Chapter 1 vocab Flashcards
Absolute location
Exact location of an object usually expressed in coordinates.
Example sentence: The absolute location of the Eiffel Tower is 48.8584° N, 2.2945° E.
Core
Classification of a country or region that has wealth, higher education levels, advanced technologies, many resources, strong militaries, and powerful allies.
Density
The number of things, people, animals, or objects in a specific area.
Distance decay
Principle stating that the farther away one thing is from another, the less interaction they will have.
Distribution
To arrange within a given space.
Ecological perspective
The relationships between living things and their environments.
Environmental determinism
The idea that human behavior is strongly influenced by the physical environment.
Formal region
An area that has one or more shared traits, also called a uniform region.
Friction of distance
Concept that states the longer a journey is, more time, effort, and cost it will involve.
Example sentence: The friction of distance between the two cities made it difficult for them to maintain a close relationship.
Functional region
Area that is organized around a focal point or center of interest or activity.
Example sentence: The downtown area serves as the functional region for shopping and entertainment.
Globalization
Expansion of economic, cultural, and political processes on a worldwide scale.
Example sentence: Globalization has led to increased interconnectedness between countries.
Human geography
Study of the processes that have shaped how humans understand, use, and alter, Earth
Example sentence: Understanding geographic scale is essential for studying environmental impacts.
Location
Position that a point or object occupies on Earth.
Example sentence: The location of the new store was strategically chosen for maximum visibility.
Mental map
Internalized representations of portions of Earth’s surface.
Example sentence: Tourists often rely on their mental maps to navigate unfamiliar cities.
Model
Representation of reality that presents significant features or relationships in a generalized form.
Example sentence: The weather model accurately predicted the upcoming storm.
Node
Focal point of a functional region.
Example sentence: The central train station acts as a node for transportation in the city.
Pattern
Way in which things are arranged in a particular space.
Example sentence: The pattern of houses in the neighborhood followed a grid layout.
Perceptual region
Type of region that reflects peoples attitudes about a place
Periphery
Classification of a region with less wealth, lower education levels, less sophisticated technologies, and unstable government. Poor healthcare.
Example: The periphery regions of the country struggle with poverty and lack of access to quality education.
Physical geography
Study of natural processes and distribution of features in the environment such as animals, soil, climate, landforms, and plants.
Additional information: Physical geography focuses on the natural aspects of the Earth’s surface.
Place
Location on Earth distinguished by its physical and human characteristics.
Example: New York City is a place known for its skyscrapers and diverse population.
Possibilism
Theory of human-environment interaction stating that humans have the ability to adapt to their physical environment.
Possibilism emphasizes human capacity to modify their surroundings to suit their needs.
Region
Area of Earth’s surface with certain characteristics that make it cohesive yet distinct from other areas.
Region can be defined by physical, cultural, or economic factors.
Relative location
Description of where a place is in relation to other features.
Relative location helps understand the position of a place in relation to its surroundings.
Scale
Area of the world being studied
Example: The scale of the map is 1:10,000.
Semi-periphery
Classification of a country or region that has qualities of both core and peripheral areas, often in the process of industrialization.
Site
Refers to a place’s absolute location, as well as its physical characteristics such as landforms, climate, and resources.
Situation
Location of a place in relation to other places or its surrounding features.
Space
The area between two or more things.
Spatial perspective
Geographic perspective that focuses on Earth, how societies organize themselves, and why human events occur where they do.
Sustainability
The use of Earth’s land and natural resources in ways that ensure they will continue to be available in the future.
Sustainable development
Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
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 more quickly and easily
Vernacular region
a type of region thou reflects peoples feelings e attitudes
Vernacular region
World system theory
Theory describing the spatial & functional relationships between countries in the world; categories countries as part of a hierarchy consisting of the core, semi-periphery, periphery
The spaystem theory
Absolute distance
distance that can be measured using a standeld unit of length.
Absolute distance
Absolute direction
cardinal directions, North, South, East, WEst
Absolute direction
Cartographer
person who creates maps
Cartographer
Cenus
an official count of the number of people in defined drea; such as a state
Cenus
Geographic information system
computer system that allows for the collection, organization, and display of geographic data for analysis
Geographic information system
Global Positioning System (GPS)
A network that receives signals from satellites, enabling users to pinpoint their location
Example: I used GPS to find my way to the museum.
Map scale
The relationship of the size of the map to the size of the area it represents on Earth’s surface
Additional information: Map scale is often represented as a ratio or a graphic scale.
Quantitative data
Involving data that can be measured by numbers
Example sentence: The survey collected quantitative data on household income.
Qualitative data
Involving data that is descriptive or subjective
Additional information: Qualitative research is often based on people’s opinions.
Reference map
A map that focuses on the location of places
Relative distance
Distance determined in relation to other places or objects
Relative direction
Direction based on a person’s perception, like left, right, up, down
Remote sensing
Collecting or analyzing data from a location without making physical contact
Thematic Map
A map that focuses on one or more variables to show a relationship between geographic features
Topography
The representation of Earth’s surface to show natural and human-made features, especially their relative positions and elevations
