Thinking Geographically- Geography its Nature and Perspectives
This unit will help you think about the world spatially. We will use the Five Themes of Geography to examine the overarching geographic concepts that will be important to understanding the nature of thinking like a Geographer.
The Big Questions for Unit 1
THINKING GEOGRAPHICALLY
Why do geographers study relationships and patterns among and between places?
How do geographers use maps to help them discover patterns and relationships in the world?
How do geographers use a spatial perspective to analyze complex issues and relationships?
Why do geographers study relationships and patterns among and between places?
How do geographers use maps to help them discover patterns and relationships in the world?
How do geographers use a spatial perspective to analyze complex issues and relationships?
Unit 1 Topics
1.1- Introduction to Maps
1.2- Geographic Data
1.3- The Power of Geographic Data
1.4- Spatial Concepts
1.5- Human-Environmental Interaction
1.6- Scales of Analysis
1.7- Regional Analysis
1.2- Geographic Data
1.3- The Power of Geographic Data
1.4- Spatial Concepts
1.5- Human-Environmental Interaction
1.6- Scales of Analysis
1.7- Regional Analysis
Unit 1 Vocabulary List-
AP HUG Unit ! Vocabulary. (most of these definitions are from the National Geographic Society)
Physical Geography- the study of natural processes and the distribution of features in the environment, such as landforms, plants, animals, soil, an climate
Human Geography- the study of the processes that have shaped how humans understand, use, and alter Earth
Spatial Perspective- geographic perspective that focuses on how people live on Earth, how they organize themselves, and why the events of human societies occur where they do
Ecological Perspective- the relationships between living things and their environments
Location- the position that a point or object occupies the earth
Absolute location- the exact location of an object, usually expressed in coordinates of longitude and latitude.
Relative Location- a description of where a place is in relation to other places or features
Place- a location on Earth that is distinguished by its physical and human characteristics
Site- a place’s absolute location, as well as its physical characteristics, such as the landforms, climate and resources.
Situation- location of a place in relation to other places or its surrounding features.
Space- the area between two of more things
Distribute- to arrange within a given space
Density- the number of things- people, animals, or objects- in a specific area
Pattern- the way in which things are arranged in a particular space
Flow- the movement of people, goods, or information that has economic, social, political, or cultural effects on societies.
Environmental Determinism- the idea that human behavior is strongly affected, controlled, or determined by the physical environment.
Possibilism- theory of human-environment interaction that states that humans have the ability to adapt the physical environment to their needs
Distance Decay- a principle stating that the farther away one thing is from another, the less interaction the two things will have.
Friction of Distance- a concept that states that distance requires time, effort, and cost to overcome.
Time Space Compression- a key geographic principle that describes the ways in which modern transportation and communication technology have allowed humans to travel and communicate over long distances quicker and easier.
Sustainability- the use of Earth’s land and natural resources in ways that ensure they will continue to be available in the future.
Scale- the area of the world being studied (global, national, local)
Region- an area of the Earth’s surface with certain characteristics that make it distinct yet cohesive from other areas. ( formal, functional, perceptual )
Formal Region- an area that has one or more shared traits; also called a uniform region
Functional Region- an area organized by its function around a focal point, or the center of an interest or activity
Node- the focal point of a functional region
Perceptual Region. (Vernacular region) type of region that reflects people’s feelings and attitudes about a place,. (Midwest)
Suburbs- less densely populated residential and commercial areas surrounding a city
Globalization- the expansion of economic, cultural, and political processes on a worldwide scale
Theory- a system of ideas intended to explain certain phenomena. (
Wallerstein’s World System Theory- theory describing the spatial and functional relationships between counties in the world economy; categorizes countries as part of a hierarchy consisting of the core, periphery, and semi-periphery.
Core- classification of a country or region that has wealth, higher education levels, more advanced technologies, many resources, strong militaries and powerful allies
Periphery- classification of a country or region that has less wealth, lower education levels, and less sophisticated technologies and also tends to have an unstable government and poor health systems.
Semi-periphery- classification of a country or region that has qualities of both core and peripheral areas and is often in the process of industrializing.
Sustainable Development- development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
Quantitative Data- involving data that can be measured by numbers
Qualitative Data- involving data that is descriptive of a research subject and is often based on people’s opinions.
Census- an official count of the number of people in a defined area, such as a state
G.I.S. (Geographic Information Systems)- a computer system that allows for the collection, organization, and display of geographic data for analysis.
Topography- the representation of Earth’s surface to show natural and man-made features, especially their relative positions and elevations.
Remote sensing- collecting or analyzing data from a location without making physical contact
GPS (Global positioning system)- a network of satellites that orbit Earth and transmit location data to receivers, enabling users to pinpoint their exact location
Absolute distance- distance that can be measured using a standard unit of length
Relative distance- distance determined in relation to other places or objects
Absolute direction- the cardinal directions north, south, east and west
Relative direction- direction based on a person’s perception, such as left, right, up, or down.
Map Scale- the relationship of the size of the map to the size of the area it represents on the Earth’s surface.
Cartographers- a person who creates maps
Map projection- is any method used to represent the world or part of the world in two dimensions
Types of map projections- Mercator, Gall-Peters, Robinson, Azimuthal
Reference maps- a map that focuses on the location of places
Thematic maps- any map that focuses on one or more variables to show a relationship between geographic data.
Five Themes of Geography- a system to help organize the concept of geography: Movement, Region, Location, Interaction (humans and the environment) and Place
Interdependence- Interdependence between countries means that they are dependent on one another in some way.
