The human settlements hierarchy is as follows:
- An ecumenopolis is a theoretical construction in which the entire area of Earth that is taken by human settlements, or at least, that those are linked so that to create an urban areas so big that they can shape an urban continuum through thousands of kilometers.
- A megalopolis is a group of conurbations, consisting of more than ten million people each.
- A conurbation is a group of large cities and their suburbs, consisting of three to ten million people.
- A metropolis is a large city with it's suburbs, consisting of multiple cities and towns.
- A large city is a city with a large population and many services.
- A city has many services, but not as many as the large city.
- A large town is a town with population of 20,000 to 100,000 people.
- A town has a population of 1,000 to 20,000 people.
- A village is a human settlement or community that is larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town.
- A hamlet has a very small population, very few services, and only few buildings.
- An isolated dwelling has only 1-2 buildings.
None of these is a major city in the United States.
Skokie, Illinois
Del City, Oklahoma
Harbin, PRC
Pittsford, New York
Hobart, Indiana
Kfar Tapuach, Israel
Stafford, Texas
Armagh, Pennsylvania
Dinwiddie, Virginia
Flora, Illinois
Olathe, Kansas
Mexico City, DF, Mexico
The Earth's rotation deflects, or changes the direction of, these wind-driven currents. This deflection is a part of the Coriolis effect. The Coriolis effect shifts surface currents by angles of about 45 degrees. In the Northern Hemisphere, ocean currents are deflected to the right, in a clockwise motion.
