Definitions Flashcards
absolute distance
a distance that can be measured with a standard unit of length such as a mile or kilometer
absolute location
the exact position of an object or place, measured within the spatial coordinates of a grid system
accessibility
the relative ease with which a destination may be reached from some other place
anthropogenic
human-induced changes on the natural environment
azimuthal projection
a map projection in which the plane is the most developable surface
breaking point
the outer edge of a city’s sphere of influence, used in the law of retail gravitation to describe the area of a city’s hinterlands that depend on that city for its retail supplies
carl sauer
geographer from the University of California Berkley who defined the concept of cultural landscape as the fundamental unit of geographical analysis. This landscape results from the interaction between humans and the physical environment. Sauer argued that virtually no landscape has escaped alteration by human activities
cartograms
a type of thematic map that transforms space such that the political unit with the greatest value for some type of data is represented by the largest relative area
cartography
the theory and practice of making visual representations of earth’s surface in the form of maps
choropleth map
a thematic map that uses tones or colours to represent spatial data as average values per unit area
cognitive map
an image of a portion of earth’s surface that an individual creates in his or her mind. cognitive maps can include knowledge of actual locations and relationships among locations as well as personal perceptions and preferences of particular places
complementarity
the actual or potential relationship between two places, usually referring to economic interactions
connectivity
the degree or economic, social, cultural, or political connection between two places (topological space)
contagious diffusion
the spread of a disease, an innovation, or cultural traits through direct contact with another person or another place
coordinate system
a standard grid, composed of lines of latitude and longitude, used to determine the absolute location of any object, place, or feature on earth’s surface
cultural ecology
the study of the interactions between societies and the natural environments which they live
cultural landscape
the human-modified natural landscape specifically containing the imprint of a particular culture or society
distance decay effect
the decrease in interaction between two phenomena, places, or people, as the distance between them increases
dot maps
thematic maps that use points to show the precise locations of specific observations or occurrences, such as crimes, car accidents, or births
earth system science
a systematic approach to physical geography that looks at the interaction between earth’s physical systems and processes on a global scale
environmental geography
the intersection between human and physical geography, which explores the spatial impacts humans have on the physical environment and vice versa
eratosthenes
the head librarian at alexandria during the third century BC; one of the first cartographer. performed a remarkably accurate computation of earth’s circumference. he is also credited with coining the term geography
expansion diffusion
the spread of ideas, innovations, fashion, or other phenomena to surrounding areas through contact and exchange
fertile crescent
the name given to the crescent-shaped area of fertile land stretching from the lower Nile Valley along the east Mediterranean coast and into Syria and present-day Iraq where agriculture and early civilization first began about 8000 BC
formal region
definition of regions based on common themes such as similarities in language, climate, land use, etc
friction of distance
a measure of how much absolute distance affects the interaction between two places
fuller projection
a type of map projection that maintains the accurate size and shape of landmasses but completely rearranges direction such that the four cardinal directions - north, south, east, and west - no longer have any meaning
functional region
definition of regions based on common interaction (or function), for example, a boundary line drawn around the circulation of a particular newspaper
geographical information system (GIS)
a set of computer tools used to capture, store, transform, analyze, and display geographic data
geoid
the actual shape of earth, which is rough and oblate, or slightly squashed. earth’s diameter is longer around the equator than along the north-south meridians
global positioning system (GPS)
a set satellites used to help determine location anywhere on earth’s surface with a portable electronic device
gravity model
a mathematical formula that describes the level of interaction between two places, based on the size of their populations and their distance from each other
hierarchical diffusion
a type of diffusion in which something is transmitted between places because of a physical or cultural community between those places
human geography
the study of the spatial variation in the patterns and processes related to human activity
idiographic
pertaining to the unique facts or characteristics of a particular place
international dateline
the line of longitude that marks where each new day begins centered on the 180th meridian
intervening opportunities
if one place has a demand for some good or service and two places have a supply of equal price and quality, the supplier closer to the buyer will represent an intervening opportunity, thereby blocking the third from being able to share its supply of goods or services. intervening opportunities are frequently used because transportation costs usually decrease within proximity
isoline
a map line that connects points of equal or very similar values
large scale
a relatively small ratio between map units and ground units. large-scale maps usually have higher resolution and cover much smaller regions than small-scale maps
latitude
the angular distance north or south of the equator, defined by lines of latitude or parallels
law of retail gravitation
a law stating that people will be drawn to larger cities to conduct their business since larger cities have a wider influence on the surrounding hinterlands
location charts
on a map, a chart or graph that gives specific statistical information about a particular political unit or jurisdiction
longitude
the angular distance east or west of the prim meridian, defined by lines of longitude, or meridians
map projection
a mathematical method that involves transferring earth’s sphere onto a flat surface. this term can also be used to describe the type of map that results from the process of projecting. all map projections have distortions in area, direction, distance, or shape
map scale
the ratio between the size of an area on a map and the actual size of that same area on earth’s surface
george perkins marsh
an inventor, diplomat, politician, and scholar, his classic work, man and nature, or physical geography as modified by human action, provided the first description of the extent to which natural systems had been impacted by human actions
mercator projection
a true conformal cylindrical map projection, the mercator projection is particularly useful for navigation since it maintains accurate direction. mercator projections are famous for their distortion in area that makes landmasses at the poles appear oversized
meridian
a line of longitude that runs north-south. all lines of longitude are equal in length and intersect at the poles
natural landscape
the physical landscape or environment that has not been affected by human activities
nomothetic
concepts or rules that can be applied universally
parallel
an east-west line of latitude that runs parallel to the equator and that marks distance north or south of the equator
