Physical%20Geography%20of%20North%20Africa,%20Southwest%20Asia,%20and%20Central%20Asia

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Chapter 17

• Physical Geography of North Africa, Southwest
  Asia, and Central Asia

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Middle East
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Central Asia
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The Land

• Seas and Peninsulas
• North Africa, Southwest Asia, and Central Asia
  feature numerous seas and Peninsulas
• Mediterranean Sea
• Red sea
• Black Sea
• Arabian Peninsula- separated from Africa by the
  Red sea and the Gulf of Aden
• Sinai Peninsulas area flanked by the Gulf of Suez
  and the Gulf of Aqaba
• Anatolian Peninsulas (A.K.A. Asia Minor)- points
  west to the Aegean Sea

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The Land

• Landlocked bodies of Salt Water
• Dead Sea (Israel)
• Caspian Sea- Earths largest inland body of water
• Aral Sea (Kazakhstan)
• Began to dry up when the Soviet Union diverted
  river source waters for irrigation seems to be
  coming back

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The Land

• What might people have done to revive the Aral
  Sea?

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Rivers

• Major Rivers Cradles of Civilization
• The Nile river valley provides water and a lush,
  fertile living space for about 90 of Egypts
  population, and is the worlds longest river
• The Tigris and Euphrates rivers help irrigate
  farms throughout Syria, Turkey, and Iraq
• Stream Beds
• Runoff from infrequent, violent rainstorms
  creates temporary streams in arid North Africa
  and Southwest Asia

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Cradle of Civilization
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Streams and rivers.

• Why are streams from rainstorms only temporary?

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Plains, Plateaus, and Mountains

• Coastal Plains
• Although most of the region is made up of deserts
  and mountains, the coastal plains along the
  Mediterranean provide the agricultural base of
  the region
• Highlands
• Enough precipitation falls on the Atlas mountains
  to make them hospitable to settlement and
  farming. These mountains are Africas longest
  mountain range
• The Caucasus Mountains between the Black sea and
  Caspian Sea are known for their grandeur and
  beauty
• Desert covers much of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan
  
• Garagum is the black sand desert in Turkmenistan
• Qiziliqum is the red sand desert in Uzbekistan

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Plains plateaus and mountains

• Which of the Above areas do you think are most
  heavily populated? Why do you think so?

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Earthquakes

• The shifting tectonic plates of the region have
  built mountains, shifted landmasses, and caused
  earthquakes, and created the Mediterranean sea A
  1999 earthquake in Turkey measured 7.4 on the
  Richter scale, killing nearly 20,000 people.

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Earthquakes

• What might be done to reduce the damage from
  earthquakes in heavily populated areas?

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Natural Resources

• Oil and Natural Gas
• About 70 of the worlds oil reserves and 33 of
  the worlds natural gas reserves
• Minerals
• Turkmenistan has the worlds largest deposits of
  sulfate. Morocco ranks third in the production of
  phosphate. The region may contain up to 10 of
  the worlds iron ore reserves
• Building Diverse Economies
• Many Countries in the region are diversifying
  their economies so that they are not so dependent
  on their oil and mineral exports.

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Natural Resources.

• What do these facts suggest about the regions
  economy?

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YouTube Links

• The Nile River of Life Pt.1
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vayQijCoayo8
• About 10 minutes
• Killing The Dead Sea-Jordan
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vvL3ybLmK_DM

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YouTube Videos

• Honey Badgers Documentary
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vz0tycmec1fw
• About 8 minutes
• Honey Badgers humor, rated R
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vz0tycmec1fw
• Stop _at_ 1 min. Too much swearing.