Working at heights swms nsw

Urban PatternsA large city is stimulating an agitating, entertaining and frightening, welcoming and cold. A city has something for everyone, but a lot of those things are for people who are different from you. Urban geography helps to sort out the complexities of familiar and unfamiliar patterns in urban areas.Key Issue #1 Where Have Urban Areas Grown?What makes a city and countryside different places?Geographers look at WHERE at TWO scales.1.the Global distribution of urban settlements2.the distribution of people and activities within urban spaces1800s –3% of pop lived in cities, only London was more than 1 million people2000 –nearly 50% live in cities with nearly 400 cities have at least 1 millionUrbanization –process by which the population of cities grow –2 dimensions1.increase in the number of people living in cities2.an increase in the percentage of people living in citiesVery soon the number of people in Urban areas will exceed that of Rural settlements for the first time in human history.MDC –about 3/4 of the people live in urban areasLDC –about 2/5“ -exception –Latin America% in MDC higher because people migrated to cities for work in factories –largely endedSIX of 10 most populous cities are in LDCs. –traditionally urban growth resulted from diffusion of the Industrial Revolution. The rapid growth of cities in the LDCs is a reversal of the historical trend –NOT a measure of an improved level of developmentSocial Differences between Urban and Rural Settlement -WIRTH1.Large size –(rural –know or related to most )–urban-know only few-mostly through specific channels2.High density -people compete for survival in limited space –stronger groups dominate3.Social Heterogeneity –greater freedom in urban areas to pursue unusual profession, sexual orientation, or cultural interest. May also feel isolated*may apply to LDC but distinctions blurred between urban and rural residents in MDCPhysical Definition –legal boundary, as continuously built up area, and as a functioning area1.legal –city–legally incorporated into an independent, self governing unit(in US city with suburbs sometimes called a central city)2. urbanized area –central city plus its contiguous built up suburbs w/ populationdensity exceeds 1,000 per sq mi.Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)1.A central city with a population of at least 50,000
2.The county within which the city is located3.Adjacent countries with a high population density and a large percentage of residents working in the central city.MSAs –widely used -stats for counties available –problem –some areas not urban –MSAs make up 20% of total US land area compared to 2 % of urbanized areasUrbanized area typically occupies 10% of MSA land area but 90%of its populationMicropolitan Statistical Area (10 % of Americans live in Micropolitan Stat Area)1.urbanized area between 10,000 & 50,000 people2.county where found3.adjacent counties tied to the cityOverlapping Metropolitan AreasBoston to Washington DC (Boswash corridor) –megalopolis Southern Great LakesSouthern CaliforniaGerman RuhrJapan’s TokaidoMegalopolis –downtown areas retain distinctive identities, but periphery the boundaries overlapKey Issue 2: Where Are People Distributed Within Urban Areas?Three Models of Urban Structure –where people tend to live in urban areas1.Concentric Zone Model–examine distribution of social groups a.1923 –E.W. Burgess –city grows outward in a series of concentric rings (based on Chicago)b.innermost –CBD (cenral business district) –non residential –tertiary employment located-urban transport infrastructure converges –most accessible zonec.2ndring –transition –industry and poorer quality housing –immigrants –most transport sites (RR, ports) located adjacent to central aread.3rdring –modest older houses –stable, working class families –gradually reconverted to other uses by expanding manufacture/industry activitiese.4thring –newer, more spacious houses for middle class familiesf.5thring –commuter’s zone, beyond the continuous built up cityg.ASSUMES relationship between socio-economic status & distance from CBD –further out –better quality of life-longer commute2.Sector Model a.1939 homer Hoyt –city develops in a series of sectors, not ringsb.certain areas more attractive for various activitiesc.as city grows expands outward in a wedged.best housing found in corridor extending from downtown to the outer edge of the city