(1)ENVIRONMENT

Summary Notes
Wha is the environment?
All the surrounding things that we see, are called the environment.
The following are the components of the environment:

 Natural
 Biotic
 Plants
 Animal
 Bacterias
 Human
 Fungi
 Abiotic
 Soils
 Water
 Sunlights
 Air
 Artificial or Human-made:
 School, tables
 Religion, Family
 Society, Communities
 Books
 Corporate, Industries
The natural environment has three major parts:

 Lithosphere
 Hydrosphere
 Atmosphere

Lithosphere:

 Solid crust or hard top layer of the earth is called the

lithosphere
 Under the lithosphere, various landforms such as mountains,
plateaus, plains, valleys are found over it.
 All the activities such as mining, grassland, agriculture are done
on the lithosphere.

Hydrosphere:
Hydrosphere comprises of various source of water such as:

 River
 Lakes
 Seas
 Oceans
Atmosphere:

 The thin layer of air that surrounds the earth.

 It is the Gravitation force of the earth that holds the
atmosphere around.

Ecosystem
It is the system formed by the interaction of all living organisms with
each other and with physical & chemical factors of the environment
in which they live.
All are linked by the transfer of energy and materials.

Some examples of the ecosystem are pond ecosystem, desert

ecosystem.

World environment day is observed on 5th June each year.

Human Environment:
Human being interacts with the environment and modifies it
according to their need. 
Early Human: They adapted themselves to the natural environment;
the way of life of early humans largely shaped and dependent on the
environment.
Overtime: Humans learned new ways to use and change the
environment as per their requirements.
For example, 
 Learned to grow crops and domestication of the animal.
 Industrial revolution made improvement on industrial
production and faster transportation.
 Information revolution made communication easier across the
globe;

(2)INSIDE OUR EARTH

Summary Notes
Our earth is not a static planet, it is a dynamic planet,
constantly undergoing changes inside and outside of the earth.

Deepest mine is in South Africa; it about 4 km deep.

Interior of the earth:

The radius of the earth 6371 Km.
Interior of the earth is divided into three layers:

 Crust
 Mantle
 Core
 Crust:
The uppermost layer of the earth is called the crust.
It is about 1 % of earth masses
there is two type crust:

 Continental crust:
 It is about 35 km in depth
 It is made by SiAl( Silica and Aluminium) minerals
 Oceanic crust:
 It is about 5 km in depth
 It is made up by SiMa( Silica and Magnesium) minerals

Mantle:

 It is just beneath of crust; it extends up to the depth of 2900

Km.
 It is about 84 % of earth mass.

Core:

 It is an innermost layer
 Radius about 3500 Km
 It made up by NiFe(Nickel and ferrous) 
 Rocks and Minerals
What are the rocks?
Any natural mass of minerals matter that makes up the earth is
the crust is called a rock. Rocks can be of different colour, size,
and texture.
Types of rocks?

There are three types of rocks:

 Igneous rocks
 Metamorphic rocks
 Sedimentary

What are igneous rocks?

When the molten magma cools, it becomes solid called igneous
rocks. It is also called primary rocks.
There are two types of igneous rocks:

 Intrusive rocks
 Extrusive rocks

Intrusive rocks:
When molten magma cools down deep inside the earth crust;
 called intrusive rocks. Since they cool down slowly they form
large grains, for example, Granite rocks. 

Extrusive rocks: 
When molten lava comes out on the surface and cooled off. For
example, Basalt rock s extrusive rocks and Deccan Plateaus are
made up of basalt rocks.

Sedimentary rocks:
When igneous rocks are broken down by rolling down, cracks
hit each other, etc. into small fragments; the small particle is
called sediments. When this small particle compressed and
harden to form layers of rocks; these types of rocks are called
sedimentation rocks. These rocks contain fossils of plants and
animals as well as are the main source of Petroleum, coal, and
natural Gases.
Example of sedimentary rocks,
Sandstone is made up of sand grains

Metamorphic rocks:
Under great heat and pressure, Igneous and Sedimentary rocks
change into metamorphic rocks.
For example,

 Clay: Slate
 Limestone: Marble

Uses of rocks:
The following are uses:
 Hard rocks are used for making roads, houses, and many
infrastructures.
 Red fort is made up by Red Sandstone( i.e. sedimentary rocks)
 Taj Mahal is made up of white marble( i.e. Metamorphic rocks)
 Rocks are the sources of Mineral for industries use
 Metamorphic rocks are the source of Fossil fuels.

What is the rock cycle?

One type of rock can be changed to other types under certain
conditions in the cyclic matter is called the rock cycle.
The following diagram shows the rock cycle.

