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agribusiness

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set of economic and political relationships that organize food production for commercial purposes; includes activities ranging from seed production, to retailing, to consumption of agricultural products

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agriculture

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art and science of producing food from the land and tending to livestock for the purpose of human consumption

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animal husbandry

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agricultural activity associated with the raising of domesticated animals, such as cattle, horses, sheep, and goats

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biotechnology

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form of technology that uses living organisms, usually genes, to modify products, to make or modify plants or animals, or to develop other microorganisms for specific purposes

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captial-intensive agriculture

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form of agriculture that uses mechanical goods, such as machinery, tools, vehicles, and facilities to produce large amounts of agricultural goods; requires very little human labor

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commercial agriculture economy

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all agricultural activity generated for the purpose of selling, not necessarily for local consumption

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dairying

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agricultural activity involving the raising of livestock, most commonly cows and goats, for dairy products such as milk, cheese, and butter

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desertification

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process by which formerly fertile lands become increasingly arid, unproductive, and desert-like

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domestication

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conscious manipulation of plant and animal species by humans in order to sustain themselves

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extensive agriculture

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agricultural system characterized by low inputs of labor per unit land area

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feedlots

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places where livestock are concentrated in a very small area and raised on hormones and hearty grains that prepare them for slaughter at a much more rapid rate than grazing; AKA factory farming

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fertile crescent

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area located in the crescent shaped zone near the SE Mediterranean coast (including Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Turkey) which was once a lush environment and one of the first hearths of domestication, and thus agricultural activity

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genetically modified organisms

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foods that are mostly products of organisms that have had their genes altered in a laboratory for specific purposed, such as disease resistance, increased productivity, or nutritional value, allowing growers greater control, predictability, and efficiency

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Green Revolution

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development of higher-yield and faster-growing crops through increased technology, pesticides, and fertilizers transferred from the developed to developing world to alleviate the problem of food supply in those regions of the globe

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hunting and gathering

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killing of wild animals and fish as well as the gathering of fruits, roots, nuts, and other plants for sustenance

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Industrial Revolution

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rapid economic changes that occurred in agriculture and manufacturing in England in the late 18th century and that rapidly spread to other parts of the developed world

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intensive cultivation

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any kind of agricultural activity that involves effective and efficient use of labor on spall plots of land to maximize crop yield

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labor-intensive agriculture

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type of agriculture that requires large levels of manual labor to be successful

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livestock ranching

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extensive commercial agriculture activity that involves the raising of livestock over vast geographic spaces typically located in semi-arid climates in the American West

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mechanization

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in agriculture the replacement of human labor with technology or machines

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slash and burn agriculture

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system of cultivation that usually exists in tropical areas where vegetation is cut close to the ground and then burned. The fire introduces nutrients into the soil, thereby making it productive for a relatively short period of time

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shifting cultivation

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use of tropical forest clearings for crop production until their fertility is lost. Plots are then abandoned, and farmers move on to new sites

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salinization

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process that occurs when soil in arid areas are brought under cultivation through irrigation. In arid climates, water evaporates quickly off the ground surface, leaving salty residues that render the soil infertile

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plantation

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large, frequently foreign-owned piece of agricultural land devoted to the production of a single export crop

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planned agricultural economy

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agricultural economy found in communist nations in which the government controls both agricultural production and distribution

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pesticides

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chemicals used on plants that do not harm the plants, but kill pests and have negative repercussions on other species who ingest the chemicals

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pastoralism

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type of agricultural activity based on nomadic animal husbandry or the raising of livestock to provide food, clothing, and shelter

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subsistence agricultural economy

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any farm economy in which most crops are grown for nearly exclusive family or local consumption

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mediterranean agriculture

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agricultural system practiced in the Mediterranean style climate of W. Europe, California, and portions of Chile and Australia in which diverse specialty crops such as grapes, avocados, olives, nuts, fruits and vegetables comprise profitable agricultural operations

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specialty crops

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crops including items like peanuts and pineapples which are produced usually in developing countries for export

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urban sprawl

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process of urban areas expanding outward, usually in the form of suburbs and developing over fertile agricultural lands

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swidden

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land that is prepared for agriculture by using the slash and burn method

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topsoil loss

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loss of the top fertile layer of soil through erosion. Tremendous problem in areas with fragile soils, steep slopes, or torrential seasonal rains

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transhumance

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movements of livestock according to seasonal patterns, generally lowland areas in the winter, and highlands in the summer

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Von Thunen Model

answer

agricultural model that spatially describes agricultural activity in the terms of rent. Activities that require intensive cultivation and cannot be transported over great distances pay higher rent to be close to the market. Conversely, activities that are more extensive, with goods that are easy to transport, are located farther from the market where rent is less

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cereal grain

answer

a grass yielding a grain for food

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winter wheat

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wheat planted in the fall and harvested in the early summer

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winnow

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to remove chaff by allowing it to be blown away in the wind

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wet rice

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rice planted on a dryland in a nursery and then moved to a deliberately flooded field to promote growth

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vegetated planted

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production of plants by direct cloning from existing plants

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truck farming

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commercial gardening and fruit farming, named because truck was a middle english word meaning bartering

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thresh

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to beat grain from stalks by trampling it

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spring wheat

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wheat planted in the spring and harvested in late summer

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sawah

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a flooded field for rice growing

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reaper

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a machine that cuts grain standing in a field

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ranching

answer

form of commercial agriculture in which livestock graze over an extensive area

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paddy

answer

Malay word for wet rice, commonly but incorrectly used to describe a sawah

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milk shed

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area surrounding a city from which milk is supplied

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hull

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outer covering of a seed

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grain

answer

seed of a cereal grass

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double cropping

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harvesting twice a year from the same field

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combine

answer

a machine that reaps, threshes, and cleans grain while moving over a field

AP Human Geography Barron’s Ch.7 Vocab – Flashcards

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