Human Geography > Superpowers > Flashcards

Superpowers Flashcards

(52 cards)

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1
Q

What is a superpower?

A

A nation which has the ability to project its influence around the world

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2
Q

What are the 4 pillars of superpower status?

A
  • Economic (A large economy enables a nation to control trade and can use money to invest in a strong military force)
  • Military (Can use their military to threaten or invade other countries)
  • Political and ideology (The ability to influence other countries in a way which suits their desires or match their political systems)
  • Cultural (Projecting a nation’s cultural values on others can change the way other populations think and align their ideology with the superpower’s culture)
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3
Q

How can physical resources help a superpower exercise its status?

A

Oil and gas can help a nation develop their economy as some countries will be dependent on the superpower for their natural resources and so the superpower can have power over them e.g. Russia providing gas to Europe

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4
Q

How can human resources help a superpower exercise its status?

A

A large human workforce can help to develop a nation’s economy, for example the emerging superpowers China and India both have large populations which are being used in manufacturing to develop their economies

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5
Q

What is hard power?

A

Using military and direct political intervention to change or influence the behaviour of other countries

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6
Q

What is soft power?

A

Attracting national governments and individuals to their country through culture, lifestyle, foreign policies that encourage migration

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7
Q

What is smart power?

A

A combination of both hard and soft power

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8
Q

What is sharp power?

A

Use of political manipulation and censorship by authoritarian regimes to influence and undermine the democratic institutions of other countries

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9
Q

Explain Mackinders Heartland theory?

A

Argued that the Heartland (an area that stretches from Russia to China and from the Arctic to the Himalayas) was a geo strategic location because whoever controlled it would control large amounts of physical and human resources and whoever controlled this would command the ‘world island’ and whoever controls the world island commands the world

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10
Q

Explain Spykman’s Rimland theory

A

Identifies the coastal areas surrounding the Eurasian landmass as the most strategically important regions for global power, it emphasises sea power and its importance in controlling Eurasia

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11
Q

Explain Wallerstein’s world systems theory

A

The world systems theory identifies two different economic areas within the world- the core and the periphery

Core regions are economic powerhouses and therefore control most aspects of global trade such as trade agreements and trading currency

Periphery often provide labour and materials for the core nations

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12
Q

Explain Rostow’s modernisation theory

A

Traditional society- Country’s economy is based mainly on primary industry
Pre conditions for take off- There is a demand for raw materials and trade by external countries, and improvements in infrastructure will lead to an increase in FDI
Take off- Rapid industrialisation, creating a large surge of employment opportunities and productivity
Drive to maturity- Growing economy will encourage new industries and investment, creating further jobs
High mass consumption- Developed countries are countries who are capitalistic and consumers hold the most valuable opinion

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13
Q

What are some criticisms of rostow’s theory?

A

Largely based on American and European development and therefore ignores the stages of growth other nations who don’t fit in this mould may go through

Some nations may have an abundance in natural resources and so skip some stages of development e.g. Saudi Arabia

Doesn’t describe a nation that is declining e.g. the USSR following their loss in the Cold War

Doesn’t consider the fact that the world is increasingly globalised and so the development of a country may be limited by international politics

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14
Q

What is a unipolar world?

A

One country dominates e.g. USA or British Empire during colonial times

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15
Q

What is a bi polar world?

A

Where there are two main superpowers with opposing ideologies e.g. the USA and the USSR during the Cold War

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16
Q

What is a multi polar world?

A

Several powers and emerging powers competing for power and global influence

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17
Q

What is neo colonialism?

A

Describes the expoitative relationship between more powerful developed countries who use their relationship with less developed countries for their own benefit

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18
Q

Explain Frank’s dependency model?

A

Explains the cycle of neo colonialism, where the neo colony becomes dependent on the neo colonial power controlling it

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19
Q

What are some characteristics of a neo colony?

A
  • Continues to specialise in primary industry
  • Low income earned
  • Little profit made
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20
Q

What are some characteristics of a neo colonial power?

A
  • The country develops
  • Money available to spend on infrastructure, new machinery and technology
  • High value goods can be exported and sold internationally
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21
Q

What commodities did Empires tend to exploit from their colonies?

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A

Sugar, tea, cotton

22
Q

What are BRICS?

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A

Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa

23
Q

Why are the G20 more influential than BRICS?

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A

Account for 85% of the world’s GDP and 85% of the world’s trade as it includes the world’s largest and advanced economies

24
Q

What is the role of the World Bank and IMF and criticisms?

