Chapter 1 Flashcards
Geography:
the study of where people and places and things are located and how they are related to each other
GIS:
a geographical information system that uses computer thechnology to collect manipulate, analyze, and display data about the Earth’s surface in order to solve problems
absolute location:
a thing’s posistion on the globe
hemispheres:
the halves that are split North anda South be the equator
relative location:
the location in relation compared to other places
character of a place:
a places physical’s and human characteristics
perception:
a viewpoint that is influcenced by one;s own culture and expirence
formal region:
areas in which certain characteristics are found throughout the area
areas that are the same
functional region:
a group of places that is defined by movment
something that effects something else
perceptual region:
a group of places that is defined by people;s feelings and attitude
core:
the Earth’s center consisting of very hot metal that is dense and solid in the inner core and molten or liquid in the outer core
mantle:
a thick layer of mostly solid rock beneath the Earth’s crust that surronds the Earth’s core
crust:
the rocky surface layer
5-30 miles thick
lithosphere:
surface features, like landforms
stuff on the Earth
atmosphere:
the above surface features
stuff above the Earth (including water and air)
hydrosphere:
Water
biosphere:
the world of animals, plants, and other living things
continent:
a large land mass in the ocean
reflief:
the differnece in elevation between the highest and lowest point
plate tectonics:
a number of moving plates in the outershell
reason for earthquakes
continental drift theory:
an idea propsed by Alfed Wegner that there was once a super continent that drifted apart
Ring of Fire:
a circle of volcanoes surronding the Pacific ocean
weathering:
the breakdown of rock at or near the Earth;s surface into smaller and smaller pieces
mechanical weathering:
occurs when rock is actually broken or weakened physically
chemical weathering:
alters the rock chemical make-up by changing the minerals that form the rock or combining them with new chemical elements
found in caves
acid rain:
chemicals in the polluted air combined with water vapor wand fall back to earth as acid rain
erosion:
the movement of weathered materials including gravel, soil, and sand usually caused by wind, water, and glaciers
sediment:
particless of soil, sand, and gravel carried or deposited by wind,and water
ioess:
fine grained mineral rich, loam, dust, or silt deposited by the wind
glacier:
a huge, slow moving mass of snow and ice
moraine:
a ridge like mass of rock, gravel, sand, and clay carried and deposited by glaciers
