Chapter 1 Flashcards
Map
Maps are the tool most uniquely identified with geography; the ability to use and interpret maps is an essential geographic skill
Spatial
of or pertaining to space on or near Earth’s surface
Map Scale
Distance on a map relative to distance on Earth
Model
a simplified abstraction of reality, structured to clarify casual relationships ; geographers use models to explain patterns, make informed decisions, and predict future behaviors
Possibilism
The physical environment may limit some human actions but people have the ability to adjust to their environment. People can choose a course of action from many alternatives in the physical environment.
Location
“Where”
A space that is occupied in the universe
Absolute Location
Exact location
the address
Relative Location
How a place is related, or connected to other places
Site
refers to the physical character of a site
Situation
the location of a place relative to other places
Spatial Interaction
movement of people, materials, and ideas or information across Earth
Diffusion
spread of an idea or invention
Relocation Diffusion
the transfer of ideas, behaviors, or articles from one place to another through the migration of those possessing the feature transported
Expansion Diffusion
the spread of ideas, behaviors, or articles through a culture area or from one culture to neighboring areas through contact and exchange of information
Contagious diffusion
a form of diffusion that depends on direct contact
Stimulus diffusion
if the innovation or idea does not spread, but local experimentation and eventual changes in ways of doing things occur due to contact between cultures it is considered diffusion
Scale
Relationship between a map and reality in cartographic terms
Regions
An area that is defined by certain shared characteristics
Formal/Uniform Region
a type of region marked by a certain degree of homogeneity in one or more phenomena; also called a uniform region or homogenous region
Functional/Nodal Region
a region defined by the particular set of activities or interactions that occur within it
Perceptual/Vernacular region
a region that only exists as a conceptualization of an idea and not as a physically demarcated entity
Thematic maps
show more specific information, often on a single theme or topic
Projection
A way of drawing the round Earth as a flat map
Large Scale Maps
shows a smaller area in much more detail (city map)
greater than 1:100,000
Small Scale Maps
Shows less detail, larger area
Choropleth maps
Statistical variable - shaded or patterned
Dot Maps
Each dot represents a certain distance covered ; used for commercial purposes like where wireless reaches
Geographic Information System
a high performance computer system that processes geographic data
Global Positioning System
takes signals from a series of satellites to pinpoint the current location of a vehicle
Remote Sensing
the accusation of data about Earth’s surface from a satellite or other long distance methods
Mental maps
Visual or verbal maps
Environmental determinism
how the physical environment caused social development
Physical attributes
Landforms, water bodies, climate, soil, vegetation
Cultural attributes
Settlement patterns, population, composition, architecture, economic activities, recreational activities, transportation, language, beliefs, etc
Place name location
the name given to or held by a geographical location
town, city, village, etc
Absolute direction
a compass direction such as north or south
Relative direction
directions such as left, right, up & down, backward, etc
Absolute distance
distance that can be measured with standard unit length
relative distance
measure of distance that includes costs of overcoming the friction of absolute distance separating two places
social, economic, connectivity, etc
Size
estimation or determination of extent
Built landscape
features and patterns reflecting human occupation and the uses of natural resources
Sequent occupance
Notion that successive societies leave their cultural imprints on a place, each contributing two cumulative cultural landscape
Density
the frequency with which something occurs in space
Arithmetic density
Total number of objects in an area, often used to compare distribution of population in different countries
Physiological Density
Number of people per unit of area suitable for agriculture
Hearth density
the place from which an innovation originates; diffuses from there to other places
Hierarchical diffusion
Spread of an idea from people or power to other persons or places of power
from people/places of power
Distribution
Arrangement of features in space
three main properties: density, concentration, pattern
Meridian
an arc drawn between North and South poles
Longitude
The location of each meridian identified on Earth’s surface according to a number system
Prime meridian
The meridian at 0 degrees longitude
Parallel
a circle drawn around the globe parallel to the equator and at right angles to the meridians
Latitude
the numbering system to indicate the location of a parallel
Equator
0 degrees latitude
North and South Poles
North Pole is 90 degrees north latitude
South Pole is 90 degrees south latitude
International Date Line
The line of longitude that marks where each new day begins, centered on the 180th meridian
Concentration
The extent of a features spread over space
Dispersed/Scattered
objects are relatively far apart
Clustered/agglomerated
Objects in an area are close together
Friction of distance
increase in time and cost that usually comes with increasing distance
Distance decay
A function that represents the way that some entity or its influence decays with distance from its geographical location
Time-space compression
the increasing sense of connectivity that brings people closer together even though their distances are the same
Isoline
map displaying lines that connect points to equal value
Accessibility
The relative ease with which a destination may be reached from some other place
Connectivity
The degree of economic, social, cultural, or political connection between two places
Network
a set of interconnected nodes without a center.
Cartogram
Adjusts the size of the country corresponds to the magnitude of the mapped feature.
Statistical map
Demonstrates information: Includes dot map, choropleth, and proportional symbol.
Linear pattern
straight pattern
houses down a street
Centralized pattern
clustered or concentrated at a certain place
Random pattern
no specific order or logic behind its arrangement
