Question | Answer |
AFRICAN UNION 172 | ORIGINALLY (ORGANIZATION OF AFRICAN UNITY) FOUNDED IN 1963, THE ORGANIZATION GREW TO INCLUDE ALL THE STATES OF THE CONTINENT EXCEPT SOUTH AFRICA, WHICH FINALLY WAS ASKED TO JOIN IN 1994. IN 2004-CHANGED ITS NAME TO AFRICAN UNION. |
APARTHEID 162 | THE POLICY OF RACIAL SEPARATENESS THAT DIRECTED THE SEPARATE RESIDENTIAL AND WORK SPACES FOR WHITES, BLACKS, COLOUREDS, AND INDIANS IN SOUTH AFRICA FOR NEARLY 50 YEARS. IT WAS ABOLISHED WHEN THE AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS CAME TO POWER IN 1994. |
BERLIN CONFERENCE 170 | THE 1884 CONFERENCE THAT DIVIDED AFRICA INTO EUROPEAN COLONIAL TERRITORIES. THE BOUNDARIES CREATED IN BERLIN SATISFIED EUROPEAN AMBITION BUT IGNORED INDIGENOUS CULTURAL AFFILIATIONS. MANY OF AFRICA'S CIVIL WARS CAN BE TRACED TO ILL-CONCEIVED BOUNDARIES |
BIOFUELS 149 | WOOD, DUNG, AND CHARCOAL USED FOR HOUSEHOLD ENERGY NEEDS. |
CLANS 176 | SOCIAL UNITS, BRANCHES OF A TRIBE OR ETHNIC UNIT LARGER THAN A FAMILY. |
COLOURED 162 | PEOPLE OF MIXED AFRICAN/EUROPEAN ANCESTRY IN APARTHEID S. AFRICA. |
DESERTIFICATION 146 | THE SPREAD OF DESERT CONDITIONS INTO SEMIARID AREAS OWING TO IMPROPER MANAGEMENT OF THE LAND |
GENOCIDE 175 | DELIBERATE, SYSTEMATIC KILLING OF A RACIAL, POLITICAL, OR SOCIAL GROUP. |
GREAT ESCARPMENT 151 | RIMS MUCH OF SOUTH AFRICA. A LAND-FORM CONSISTING OF A HIGH CLIFF SEPARATING TWO COMPARATIVELY LEVEL AREAS. |
HOMELANDS 171 | CONSTRUCTION OF BLACK HOMELANDS BY ETHNIC GROUP (GRAND APARTHEID). INTENTION: TO MAKE ALL BLACKS CITIZENS OF SEMI-INDEPENDENT HOMELANDS. |
HORN OF AFRICA 154 | NORTHEASTERN CORNER OF AFRICA. SOMALIA, ETHIOPIA, DJIBOUTI, ERITRIA. AS FAR EAST AS N. KENYA. A NARROW BELT OF DESERT WRAPS AROUND IT. |
INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS 174 | PEOPLE WHO HAVE FLED FROM CONFLICT, BUT STILL LIVE INSIDE THEIR COUNTRY OF ORIGIN. |
KLEPTOCRACY 179 | STATE IN WHICH CORRUPTION IS SO INSTITUTIONALIZED, THAT POLITICIANS AND BEAUR0CRATS SIPHON OFF A LARGE % OF WEALTH |
PASTORALISTS 160 | GRAZE THEIR STOCK ON STUBBLE FIELDS IN DRY SEASON, AND MOVE THEM TO DRYER, UNCULTIVATED AREAS DURING THE WET SEASON. |
REFUGEE 174 | PEOPLE WHO FLEE THEIR STATE BECAUSE OF A WELL-FOUNDED FEAR OD PERSECUTION BASED ON RACE, ETHNICITY, RELIGION, OR POLITICAL ORIENTATION. |
SAHEL 147 | THE SEMI-DESERT REGION AT THE SOUTHERN FRINGE OF THE SAHARA, AND THE COUNTRIES THAT FALL WITHIN THIS REGION, WHICH EXTENDS FROM SENEGAL TO SUDAN. DROUGHTS IN THE 1970S AND EARLY 1980S CAUSED WIDESPREAD FAMINE AND DISLOCATION OF POPULATION. |
