China 高一 Geography

Chapters: 11

1. Comp.1 Ch.1 Earth in the universe

Cosmic environment · Sun's influence · Earth history · Earth's spheres

The Solar System – The Solar System is the Sun and everything its gravity holds: 8 planets, their moons, dwarf planets, asteroids, comets and dust. The inner four planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars) are small and rocky. After the asteroid belt come the giants: gas giants Jupiter and Saturn, ice giants Uranus and Neptune. Gravity pulls planets towards the Sun while they move sideways, so they travel in orbits; closer planets move faster and have shorter years. It all formed about 4.6 billion years ago from a spinning cloud of gas and dust.
Solar Radiation, Heat Balance and Temperature – The Earth gets its energy from the Sun as short waves; the energy received is called insolation. It is strongest where the Sun's rays fall straight (near the equator) and weakest where they are slanting (near the poles). Air is heated mostly from below: the ground warms first, then passes heat to air by conduction, convection and advection, and by terrestrial radiation (long waves) that greenhouse gases absorb. Out of 100 units of sunlight, 35 are reflected (albedo), 14 are absorbed by air and 51 by the ground; all 65 absorbed units are sent back to space, so the Earth keeps a steady heat budget. Temperature falls from the equator to the poles and with height, and is changed by land–sea contrast and ocean currents. Sometimes cold air lies under warm air: this is a temperature inversion.
Interior of the Earth: Earthquake Waves, Layers and Volcanoes – Nobody can dig to the centre of the Earth, so we learn about the inside from direct sources (mine rocks, deep drilling, lava) and indirect sources (heat and pressure with depth, meteors, gravity, magnetism and, above all, earthquake waves). P-waves travel through solids and liquids; S-waves only through solids. Where the waves do not arrive, we get shadow zones, which prove the outer core is liquid. Earthquakes are measured by magnitude (Richter) and intensity (Mercalli). The Earth has a thin crust, a thick mantle with a soft asthenosphere, a liquid outer core and a solid inner core. Magma that reaches the surface builds volcanoes; magma that cools inside forms intrusive landforms like batholiths, sills and dykes.

2. Comp.1 Ch.2 Atmosphere

Composition and layers · Heating; thermal circulation; wind

Composition and Structure of the Atmosphere – The atmosphere is a thick blanket of air held to the Earth by gravity. It is mostly nitrogen (78%) and oxygen (21%), with small amounts of argon, carbon dioxide, ozone, water vapour and dust. It has five layers: troposphere (where weather happens), stratosphere (ozone layer), mesosphere (coldest), thermosphere (ionosphere, very hot) and exosphere (the outer edge). Weather is the state of air for a short time; climate is the average over about 30 years. Both are described by the same elements: temperature, pressure, wind, humidity, clouds and precipitation.
Atmospheric Circulation and Weather Systems – Air has weight, so it presses down: this is air pressure (about 1013 mb at sea level). Wind blows from high pressure to low pressure, pushed by the pressure gradient force, turned by the Coriolis force (right in the north, left in the south) and slowed by friction near the ground. Uneven heating makes pressure belts (equatorial low, subtropical highs, subpolar lows, polar highs) and three circulation cells, giving planetary winds: trade winds, westerlies and polar easterlies. Belts shift with the seasons, giving seasonal winds like the monsoon; local winds include land and sea breezes and mountain and valley winds. Big bodies of air with the same temperature and moisture are air masses; where two meet is a front. Cyclones are low-pressure storms: tropical cyclones form over warm seas; extratropical ones form along fronts. Thunderstorms and tornadoes are small but violent storms.

3. Comp.1 Ch.3 Water

Water cycle · Properties of seawater · Movement of seawater

The Water Cycle as a System – Earth's water moves between stores (oceans, ice, groundwater, rivers, lakes, soil, air and living things) through flows such as evaporation, condensation, precipitation, infiltration and runoff. Globally it is a closed system: the total amount stays the same. A drainage basin is an open system: rain comes in, water is stored, and it leaves by river runoff and evapotranspiration. The water balance P = Q + E ± ΔS tracks this. A storm hydrograph shows how quickly a river answers rain; its peak and lag time depend on rock, soil, slope, plants and land use. Seasons, storms, deforestation, farming, towns and water abstraction all change the cycle.
Water (Oceans): Hydrological Cycle, Ocean Floor, Temperature and Salinity – The Earth's water keeps moving between oceans, air, land and living things in the hydrological (water) cycle; about 97% of it is in the oceans. The ocean floor has major divisions — continental shelf, continental slope, deep sea plain and ocean deeps (trenches) — and minor features like mid-ocean ridges, seamounts, guyots, submarine canyons, atolls and banks. Ocean surface water is warmest near the equator and colder towards the poles; with depth it falls sharply through a layer called the thermocline, below which the water is near 0–4 °C. Salinity is the salt in sea water, about 35 grams per 1,000 grams (35‰). It rises with evaporation and falls with rain, rivers and melting ice, so it is high in the subtropics and enclosed hot seas and low near the equator, poles and river mouths.
Movements of Ocean Water: Waves, Tides and Currents – Ocean water moves in three ways. Waves are made mostly by wind: the energy moves forward while each bit of water goes round in a small circle; waves slow down and break in shallow water. Tides are the regular rise and fall of the sea, usually twice a day, caused by the Moon's (and Sun's) pull and the Earth–Moon spin. When Sun, Moon and Earth line up (new and full moon) we get very high spring tides; when they are at right angles (quarter moons) we get weak neap tides. Ocean currents are huge rivers of water flowing in fixed directions, pushed by winds, heating, gravity, salinity and density differences, and turned by the Coriolis force. Warm currents flow from the equator towards the poles; cold currents flow from the poles towards the equator. Currents change coastal climates, fishing, fog and shipping.

