HST 101 Lecture Notes - Swahili Coast, Overgrazing, Ming Dynasty
Document Summary
The tropical environment: the tropical zone falls between the tropic of cancer in the north and the tropic of capricorn in the south. Altitude also affects climate, with high-altitude mountain ranges and plateaus having cooler weather and shorter growing seasons than the low-altitude coastal plains and river valleys. Major rivers bring water from these mountains to other areas. Human ecosystems: human societies adopted different means of surviving in order to fit into the different ecological zones found in the tropics. The vast majority of the people of the tropics were farmers who cultivated various crops (rice, wheat, sorghum millet, etc. ) depending on the conditions of soil, climate, and water. In those parts of south and southeast asia that had ample water supplies, intensive agriculture transformed the environment and supported dense populations. In most parts of sub-saharan africa and many parts of southeast.