Ch. 1

Question 1

physical geography

Answer 1

one of the two principal branches in geography. landforms. rocks, minerals, water, weather and climate, plants, animals, soil

Question 2

cultural geography

Answer 2

those of human endeavor. population, economic activities, languages, religions, political systems, settlements, and food

Question 3

global environmental change

Answer 3

both human caused and natural processes that are currently altering the landscape of the world

Question 4

globalization

Answer 4

the processes and consequences of an increasingly interconnected world, between the economies, cultures, and political systems of the world

Question 5

scientific method

Answer 5

(1) observe a phenomena (2) make a hypothesis (3) design experiment (4) predict the outcome (5) conduct experiment (6) draw conclusion

Question 6

theory

Answer 6

represents the highest order of understanding for a body of understanding, a logical well tested explanation

Question 7

lithosphere

Answer 7

comprises the rocks of earths crust as well as the unconsolidated particles of mineral matter that overlie the solid bedrock

Question 8

atmosphere

Answer 8

gaseous envelope of the air that surrounds earth. complex mixture of gases needed to sustain life

Question 9

hydrosphere

Answer 9

all water.

Question 10

cyroshpere

Answer 10

a level of the hydrosphere, all frozen water as snow and ice

Question 11

biosphere

Answer 11

all parts of the earth where living organisms can live

Question 12

great circles

Answer 12

the equator is a great circle. any plane that is passed through the center of a sphere bisects that sphere and creates a great circle where it intersects the surface of the sphere. this is the largest circle that can be drawn.

Question 13

latitude

Answer 13

description of a location expressed as an angle north or south of the equator.

Question 14

a parallel

Answer 14

a line connecting all points of the same latitude

Question 15

longitude

Answer 15

an angular description of east west location also measured in degrees, minutes, and seconds

Question 16

meridians

Answer 16

longitudinal lines that are not parallel to each other except where they cross the equator

Question 17

rotation

Answer 17

requires 24 hrs, from west to east, counterclockwise,

Question 18

revolution

Answer 18

orbit around the sun, takes 365 days 5 hours 48 min and 46 seconds, known officially as the tropical year

Question 19

perihelion

Answer 19

when the earth is closest to the sun,

Question 20

aphelion

Answer 20

furthest from the sun

Question 21

plane of the ecliptic

Answer 21

the imaginary plane defined by the orbital path of earth around the sun

Question 22

polarity of earths axis (parallelism)

Answer 22

at any time during the yearn earths rotation axis is parallel to its orientation at all other times

Question 23

solar altitude

Answer 23

the height of the sun above the horizon

Question 24

June solstice

Answer 24

occurs on June 21, the earth reaches the position in its orbit where the both pole is oriented most directly toward the sun