The fact that many U.S. cities are in crisis, with widespread poverty, high crime, and barely functioning schools, seems to favor the po-litical economy model over the urban ecology approach. But one criticism applies to both: They focus on U.S. cities during a limitedperiod of history. Much of what we know about industrial cities does not apply to preindustrial U.S. towns in our own past or to the rap-idly growing cities in many poor nations today. It is unlikely that any single model of cities can account for the full range of urban diversity.Check Your Learning In your own words, explain what theurban ecology theory and the urban political economy theory teachus about cities.

The fact that many U.S. cities are in crisis, with widespread poverty, high crime, and barely functioning schools, seems to favor the po-litical economy model over the urban ecology approach. But one criticism applies to both: They focus on U.S. cities during a limitedperiod of history. Much of what we know about industrial cities does not apply to preindustrial U.S. towns in our own past or to the rap-idly growing cities in many poor nations today. It is unlikely that any single model of cities can account for the full range of urban diversity.Check Your Learning In your own words, explain what theurban ecology theory and the urban political economy theory teachus about cities.