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Kansas is the center of 48 states

Absolute location:    37-40*N, 94-102*W

Relative location: land locked, shaped like a rectangle with a bite, next to CO, below NE, Missouri river is only natural border

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The elevation rises 3,325.5 ft from East to West

Eastern Kansas is hilly

Western Kansas has high plains

Great Plains

1/3 of Kansas is prairie

80% of a prairie is underground

Kansas used to be covered by a shallow ocean of salt water called the Permian Sea

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All rivers and streams in Kansas sooner or later drain into Mississippi River, then go into the Gulf of Mexico

The aquifer is a source of water that was created long ago

The biggest use for aquifer is for irrigation

Helps our community by growing crops

Kansas has almost all the largest lakes because of flood control

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Temperatures change during different seasons

Wind is a dominant feature of the Kansas climate

In Eastern Kansas the average precipitation is 40 inches and in arid Western Kansas it's 18 inches per year

In Kansas we have tornadoes, blizzards, floods, and droughts

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Kansas has some of the best soils in the world

Kansas has over 1,600 varieties of blooming plants

Less than 4% of Kansas is covered with forests

Hardwoods are the most common trees in Kansas

Animals in Kansas today have adapted to the prairies

There are over 3,500 different types of insects in Kansas

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Kansas can be divided into 11 physiographic regions

Red Hills contains hills red with iron oxide

Glaciated Region got its name from the glaciers that covered the Northern side of the United States

Ozark Plateau has  the oldest surface rock in Kansas

The Arkansas River has been carrying debris for a long time

Flint Hills are one of the last tallgrass prairies in the country

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Technology is given us the ability to remove gas, zinc, oil, coal, etc

Nature alters our lives

Humans tried to learn to work with the environment

When settlers came to Kansas they built their homes out of wood and sod

The environment and people have a complex relationship

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Services and goods are moved in and out of Kansas

Kansas always has been a crossroads

Settlers passed through Kansas before it was even open for settlement

People, information, and ideas travel around Kansas