can scale be applied to urban places in China?

Answer 22

The relationship between the portion of Earth being studied and Earth as a whole. Cities reflect the importance of the variety of scales. At local scale, cities are centers of diversity. The economic well-being and cultural vibrancy of a city depend on global economic/cultural patterns/processes. The futuristic look & massive scale of China’s rapidly growing cities contrast with the local scale of China’s smaller, traditional urban areas.

Question 23

How can space be applied to urban places in China?

Answer 23

The physical gap or interval between 2 objects. People/activities are arranged within a city according to distribution. Distinctive groups of people and activities are concentrated in various areas of the city, and its physical structure follows a regular pattern. In urban areas, space can refer to the social distance between rich & poor. Cities are centers of inequality, and in China’s urban areas, cars imported from Germany mix with bicycles.

Question 24

How can connection be applied to urban places in China?

Answer 24

Relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space. Cities are nodes of connections, and centers for transportation networks. China has become a world leader in innovative transportation systems, with the most production/sales of electric vehicles. China has 2/3 of the world total of high-speed trails, and bullet trains connect major and secondary urban areas.