|
World
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
For other uses, see World (disambiguation).
Antarctica
Oceania
Africa
Asia
Europe
North
America
South
America
Pacific
Ocean
Pacific
Ocean
Atlantic
Ocean
Indian
Ocean
Southern Ocean
Arctic Ocean
Middle East
Caribbean
Central
Asia
East Asia
North Asia
South
Asia
Southeast
Asia
SW.
Asia
Australasia
Melanesia
Micronesia
Polynesia
Central
America
Latin
America
Northern
America
Americas
C.
Africa
E.
Africa
N.
Africa
Southern
Africa
W.
Africa
C.
Europe
E.
Europe
N.
Europe
S.
Europe
W.
Europe
The world is a proper noun for the planet Earth envisioned from an anthropocentric or human worldview, as a place inhabited by human beings. It is often used to signify the sum of human experience and history, or the 'human condition' in general.[1] There were approximately 6.6 billion (or 6600 million) people living on the Earth as of April 2006. [2]
Especially in a metaphysical context, World may refer to everything that constitutes reality and the Universe: see World (philosophy).
Contents
* 1 Etymology
* 2 Usage
* 3 Physical characteristics
o 3.1 Earth dimensions
o 3.2 Continents and population
* 4 See also
* 5 External links
* 6 References
[edit] Etymology
In English, world may be parsed as rooted in a compound of the obsolete words were, »man«, and eld, »age«; thus, its etymology may be semantically rendered as »age or life of man«.[3]
[edit] Usage
The World in plate carrée projection
The World in plate carrée projection
'World' distinguishes the entire planet or population from any particular country or region: world affairs are those which pertain not just to one place but to the whole world, and world history is a field of history which examines events from a global (rather than a national or a regional) perspective. Earth, on the other hand, refers to the planet as a physical entity, and distinguishes it from other planets and physical objects.
In Christian theology, the 'World' connotes the corrupt, mortal order of society outside the community of believers (which is worldly as opposed to heavenly). It is often cited alongside the flesh and the Devil as a source of temptation that Christians should flee. The adjective worldly refers to world in this sense: 'mortal', 'mundane', 'devoted to the interests of this world'. See World (theology).
'World' can also be used attributively, as an adjective, to mean 'global', 'relating to the whole world', forming usages such as World community. See World (adjective).
By extension, a 'world' may refer to any planet or heavenly body, especially when it is thought of as inhabited.
In the study of religion and mythology, the Underworld is a place, often thought of as below the world, where souls go upon death. In some mythologies there were numerous underworlds, the choice of which depended on the soul's virtue or worth: the Elysian Fields are an example from Roman religion.
'World', when qualified, can also refer to a particular domain of human experience.
* The world of work describes paid work and the pursuit of a career, in all its social aspects, to distinguish it from home life and academic study.
* The fashion world describes the environment of the designers, fashion houses and consumers that make up the fashion industry.
* The New World is a part of the world discovered or colonized later than other parts; it usually refers to the American continents or to Australia. The Old World refers, by contrast, to the continents of Europe, Asia and north Africa.
[edit] Physical characteristics
The World
The World
[edit] Earth dimensions
Physical feature
Superficial area 510,000,000 km² (196,950,000 Sq. miles)
Land surface 149,000,000 km² (57,510,000 Sq. miles)
Water surface 361,000,000 km² (139,440,000 Sq. miles)
Equatorial circumference 40,077 km (24,902 miles)
Meridional circumference 40,009 km (24,860 miles)
Equatorial diameter 12,757 km (7,926 miles)
Polar diameter 12,714 km (7,899.988 miles)
Polar radius 6,356.89 km (3,949.99 miles)
Volume of the Earth 1,080,000,000,000 km³ (260,000,000,000 cubic miles)
Mass 5,980,000,000,000,000,000,000 tonnes (6,592,000,000,000,000,000,000 tons)
[edit] Continents and population
Size
continent area (km²) percent
World 149 000 000 100
Africa-Eurasia 84 580 000 57
Eurasia 54 210 000 36
Asia 43 810 000 29
Americas 42 330 000 28
Africa 30 370 000 20
North America 24 494 000 16
South America 17 840 000 12
Antarctica 13 720 000 9.2
Europe 10 400 000 7.0
Oceania 9 142 000 6.0
Australia-New Guinea 8 500 000 5.7
Australia mainland 7 600 000 5.1
Human Population
continent approx. population percent
World 6 450 000 000 100
Africa-Eurasia 5 400 000 000 84
Eurasia 4 510 000 000 70
Asia 3 800 000 000 59
Africa 890 000 000 14
Americas 886 000 000 14
Europe 714 000 000 11
North America 515 000 000 8.0
South America 371 000 000 5.8
Oceania 35 800 000 0.55
Australia-New Guinea 30 000 000 0.5
Australia mainland 21 000 786 0.3
Antarctica 1 000 0.002
[edit] See also
* Earth
* Planet
* World map
* Globe
* Universe
[edit] External links
* National Geographic maps
* CIA World Factbook entry on World
[edit]
|
