Topographical Map of the World.

WORLD AT A GLANCE

* Total area of the Earth 197,000,000 square miles

* Equatorial circumference of the Earth 24,901 miles

* Polar circumference of the Earth 24,855 miles

* Mean distance from the Earth to the sun 93,020,000 miles

* Mean distance from the Earth to the moon 238,857 miles.

* Land use of Earth's surface 10% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 24% meadows and pastures: 31% forest and woodland; 34% other

* Highest elevation on Earth's surface Mt. Everest, Asia, 29,028 feet

* Lowest elevation on Earth's surface 1,312 feet below sea level, Dead Sea shore, Asia

* Greatest known depth of an ocean 36,200 feet, Mariana Trench, Pacific Ocean

SOURCE: THE 2000 WORLD FACTBOOK, U.S. CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY; NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY; NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION.

World Atlas

FOCUS: Using Maps to Understand Countries and Their Relationship to Each Other

TEACHING OBJECTIVES

To help students understand how maps can reflect the world's political, economic, and topographical variety--and thus show the different ways people live.

Discussion Questions:

* Look at the map of Europe, and find the U.S. on the map of North America. On which map do 10 degrees of longitude cover more variety in language and culture? What does the answer suggest about some ways in which European life differs from American life?

* How does a country's physical geography--for example, its proximity to water, deserts, and mountains--affect the way its people live?

CLASSROOM STRATEGIES

Critical Thinking: Have students make lists of the countries of origin of their clothing, shoes, cars, bicycles, TVs, and stereos. Have them bring their lists to class and locate these countries on the economic map of the world. How many products come from countries where the per capita GNP is $20,000 and above?

Students should find that most imported apparel is made in countries where income is low. Do wages in these countries allow companies to make profits even when shipping is factored into production costs? What does the economic map say about the distribution of prosperity?

Maps, History, Economics: Maps also serve as clues to people's history and how they live today. Look at Panama on the North America map. Discuss why the U.S. spent 10 years and $387 million building the Panama Canal. (Shipping around South America took too long and cost too much.)

Look at North Africa. Why did Germany, located almost 1,000 miles north, try to capture this area during World War II? (For one thing, controlling North Africa means controlling the vital trade routes of the Mediterranean Sea.)

Next, find the island of New Guinea, north of Australia. Tell students that people on the island speak hundreds of languages. Why the linguistic jumble? Find New Guinea on the topographical map. Note the high mountains that separate people who live relatively short distances apart. Explain that the mountains make travel difficult. Over centuries, people clustered in their own regions and developed their own distinct languages.