Rock cycle

(3)OUR CHANGING EARTH

 Summary Notes
What are tectonic or lithospheric plates?

The upper part of the earth or lithosphere is broken into the number
of plates known as lithospheric plates; these plates move very slowly
in a particular direction.
These plates move because of molten magma inside the earth move
in a circular manner, it is also called convection cell.

As a result, the movement of these plates causes changes on the

earth's surface.

For example, Fold Mountains are created in the boundary of two

convergence plates.

There are two forces work on the earth.

 Endogenetic forces
 Exogenetic forces

Landform development is the result of endogenetic and exogenetic

force.

What is Endogenetic force? 

Endogenetic force comes from inside earth and it is
a constructive force. Temperature and density variations inside the
earth are the main drivers of the endogenetic force. Vertical and
horizontal movement happen due to endogenetic force. Mountain
building process happens due to vertical movement of the earth and
fault happen due to horizontal movement of the earth.
The following types of endogenetic force are:

Sudden Movement:
As the name suggests, the sudden movement caused rapid events
and happens more quickly and can be seen within the second.
Examples;
Earthquake: 
When the lithospheric plates move, the surface of the earth vibrates.
This vibration can travel around the earth, this vibration is called an
earthquake.

Focus: The place in the crust where the movement starts or cracks
happen; this point is called the focus of the earthquake.

Epicenter: The place on the surface above the focus is called the

epicenter.

Greatest damage usually happens closest to the epicenter and

strength of earthquake decrease away from the epicenter.
The earthquake cannot be predicted, but the impact can be
minimized through strong resilient infrastructure.
Common earthquake prediction:
 Studying animal behaviours
 Fish in the ponds get agitated
 Snakes come out to the surface
Earthquake preparation:
 Preventive measure:
 Should have strong resilience infrastructure
 During earthquakes:
 Stay in safe spots such as under kitchen counter, tables or
desk.
 Stay away from fireplaces, mirror areas around chimney,
electric poles, etc.

Due to Earthquake lake formation, fracture, rupture, fault, etc., may

be seen.

Volcanos
It is the vent (opening) in the earth's crust through which molten
materials erupt suddenly and release a large amount of dust, gases,
and molten lava. The following minor landform may be formed by
volcanos:

o Volcanic mountain-natural elevation on earth surface that

erupts lava
o Volcanic cones- cones with central craters
 o Caldera-depression created after volcano collapses after
erupting
o lava dome- circular mound shaped resulting from
slow extrusion of lava.
o Volcanic Plug- object created when lava hardens within a
vent.
These are continent building forces and act from the centre of the
earth to the earth's surface. It acts very slowly, generally cannot be
observed in normal human life. Two types of movements:
 Upward movement: Large scale upliftment of masses.
 Downward Movement: Submergence of land areas.

Orogenetic Movement:
This force is also called as mountain building forces. Based on the
direction of the force, it can be classified into two parts.
 Tensional force: Due to divergent force, it caused cracking and
faulting on the earth's surface.
 Compression force: Due to the convergence nature of force, it
causes folding in the earth's crust.

What is Exogenetic Force?

Exogenetic forces are destructive forces that come from the outside
earth, the primary source of exogenetic force is Sun.
The following types of Exogenetic forces are:
Exogenetic forces

Weathering?
Weathering happens due to the Exogenetic process. Weathering is a
breakdown of rock, minerals, soil, wood, human-made structure. In
simple terms, weathering is changed form or breaking of the object
due to weather conditions.
 There are three main types of weathering:

 Biological Weathering: Weakening and breaking of an object

into the smaller object by plants, animals, and microbes.
Example: breaking of rock by growing roots.
 Physical Weathering:  Over time, due to earth movement and
environment changes that alternate hot and cold environment
 causes expansion & shrinking of rock, at the result faulting and
breaking down of rock happen.
 Chemical Weathering: After the physical weathering process,
biological and chemical weathering starts. In chemical
weathering, rainwater react with the mineral of rock and form
new rock (clay) and soluble salt. Acidity and salty nature of
rainwater react differently to different minerals and at a result
breaking down of rock happened.
Erosion:
Wearing away of the landscape by different agents such as water, air,
ice.

Deposition
The eroded material is carried away by water, winds, ice, etc. and
eventually deposited in low area land

By the process of erosion and deposition, different landforms are

created on the earth's surface.

