Mountain

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  • mountain
definition
  • A feature of the earth's surface that rises high above the base and has generally steep slopes and a relatively small summit area. Mountains are an important source of water, energy, minerals, forest and agricultural products, and recreation. They are storehouses of biological diversity and endangered species and an essential part of the global ecosystem. About 10% of the world's population depend on mountain resources and nearly half of these people are affected by the degradation of mountain watershed areas.
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Abstract from DBPedia
    A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher than a hill, typically rising at least 300 metres (1,000 feet) above the surrounding land. A few mountains are isolated summits, but most occur in mountain ranges. Mountains are formed through tectonic forces, erosion, or volcanism, which act on time scales of up to tens of millions of years. Once mountain building ceases, mountains are slowly leveled through the action of weathering, through slumping and other forms of mass wasting, as well as through erosion by rivers and glaciers. High elevations on mountains produce colder climates than at sea level at similar latitude. These colder climates strongly affect the ecosystems of mountains: different elevations have different plants and animals. Because of the less hospitable terrain and climate, mountains tend to be used less for agriculture and more for resource extraction, such as mining and logging, along with recreation, such as mountain climbing and skiing. The highest mountain on Earth is Mount Everest in the Himalayas of Asia, whose summit is 8,850 m (29,035 ft) above mean sea level. The highest known mountain on any planet in the Solar System is Olympus Mons on Mars at 21,171 m (69,459 ft).

    山(やま)とは、周囲よりも高く盛り上がった地形や場所のことをいう。地形学では丘陵や「台地」よりも周囲との相対的高度差(比高)や起伏が大きいものを指す。平地と比べ、傾斜した地形から成る。

    (Source: http://dbpedia.org/resource/Mountain)