Unit 1 Chapter 2 APHG

Geography Inquiry process

A systematic approach to gathering and analyzing geographic data.

Quantitative data

Data based on numbers.

Qualitative data

Interpretation from other data, using observations.

Census

Official court population check in America every 10 years.

Geographic Information System (GIS)

Allows collection, organization, and display of geographic data.

Topography

Representing Earth's surface showing natural and human-made features.

Remote sensing

Any way of gathering geographical data without physically being there.

Global Positioning System (GPS)

A system using various amounts of satellites to find the location of a receiver which is usually a phone.

Cartographer

A person who creates maps.

Absolute distance

Distance that can be measured using a standard unit of length.

Relative direction

Directions based on a person's perception, such as left, right, up, or down.

Relative distance

Distance in relation to other places or objects.

Map scale

Mathematical relationship between the part of the real world and the map.

Robinson projection

More globe-like, accurate near poles, distorts area, shape, and size.

Mercator projection

Farther from the equator more distortion, sizes in the arctics are distorted.

Gall-peters projection

Poles flat, land area accuracy, accurate sizes, inaccurate shapes.

Azimuthal projection

Shape, scale, and area are all distorted.

Conic projection

Size and shape converge at one pole, suited for regional mapping, looks like a cone on a 2D plane.

Map distortion

Always distorted; distortion can be decreased but cannot be perfected.

Conformal map

Distorts but keeps shape.

Cylindrical map

Distorts but preserves direction.

Equal area map

Distortion is equal, but shapes are wrong.

Reference maps

Generalized sources of geographic data and focus on location.

Thematic maps

Have a theme or specific purpose.

Basemap

Foundation of reference maps and theme maps.

Isoline map

Connects data points of equal value, like elevation, temperature, or precipitation using lines.

Cartogram

Conveys information by making area proportional to the variable.

Flow line map

A map using lines to show the flow of data.