Rural/urban differences have been of major interest to rural sociologists for many years. Commonly, rural sociologists take rural and urban to denote opposite ends of a conceptual continuum, with real people and communities falling somewhere between the two hypothetical extremes. Ecologically, rural areas have low population density, settlements of small absolute size, and communities that are relatively isolated from other segments of society. Rural areas involve extractive-types of industries. Agriculture is the most widespread such industry in rural America, although mining, forestry, and fishing are also included. Rural government services are dominated by traditional functions such as policy protection and road maintenance, with less concern for planning, parks and recreation, and environmental control. Value, belief, and attitude differences between rural and urban residents have been documented in past as well as contemporary American society. The persistence of rural/urban value differences has been documented by rural sociologists and should be taken into account by policy makers.