Landform created by river agents

Running water of the river erodes the landform and creates other
landforms.
The following landforms are created by running water or river:

 Waterfall
 Meanders-curved paths
 Oxbow lake-crescent shaped lake
 Flood plains
  Levees/dike/dyke/embankment-long ridge
 Delta – landform created by sediments carried by river

Waterfall landform:
When the river falls from soft rock to hard rocks, it forms a waterfall.
Highest waterfall? 
Angel falls of Venezuela

Other waterfalls:
 Niagara fall; on the border between the USA and Canada.
 Victoria Falls; the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Meanders:
When the Rivers enter the plains areas, it twists and turns; forming
of this large bends is known as meanders.

Oxbow lake:
Due to continuous erosion and deposition along the sides of
meanders; over time end of meanders loops come closer to closer;
loops cut off from the river and form a cut-off lake, this cut-off lake is
called oxbow lake.

Flood Plains:
Along the river, over time floods deposit layers of fine soils and other
material such as sediments; this flat fertile land is called Flood Plain.
Levees:
Raised banks are called levees.

Delta:
In the river mouth, the river begins to break up into the number of
streams called distributaries. The river becomes slow and begins to
deposit its loads such as silt(fine sand/clay), sediments. Each
distributary forms its own mouth; the collection of sediments from
all the mouth forms a delta.

Coastal Landform created by sea waves:

The erosion and deposition of the sea waves give rise to coastal
landforms.
 Beach
 Sea Caves
 Sea Arches
 Stacks
 Sea Cliff

Beaches:
The sea waves deposit sediments along the shore; formed beaches.

Sea Caves:
When sea waves continuously strike at the rocks; cracks develop;
over time they become larger and wider. By this cave formed on the
rocks called sea caves.
Sea Arches:
As the cave becomes bigger and bigger; only the roof of caves
remain; thus forming sea arches
Stacks:
Further erosion breaks the roof of sea arches. Only walls like
structure are left; these wall-like features are called stacks.

Over time, Sea cave to Sea Arches to Stacks

Sea Cliff:
The steep rocky coast rising almost vertically above the seawater is
called sea cliff.

Landform created by Ice:

The following are the landforms:
 Glaciers
 Glacial Moraines

Glaciers
Glaciers are the "river of ice" that too erode the landscape by
bulldozing soils & stones to expose the solid rocks from below.
A beautiful lake in the mountains is created when the ice melts.

Glacial Moraines:
The materials carried by the glacier such as big rocks, small rocks,
sand, and silt gets deposited; these deposits form Glacial Moraines.

Landform created by Winds

The following landforms:

 Mushroom rocks
 Sand Dunes
 Loess

Mushroom rocks:
The wind is the active agent of erosion and deposition in the desert
ecosystem. When the winds erode lower section of rocks more than
the upper part of rocks; rocks left with mushroom-like structure with
a narrow base and wider top; is called mushroom rock.

Sand Dunes:
When winds blow in the desert ecosystem, it takes sand with them
and transport from one place to another places. When winds stop
blowing, the sand fall and get deposited in low hill like structure
called sand dunes.

Loess
When sands are deposited in large areas; it is called loess

(4)AIR
Summary Notes
Atmosphere: Our earth is surrounded by a huge blanket of air called
atmosphere.

Use of atmosphere:

 Provide us the air we breathe.

 Protect us from the harmful effects of the Sun rays.
 Without the atmosphere, we could be burned during the day
and get frozen during the night; Atmosphere has made earth
livable.
 Without the atmosphere, the water cycle cannot be complete.

What is the greenhouse gas effect?

Carbon dioxide and other gases in the atmosphere trap the heat
radiated from the earth and make the earth warm at night. This is
called a greenhouse gas effect.

What is global warming?

When the level of CO2 in the atmosphere increase due to the burning
of fossil fuels and other means; at the result, it is able to trap more
heat in the atmosphere and resulted in global temperature on the
earth gets rise; this phenomenon is called global warming.

Effects of global warming:

 The rise in global temperature
 Causes snow melt from glaciers; at result sea level rises.
  The temperature of seawater increase; water expand when it
warm; at result sea level rising.
 Submergence of coastal plains and islands due to sea level
rising.
 Drastic changes in the climate of places; lead to the extinction
of some plants and animals in long run.