perceptual region
highly individualized definition of regions based on perceived commonalities in culture and landscape
peters projection
an equal-area projection purposely centered on africa in an attempt to treat all regions of earth equally
physical geography
the realm of geography that studies the structures, processes, distributions, and changes through time of the natural phenomena of earth’s surface
preference map
a map that displays individual preferences for certain places
prime meridian
an imaginary line passing through the royal observatory in greenwich, england, that marks the 0 degree line of longitude
proportional symbols map
a thematic map in which the size of a chosen symbol - such as the circle or triangle - indicates the relative magnitude of some statistical value for a given geographic region
ptolemy
roman geographer-astronomer, author of guide to geography, which included maps containing a grid system of latitude and longitude
qualitative data
data associated with a more humanistic approach to geography, often collected through interviews, empirical observations, or the interpretation of texts, artwork, old maps, and other archives
quantitative data
data associated with mathematical models and statistical techniques used to analyze spatial location and association
quantitative revolution
a period in human geography associated with the wide-spread adoption of mathematical models and statistical techniques
reference map
a map type that shows reference information for a particular place, making it useful for finding landmarks and for navigation
region
a territory that encompasses many places that share similar physical and/or cultural attributes
regional geography
the study of geographic regions
relative distance
a measure of distance that includes the cost of overcoming the friction of absolute distance separating two places. relative distance often describes the amount of social, cultural, or economic connectivity between two places
relative location
the position of a place relative to the places around it
relocation diffusion
the diffusion of ideas, innovations, behaviours, and so on from one place to another through migration
remote sensing
the observation and mathematical measurement of earth’s surface using aircraft and satellites. the sensors include photographic images, thermal images, multispectral scanners, and radar images
resolution
a map’s smallest discernable unit. if, for example, an object has to be one kilometer long in order to show up on a map, that map’s resolution is one kilometer
robinson projection
a projection that attempts to balance several possible projection errors. it does not maintain area, shape, distance, or direction completely accurately, but it minimizes error in each
sense of place
feelings evoked by people as a result of certain experiences and memories associated with a particular place
site
the absolute location of a place, described by local relief landforms, and other cultural or physical characteristics
situation
the relative location of a place in relation to the physical and cultural characteristics of the surrounding area and the connections and interdependencies within that system; a place’s spatial context
small scale
a map scale ratio in which the ratio of units on the map to units on earth is quite small. small-scale maps usually depict large areas
spatial diffusion
the ways in which phenomena, such as technological innovations, cultural trends, or even outbreaks of disease, travel over space
spatial perspective
an intellectual framework that looks at the particular locations of a specific phenomenon, how and why that phenomenon is where it is, and finally, how it is spatially related to phenomena in other places
sustainability
the concept of using earth’s resources in such a way that they provide for people’s needs in the present without diminishing earth’s ability to provide for future generations
thematic layers
individual maps of specific features that are overlaid on one another in a geographical information system to understand and analyze a spatial relationship
thematic map
a type of map that displays one or more variables - such as population or income level - within a specific area
time-space convergence
the idea that distance between some places is actually shrinking as technology enables more rapid communication and increased interaction among those places
topographic maps
maps that use isoline to represent constant elevations. if you took a topographic map out into the field and walked exactly along the path of isoline on your map, you would always stay at the same elevation
topological space
the amount of connectivity between places regardless of the absolute distance separating them
transferability
the costs involved in moving goods from one place to another
visualization
use of sophisticated software to create dynamic computer maps, some of which are three dimensional or interactive
W.D. Pattison
he claimed that geography drew from four distinct traditions the earth-science tradition, the culture-environment tradition, the locational tradition, and the area-analysis tradition
age-sex distribution
a model used in population geography that describes the ages and number of males and females within a given population; also called a popula
arithmetic density
the number of people living in a given unit area
baby boom
a cohort of individuals born in the united states between 1946 and 1964, which was just after WWII in a time of relative peace and prosperity. these conditions allowed for better education for job opportunities, encouraging high rates of birth marriage and fertility
baby bust
period of time during the 1960s and 1970s when fertility rates in the US dropped as large numbers of women from the baby boom generation sought higher levels of education and more competitive jobs, causing them to marry later in life. as such, the fertility rate dropped considerably, in contrast to the baby boom, in which fertility rates were quite high
carrying capacity
the largest number of people that the environment of a particular area can sustainably support
census tract
small county subdivisions, usually containing between 2,500 and 8,000 persons, delineated by the US census bureau as areas of relatively uniform population characteristics, economic status, and living conditions
chain migration
the migration event in which individuals follow the migratory path of preceding friends or family members to an existing community
child mortality rate
number of deaths per thousand children within the first five years of life
cohort
a population group unified by a specific common characteristic, such as age, and subsequently treated as a statistical unit
cotton belt
the term by which the american south used to be known, as cotton historically dominated the agricultural economy of the region. the same area is now known as the new south or sun belt because people have migrated here from older cities in the industrial north for a better climate and new job opportunities
crude birth rate
the number of live births per year per 1,000 people
crude death rate
the number of deaths per year per 1,000 people
demographic accounting equation
an equation that summarizes the amount of growth of decline in a population within a country during a particular time period taking into account both natural increase and net migration
demographic transition model
a sequence of demographic changes i which a country moves from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates through time
demography
the study of human populations, including their temporal or spatial dynamics
dependency ratio
the ratio of the number of people who are either too old or young to provide for themselves to the number of people who must support them through their own labour. this is usually expressed in the form n:100 where n equals the number of dependents