Hidden Costs of Humans Interaction with the Environment- the unintended negative side effects and unintended consequences of our interactions with the environment ( air pollution, toxic spills, pesticides, deforestation to name a few)
absolute direction
absolute distance
absolute location
census data
clustering
dispersal
distance decay
elevation
environmental determinism
field observation
flows
formal region
functional region
geographic information systems
global
landscape analysis
land use
local
map projection
media reports
national
national resourses
pattern
perceptual / vernacular region
personal interviews
photographic interpretation
place
policy documents
possibilism
reference map
region
relative direction
relative distance
relative location
remote sensing
satellite imagery
satellite navigation systems
space
sustainability
thematic map
time-space compression
travel narravitives
Physical Geography- the study of natural processes and the distribution of features in the environment, such as landforms, plants, animals, soil, an climate
Human Geography- the study of the processes that have shaped how humans understand, use, and alter Earth
Spatial Perspective- geographic perspective that focuses on how people live on Earth, how they organize themselves, and why the events of human societies occur where they do
Ecological Perspective- the relationships between living things and their environments
Location- the position that a point or object occupies the earth
Absolute location- the exact location of an object, usually expressed in coordinates of longitude and latitude.
Relative Location- a description of where a place is in relation to other places or features
Place- a location on Earth that is distinguished by its physical and human characteristics
Site- a place’s absolute location, as well as its physical characteristics, such as the landforms, climate and resources.
Situation- location of a place in relation to other places or its surrounding features.
Space- the area between two of more things
Distribute- to arrange within a given space
Density- the number of things- people, animals, or objects- in a specific area
Pattern- the way in which things are arranged in a particular space
Flow- the movement of people, goods, or information that has economic, social, political, or cultural effects on societies.
Environmental Determinism- the idea that human behavior is strongly affected, controlled, or determined by the physical environment.
Possibilism- theory of human-environment interaction that states that humans have the ability to adapt the physical environment to their needs
Distance Decay- a principle stating that the farther away one thing is from another, the less interaction the two things will have.
Friction of Distance- a concept that states that distance requires time, effort, and cost to overcome.
Time Space Compression- a key geographic principle that describes the ways in which modern transportation and communication technology have allowed humans to travel and communicate over long distances quicker and easier.
Sustainability- the use of Earth’s land and natural resources in ways that ensure they will continue to be available in the future.
Scale- the area of the world being studied (global, national, local)
Region- an area of the Earth’s surface with certain characteristics that make it distinct yet cohesive from other areas. ( formal, functional, perceptual )
Formal Region- an area that has one or more shared traits; also called a uniform region
Functional Region- an area organized by its function around a focal point, or the center of an interest or activity
Node- the focal point of a functional region
Perceptual Region. (Vernacular region) type of region that reflects people’s feelings and attitudes about a place,. (Midwest)
Suburbs- less densely populated residential and commercial areas surrounding a city
Globalization- the expansion of economic, cultural, and political processes on a worldwide scale
Theory- a system of ideas intended to explain certain phenomena. (
Wallerstein’s World System Theory- theory describing the spatial and functional relationships between counties in the world economy; categorizes countries as part of a hierarchy consisting of the core, periphery, and semi-periphery.
Core- classification of a country or region that has wealth, higher education levels, more advanced technologies, many resources, strong militaries and powerful allies
Periphery- classification of a country or region that has less wealth, lower education levels, and less sophisticated technologies and also tends to have an unstable government and poor health systems.
Semi-periphery- classification of a country or region that has qualities of both core and peripheral areas and is often in the process of industrializing.
Sustainable Development- development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
Quantitative Data- involving data that can be measured by numbers
Qualitative Data- involving data that is descriptive of a research subject and is often based on people’s opinions.
Census- an official count of the number of people in a defined area, such as a state
G.I.S. (Geographic Information Systems)- a computer system that allows for the collection, organization, and display of geographic data for analysis.
Topography- the representation of Earth’s surface to show natural and man-made features, especially their relative positions and elevations.
Remote sensing- collecting or analyzing data from a location without making physical contact
GPS (Global positioning system)- a network of satellites that orbit Earth and transmit location data to receivers, enabling users to pinpoint their exact location
Absolute distance- distance that can be measured using a standard unit of length
Relative distance- distance determined in relation to other places or objects
Absolute direction- the cardinal directions north, south, east and west
Relative direction- direction based on a person’s perception, such as left, right, up, or down.
Map Scale- the relationship of the size of the map to the size of the area it represents on the Earth’s surface.
Cartographers- a person who creates maps
Map projection- is any method used to represent the world or part of the world in two dimensions
Types of map projections- Mercator, Gall-Peters, Robinson, Azimuthal
Reference maps- a map that focuses on the location of places
Thematic maps- any map that focuses on one or more variables to show a relationship between geographic data.
Five Themes of Geography- a system to help organize the concept of geography: Movement, Region, Location, Interaction (humans and the environment) and Place
Interdependence- Interdependence between countries means that they are dependent on one another in some way.
Hidden Costs of Humans Interaction with the Environment- the unintended negative side effects and unintended consequences of our interactions with the environment ( air pollution, toxic spills, pesticides, deforestation to name a few)
absolute direction
absolute distance
absolute location
census data
clustering
dispersal
distance decay
elevation
environmental determinism
field observation
flows
formal region
functional region
geographic information systems
global
landscape analysis
land use
local
map projection
media reports
national
national resourses
pattern
perceptual / vernacular region
personal interviews
photographic interpretation
place
policy documents
possibilism
reference map
region
relative direction
relative distance
relative location
remote sensing
satellite imagery
satellite navigation systems
space
sustainability
thematic map
time-space compression
travel narravitives