The course divides urban geography into two subfields . The first is the study of systems of cities, focusing on where cities are located and why they are there . This involves an examination of such topics as the current and historical distribution of cities; the political, economic, and cultural functions of cities; reasons for differential growth among cities; and types of transportation and communication linkages among cities . Theories of settlement geography, such as Christaller’s central place theory, the rank-size rule, and the gravity model, are introduced . Quantitative information on such topics as population growth, migration, zones of influence, and employment is used to analyze changes in the urban hierarchy .The second subfield focuses on the form, internal structure, and landscapes of cities and emphasizes what cities are like as places in which to live and work . Students are introduced to such topics as the analysis of patterns of urban land use, ethnic segregation, types of intracity transportation, architectural traditions (e .g ., neoclassical, modern, postmodern), cycles of uneven development, and environmental justice (e .g ., the disproportionate location of polluting industries in low-income or minority residential areas) . Students’ understanding of cities as places is enhanced by 

both quantitative data from the census and qualitative information from narrative The course divides urban geography into two subfields . The first is the study of systems of cities, focusing on where cities are located and why they are there . This involves an examination of such topics as the current and historical distribution of cities; the political, economic, and cultural functions of cities; reasons for differential growth among cities; and types of transportation and communication linkages among cities . Theories of settlement geography, such as Christaller’s central place theory, the rank-size rule, and the gravity model, are introduced . Quantitative information on such topics as population growth, migration, zones of influence, and employment is used to analyze changes in the urban hierarchy .

The second subfield focuses on the form, internal structure, and landscapes of cities and emphasizes what cities are like as places in which to live and work . Students are introduced to such topics as the analysis of patterns of urban land use, ethnic segregation, types of intracity transportation, architectural traditions (e .g ., neoclassical, modern, postmodern), cycles of uneven development, and environmental justice (e .g ., the disproportionate location of polluting industries in low-income or minority residential areas) . Students’ understanding of cities as places is enhanced by both quantitative data from the census and qualitative information from narrative