Human Geo Chapter 4 Vocab Flashcards
Culture
The body of material traits, customary beliefs, and social forms that together constitute the distinct tradition of a group of people.
Habit
A repetetive act performed by a particular individual (ex. a student wearing jeans to class every day). It doesn’t imply that the act has been adopted by most of the society’s population.
Custom
The frequent repetition of an act, to the extent that it becomes characteristic of the group of people performing the act (ex. many students typically wearing jeans to class). A custom is a habit that has been widely adopted by a group of people.
Folk Culture
Culture traditionally practiced by a small, homogenous, rural group living in relative isolation from other groups. Landscapes dominated by folk culture change relatively little over time. It is more likely to vary from place to place at a given time.
Popular Culture
Culture found in a large, heterogeneous society that shares certain habits despite differences in other personal characteristics. Popular culture is based on rapid simultaneous global connections through communications, transportation, and other modern tech, so it changes frequently. It is more likely to vary from time to time at a given place.
Material Traits
The visible elements that a group posesses and leaves behind for the future.
Terroir
The combination of a location’s distinctive physical features to the way food tastes.
Comes from a French term than means “grounded” or “sense of place.”
The sum of the effects on a particular food item of soil, climate, and other features of the environment
Taboo
A restriction on behavior imposed by social custom.
Some folk cultures may establish food taboos because of concern for the natural environment. To preserve scarce animal species/resources, only a few high-ranking people in some tropical regions are permitted to hunt, and the others grow crops.
Malware (or malicious software)
Hostile or intrusive software designed to cause international harm. It takes control of a victim’s computers in order to steal personal, financial, or business information.
Ransomware (or cryptoviral extortion)
A form of malware that encrypts the victim’s files, making them inaccessible, until a ransom is paid to decrypt them. Ten countries, led by India and Russia, account for around 1/2 of the victims.
Cyber Espionage
The unauthorized and clandestine deployment of a virus to observe or destroy data in the computer systems of government agencies and large corporations. Government agencies and corporations in the US have been by far the most affected by cyber espionage.
Fake News
A false report disseminated under the guise of an authentic news report, created to maliciously spread misinformation and mislead consumers of the content. Elected officials and other political leaders may use the term to describe press coverage unfavorable to them.
Alternative Fact (or alt fact)
A statement that can be proved to be false. Attributed to Kellyanne Conway (Couselor to Trump), when she labeled as “alternative fact” an incorrect statement by Press Secretary Sean Spicer that Trump’s inauguration attracted a higher attendance than Obama’s.
Trolling
The practice of posting deliberately inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in social media in order to provoke quarrels or otherwise agitate people.
Cultural homogenization
The process of reduction in cultural diversity through the diffusion of popular culture and convergence of cultural preferences. Some question the actions of Western countries and say the dominance of these values is a form of cultural imperialism.