4. Comp.1 Ch.4 Landforms

Common landform types · Observing landforms

Landforms and their Evolution: Work of Running Water and Wind – Running water and wind are two major agents that carve and build landforms. A river cuts deep V-shaped valleys, gorges, canyons, waterfalls and potholes in its steep upper course, and it builds alluvial fans, deltas, flood plains, natural levees and point bars where it slows down. Its bends (meanders) grow and are cut off to form oxbow lakes. In deserts, wind blows away loose sand (deflation), sand-blasts rock (abrasion) into mushroom rocks, and helps sheet floods wear land into pediments, pediplains and inselbergs; it deposits sand as dunes such as barchans, parabolic, seif, longitudinal and transverse dunes. Landforms go through stages, youth, maturity and old age, like living things.
Geographical Enquiry and Fieldwork – A geographical enquiry is a small research project about a real place. It follows clear steps: ask a question and write a hypothesis; collect primary data (your own measurements and surveys) and secondary data (census, maps, websites) using a fair sampling method; process and present the data in suitable graphs and maps; analyse the pattern and reach a conclusion; then evaluate how reliable the results are. The same skills are used to make decisions: weigh options using evidence and justify the best one. Older students write a longer independent investigation with their own question, primary and secondary data, analysis and conclusions.

5. Comp.1 Ch.5 Vegetation and soil

Vegetation · Soil

Natural Vegetation of India: Forests, Wildlife and Biosphere Reserves – Natural vegetation is the plant cover that grows on its own, without people planting it. In India, rainfall and temperature decide which forest grows where. Very wet places have tall tropical evergreen forests. Places with moderate rain have deciduous forests, which drop their leaves in the dry season; these are the most common. Dry places have thorny bushes. Mountains have forests that change with height, and river mouths by the sea have mangroves. Forests give us wood, food, medicine and clean air, and they are home to wildlife. India protects them with laws, national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, special projects and biosphere reserves, which have a strictly protected core, a buffer and an outer transition zone.
Soil: How It Forms, Its Layers and How to Protect It – Soil is the thin, loose top layer of the land where plants grow. It is a mix of rock grains (about 45%), organic matter or humus (about 5%), water (about 25%) and air (about 25%). Soil forms very slowly when weathering breaks parent rock and living things add humus. Five factors control it: parent rock, climate, living things, relief (slope) and time. A cut through the ground shows layers called horizons: O (litter and humus), A (topsoil), B (subsoil, where washed-down minerals collect), C (broken rock) and R (bedrock). Soil texture depends on the share of sand, silt and clay. Soil feeds plants, stores and cleans water, stores carbon and is home to countless organisms, but erosion, salt and pollution can destroy it far faster than it forms.

6. Comp.1 Ch.6 Natural hazards

Meteorological hazards · Geological hazards · Disaster prevention · GIS/RS/GNSS in disaster reduction

Natural Hazards – A natural hazard is a natural event that can harm people and property, such as an earthquake, volcano, landslide, flood, drought or cyclone. It becomes a disaster when it hits people who are not ready. Geological hazards come from inside the Earth; meteorological (weather) hazards come from the air and water. Risk = hazard × vulnerability ÷ capacity to cope, so warning systems, strong buildings and trained people cut the damage.
Disaster Management: Prepare, Warn, Evacuate, Recover – A hazard (flood, earthquake, fire, storm) becomes a disaster when it hits people who are not ready. Disaster management is a cycle: mitigation (reduce the danger before), preparedness (plans, kits, drills), response (warnings, evacuation, rescue) and recovery (rebuild better). Knowing the right action for each hazard saves lives.
Introduction to Remote Sensing – Remote sensing is collecting information about the Earth's surface without touching it, by recording the energy that objects reflect or emit. It works in stages from an energy source to the user. Sensors ride on platforms (ground, aircraft, satellites) and give photographic or digital products. Different objects have different spectral signatures, which is how we tell water, plants and soil apart.

