AP HuG Unit 1 Summative

Human geography

study of spatial characteristics of humans and their activities

Physical geography

study of spatial characteristics of elements of physical environment

distance decay

things farther apart interact less and are less connected

spatial patterns

general arrangement of phenomena on a map, can be described in many ways (location, distance)

What is scale? what are the two general/main scale categories?

ratio between sizes of things in real world and the size of those same things on a map

large scale shows a small area with more detail, small scale shows large area with less detail

name the five scale types, what they are, and one example of each

Global: whole world, image of global Earth at night

world regional: multiple countries in world, North America

national: one country, the United States

national regional: portion of a country or region in that country, the Midwest

local: province, city, state, county, neighborhood, Tennessee

what are reference maps? what are the four types and what they are?

maps that show general info about places.

political: show and label human created boundaries like countries, cities, etc. 

physical: show and label natural features like mountains

road: show and label highways, streets, alleys

plat: show and label property lines and details of land ownership

What are the five types of thematic maps?

chloropleth, dot distribution, graduated symbol, isoline/isometric, cartogram

chloropleth maps

uses many colors and shades to show location and distribution of data. they show rates/quantitative data. percent of ppl who speak english

dot distribution maps

shows specific location and distribution of smth across map, each symbol represents specific amount (could be for a building or for millions of people)

graduated symbol maps

uses symbols of different sizes to show different amounts, large=more, small=less

isoline/isometric maps

uses lines that connect points of equal value to show variations in data across space (topographic maps, temperature)

cartograms

size of places are shown according to a specific statistic (ex- if there is a large population, the country will be large)

absolute location

the precise spot where something is according to a system

latitude

the distance north or south of the equator (horizontal)

longitude

the distance east or west of the prime meridian (vertical)

equator

0 degrees, imaginary line that circles globe exactly halfway between north and south poles which are at 90 degrees

prime meridian 

imaginary line that runs pole to pole through greenwich, england, 0 degrees

relative location

description of where something is in relation to other things, described in connectivity and accessibility

elevation

distance of features above sea level (ft or meters)

distribution

the way a phenomenon is spread out over an area, description of pattern of where these specific phenomenons are located

what are the six types of pattern distribution?

clustered/agglomerated, linear, dispersed, circular, geometric, random

clustered distribution

phenomena arranged in a group or concentrated area like restaurants in a food court

linear distribution

phenomena are arranged in a straight line like towns along a railroad line

dispersed distribution

phenomena spread out over a large area like the distribution of large malls in a city

circular distribution

phenomena equally spaced from a central point forming a circle like the distribution of the homes of people who shop at a certain store

geometric distribution

regular/ordered arrangement like the squares of blocks formed by roads in Midwest 

random distribution 

phenomena that appears to have no order to their position like distribution of pet owners in a city

what are projections?

representation of round earth on a flat surface, none are completely accurate bc you can’t flatten Earth’s shapes

mercator projection, strengths and weaknesses

used for navigation

strengths: distances are shown accurately, lines of lat. and long. meet at right angles

weaknesses: distances between lines of lat. and long. appears constant but it’s not in real life, land masses near the poles look larger 

peters projection, strengths and weaknesses

spacial distributions related to area

strengths: size of land masses 

weaknesses: shapes are inaccurate especially near the poles 

conic projection, strengths and weaknesses

general use in midlatitude countries

strengths: lines of longitude converge, lines of latitude are curved, size and shape are both close to reality

weaknesses: direction is not constant, on a world map, the longitude lines only converge at one pole

robinson projection, strengths and weaknesses

general use
strengths: no major distortion, oval shape looks more like a globe than a rectangle does

weaknesses: area, shape, size, direction are distorted

what is landscape analysis

task of defining and describing landscapes

field observation

the act of physically visiting a place, region, or location and recording information firsthand from there

spatial data

all of the information that can be tied to specific locations

remote sensing

modern technology that increased the ways geographers can get spatial data - gathers info from satellites that orbit earth or other aircraft above atmosphere

aerial photography

modern technology that has increased the ways geographers can get spatial data - professional images captured from planes within the atmosphere

geospatial data and its effects on humans

quantitative or qualitative, gathered by individuals or organizations, includes all info that can be tied to a specific place. it helps us solve real world problems like coronavirus, we could map out the pandemic and save lives.

limitations of using geographic data

maps are only as valuable as the data that was used to create them, data might not represent all people if they only include a small group, data may exclude homeless or undocumented workers

What are some uses of remote sensing?

determines land cover and use, monitors environmental changes, assesses spread of spatial phenomena, and monitors the weather

What is GPS and its uses?

global positioning system
gps users on earth use the locations of many satellites to collect digital images or videos of the earth’s surface
uses: locating borders precisely, navigating ships, aircraft, and cars, mapping lines or points

What is GIS and its uses?

geographic information systems
computer system that can store, analyze, and display info from multiple digital maps or geospatial data sets
uses: analyzing crime data and travel time, monitoring effects of pollution, planning urban area 

Uses of Smartphone or Computer Apps?

Suggesting restaurants, stores, or best routes to consumers
contact tracing related to tracking diseases or exposure to chemicals
mapping of photos from geotags

place

specific human and physical characteristics of a location

site

characteristics at the immediate location (soil type, climate, human structures)

situation

location of a place relative to its surroundings and how connected it is to other places

sense of place

humans tend to perceive characteristics of places in different ways based on their personal beliefs

placelessness

when a place has no strong emotional ties to people or lacks uniqueness