Composition of atmosphere:

 Nitrogen: 78 %
 Oxygen: 21 %
 Argon: 0.93 %
 Carbon dioxide: 0.03 %
 All other: 0.04 %

Name the different layers of the atmosphere.
There are five different layers of the atmosphere:
1. Troposphere (0-11/18)km
2. Stratosphere (18-50)km
3. Mesosphere (50-80)km
4. Thermo or ionosphere (80-1000)km
5. Exosphere (1000 to 3000)km
Layers of atmosphere

Troposphere: 
The following are the characteristics of the troposphere:
 Height of troposphere decrease from the equator ( 18 km ) to
poles( 11 km)
 All the weather phenomena such as cloud formation, thunder,
etc are found in this layer.
 Greenhouse gases are found 
 Air Pressure and temperature decrease when we go up from
the earth in the troposphere
 Vertical movement of air due to heating 
 75% of the air of the atmosphere is found in this layer.
 99% of water vapour are found in this layer.
 Tropo pause(boundary b/w troposphere and stratosphere) is
found at the top of the troposphere.
Stratosphere:

The following are the characteristics of the stratosphere:

 This is the second layer from the earth and goes up to 50 km.
 The ozone layer is found at the bottom of the stratosphere.
 Temperature increases with height due to the absorption of
UV- rays by the ozone layer.
 Polar stratospheric clouds are found in this layer.
 Calm atmosphere.
 In the lower stratosphere, commercial planes and jets fly.
Mesosphere:

The following are the characteristics of the Mesosphere:

 This is the third layer and goes up to 80 km.
 Most Meteors burn in this layer
 Temperature decrease with height
 -900c temperature is in mesopause( topmost)
Thermosphere:
 Thermosphere or Ionosphere
The following are the characteristics:
It extends from 80 to 1000 km
 High energy such as X-Ray and UV radiation are absorbed and
temperature increase with height
 Temperature riches up to 1500 degree but you will feel cold
because of very low air molecules.
  Colourful Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australia can be seen
here.
 The international space station is in this layer.

Exosphere:

 The exosphere is up to half distance from the earth to the

moon(3000km).
 A very very low atmospheric molecule made of mostly Helium
& Hydrogen
 It absorbs most of the harmful radiations. 

Weather and Climate

Weather:
Weather is hour to hour and day to day condition of the atmosphere.

Climate:
The sum of the weather condition of place for a very long period of
time (more than 30 years) is the climate of that place.

Insolation:
Insolation is the incoming solar energy intercepted by the earth. The
amount of insolation decrease from the equator towards poles;
therefore temperature decrease in the same manner. That why pole
is covered with snow.
Air pressure

Why do we not feel the air pressure?

Air press us from all the direction and our body exert on counter
pressure.
Air pressure exerted by the weight of air on the earth's surface.
When we go up, air pressure falls rapidly. Air pressure is highest at
sea level.

Low-pressure area: It is created by the heating of air. Air rises in the

low-pressure area.
Heavy air sinks and creates high-pressure area.

Wind:
Movement of air from a high-pressure area to a low-pressure area;
this movement is called wind.
A wind is named after the direction from which it blows. For
example, Westerly winds blow from the west.

Three types of winds:

 Permanent winds
 Seasonal Winds
 Local winds

Permanent winds: These blow constantly through the year in

particular directions.

 Trade winds
 Westerlies
  Easterlies

Seasonal winds:
It changes the direction in different seasons. For example, Monsoon.

Local winds:
Winds blow a particular direction in a particular area.
For example, land & sea breeze
Loo, dry and hot air in the northern area.

Moisture:
When the water evaporated from land and water bodies and
remains in the atmosphere, this evaporated water is called moisture.

Humidity:
Moisture (amount) in the air at any time is called known humidity.

How clouds are formed?

When water vapour rises, it starts cooling and water vapours
condense and form clouds.

Types of rainfall:

 Orographic (rainfall due to upliftment of moist air due to a

mountain/mountain ranges)
 Conventional (rainfall due to heating of water with sun rays ,
evapourating , condensing)
 Cyclonic rainfall (due to cyclone)

Jet planes leave whitetail in the sky due to condensing moisture

above the height.
 (5)WATER
Summary Notes
World water day: 22 March

Terrarium: 
It is an artificial enclosure for keeping small house plants. The water
cycle exists in the terrarium.
Our earth is like a terrarium, the same water has existed a century
ago.

Water cycle:
The process of which water continuously changes its form in a cyclic
manner and circulated between oceans, the atmosphere, and the
land is known as the water cycle.
The circulation of all the water on the earth's surface is called the
water cycle. The following diagrams show the water cycle.

97.3 % of the earth's water is found in the oceans. It is salty water that has
sodium chloride.
Freshwater sources:

 Glaciers and icecaps: 2 % of earth water.

 Groundwater: 0.68 %
 Lake & Ponds: 0.009 %
 Atmosphere: 0.0019 %
 River: 0.0001 %

Salinity:
Salinity is the amount of salt in gram present in 1000 grams of water. The
average salinity of ocean water is around 35 parts per thousand.
The salinity of the dead sea in Israel is approx. 340 grams per 1000 grams of
water.