7. Comp.2 Ch.1 Population

Distribution · Migration · Population capacity

The World Population: Distribution, Density and Growth – People are not spread evenly on Earth. Most live on fertile plains near water; few live in deserts, high mountains or icy lands. Density tells how many people live on each square km. Geographical, economic and social factors explain the pattern. The world grew slowly for thousands of years and then very fast after 1800. Population changes through births, deaths and migration. The demographic transition theory shows how birth and death rates fall as a society moves from rural farming to urban industry. Countries use family planning and health care to control growth.
Migration – Migration is the movement of people from one place to another to live there, for some time or for good. The place left is the origin; the place reached is the destination. People move because of push factors (problems at home) and pull factors (attractions elsewhere), but obstacles like cost, distance and laws stop some. Migration can be internal or international, temporary or permanent, voluntary or forced, and it changes both the origin and the destination.
Population Capacity: Carrying Capacity and Reasonable Population – Every area has a limit to how many people it can support for a long time. That limit is the carrying capacity. A reasonable population is a little smaller: it lets everyone live well and leaves a safety margin. The limits move with technology, trade and how much each person uses.

8. Comp.2 Ch.2 Rural and urban

Spatial structure · Urbanisation · Regional culture and landscapes

Spatial Structure: How Villages and Towns Arrange Their Land – Spatial structure is the way different land uses are arranged in a place. A village is mostly homes, farmland and grazing land in rings. A town splits into functional zones: a busy centre, shops, housing, industry and green space. Distance, land price and access explain the pattern.
Urbanisation: Why Cities Grow and How to Make Them Work – Urbanisation is the rise in the share of a country's or the world's people who live in towns and cities. In 1950 about 30% of the world was urban; since 2007 more than half is, and about 68% is expected by 2050. Cities grow by rural–urban migration (push factors from the countryside, pull factors to the city) and by natural increase. Today the fastest growth is in lower-income and newly emerging countries of Asia and Africa, where megacities of 10 million or more are forming; in many rich countries growth is slow and people also move out to suburbs (suburbanisation and counter-urbanisation). Fast growth brings opportunities (jobs, services) and problems (informal housing, traffic, pollution, waste, flooding, the urban heat island). Sustainable urban development tries to fix these with public transport, green spaces, clean water, recycling, affordable housing and renewable energy.
Cultural Geography: How Places Shape Culture and Culture Shapes Places – Cultural geography studies how human culture differs from place to place and how it spreads. Culture is a group's shared way of life: language, religion, food, clothing, buildings, art and festivals. People change the land to fit their culture, making a cultural landscape. The natural environment, especially climate and nearness to the sea, influences homes, food and clothing, though people also use technology and choice. Areas with similar traits form culture regions. Cultures start in hearths and spread by diffusion: relocation (people move) or expansion (the idea moves), which can be contagious, hierarchical or stimulus. Diffusion can lead to acculturation, assimilation, syncretism and, today, globalisation.

9. Comp.2 Ch.3 Industry location

Agriculture location · Industry location · Service location

Agricultural Location Factors: Natural and Social Causes, and How They Change – A farm grows a certain crop in a certain place because of two groups of factors. Natural factors are heat, rain, soil and the shape of the land. Social factors are the market, transport, workers, money, technology and government rules. Both change over time, so farming regions change too.
Manufacturing Industries – Manufacturing changes raw materials into more valuable products. It gives jobs, reduces dependence on farming, and earns money through exports. Industries are grouped by raw material, role, capital, ownership and bulk. Their location depends on raw material, power, labour, capital, transport and market. Industries pollute air, water, land and cause noise, but this can be controlled.
Service Location: Where Shops and Warehouses Go – A service such as a shop, clinic, bank or warehouse needs a good place. The best place has enough customers inside the distance people will travel (range), costs a fair rent, is easy to reach by road or rail, and is not too crowded with rivals. Warehouses and logistics hubs choose cheap land beside highways, ports and railways. When roads, cities and online shopping change, the best places change too.

10. Comp.2 Ch.4 Transport and development

Development affects transport; transport affects development

Lifelines of National Economy – Transport, communication and trade connect producers with consumers and join the country together, like blood vessels in a body. India has roads, railways, pipelines, waterways, ports and airways. Communication carries messages; trade exchanges goods within and between countries. Tourism is also a trade that earns money and jobs.

11. Comp.2 Ch.5 Environment and development

Main environmental problems · Sustainable development · National development strategies

Environmental Issues: Causes, Effects and Solutions – Environmental issues are harmful changes to air, water, land, climate and living things, mostly caused by human activity. The big ones are air pollution, water pollution, land pollution and waste, climate change, deforestation and loss of biodiversity, and overuse of resources. They grow with the number of people and how much each person uses (the ecological footprint). We can reduce them with clean energy, saving and recycling, treating waste water, protecting forests and good laws, at home, in the city, in the country and across the world.
Sustainability – Sustainability means meeting our needs today without taking away the ability of future people to meet theirs. It rests on three pillars — environment, society and economy. A resource is used sustainably when we use it no faster than it renews. Today humanity uses about 1.7 Earths' worth of resources a year, and this use is very unequal. Stewardship, careful planning and spatial tools like GIS help us move towards sustainability.
National Development Strategies: How Countries Plan Growth – A national development strategy is a country's long plan to grow richer, fairer and cleaner. The government chooses goals, such as lifting poor regions and cutting pollution, and spends its limited money on tools like roads and rail, schools and skills, industry and green energy. Real examples include China's Western Development and rural revitalisation, India's five-year plans and Make in India, and South Korea's export-led plans. Every plan has trade-offs, so countries keep checking results and changing the plan.