STRUCTURAL ADJUSTMENT PROGRAMS 176 | PROMPTED BY 1980/1990 DEBT CRISIS. PROMOTED BY IMF AND WORLD BANK. REDUCE GOV. SPENDING, CUT FOOD SUBSIDIES, ENCOURAGE PRIVATE SECTOR INITIATIVES. |
SWIDDEN 160 | BURNING THE NATURAL VEGETATION TO RELEASE FERTILIZING ASH, AND PLANT CROPS: MAIZE, BEANS, SWEET POTATOES, SQUASH, BANANA, PAPAYA, MANIOC, YAMS, MELON. PLOT IS ABANDONED ONCE NUTRIENTS EXHAUSTED. |
TRANSHUMANCE 147 | A FORM OF PASTORALISM IN WHICH ANIMALS ARE TAKEN TO HIGH ALTITUDE PASTURES DURING THE SUMMER MONTHS AND RETURNED TO LOWER ALTITUDE PASTURES DURING THE WINTER |
TRIBALISM 173 | LOYALTY TO AN ETHNIC GROUP RATHER THAN TO A STATE. |
TRIBE 164 | A GROUP OF FAMILIES OR CLANS WITH A COMMON KINSHIP, LANGUAGE, AND DEFINABLE TERRITORY BUT NOT AN ORGANIZED STATE. |
TSETSE FLY 160 | A FLY THAT IS A VECTOR FOR A PARASITE THAT CAUSES SLEEPING SICKNESS (TYPANOSOMIASIS), A DISEASE THAT ESPECIALLY AFFECTS HUMANS AND LIVESTOCK. LIVESTOCK IS RARELY FOUND IN THOSE AREAS OF SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA WHERE THE TETSE FLY IS COMMON |
ANTHROPOGENIC LANDSCAPE 329 | LANDSCAPE HEAVILY TRANSFORMED BY HUMAN ACTIVITIES. |
AUTONOMOUS REGION 337 | A REGION FREE FROM CENTRALIZED AUTHORITY |
CHINA PROPER 319 | THE EASTERN HALF OF THE COUNTRY OF CHINA WHERE THE HAN CHINESE FORM THE DOMINANT ETHNIC GROUP. THE VAST MAJORITY OF CHINA'S POPULATION IS LOCATED IN CHINA PROPER. |
COLD WAR 339 | THE IDEOLOGICAL STRUGGLE BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND THE SOVIET UNION THAT WAS CONDUCTED BETWEEN 1946 AND 1991 |
CONFUCIANISM 333 | IDEA SYSTEM COMMON IN EAST ASIA, GIVING THE REGION THE NAME OF THE "CONFUCIAN WORLD" STRESSES: OBEDIENCE TO AUTHORITY AND FOCUSED ON CREATING SOCIAL STABILITY |
DESERTIFICATION 326 | THE SPREAD OF DESERT CONDITIONS INTO SEMIARID AREAS OWING TO IMPROPER MANAGEMENT OF THE LAND |
DIASPORA 336 | THE SCATTERING OF A PARTICULAR GROUP OF PEOPLE OVER A VAST GEOGRAPHICAL AREA. ORIGINALLY, THE TERM REFERRED TO THE MIGRATION OF JEWS OUT OF THEIR HOMELAND, BUT NOW IT HAS BEEN GENERALIZED TO REFER TO ANY ETHNIC DISPERSION |
GEOMANCY 334 | THE CHINESE AND KOREAN PRACTICE OF BLDG DESIGN; IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PRINCIPLES OF COSMIC HARMONY AND DISCORD THAT SUPPOSEDLY COURSE THROUGH THE LOCAL TOPOGRAPHY. |
GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT GDP 348 | IS THE TOTAL VALUE OF GOODS AND SERVICES PRODUCED WITHIN A GIVEN COUNTRY (OR OTHER GEOGRAPHICAL UNIT) IN A SINGLE YEAR. |