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A

Provides loans to developing countries
Criticised due to them providing funds for projects that have been unethical and damaging to the environment
Also criticised because they have given loans to countries who are incapable to pay back their loans

25
What is the role of the WTO and criticisms?
Ensures free global trade and opportunities are equal for all countries by reducing protectionist measures Criticised for failing to stop developed nations from protecting its own industries
26
What is the role of the WEF?
Promotes public private co-operation Meets every year in Davos where they discuss global economic and social challenges
27
What are the 2 types of TNC?
Publicly traded owned by shareholders State owned by government
28
Why might American culture not always be adopted?
- Strong nationalism - Religion and tradition
29
What are intellectual property laws that protect new inventions?
- Patents for tech - Copyright for music - Trademarks for designs like logos
30
Why are obtaining patents often difficult?
High cost of application and so Western TNC's can usually only get them
31
Who are the 5 permanent members of the UN security council?
USA, UK, France, China, Russia
32
What does the UN have power to do?
- Sanction countries who are deemed to be a security risk - Military force against another country can be authorised - UN peacekeeping force can be authorised to reduce conflict
33
Why may the UN security council work in an imperfect way?
- Any of the permanent member states can veto a decision - USA, UK and France often vote together whilst Russia and China generally vote together leading to no progress
34
What is the international court of justice's role in the UN?
Settles disputes between different UN member states and aims to achieve geopolitical stability
35
What is the Montreal protocol?
Aimed to stop the use of CFCs and Halons, both highly damaging to the ozone layer
36
What is the Kyoto protocol?
Aimed to generally reduce greenhouse gas emissions by industrialised countries
37
What is the Paris agreement?
Adopted by nearly 200 countries to combat climate change with the main goal of limiting global warming to below 2 degrees
38
What is the function of NATO?
Group of nations formed during the Cold War consisting of allies of the USA, its main policy dictates that if one member gets attacked, other members will come and assist that country
39
What is the function of ANZUS?
Security agreement between Australia, New Zealand, and the US, the aim of the treaty is to cooperate on military matters in the Pacific
40
What is the function of the EU?
Started with 6 founding nations but has since increased to include 28 member states, promoting free trade and movement of goods and people
41
What is the function of ASEAN?
Consists of 10 South East Asian nations formed to encourage economic growth, important as there used to be conflict between ASEAN states
42
What is the function of NAFTA?
Free trade between Mexico, Canada and the US, many companies in Canada and the US have benefitted as they have been able to move their manufacturing plants to Mexico due to lower labour costs, Trump has vowed to leave the free trade area in order to protect and bring back jobs to the USA
43
What is the function of the IPCC?
Aims to stabilise greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the harm humans are doing to the environment. Its success can be argued since may governments still pollute and are not held accountable by the many policies and protocols they may have signed
44
What environmental problems can arise from high resource consumption?
- Urban air quality in emerging power cities as there are poor vehicle engines - Imports and exports have increased so CO2 consequently increases - Deforestation has accelerated as people cut down trees in order to grow crops
45
How will the rise of the middle class cause pressure on exisiting resources?
- More demand for food so food security is reduced - Water shortages will increase which may also worsen food security - Prices of oil will increase and there may be shortages causing countries not self sufficient in oil left vulnerable to exploitation - High prices of rare earth minerals such as lithium for lithium based batteries
46
How can the growing middle class be a source of tension?
Countries which are rich in raw materials such as oil, for example Russia will likely raise prices for countries who need them e.g. countries in Europe
47
How have emissions increased in developing countries?
As developed countries have already gone through industrialisation and so have been able to outsource their manufacturing to less developed countries who are effectively polluting on the developed countries behalf, e.g. Bangladesh producing for the clothing industry
48
Why is intellectual property difficult to protect?
Increased counterfeiting and the difficult classification of an individual idea
49
Why are patents so useful for TNC's?
As having a USP is crucial for profits Large amounts of money are paid in legal fees each year by TNC's trying to stop other companies using their ideas
50
How is the world's economic centre of gravity shifting?
Slowly shifted from the West and is travelling to the East because Asian states are becoming influential players in the global economy, whilst the role of the EU and USA is slowly diminishing
51
Why may FDI from Asia be considered to encourage neo colonial relationships?
As the donor country 'gifts' money or infrastructure in return for natural resources (core-periphery model)
52
What are some future demonstrations of power?
- Nuclear weapons e.g. the UK renewing their nuclear weapons programme (Trident) however changing attitudes towards nuclear deterrents they may prove moot in the future - Space exploration e.g. exploration of Mars may provide countries with natural resources and new energy sources - Intelligence services
Human Geography
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