Physical Geography Flashcards
Location
absolute and relative
Tells “where”
5 themes of geography
Location Regions Human-earth relationship Place Movement
Regions
Finite vs. Relative Areas have uniform characteristics Formal Regions (finite boundaries; states, cities) vs. Functional Regions (no finite boundaries)
Human-earth relationship
How humans alter the environment
We affect the earth by using resources
Place
Tangible and intangible living and nonliving characteristics that make each place unique
Movement
Communication, movement, circulation. migration, and diffusion across earth’s surface.
May impact entire planet.
Two paths of geographic study
Physical and cultural
Foundation of the scientific method
Observation
Equilibrium
Earth seeks equilibrium.
Earth is an open system in terms of energy (generally considered a closed system)
What has prompted human expansion?
The physical condition of earth has prompted human expansion
Four spheres of earth
Atmosphere
Hydrosphere
Lithosphere
Biosphere
Atmosphere
Solar energy, seasons, air circulation
Hydrosphere
Water, oceans
Lithosphere
Earth we walk on; land
Biosphere
People, life
Pythagoras
Predicted earth is round - 500BC
Eratosthenes
Calculated size of earth 250 BC
How do you define a place?
Earth’s imaginary grid system defines place through finite location
Longitude
Meridian, prime meridian, international date lines
Latitude
Parallels, equator
Latitudinal geographic zones
Arctic Subarctic Midlatitudinal Subtropical Equatorial and tropical Subtropical Midlatitudinal Subantarctic Antarctic
Stuff you should know about longitude/latitude
Prime meridian, equator, international date line, global time zones
Small scale maps
Small scale maps cover large areas
Large scale maps
Large scale maps cover small areas
Map scales
Written (verbal)
Graphic (bar)
Representative fraction (RF)
GPS
Global Positioning Satellite
GIS
Geographic Information System
A variety of remote sensing imaging.
Shows either land ownership, hydrology, forest cover, soils, disease, and many more
Light year
186,000 mi/s
Aphelion, perihelion
Earth’s solar constant
1372 watts/m^2
Rotation and Revolution
Both counterclockwise
Rotate “on”
Revolve “around”
Plane of the ecliptic
The area within earth’s orbit
Troposphere
Atmospheric layer closest to earth’s surface
3 primary gases
Nitrogen (N2)
Oxygen (O2)
Argon
Carbon dioxide’s function?
Fuel for plants
Ozone
Ozone protects us from harmful sun rays
Water world
71% water
29% land
Global ocean conveyer movement
Cool water subsides to feed deep current due to cooling of water, which increased salinity and density.
Keeps earth from entering ice age
ITCZ
Inner Tropical Convergence Zone
Near the equator, where northeast and southeast trade winds come together.
Causes storms and wind (weather)
1st law of thermodynamics
Water phase changes because of energy (heat)
Orographic barriers
Mountains
Effect climates on each side, bringing one more weather like clouds, wind, rain, and fertile soil while the other side suffers
Stuff to know about water
Hydrologic cycle, ground water, and the global use of water
Desertification
Caused by climate change (drought, loss of vegetation), human activity, and geographical circumstances
Bread baskets of the world
Places with efficient vegetation for farming and domesticated animals like goats and cattle that have multiple uses, also locates near a water source
End of last ice age (Pleistocene period)
10,000 BC
6 million people
How old is the earth?
4.54 billion years
How long has the biosphere been part of the earth’s environment?
3.5 billion years
Uniformitarianism
The assumption that the same natural laws and processes that operate in the universe now have always operated in the universe in the past and apply everywhere in the universe.
Punctuated equilibrium
Theory that most species will exhibit little net evolutionary change for most of their geological history
Current world population
7 billion people
Areas of concentration
East Asia (China)
South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh)
Europe
East United States
Four major reasons for human population growth
End of ice age, industrial revolution, green revolution, medical revolution
Hearth lands of humanity
River valleys and fertile soils
Paleolithic
Old Stone Age
2.6 million years ago
After 10,000 BC
Neolithic
New Stone Age
10,200 BC - between 4,500 and 2,000 BC
Ptolemy’s map of the world
100 AD
Showed areas known by traders at the time
Missed the Western Hemisphere
Leaders in Age of Discovery
Portuguese
Spanish
English
Dutch