HIRAGANA 333 | A WRITING SYSTEM IN WHICH EACH SYMBOL REPRESENTS A DISTINCT SYLLABLE, OR COMBO OF CONSONANT AND VOWEL SOUND. |
IDEOGRAPHIC WRITING 332 | A FORM OF WRITING WHERE EACH CHARACTER REPRESENTS AN IDEA RATHER THAN A SOUND. |
KANJI 331 | JAPANESE WORD FOR CHINESE CHARACTERS |
LAISSEZ-FAIRE 348 | AN ECONOMIC SYSTEM IN WHICH THE STATE HAS MINIMAL INVOLVEMENT AND IN WHICH MARKET FORCES LARGELY GUIDE ECONOMIC ACTIVITY |
LOESS 321 | WINDBLOWN MATERIAL DEPOSITED ONTO THE LAND FROM THE ICE AGE. FERTILE SOIL, BUT EASY TO ERODE. |
MARXISM 334 | COMMUNISTIC BELIEF DEVELOPED BY KARL MARX |
MULTINATIONAL CORPORATION 348 | A CORPORATION THAT PRODUCES GOODS AND SERVICES IN A WIDE RANGE OF DIFFERENT COUNTRIES. THE CLASSICAL MULTINATIONAL CORPORATION, IN CONTRAST TO THE TRULY TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION, REMAINS SOLIDLY BASED IN A SINGLE COUNTRY. |
POLLUTION EXPORTING 323 | WHERE LOCATION PLAYS PART IN ELIMINATING A COUNTRY'S POLLUTION, SUCH AS THE WIND CURRENTS OF JAPAN. |
RUST BELT 351 | REGIONS OF HEAVY INDUSTRY THAT EXPERIENCE MARKED ECONOMIC DECLINE AFTER THEIR FACTORIES CEASE TO BE COMPETITIVE. |
SEDIMENT LOAD 321 | AMOUNT OF SAND, CLAY AND SILT IN WATER |
SHOGUN, SHOGUNATE 341 | A MILITARY LEADER WHO IN THEORY REMAINS UNDER THE EMPEROR, ONLY. |
SOCIAL AND REGIONAL DIFFERENTIATION 350 | "SOCIAL DIFFERENTIATION" REVERS TO A PROCESS BY WHICH CERTAIN CLASSES OF PEOPLE GROW RICHER WHEN OTHERS GROW POORER; "REGIONAL DIFFERENTIATION" REFERS TO A PROCESS BY WHICH CERTAIN PLACES GROW MORE PROSPEROUS WHILE OTHERS BECOME LESS PROSPEROUS |
SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONES (SEZs) 349 | RELATIVELY SMALL DISTRICTS IN CHINA THAT HAVE BEEN FULLY OPENED TO GLOBAL CAPITALISM FOREIGN INVESTMENT = WELCOME; STATE INTERFERENCE = MINIMAL |
SPHERES OF INFLUENCE 341 | IN COUNTRIES NOT FORMALLY COLONIZED IN THE 19TH AND EARLY 20TH CENTURIES (PARTICULARLY CHINA AND IRAN), LIMITED AREAS CALLED "SPHERES OF INFLUENCE" WERE GAINED BY PARTICULAR EUROPEAN COUNTRIES FOR TRADE PURPOSES AND ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION. |
SUPERCONURBATION 331 | A MASSIVE URBAN AGGLOMERATION THAT RESULTS FROM THE COALESCING OF TWO OR MORE FORMERLY SEPERATE METROPOLITAN AREAS |
TONAL LANGUAGE 337 | LANGUAGE IN WHICH THE SAME SET OF PHONEMES (OR BASIC SOUNDS) MAY HAVE VERY DIFFERENT MEANINGS, DEPENDING ON THE PITCH IN WHICH THEY ARE UTTERED. |
TRIBAL PEOPLES 337 | PEOPLE WHO WERE TRADITIONALLY ORGANIZED AT THE VILLAGE OR CLAN LEVEL, WITHOUT BROADER-SCALE POLITICAL ORGANIZATION |