Ocean Circulation:
The movement that occurs in the ocean can be broadly categorized as
Wave, Tides, and Current.

Wave:
Waves are formed when winds press across the ocean surface. The stronger
the winds blow, the bigger the wave generates. Rise and fall of ocean water
alternatively are called a wave.
During storms; high-speed winds form huge waves.
Earthquake, volcanic eruption or landslide underwater can shift a large
amount of water called Tsunami. Tsunamis cause very high tide waves
around 15m high and do large destruction along the coast.

Tides:
Rise and fall of ocean water twice in a day is called Tide.
Types of tides:
Two types

 Neap Tide – occurs after 7 days of a springtide , when sun earth and
moon are in 90o angle.
 Springtide; It has during a full moon and new moon days.

Uses of High Tides:

 It helps in navigation
 It helps large ships to reach the harbour
 Fishing
 To generate electricity.

Ocean Currents:
Ocean currents are streams of water flowing in definite directions. There are
two types of ocean current:

 Warm Current
 Cold current

Warm Ocean current:

Originates near the equator and move towards the poles.
For example Gulf Stream current.

Cold current:
Carry water from poles or higher latitudes to lower latitudes.
For examples, Labrador ocean current

Fishing hots spots: The region where hot and cold water currents meet is the
best fishing ground in the world. It also makes foggy weather; it makes
difficulty in navigation.
For example, Area around Japan, Eastern coast of America.

(6)NATURAL VEGETATION AND WILD

LIFE
Summary Notes
Types and Growth of Vegetation depend on:

 Height from Sea level

 Climatic condition
 Temperature
 Moisture
 Slope of landforms
 Soil thickness

Natural vegetations are in three types:

 Forest
 Grassland
 Shrubs

Forest:
Forest are grown where rainfall is much to support the tree.
Based on the density, there are two types of forest:

 Dense
 Open Forest

Based on the temperature and rainfall, the following are the types:

 Tropical forest:
 Tropical Evergreen Forests
 Tropical Deciduous Forest
 Temperate Forest:
 Temperate evergreen forest
 Temperature deciduous forest
 Mediterranean Vegetation
 Coniferous forest

Tropical Evergreen Forest:

It is also called tropical rainforests. These are thick forests occuring in
the region near the equator and close to tropic regions.

The following are characteristics:

 The very hot and humid region; receiving maximum rainfall
throughout the year.
 No dry seasons
 Trees do not shed their leaves altogether; that’s why appear
evergreen.
 These are closely spaced trees and do not allow sunlight to
penetrate the forest even in the daytime.
  Hard wood trees such as Rosewood, Ebony, and Mahogany are
found in this forest.
 Anaconda, the largest snake is found in the tropical forests.

Tropical Deciduous Forests:

 These are monsoon forests;

 These are found in India, northern Australia, and Central
America
 Trees shed their leaves in the dry season to conserve water.
 Hardwood trees such as Sal, Teak, and Neem are found in the
tropical deciduous forest.
 Animals such as Tiger, Lion, Elephant, Monkey, and leopard is
found in these forests.

Temperate Evergreen Forest:

It is located in Mid-latitude. They are commonly found along the

eastern margin of continents.

For example,

 South East USA

 South China
 southeast Brazil
 Both hardwood and softwood trees are found here such as Oak
and Pine
Temperate Deciduous forest.

These are found in the higher latitudinal or temperate zone of the

earth - in the north-eastern part of the USA, China, and New Zealand.
Animal-like deers, foxes, and wolves are found in this forest.

Mediterranean Vegetation:

Summer is dry and winter is wet.

Mediterranean vegetation areas are:
 Around Mediterranean sea
 California in the USA
 South West Africa and South America
 Southwestern part of Australia
 Citrus fruits such as orange, grapes, olives, etc are found

Coniferous Forest:

 These forests are found in 50 to 70-degree latitudes of the

northern hemisphere.
 The coniferous forest also called Taiga.
 Taiga forest is tall and evergreen and are used in paper
industries, matchbox, packing box
 Plants: Chirr, Spruce, Pine, Cedar are major plants
 Animal-like Silver fox, mink, and polar bear are found in this
forest.
Grasslands

Grasslands are found in areas when not much rainfall happens.

