Unit 1 Flashcards
Be a Vocabulary Master
place
a specific point on Earth distinguished by a particular characteristic
region
an area of Earth defined by one or more distinctive characteristics
scale
the relationship between the portion of Earth being studied and the Earth as a whole
space
the physical gap or interval between two objects
connection
refers to relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space
map
2D or flat scale model of the Earth’s surface, or a portion of it
cartography
the science of mapmaking
global positioning system (GPS)
a system that determines a precise position of something on Earth
geotagging
the identification and storage of a piece of information by its precise latitude and longitude coordinates
geographic information system (GIS)
captures, stores, queries, and displays the geographic data
remote sensing
the acquisition of data about Earth’s surface from a satellite orbiting Earth or from other long distance methods
citizen science
scientific research by amateur scientists
mashup
a map that overlays data from one source on top of a map provided by a mapping source
map scale
the relationship to something’s size on a map to its size on the Earth
projection
the scientific method of transferring locations on Earth to a flat map
prime meridian
the 0 degrees longitude line that passes through Greenwich, England
Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
the master reference time for all points on Earth
location
the position something occupies on the Earth
toponym
the name given to a place on Earth
site
the physical character of a place
situation
the location of a place relative to other places
cultural landscape
a combination of cultural, physical, and economic factors
formal region
an area in which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics
functional region
an area organized around one node or focal point
vernacular region
an area that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity
culture
the body of customary beliefs, material traits, and social forms that together show the distinctive traits of a group of people
spatial association
occurs when the distribution of one feature is related to another
distribution
the arrangement of a feature in space
density
the frequency in which something occurs in space
pattern
the geometric arrangement of objects in space
hearth
a place where an innovation originates
diffusion
the process in which a feature spreads across space from one place to another over time
expansion diffusion
the spread of a feature from one place to another in an additive process
network
a chain of communication that connects places
distance decay
the idea that the farther away two people are from each other, the less likely they are to interact
space-time compression
to describe the reduction in the time it takes for something to reach another place
resource
a substance in the environment that is useful to people, economically and technologically feasible to access, and socially acceptable to use
sustainability
the use of Earth’s resources in ways to ensure their availability in the future
renewable resource
produced in nature at a faster rate then it used by humans
non-renewable resource
produced in nature at a slower rate than is used by humans
conservation
the sustainable use and management of Earth’s natural resources to meet human needs such as food, medicine, and recreation
preservation
the maintenance of resources in their present condition, with as little human impact as possible.
atmosphere
a thin layer of gasses surrounding the Earth
hydrosphere
all the water on and near the Earth’s surface
lithosphere
Earth’s crust and portion of upper mantle directly below the crust
biosphere
all living organisms on Earth (plants, animals, and microorganisms)
climate
the long-term average weather condition at a particular location
ecosystem
a group of living organisms and abiotic spheres with which they interact
ecology
the scientific study of ecosystems
environmental determinism
a belief that the physical environment caused social development
possibilism
the physical environment may limit some human action, but people have the ability to adjust to there environment
polder
a piece of land that is created by draining water from an area
