|
...it is against the background of globalization
that we will examine the principles of human geography.
This course introduces you to the discipline of human geography. It
covers basic themes and concepts in geography, and it teaches you
to look at the world from a geographical perspective. We will examine
a wide range of topics: population, nature, economics, agriculture,
culture, politics, and urbanization. In order to hold these diverse issues
together, we will examine them through the unifying theme of
globalization. Over the past 500 years or so, the world has been
moving toward becoming one integrated global system rather than
many different independent systems. This change has profound
impacts on population, nature, economics, etc., and it is against the
background of globalization that we will examine the principles of
human geography.
The use of Case Studies for each concept and and ample
use of examples provides the opportunity to create a foundation either
for further studies in Geography or any other related field.
geog100 must have been the most amazing course I have ever taken
in my life. The class description given above by Mark H. Purcell is
the actual description for the class. This doesn't seem to happen quite
often, so this was very encouraging. The Professor's excitement about
the subject and the fact he seemed to love introducing the subject to his
students created a wonderful learning environment. The amount of work
required to succeed in this class is minimal if you pay attention to lecture.
But that shouldn't be a problem, since the Professor manages to make
you actually want to attend class every time.
The content of the class is a complex web of materials all interconnected with Globalization. Starting from the History of world systems, you slowly progress through time and trends to reach today. Every theme is looked at from a historical perspective, connected with Globalization and yet clearly distinguished as an indepented area of study that could be followed. The use of Case Studies for each concept and and ample use of examples provides the opportunity to create a foundation either for further studies in Geography or any other related field.
topThe final project for the class was defined as a mini research paper, combining an area of study with a TransNational Corporation or Organization. I chose National Borders as my area of study as it is an issue I am greatly concerned with. The result is below...
...borders were drawn
through numerous historical events, usually conflicts that are well
inscribed in peoples hearts. As such, they are the footprints of history
on earth.
The sovereignty of every country is an important aspect, if not the only,
of its identity. What usually defines this dominance are the territorial
borders of each, which are the blueprint of not only who is enclosed
within them, but also who is excluded. The effects of these boundaries
can, and do affect the 'container' and 'contents' of them, which in turn
affects political and social lives on both sides of the border (ANDERSON
and O'DOWD 1999). Commonly, borders were drawn through numerous
historical events, usually conflicts that are well inscribed in peoples
hearts. As such, they are the footprints of history on earth. The World
Trade Organization (WTO) itself, with its ''overriding objective [to] help
trade flow smoothly, freely, fairly and predictably'' (WTO, 2002) comes
to play an important role in modern day border interpretation. With
agreements designed for the purpose of trade alone, countries are left
waif in the new and increasingly globalized reality, with respect to the
reflection of borders on their social, cultural and political life.
[Read PDF Version]