4 ms·

North Dakota is generally considered the mid-west, no? I suppose mid-west is a sort of west, but I tend to think "the west" starts when the Rocky Mountains sta

North Dakota is generally considered the mid-west, no? I suppose mid-west is a sort of west, but I tend to think "the west" starts when the Rocky Mountains start; about half-way through Montana.

cratermoon 5y ago
So New Mexico is not part of the West? There's a definition based on climate that's used widely https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/ https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-merid...
- throw0101a 5y ago
  > > North Dakota is generally considered the mid-west, no? […] > So New Mexico is not part of the West? Mid-west ≠ West: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midwestern_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midwestern_United_States * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_United_States
bagacrap 5y ago
by this definition still 3 of the 4 states listed are in the West
- cratermoon 5y ago
  One common definition is west of the 100th meridian, or about halfway through North Dakota. Montana is firmly in the west, as are the other 3 states mentioned, plus Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and Washington.
  - desert_boi 5y ago
    Do you have a source pointing at that common definition? I lived a majority of my life in the West US (ID, MT, WA), and have never heard North Dakota referred to as the West. Maybe it's a Canadian thing? -100W is the border of Manitoba and Alberta?
    - rascul 5y ago
      https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us_regdiv.pdf https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us...
    - JeremyTerps 5y ago
      North Dakotan, can confirm, never heard that.
    - msrenee 5y ago
      I've heard it used for bird ecology for sure. The 100th meridian is the general cutoff between eastern bird species and western bird species. I think it holds true in other areas of biology. I've driven back and forth across it a lot. Obviously it's a gradient and not some magic barrier the great-tailed grackles cannot cross. And we do get western kingbirds a couple hundred miles east as well as western meadowlarks. It's still a handy boundary so that you know more or less what to expect in a given area ecologically. https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/ https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-merid... https://weather.com/science/environment/news/2018-04-12-100th-meridian-great-plains-shifting https://weather.com/science/environment/news/2018-04-12-100t...
  - JeremyTerps 5y ago
    Lifelong North Dakotan, never heard of or thought of ND being a western state.
    - cratermoon 5y ago
      Where in N. Dakota? I can see that being so for east of Missouri River to the border with Minnesota, but towards the border with Montana the state is decidedly Western in culture and climate.

North Dakota is generally considered the mid-west, no? I suppose mid-west is a sort of west, but I tend to think "the west" starts when the Rocky Mountains start; about half-way through Montana.

cratermoon 5y ago

So New Mexico is not part of the West? There's a definition based on climate that's used widely https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/ https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-merid...

throw0101a 5y ago
> > North Dakota is generally considered the mid-west, no? […] > So New Mexico is not part of the West? Mid-west ≠ West: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midwestern_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midwestern_United_States * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_United_States

bagacrap 5y ago

by this definition still 3 of the 4 states listed are in the West

cratermoon 5y ago
One common definition is west of the 100th meridian, or about halfway through North Dakota. Montana is firmly in the west, as are the other 3 states mentioned, plus Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and Washington.
- desert_boi 5y ago
  Do you have a source pointing at that common definition? I lived a majority of my life in the West US (ID, MT, WA), and have never heard North Dakota referred to as the West. Maybe it's a Canadian thing? -100W is the border of Manitoba and Alberta?
  - rascul 5y ago
    https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us_regdiv.pdf https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us...
  - JeremyTerps 5y ago
    North Dakotan, can confirm, never heard that.
  - msrenee 5y ago
    I've heard it used for bird ecology for sure. The 100th meridian is the general cutoff between eastern bird species and western bird species. I think it holds true in other areas of biology. I've driven back and forth across it a lot. Obviously it's a gradient and not some magic barrier the great-tailed grackles cannot cross. And we do get western kingbirds a couple hundred miles east as well as western meadowlarks. It's still a handy boundary so that you know more or less what to expect in a given area ecologically. https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/ https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-merid... https://weather.com/science/environment/news/2018-04-12-100th-meridian-great-plains-shifting https://weather.com/science/environment/news/2018-04-12-100t...
- JeremyTerps 5y ago
  Lifelong North Dakotan, never heard of or thought of ND being a western state.
  - cratermoon 5y ago
    Where in N. Dakota? I can see that being so for east of Missouri River to the border with Minnesota, but towards the border with Montana the state is decidedly Western in culture and climate.