Term | Definition |
1. Geography. | The integrating science that relates the physical world & living nature to the human factor. |
2. GIS. | A GIS uses computer technology to collect, manipulate, analyze, & display data about the earth's surface in order to solve geographic problems. |
3. Absolute location. | Its position on the globe. |
4. Hemisphere. | Halves. |
5. Relative location. | Its relation compared to other places. |
6. Character of a place. | Consists of the place's physical characteristics & human characteristics. |
7. Perception. | Viewpoint that's influenced by one's own culture & experiences. |
8. Formal region. | Areas in which certain characteristics are found throughout the area. |
9. Functional region. | Consists of a central place & the surrounding places affected by it. |
10. Perceptual region. | Defined by people's feelings & attitudes about areas. |
11. Core. | The earth's center, consisting of very hot metal that is dense & solid in the inner core & 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 features of the earth, including soil, rocks, & landforms. |
15. Atmosphere. | The layer of gases, water vapor, & other substances above the earth. |
16. Hydrosphere. | The water contained in oceans, lakes, rivers, & under the ground. |
17. Biosphere. | Plants, animals, & living things. |
18. Continent. | Any of the seven large landmasses of the earth's surface : Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, & South America. |
19. Relief. | The differences in elevation, or height, of the landforms in any particular area. |
20. Plate Tectonics. | The theory that the earth's outer shell is composed of a number of large, unanchored plates, or slabs of rock, whose constant movement explains earthquakes and volcanic activity. |
21. Continental drift theory. | The idea that continents slowly shift their positions due to movement of the tectonic plates on which they ride. |
22. Ring of Fire. | A ring of volcanic mountains surrounding the Pacific Ocean. |
23. Weathering. | The breakdown of rock at or near the earth's surface into smaller & smaller pieces. |
24. Mechanical weathering. | Occurs when rock is actually broken or weakened physically. |
25. Chemical weathering. | The process of chemical weathering alters a rock's chemical makeup by changing the minerals that form the rock or combining them with new chemical elements. |
26. Acid rain. | Chemicals in the polluted air combine with water vapor & fall back to earth as an acid rain. |
27. Erosion. | The movement of weathered materials such as gravel, soil, and sand. |
28. Sediment. | Small particles of soil, sand, & gravel. |
29. Loess. | Fine-grained, mineral-rich loam, dust, or slit deposited by wind. |
30. Glacier. | Huge, slow moving sheets of ice. |
31. Moraine. | A ridgelike mass of rock, gravel, sand, & clay carried & deposited by a glacier. |