URBAN PRIMACY 331 | A STATE IN WHICH A DISPROPORTIONATELY LARGE CITY, SUCH AS LONDON, NEW YORK, OR BANGKOK, DOMINATES THE URBAN SYSTEM AND IS THE CENTER OF ECONOMIC, POLITICAL, AND CULTURAL LIFE |
ANIMISM 399 | A WIDE VARIETY OF TRIBAL RELIGIONS BASED ON THE WORSHIP OF NATURE'S SPIRITS AND HUMAN ANCESTORS |
ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS (ASEAN) | A SUPRANATIONAL GEOPOLITICAL GROUP LINKING TOGETHER THE 10 DIFFERENT STATES OF SOUTHEAST ASIA |
BUMIPUTRA 410 | THE NAME GIVEN TO NATIVE MALAY (LITERALLY, "SONS OF THE SOIL"), WHO ARE GIVEN PREFERENCE JOBS AND SCHOOLING BY THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT |
CRONY CAPITALISM 410 | WHEN FRIENDS OF PRESIDENT RECEIVE FAVORS, WHILE ENEMIES LACK BENEFIT. THEIR LAND IS TAKEN. |
DOMINO THEORY 405 | A U.S. GEOPOLITICAL POLICY OF THE 1970S THAT STEMMED FROM THE ASSUMPTION THAT IF VIETNAM FELL TO THE COMMUNISTS, THE REST OF SOUTHEAST ASIA WOULD SOON FOLLOW. |
ENTREPOT 410 | A CITY AND PORT THAT SPECIALIZES IN TRANSSHIPMENT OF GOODS. |
GOLDEN TRIANGLE 393 | AN AREA OF NORTHERN THAILAND, BURMA, AND LAOS THAT IS KNOWN AS A MAJOR SOURCE REGION FOR HEROIN AND IS PLUGGED INTO THE GLOBAL DRUG TRADE |
KHMER ROUGE 405 | LITERALLY, "RED (OR COMMUNIST) CAMBODIANS." THE LEFT-WING INSURGENT GROUP LED BY FRENCH-EDUCATED MARXISTS REBELLED AGAINST THE ROYAL CAMBODIAN GOVERNMENT IN THE EARLY 1960S AND AGAIN IN A PEASANTS' REVOLT IN 1967 |
LINGUA FRANCA 399 | AN AGREED-UPON COMMON LANGUAGE TO FACILITATE COMMUNICATION ON SPECIFIC TOPICS SUCH AS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS, POLITICS, SPORTS, OR ENTERTAINMENT |
PRIMATE CITIES 395 | THE LARGEST URBAN SETTLEMENT IN A COUNTRY THAT DOMINATES ALL OTHER URBAN PLACES, ECONOMICALLY AND POLITICALLY. OFTEN-- YET NOT ALWAYS-- THE PRIMATE CITY IS ALSO THE COUNTRY'S CAPITAL |
SWIDDEN 393 | ALSO CALLED SLASH-AND-BURN AGRICULTURE. A FORM OF CULTIVATION IN WHICH FORESTED OR BRUSHY PLOTS ARE CLEARED OF VEGETATION, BURNED, AND THEN PLANTED TO CROPS, ONLY TO BE ABANDONED A FEW YEARS LATER AS SOIL LATER AS SOIL FERTILITY DECLINES |
TYPHOONS 391 | LARGE TROPICAL STORMS, SIMILAR TO HURRICANES, THAT FORM IN THE WESTERN PACIFIC OCEAN IN TROPICAL LATITUDES AND CAUSE WIDESPREAD DAMAGE TO THE PHILIPPINES AND COASTAL SOUTHEAST AND EAST ASIA |
TRANSMIGRATION 395 | THE PLANNED, GOVERNMENT-SPONSORED RELOCATION OF PEOPLE FROM ONE AREA TO ANOTHER WITHIN A STATE TERRITORY |
TSUNAMI 391 | VERY LARGE SEA WAVES INDUCED BY EARTHQUAKES |