The following are the types of Grasslands.
1. Tropical Grassland:

Tropical grasslands are found on either side of the equator and

extend till the tropics.
Tropical grasslands get moderate to low amount of rainfall.
Grasses can grow tall as much 3 to 4 meters high.
The following are the examples:

 Savanna in East Africa

 Campos in Brazil
 Liana in Venezuela

2. Temperate Grasslands:
It is found in mid latitudinal zones and interior parts of
continents.
Grasses are short.
Animals are wild buffalo and Bison
The following are the examples:

Pampas: Argentina
Prairie: North America
Veld: South Africa
Steppe: Central Africa
Down: Australia
 3. Thorny Bushes:
These are found in a dry desert region; also called the Tundra
region.

Tropical deserts are found on the western margin of

continents.

(7)HUMAN
ENVIRONMENT:SETTLEMENT,
TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATION
Summary Notes

What is the site?

The place where a building or a settlement develops is called site.

Favourable natural condition for selecting the site:

 The good or moderate climate

 Availability of Potable water
 Fertile land
 Suitable land or topography

What is human Settlement?

Settlements are places where people built their homes. Early humans
were settled on trees and caves; later they settle along with the river
site with fertile land and sufficient water available round the year.

The following civilization developed along with river valley:

 Indus valley civilization: Indus river

 Mesopotamia: Tigris river
 The Nile or Egyptian civilization: the Nile river
 Chinese civilization: Yellow river

Types of Settlements:

 Temporary Settlement
 Permanent Settlement
 Rural Settlement
 Compact
 Scattered
 Urban Settlement
 Town or small urban settlement
 City or large urban settlement

Temporary Settlement

The settlement which is occupied for a short time; is called

temporary settlement. For example, settlement in deep forest, hot
and cold desert, and mountains. They practice hunting, gathering,
shifting, cultivation, and Transhumance (moving livestock).
Transhumance:
It is a special seasonal movement of people who rear animals and
mover other locations in search of the new locations.

Permanent Settlement
In the permanent settlement, people build homes to stay
permanently. They grow crops in villages and they do some kinds of
jobs in the city.

Rural settlement:
Villages are rural settlements where people are engaged in activities
like Agriculture, fishing, craft works and trading.

In rural areas, people built the house suitable for local climatic
conditions.

 In heavy rainfall areas; houses with a slanting roof

 In water logging areas; houses are constructed on raised places
 In hot climate; Thick mud-walled houses

Rural settlement can be:

 Compact
 Scattered

Compact settlement:
The compact settlement is a densely built area or the dwelling.
Northern Indian plains are the example of compact settlement.

Scattered settlement:
Scattered settlement or dwellings are placed over extensive
 areas. These types of dwellings are found in the mountain
regions, desert regions, and dense forest regions and extreme
climate or topographical regions.

Urban Settlement
Urban people are engaged in the manufacturing, trading, and
services sector.

What are the problems in the cities:

The following are the problems:

 Traffic and congestion

 Unhygienic condition
 Shortage of power and water supply
 Slum areas
 Shortage of houses
 Pollution such as air, water, noise pollution

Transport
Transport is the means by which people and goods move around the
world.

Ancient times; Walking and animals were the only ways of transport.

 India: Donkey, Moles, Buffalo, Camel

 South America: Llamas
 Tibet: Yaks
 The later invention of the wheel added speed.
Over time, Van and Aeroplane are developed.
Modern means of transport saves time and energy.

Four major means of transport are:

 Roadways
 Railways
 Waterway
 Airways

Roadways
It is a commonly used means of transport, especially for short
distances.
They can be:
 Metalled: Pucca
 Un-Metalled: Kutcha

Manali-Leh highway is one of the highest roadways in the

world.
Subways/under path; roads built underground
the flyover is built on a raised structure.
Golden Quadrilateral connects Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and
Kolkata.

Railways
 It carries heavy goods & people over long distances quickly &
cheaply.
  The invention of the steam engine helps in speedy
development in the industrial revolution
 Later, diesel & electric engines replace the steam engines.
 Trans-Siberian railways are the longest railways system in
Russia that runs from St. Petersburg in western Russia to
Vladivostok in eastern Russia.

Waterways
It is the cheapest for carrying heavy and bulky goods over long
distances.
Waterways in two types:

 Inland waterways
 Sea routes.

Inland waterways:

 Ganga Brahmaputra river

 Great Lakes in North America
 Niles in Africa

Sea route:
Seaport is used to transfer goods from one place to another.

Airways
 This is the fastest way of transport in modern times.
 It is also the most expensive due to high fuels cost
  Air traffic is adversely affected by bad weather and fog
 The helicopter is extremely useful in most inaccessible
locations.

