Located in the mid-western United States, Kansas translates to “People of the Lost Winds.” The state makes up part of the great central plain of the United States, and has a generally flat surface. The Missouri River forms nearly 75 miles of the state's northeastern boundary, while the Kansas River joins the Missouri at Kansas City, after running a course of 150 miles across the state. The Arkansas River runs a tortuous course, nearly 500 miles, across three-fourths of the state. Kansas, along with five other Midwest states (Iowa, Nebraska, Oklahoma, North and South Dakota), is feeling the impact of falling populations, known as “Rural Flight.” 89% of the cities in those states have fewer than 3000 residents; hundreds have fewer than 1000. Between 1996 and 2004 almost half a million people, close to half possessing college degrees, left the six mid-western states.
|
