Ch 12 & 13 - The Rocky Mountains and The Intermontane West Regions

The Rocky Mountains (pictured left) and the Intermontane West (pictured right) cover a large portion of the western United States. The Rocky Mountains contain some of the highest and most dramatic points in the US, and the Intermontane West is also home to breathtakingly beautiful landscapes. Together, these regions include the states of: Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, and parts of Montana, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, and New Mexico. 

Geographically, Philadelphia's highest elevation is just 445 feet above elevation at Chestnut Hill, this is very different from the Rocky Mountains. Skyscrapers now dominate the visual and literal space in the sky of Philly. 

Center City, Philly.
City Hall with William Penn on top surrounded by other buildings

This was not always the case, however. Before 1987, builders in Philadelphia had a gentleman's agreement that William Penn, atop City Hall, would always be the tallest man in the city. After this, however, as globalization and commerce became more prevalent, skyscrapers were quickly built and Penn's statue was far surpassed. After this, no professional sports team in Philadelphia won a championship. Skeptics in the city blamed this slump on the buildings taller than Will Penn. This belief was named "Billy's Curse" and continued to plague sports teams. 

Firefighters mounting a small statue of Will Penn

This was changed in June of 2007, when a small replica of William Penn was put on top of the Comcast Center, the tallest building in the city.  William Penn once again became the tallest man in the city. 

One year and four months later, the Phillies went on to win the 2008 World Series and "Billy's Curse" was ended.

This was extremely relieving to city dwellers. So impactful in fact, that Comcast itself made several commercials celebrating the end of Billy's Curse. Here is one of them: 

 

So while Philadelphia is not as geographically diverse or beautiful as the Rocky Mountains or the Intermontane West, the city has always known who should be the highest point in the city: the founder himself, William Penn. 

Ch 11- The Great Plains

The Great Plains region of the United States includes 12 states: Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico; and parts of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, all of which are provinces in Canada. 

The region, while often thought of as flat and boring, is actually quite geographically diverse. It also produces 99% of the worlds wheat! (Shelley 216). There is also great potential here for wind energy. 

People in the area are also working to diversify their economy so they are less dependent on agriculture. The agriculturally based economy has historically been detrimental to the Great Plains. Most notably, the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression in the 1930's had horrific consequences to the landscape and the peoples' livelihood. 

The population here is moving toward a more urban environment. Several Universities in the region are helping greatly transition to a more urban area that focuses on Tertiary and Quaternary sector activities. Major colleges exist in most every major city of the Great Plains. Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Kansas City, and Omaha all have large universities that have helped greatly create a more urban and diverse population and economy. 

Universities in Philly have also been very important. Colleges in here are well known for their academic prestige (and being in a great college town). Notable universities in the Philly region: University of Pennsylvania,  Philadelphia University, La Salle, Chesnut Hill College, Temple University, Drexel University and Thomas Jefferson Medical University. Many of these are research colleges with highly acclaimed graduate programs. 

UPenn, Drexel, Temple, and Jefferson all boast excellent medical programs. As a result, the hospitals around Philadelphia are known for their excellence. According to US News, 21 out of the 93 hospitals in the Philadelphia metropolitan area are listed as top-ranking.

These excellent universities add to the city's diversity, intelligence and overall economy. The colleges in the Great Plains will continue to help the region prosper and transition toward a new economy.

The UPenn campus in the foreground and Philly skyline behind