Communication
Communication is the process of conveying a message to others. The
following medium of communications are used:

 Newspaper
 Radio
 Television
 Satellites
 Internet
 Telephone communication through cellular phone

Newspaper.
It is also called mass media because it communicated with a large
number of people

Satellite:
It is a faster and secure way of communication.
It helps:
 Oil Exploration
 Survey of forest
 Disaster warning
 Military communication
Internet:
Used to:

Book tickets
 Send electronic mail

(8)HUMAN ENVIRONMENT
INTERACTIONS: THE TROPICAL AND
SUBTROPICAL REGION
Summary Notes
The tropical region:
The region between tropic of Cancer and tropic of Capricorn is called
the Tropical region.

Equatorial region:
It lies close to the equator. The region between 10 degrees N and 10
degrees S is called the equatorial region.

Life in the Amazon Basin

 Areas
 Climate
  Rainforest
 People

Areas
Amazon River flows from west in South America to the Atlantic
Ocean in the east.
Basin of the Amazon basin spread in:

 Columbia
 Equator
 Peru
 Venezuela
 Bolivia
 Brazil

Note: Bolivia and Paraguay are the landlocked countries of

South America

Climate.

 It is in the equatorial region

 The hot and wet climate throughout the year
 Both day and night are almost equally hot & humid
 Skin feels sticky
 Everyday rains
 At night temperature goes down but remains very humid.
Rainforest:
As Amazon region gets very heavy rainfall and hence very thick
rainforests are found.
Forest are so thick that leaves & branches of the tree do not allow
the sunlight to reach the ground.

The ground remains dark. Only Torrent vegetation such as Orchids,

Bromeliads, and plants parasite are found in the tree branches.
Areas are rich in flora and fauna and an extraordinarily rich variety of
life such as snakes, pythons, reptiles, and crocodiles exist.

People
 People grow food in small areas
 Women take care of crops and men hunts & fish every day in
the rivers
 Slash and burn is the way of cultivation. In India, we called it
Jhum cultivation.
 Cash crops like coffee, maize, and cocoa are grown.
 1970, Trans Amazon highway has made all part of rainforest
accessible.
 Rainforest has been disappearing annually.
 Destruction of the forest, washing away of the topsoil are the
major reasons for the barren landscape.

Life in Ganga Brahmaputra Basin.

The basin lies in the subtropical region (23.3 degrees north to 30
degrees north)
Tributaries of Ganga River:

 Ghaghara
 Son
 Chambal
 Gandak
 Kosi

Main features and landforms developed by these rivers:

 Sundarban delta
 Oxbow lake
 plains area
Roles in the distribution of the population:
 Environment role; the mild climate is preferable
 Water availability
 Topography; steep slopes are inhabitable terrains.
 High population density is found in the plain areas. As plain
areas have fertile land and flat surface are ideal for growing
crops.
 Less human settlement in mountains range

Population density:

 Bihar: 1102
 West Bengal: 1029
  Uttarakhand: 189

Major crops:
 Maize
 Wheat
 Millets
 Gram
 Soybean

Cash crops:
 Sugar Cane
 Jute
 Tea
 Silk

Vegetation cover:
Depending on the types of landforms, the following are the types of
vegetations:
In Ganga Brahmputra plains: Tropical deciduous trees such as teak,
sal, pipal are found.

In the Brahmputra plains: Thick bamboo and mangrove forest are

found.
The coniferous trees are found in Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and
Arunachal Pradesh plains, due to steep slopes and cool climate.

Wildlife:

 Elephants, tiger, deer, Money

 One-horned rhinoceros
  Aquatic animals.
 Fish:
 Dolphins(Susu blinds)
 Rohu
 Catla
 Hilsa
 Fish and rice are stapled diets of living in West
Bengal regions.

Terraces:
Terraces are built on steep slopes to create a flat surface on which
crops are grown.

Big cities:

 Allahabad
 Kanpur
 Varanasi
 Lucknow
 Patna
 Kolkata
Wastes from these cities and industries waste discharge in the river
causes water pollution in the Ganga.
 (9)LIFE IN THE TEMPERATE
GRASSLANDS
Summary Notes
As in the forest, the main vegetations are tress. Grasslands can be
defined as the region where grasses are the main vegetation and
they dominate over trees. As of now, 25 % of the earth's surface is
covered by grass. Climate and soil play an important role in the
growth of grasses.

