click below
click below
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Chapter 1 vocab
10 key terms P. 35
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Geography | The study of the earth's surface and the process that shape it, the connections between places, and the complex relationships between people and their environments |
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 |
Absolute Location | The position on earth in which a place can be found |
Hemisphere | A half of earth |
Relative Location | The position of a place in relation to another place |
Character of a place | The physical and human characteristic that help to distinguish a place from other places |
Perception | All the forms of water that fall to earth from the atmosphere, including rain and snow |
Formal Region | A group of places that have similar attributes, for example, a political region |
Functional Region | A group of places connected |
Perceptual Region | An area defined by subjective perceptions that reflect the feelings and images about key places characteristics |
Core | The earth's center, consisting of very hot metal that is dense and solid in the inner core and molten, or liquid, in the outer core |
Mantel | A thick layer of mostly solid rock beneath the earths's crust that surrounds the earth's core |
Crust | The solid, rocky surface layer of the earth |
Lithosphere | The surface features of earth, including soil, rocks, and landforms |
Atmosphere | The layer of gases, water vapor, and other substances above the earth |
Hydrosphere | The water contained in oceans, lakes, rivers, and under the ground |
Biosphere | The world of plants, animals, and other living things in earth's land and waters |
Continent | Any of the seven large landmasses of the earth's surface |
Relief | The differences in elevation, or height, of the landforms in any particular area |
Plate Tectonics | The theory that the earth's outer shell is composed of a number of large, unanchored plates, or slabs of rocks, whose constant movement explains earthquakes and volcanic activity |
Continental Drift Theory | The idea that continents slowly shift their positions due |
Ring of Fire | A ring of volcanic mountains surrounding the Pacific Ocean |
Weathering | The chemical or mechanical process by which rock is gradually broken down, eventually becoming soil |
Mechanical Weathering | The actual breaking up or physical weakening of rock by forces such as ice and roots |
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 |
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; a form of chemical weathering |
Erosion | The movement of weathered materials including gravel, soil, and sand, usually caused by water, wind, and glaciers |
Sediment | Particles of soil and rock carried and deposited by water, wind, or ice |
Loess | Fine-grained, mineral-rich loam, dust, or silt deposited by the wind |
Glacier | A huge, slow-moving mass of snow and ice |
Moraine | A ridge like mass of rock, gravel, sand, and clay carried and deposited by glacier |