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AP Human Geo Unit 1
Unit 1 Key Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Physical Geography | is the study of the spatial characteristics of various elements of the physical environment. Physical geographers study topics such as landforms, bodies of water, climate, ecosystems, and erosion. |
| Human geography | is the study of the spatial characteristics of humans and human activities. Human geographers study topics such as population, culture, politics, urban areas, and economics. |
| Reference maps | are aptly named because they are designed for people to refer to for general information about places. |
| Political maps | show and label human-created boundaries and designations, such as countries, states, cities, and capitals. (reference) |
| Physical maps | show and label natural features, such as mountains, rivers, and deserts. (reference) |
| Road maps | show and label highways, streets, and alleys. (reference) |
| Plat maps | show and label property lines and details of land ownership. (reference) |
| Thematic maps | show spatial aspects of information or of a phenomenon. Following are descriptions of four common types of thematic maps. |
| Choropleth maps | use various colors, shades of one color, or patterns to show the location and distribution of spatial data. (Thematic) |
| Dot distribution maps | are used to show the specific location and distribution of something across a map. Each dot represents a specified quantity. (Thematic) |
| Graduated symbol maps | use symbols of different sizes to indicate different amounts of something. Larger sizes indicate more of something, and smaller sizes indicate less. (Thematic) |
| cartogram | the sizes of countries ( or states, counties, or other areal units) are shown according to some specific statistic. (Thematic) |
| Cartographic scale | refers to the way the map communicates the ratio of its size to the size of what it represents |
| Small-scale maps | show a larger amount of area with less detail global scale Earth at night is an example |
| Large-scale maps | show a smaller amount of area with a greater amount of detail-North America at night is an example. |
| Absolute location | is the precise spot where something is according to a system. The most widely used system is the global grid of lines known as latitude and longitude. |
| Latitude | is the distance north or south of the equator |
| Equator | , an imaginary line that circles the globe exactly halfway between the North and South Poles. |
| Longitude | is the distance east or west of the prime meridian, |
| Prime Meridian | It is designated as O degrees. On the opposite side of the globe from the prime meridian is 180 degrees longitude. |
| Relative location | is a description of where something is in relation to other things. Ex: To describe Salt Lake City, Utah, as being "just south of the Great Salt Lake and just west of the Rocky Mountains, |
| connectivity, | how well two locations are tied together by roads or other links |
| accessibility | how quickly and easily people in one location can interact with people in another location. |
| Direction | is used in order to describe where things are in relation to each other. |
| Absolute distance | is usually measured in terms of feet, miles, meters or kilometers. |
| Relative distance | indicates the degree of nearness based on time or money and is often dependent on the mode of travel. For example, traveling from home to your school takes 10 minutes by car |
| Elevation | is the distance of features above sea level, usually measured in feet or meters |
| distribution, | the way a phenomenon is spread out over an area |
| patterns | or the general arrangement of things, |
| Clustered | phenomena are arranged in a group or concentrated area such as restaurants in a food court at a mall |
| Mercator | was designed for navigation because the lines of directions are straight and easy to follow |
| Landscape Analysis | The task of defining and describing landscapes |
| field observation | is used to refer to the act of physically visiting a location, place, or region and recording, firsthand, information there. |
| Spatial data | All of the information that can be tied to specific locations |
| Remote sensing | gathers information from satellites that orbit the earth or other craft above the atmosphere |
| Aerial photography | professional images captured from planes within the atmosphere, is an important source of observed data available today |
| Fieldwork | Geographers collect geospatial data by observing and recording information on location, or in the field. |
| geovisualizations, | 2D or even 3D interactive maps |
| GPS (Global Positioning System) | Exact location |
| Geographic Information System | Computer system that can store, analyze, and display information from multiple digital maps. |
| spatial approach | considers the arrangement of the phenomena being studied across the surface of the earth |
| Location | identifies where specific phenomena are located either on a grid system or relative to another location. |
| Place | refers to the specific human and physical characteristics of a location |
| Site | can be described as the characteristics at the immediate location-for example, the soil type, climate, labor force, and human structures. |
| situation | location of a place relative to its surroundings and its connectivity to other places. |
| Sense of place | Humans tend to perceive the characteristics of places in different ways based on their personal beliefs.( For example, the characteristics of Rome, Italy, might be described differently by a local resident than by an outsider or by a Catholic.) |
| Toponyms | place names |
| Time-space compression | is the shrinking "time-distance;' or relative distance, between locations because of improved methods of transportation and communication. |
| Spatial interaction | refers to the contact, movement, and flow of things between locations |
| Flow | refers to the patterns and movement of ideas, people, products, and other phenomena. |
| friction of distance | indicates that when things are farther apart, they tend to be less connected. |
| Distance decay | the concept that the interaction, relationship, or phenomenon between two places decreases or weakens as the distance between them increases |
| Spatial Association | Matching patterns of distribution |
| natural resource | includes items that occur in the natural environment that people can use |
| Renewable natural resources | theoretically are unlimited and will not be depleted based on use by people |
| Non-renewable natural resources | are limited and can be exhausted by human uses |
| Sustainability | is an overarching theme of human geography and relates to trying to use resources now in ways that allow their use in the future while minimizing negative impacts on the environment. |
| Land Use | The study of how land is utilized, modified, and organized by people is the essence of |
| Built environment | the physical artifacts that humans have created and that form part of the landscape, in their understanding of land use. |
| cultural ecology | The study of how humans adapt to the environment is known |
| environmental determinism | The belief that landforms and climate are the most powerful forces shaping human behavior and societal development while ignoring the influence of culture |
| Possibilism | a view that acknowledges limits on the effects of the natural environment and focuses more on the role that human culture plays. EX. people have the ability to adjust, adapt, and find solutions using technology and creativity. |
| Geographic Scale/Relative Scale | refers to the area of the world being studied. For example, global scale means a map of the entire planet, showing data that covers the whole world. In contrast, local scale means using a map of a city or neighborhood to study local issues. |
| Aggregation | is when geographers organize data into different scales such as by census tract, city, county, or country. This allows the data to be more easily mapped or organized in a chart or graph. |
| Regions | have boundaries, unifying characteristics, cover space, and are created by people. |
| Formal Regions | are united by one or more traits: political, physical, cultural, and economic. |
| Functional/Nodal Regions | These regions are organized around a focal point and are defined by an activity, usually political, social, or econ01nic, that occurs across the region. |
| Perceptual/Vernacular Regions | defined by the informal sense of place that people ascribe to them. |
| Sub-regions | regions into smaller areas, |
Created by:
dobregon
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