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South America South America • 12% of world’s landmass • 6% of world’s population • Vast majority of people live within 500 miles of coast • Vast interior is sparsely populated • Northern area is all tropical – south of the Tropic of Capricorn the climate is more temperate, and very cool in the highlands • South America is dominated by 2 landforms: Amazon and Andes Amazon • World’s largest river by far • Nile is longer (by about 40 miles), but Amazon covers far more ground – as much as 60 miles wide at some points • Discharges 50 billion gallons of water per second into Atlantic Ocean Andes • 50 peaks higher than 20,000 feet (highest is Aconcagua in Argentina) • 4,500 miles long and gets to 400 miles wide • Subject to violent earthquakes and volcanoes Incas • First people came to South America about 9000 BCE • Incan empire – 1150 CE until Pizzaro arrived about 300 years later • Known for intricate architecture of massive stone blocks • Capital at Cuzco in modern-day Peru Environments • Llanos – grassland and open dry forests of Colombia and Venezuela • Pampas - tall grassland in Argentina and Uruguay known for Argentine cowboys (gauchos) Brazil • 5th largest country in the world – home to more than half of South America’s people • Sao Paolo – world’s 4th largest city • History marked by military & corruption • Largest South American economy, largest maldistribution of wealth in world (though improving) • World Cup 2014, Olympics 2016 Brazil • Local oil provides 60% of Brazil’s energy needs – other 40% from sugarcane ethanol. • Rapidly industrializing – preparing for World Cup and Olympics • 83% urbanized • 1/3 of them in favelas – Brazilian urban shantytowns (poverty is similar to Haiti in favelas) Colombia • South America’s 2nd largest country (pop.) • Only S.A. country to have coastline on Caribbean and Pacific • Focal point of international drug trade • Anti-government insurgency ongoing for decades Argentina • Vast natural and human resources make it a natural candidate for economic leadership, but military dictatorships and corruption have prevented that • Still has S.A.’s highest per capita GDP • Argentina and Uruguay are S.A.’s only predominantly white nations Venezuela • Largest oil reserves in the Western Hemisphere • U.S. gets 10% of its oil here • Economy completely dependent on oil prices • Huge wealth disparity between Europeans and native & African descendants • President Hugo Chavez was a divisive figure, strong socialist policies conflicting with U.S. ideology Bolivia • La Paz is world’s highest capital city • 1 of only 2 landlocked countries in S.A. (Paraguay) • History of coups and poverty – remains South America’s poorest country The Guyanas • Guyana – British and Dutch roots whose people are from India & Africa (British colonial influence) • Suriname – also Dutch and English roots with inhabitants being from the East Indies – Dutch speaking • French Guiana – still a department of France and famous for Devil’s Island penal colony