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World Geo 0
Chapter 1 vocabulary
Term | Definition |
---|---|
1.Geography | the study of earths surface and the process that shape it, the connections between places, and the complex relationships between people and their environment. |
2.GIS | a Geographic Information System, which uses computer technology to collect and analyze data about the earth's surface in order to solve geographic problems. |
3.Absolute location | the position on the earth in witch a place can be found. |
4.Hemispheres | a half of the earth; the Equator divides the Northern and Southern hemisphere; the Prime Meridian divides the Western and Eastern hemispheres. |
5.Relative Location | the position of a place in relation to another place |
6.Character of a Place | the physical and human characteristics that help to distinguish a place from another place. |
7.Perception | a viewpoint that is influenced by one's own culture and experience. |
8.Formal Regions | a group of place that similar attributes, for example, a political region. |
9.Functional Regions | a group of place connected by movement, for example, the region drained by the Amazon River and it tributaries. |
10.Perceptual Regions | a group of place that is defined by peoples feelings and attitudes. |
11.Core | the earths center, consisting of very hot metal that is dense and solid in the inner core and molten, or liquid, in the outer core. |
12.Mantle | a thick layer of mostly solid rock beneath the earth's crust that surrounds the earth's core. |
13.Crust | the solid,rocky,surface layer of the earth. |
14.Lithosphere | the surface feature of the earth,including solid,rock,and land forms. |
15.Atmosphere | the layer of gas, water vapor, and other substances above the earth. |
16.Hydrosphere | the water contained in oceans, lakes, rivers, and under the ground. |
17.Biosphere | the world of plants, animals, and other living things in earth's land and waters. |
18.Continent | any of the seven large landmasses of the earth's surface: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. |
19.Relief | the difference in elevation, or height, of the land forms in any particular area. |
20.Plate Tectonics | the theory that the earth's outer shell is composed of a number of large, unanchored, or slabs of rock, whose constant movement explains earthquakes and volcano activity. |
21.Continental Drift Theory | the idea that continents slowly shift their position due to movement of the tectonic plates on witch they ride. |
22.Ring of Fire | a ring of volcanic mountains surrounding the Pacific Ocean. |
23.Weathering | the chemical or mechanical process by which rock is gradually broken down, eventually becoming soil |
24.Mechanical Weathering | the actual breaking up or physical weakening of rock by forces such as ice and roots |
25.Chemical Weathering | the process by which the actual chemical structure of rock is changed, usually when water and carbon dioxide cause a breakdown of the rock |
26.Acid Rain | rain whose high concentration of chemicals, usually from industrial pollution, pollutes water, kills plant and animal life, and eats away at the surface of stone and rock of chemical weathering |
27.Erosion | the movement of weathered materials, including gravel, soil, and sand, usually caused by water, wind , and glaciers |
28.Sediment | small particles of soil, sand, and gravel carried and deposited by water |
29.Loess | fine-grained, mineral-rich loam, dust, or silt deposited by the wind |
30.Glacier | a huge, slow-moving mass of snow and ice, |
31.Moraine | a ridge-like mass of rock, gravel, sand, and clay carried and deposited by a glacier |