Types of grassland:
There are two types of grassland.
 Temperate Grassland
 Prairies( meaning meadow) in North America
 Velds in South Africa
 Pampas in South America
 Steppes in Eurasia
 Tropical Grassland
 Savannas in Africa
 IIanos in Colombia and Venezuela 

The Prairies
The following are the characteristics of Prairies:

 It is the temperate grassland of North America

  It is bounded by Rocky Mountains in the west and great lakes in
the east; it is part of the USA and Canada.
 In the USA, the area drained by the Missippi river and in
Canada areas drained by the Saskatchewan river makes it the
areas of Prairies.
 This region is the home of native American and also called
"Red Indians".
 The region is flat, gently slope or hilly land.
 It is generally treeless but woodlands can be found in low lying
plains.
 It is like a sea of grass which are up to two meters high

The climate of Prairies:

 Since the prairies are located in the heart of continents, hence

the climate is continental with extreme temperature:
 Summer: 20oC
 Winter: -20oC
 Annual rainfall is moderate; ideal for the growth of grass.
 Due to the absence of the North-South barrier, local hot winds
"Chinook" blow here in winter and raises the temperature
within a short period of time.

Flora and Fauna:

 This region is suitable for farming as characterized by fertile soil

and have sufficient water. Major crops are Maize, Soybeans,
Wheat, and cotton.
  Prairies are also known as "Granaries of the world" due to a
huge surplus of wheat production.
 It is also suitable for cattle rearing; large cattle forms called the
Ranches. Bison or American Buffalo got extinct due to
indiscriminate hunting.
 A large reserve of coal, iron ore, forestry, good networks of
roads, railways is also found in this region.

The Velds

The following are the characteristics of the Velds Grasslands:

 It is a temperate grassland found in South Africa

 Velds are rolling plateaus with varying height.
 It is bounded by Drakensberg Mountains on East and Kalahari
Desert on the west.
 Rivers:
 Orange 
 Limpopo

The climate of Velds:

 Mild climate due to influences of the Indian ocean

 Winter- cold and dry. July is the coldest month.
 Summer- Short, warm, and Wet. Johansburg recorded 20oC
temperature in summer.
Flora and Fauna:
  Red grasses are found
 Sparsely vegetation cover
 Animal: Lion, Leopard, Cheetah
 It is known for cattle rearing and mining
 Sheep rearing
 Wool industry
 Dairy farming
 Minerals: Coal, iron, diamond, and gold.
 Johansburg is known for the Gold capital of the world.
 Kimberley is famous for diamond mining.
 Soils are not very fertile, however, crops are grown where
fertile land founds. 
 Major crops are Maize, Wheat, barley, oats, and potato.
 Major cash crops are Tabaco, Sugar cane, and cotton.

(10)LIFE IN THE DESERTS

Summary notes
Characteristics of Deserts:

 It is a region characterized by extremely high or low

temperature
 Some places are as hot as fire
 Some places are as cold as ice
 Having very low rainfall and scant(little) vegetation
Types of Deserts:
On the basis of temperature, there are two types of deserts:

 Hot desert
 The Sahara Desert in Africa
 Cold desert
 The Ladakh desert

The Sahara Desert

History of Sahara Desert:

It was once to have lush green plants. The cave painting of Sahara
desert shows, there were rivers with crocodiles, elephant, lion,
ostrich, sheep, and goats.

The following are the characteristics of the Sahara Desert at present:

 It is the world largest desert having 8.54 million square

KM( India' areas is only 3.2 Million Square KM)
 It is spread into 11( eleven) countries:
 In the North: Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia
 In the eastern: Sudan
 In the central Part: Chad, Niger
 Western Side: Western Sahara, Mali, Mauritania,
Morocco
  Surface features:
 Sand
 Plains
 Elevated Plateaus
 Bare rocky surface

The climate in Sahara:

 Hot day temperature: 50 degrees C.

 Cold day temperature goes below: 0 degrees C
 The sky is clear and cloudless
 Moisture evaporates faster than it accumulated.

Flora and Fauna:

 Vegetation:
 Cactus, dates, palms.
 Animals: 
 Camels, Hyenas, Jackals, Foxes, Scorpions, Snakes, and
Lizards

People:

 Bedousing and Tuaregs are the nomadic Tribes.

 Goats, sheep, and Camels are important livestock.

Minerals: Iron ore, Petroleum, Phosphorous, Manganese, and

Uranium are important minerals.
What is Oasis?
Larges areas where water is available in the desert are called Oasis.

How the Oasis formed?

Depression is formed and the winds blow aways the sands. In the
depression, underground water reaches the surface and Oasis is
formed. These areas are fertile.

The Ladakh-A cold desert

Ladakh= La( means Mountains) + Dak( means country)

Ladakh lies in the great Himalayas;

 wester side: Jammu and Kashmir

 North: Karakoram Range
 South: Zaskar
Indus is the main river and it forms deep valley & gorges.

Altitudes:

 Kargil: 3000 metres

 Karakoram: 8000 Metres