Unit 7

VII. Cities and Urban Land Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13–17% 

A. Development and character of cities 

          1. Origin of cities; site and situation characteristics 

          2. Forces driving urbanization 

          3. Borchert’s epochs of urban transportation development 

          4. World cities and megacities 

          5. Suburbanization processes 

B. Models of urban hierarchies: reasons for the distribution and size of cities 

          1. Gravity model 

          2. Christaller’s central place theory 

          3. Rank-size rule 

          4. Primate cities 

C. Models of internal city structure and urban development: strengths and limitations of models 

          1. Burgess concentric zone model 

          2. Hoyt sector model 

          3. Harris and Ullman multiple nuclei model 

          4. Galactic city model 

          5. Models of cities in Latin America, North Africa and the Middle East, sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia, and South Asia 

D. Built environment and social space 

          1. Types of residential buildings 

          2. Transportation and utility infrastructure 

          3. Political organization of urban areas 

           4. Urban planning and design (e.g., gated communities, New Urbanism, and smart-growth policies) 

           5. Census data on urban ethnicity, gender, migration, and socioeconomic status 

           6. Characteristics and types of edge cities: boomburgs, greenfields, uptowns 

E. Contemporary urban issues 

          1. Housing and insurance discrimination, and access to food stores 

          2. Changing demographic, employment, and social structures 

          3. Uneven development, zones of abandonment, disamenity, and gentrification 

          4. Suburban sprawl and urban sustainability problems

          5. Urban environmental issues: transportation, sanitation, air and water quality, and farmland protection 

IF YOU ONLY LEARN 7 THINGS IN THIS UNIT...

1. All cities fit within Christaller's central place theory. Some cities have greater ranges and need bigger thresholds. Range is the maximum distance people are willing to travel to get a product or service. Threshold is the minimum number of people needed for a business to operate.

2. There are three basic models of urban structure in the United States. The concentric zone theory, developed by Burgess, describes the expansion in concentric rings around a central business district. The sector model, developed by Hoyt, suggests that growth extends along transportation routes. The multiple nuclei model, developed by Ullman and Harris, suggests that  growth is independent of the central business district.

3. Different continents have cities with different characteristics. European cities are older and more historic. ASian cities are usually built on ports fro trade. Latin American cities possess a spine of high quality housing extending from the central business district. African cities have three central business districts, including a colonial central business district, contemporary central business district, and a market zone. Islamic cities are focused on the principles of the religion.

4. Cities have problems such as race relations, traffic, water delivery, pollution, and urban sprawl that can negatively impact inhabitants unless handled appropriately by local governments. 

5. The three world cities are New York, London, and Tokyo. Other cities are ranked and rated based on their economic, cultural, and political importance to the areas they serve.

6. The hierarchy of cities from smallest to largest is hamlet, village, town, city, metropolis, and megalopolis. The largest metropolis in the United States is New York City with over 18 million people in the metropolitan area.

7. Primate cities have at least twice the population of the next largest city in the same country. London, Paris, and Buenos Aries are examples of primate cities.

UNIT 7 STUDY GUIDE

Urban Geography Study Guide

1. What percentage of the world’s population lived in cities in 1800?  What percentage live in cities now?

2. Which region of the world has the most cities with more that 10 million population?

3. Why is urban growth in LDCs not an indication of wealth?

4. In what way are MSAs used?

5. What is a megalopolis? (you need a little more than the definition)

6. Sketch the Burgess Concentric Zone Model. What are some assumptions he makes in this model? What has happened since that makes this model not as applicable to cities oday?

7. What historical events would have influenced a city that developed along the Burgess Concentric Model? (immigrants are mentioned, succession and invasion)

8. Sketch the Hoyt Sector Model (1939)

9. What historical changes would have influenced a city that developed along the Hoyt Sector Model?

10. Sketch the Harris and Ullman Multiple Nuclei Model (1945)

11. What would happen to existing native towns when the colonizers took over?

12. Sketch the Griffin-Ford Latin American Model. Describe som characteristics of Latin American Cities.

13. What are squatter settlements? (be sure to mention LDCs)

14. What factors contribute to inner city deterioration?

15. What is gentrification?

16. Sketch the Urban Realms Model. Describe how this model is more applicable to cities in North America today.

17. What are edge cities?

18. How does British policy protect against urban sprawl?

19. What does Christaller’s Central Place Theory explain?

20. What is the definition of Market Area?

21. Why does Christaller’s model use hexagons?

22. What is meant by the range of service?

23. What is meant by the threshold of a service?

24. Why would larger settlements have a more diverse range of services?

25. What is the rank-size rule? What is it used for?