Core regions are the most developed and highly populated regions of a country
Switched On
USA
UK
Europe
Switched Off
North Korea
Censorship,
No
international
calls allowed
and
propaganda
played
throughout the
country
Chad
Landlocked
Libya
Internet was
completely
turned off
Shrinking world - Time Space Compression
Telephones
The first telephone and telegraph
cables across the Atlantic replaced
a 3-week boat journey with
instantaneous communication
This revolutionised how
business was conducted and
laid the ground for TNCs to
operate in different continents
Remains a core technology for
communicating across distance
In parts of Africa where telephone
lines have never been laid, people
are technologically 'leap-frogging'
straight to mobile phone use
In 2005, a system was
introduced that allows people
to buy cash vouchers and
transfer credit to businesses,
customers or family members
via mobile phones
The internet
With the advent of broadband, large amounts of data can be quickly moved across cyberspace
Office staff can
work from home
Enables firms to employ workers and consultants living in different countries
Music companies can e-mail sound recordings to be
remixed by producers working in different countries
Disney can produce
animated films using experts
in different countries all
working at the same time
Air Travel
Aerospace technology continues to evolve
Faster aeroplanes produced in
greater numbers and with
increased capacity
Firms like
easyJet have
pioneered
low-cost no-frills
mass air travel
Cutting-edge designs like the Airbus
A380 (carries 550) are set to increase
air passenger numbers even further
GIS and GPS
The first global
positioning system satellite
was launched in the 1970s
Now 24 in orbit
- 10,000km
above Earth
GIS are
software
systems that
can collect,
manage and
analyse
satellite date
Connections between nodes or global hubs (especially connected) are called flows.
Flows are movements of: Money, Raw materials, Manufactured goods and services, Information and People
Trade and migration flows have
increased due to technology, market
forces and political decisions
What happens in one
place increasingly has
impacts on other places
If a firm in one nation goes bust,
then workers in branch plants in
other nations will lose their jobs too
Global hubs and other major network nodes are
switched-on places possessing qualities that
make other places want to connect with them