Chapter 1 Flashcards
absolute location
n. the exact location of an object, usually expressed in coordinates of longitude and latitude
core
n. classification of a country or region that has wealth, higher education levels, more advanced technology
density
n. the number of things—people, animals, or objects—in a specific area
distance decay
n. a principle stating that the farther away one thing is from another, the less interaction the two things will have
distribute
v. to arrange within a given space
ecological perspective
n. the relationships between living things and their environments
environmental determinism
n. the idea that human behavior is strongly affected, controlled, or determined by the physical geography
flow
n. movement of people, goods, or information that has economic, social, political, or cultural effects on society
formal region
n. an area that has one or more shared traits; also called a uniform region
friction of distance
n. a concept that states that the longer a journey is, the more time, effort, and cost it will involve
functional region
n. an area organized by its function around a focal point, or the center of an interest or activity
globalization
n. the expansion of economic, cultural, and political processes on a worldwide scale
human geography
n. the study of the processes that have shaped how humans understand, use, and alter Earth
location
n. the position that a point or object occupies on Earth
mental maps
n. internalized representations of portions of Earth’s surface
node
n. the focal point of a functional region
pattern
n. the way in which things are arranged in a particular space
perceptual region
n. a type of region that reflects people’s feelings and attitudes about a place; also called a vernacular region
periphery
n. 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
physical geography
n. the study of natural processes and the distribution of features in the environment, such as landforms, plants, animals, soil, and climate
place
n. a location on Earth that is distinguished by its physical and human characteristics
possibilism
n. theory of human-environment interaction that states that humans have the ability to adapt the physical environment to their needs
region
n. an area of Earth’s surface with certain characteristics that make it distinct yet cohesive from other areas.
relative location
n. a description of where a place is in relation to other places or features
scale
n. the area of the world being studied
semi-periphery
n. classification of a country or region that has qualities of both core and peripheral areas and is often in the process of industrializing
site
n. a place’s absolute location, as well as its physical characteristics, such as the landforms, climate, and resources
situation
n. location of a place in relation to other places or its surrounding features
space
n. the area between two or more things
spatial perspective
n. 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
sustainability
n. the use of Earth’s land and natural resources in ways that ensure they will continue to be available in the future
sustainable development
n. development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
theory
n. a system of ideas intended to explain certain phenomena
time space compression
n. 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
vernacular region
n. a type of region that reflects people’s feelings and attitudes about a place; also called a perceptual region
world system theory
n. theory describing the spatial and functional relationships between countries in the world economy; categorizes countries as part of a hierarchy consisting of the core, periphery, and semi-periphery