EARTHQUAKE MONITORING | THE PRIMARY PURPOSE OF EARTHQUAKE MONITORING IN THE REGION IS TO SERVE AS AN EARLY WARNING SYSTEM FOR TSUNAMI. |
JAMSTEC (1993) | REAL TIME DEEP SEA FLOOR OBSERVATORY. HAS MULTI-POINT MONITORING ARRAY, SITE SPECIFIC. IN THE AREA OF THE GIANT WHITE CLAM FIELDS. THE CLAMS MOVE FROM GAS PRODUCED BY AN IMMINENT EARTHQUAKE. THEY MOVE BEFORE THE QUAKE. |
PHYSICAL VULNERABILITY | THE DEGREE TO WHICH A STRUCTURE OR SOME ENGINEERED COMPONENT OF THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT IS ABLE TO WITHSTAND THE IMPACT OF AN EXTREME GEOPHYSICAL OR TECHNOLOGICAL EVENT. |
LOCATIONAL OR GEOGRAPHICAL VULNERABILITY | ABSOLUTE OR RELATIVE LOCATION OF A STRUCTURE OR HUMAN GROUP RELATIVE TO AN ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARD |
SOCIAL VULNERABILITY | THE DEGREE TO WHICH THE SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF A POPULATION MAY CAUE THEM TO EXPERIENCE GREATER IMPACTS FROM A DISASTER WHEN FACED WITH AN EXTREME ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARD. |
THE TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM (TWS) | 26 PARTICIPATING INTERNATIONAL COUNTRIES THAT MONITOR THE PACIFIC BASIN FOR POTENTIALLY TSUNAMIGENIC EARTHQUAKES AND DISSEMINATING TSUNAMI WARNING INFORMATION |
THE GREAT KANTO EARTHQUAKE OF 1923 | HIT THE KANTO PLAIN, DESTROYED TOKYO, YOKOHAMA AND THE SURROUNDING AREAS. ESTIMATED 140,000 DIED, MANY IN THE WOODEN STRUCTURE-FIRES THAT ENSUED |
HAZARD | A NATURALLY OCCURRING OR HUMAN-INDUCED PROCESS/EVENT WITH THE POTENTIAL TO CREATE LOSS- A GENERAL SOURCE OF FUTURE DANGER |
DISASTER | THE REALIZATION OF HAZARD; AN ESSENTIALLY SOCIAL PHENOMENON THAT OCCURS WHEN A COMMUNITY SUFFERS AN EXCEPTIONAL, NON-ROUTINE, LEVEL OF STRESS, DAMAGE, AND/OR DISRUPTION. |
CHINESE EARLY URBANIZATION | CLUSTERED ALONG RIVERS AND COASTLINES |
DYNASTIC CHINA | DEVELOPED SIMILAR TO MONARCHIAL EUROPE IN SOCIAL ORGANIZATION |
GREAT WALL OF CHINA | ESTABLISHED TO DEFEND AGAINST THE MONGOLS AND TRADERS MOVING ALONG THE SILK ROUTE. EACH DYNASTY ADDED TO THE WALL. 1300-1600S CHINA ADOPTS ISOLATIONIST POLICY. 1600-1900S DOMINATED BY JAPAN AND EUROPEAN INTERVENTION |
FENG SHUI | 3000 YEARS AGO- CHOU DYNASTY- OBSERVERS NOTED THAT CERTAIN TOPOGRAPHY AND LOCATIONS WERE MORE BENEFICIAL THAN OTHERS FOR A HOUSE. MYSTICISM CRAP! |
GEOMANCY | IS AN ART OF THE ELEMENT EARTH; A FORM OF DIVINATION SIMILAR TO ASTROLOGY, BUT RELATED MORE CLOSELY TO EARTH ELEMENTS THAN ASTRONOMY. MORE MYSTICISM CRAP! |