human geo quiz

Geography

The study of the Earth's surface and the relationships between people and their environments.

Human Geographers

Specialists who analyze the distribution of people and activities on Earth and their reasons for location.

Place

A specific point on Earth distinguished by particular characteristics.

Region

An area of Earth distinguished by a particular characteristic.

Scale

The relationship between the portion of Earth being studied and Earth as a whole.

Space

The physical gap or interval between two objects.

Connection

Relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space.

Map

A two-dimensional or flat-scale model of Earth’s surface or a portion of it.

Cartography

The science of mapmaking.

Geographic Information Science (G I Science)

The analysis of data about Earth acquired through satellite and electronic technologies.

Geographic Information System (G I S)

A system that captures, stores, queries, and displays geographic data.

Photogrammetry

The science of taking measurements of Earth’s surface from photographs.

Remote Sensing

The acquisition of data about Earth’s surface from satellites or other long-distance methods.

Global Positioning System (G P S)

A system that determines the precise position of something on Earth.

Geotagging

The identification and storage of information by its precise latitude and longitude coordinates.

Volunteered Geographic Information (V G I)

Geographic data contributed voluntarily and for free by individuals.

Mashup

A map that overlays data from one source on top of another map.

What3words

A geocode system that divides the world into 57 trillion squares identified by three English words.

Toponym

The name given to a place on Earth.

Site

The physical character of a place, such as topography or elevation.

Situation

The location of a place relative to other places.

Cultural Landscape

The combination of cultural, economic, and physical features that give a region its unified character.

Formal Region

An area within which most people share one or more distinctive characteristics.

Functional Region

An area organized around a node or focal point.

Vernacular Region

An area that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity.

Globalization

Actions or processes that involve the entire world, making something worldwide in scope.

Density

The frequency with which something occurs in space.

Concentration

The extent of a feature’s spread over space.

Pattern

The geometric arrangement of objects in space.

Distance Decay

The diminishing importance of a phenomenon with increasing distance from its origin.

Space-Time Compression

The reduction in time it takes to diffuse something to a distant place.

Assimilation

The process by which a group’s cultural features are altered to resemble those of another group.

Acculturation

Changes in culture that result from the meeting of two groups.

Syncretism

The combination of elements of two groups into a new cultural feature.

Sustainability

The use of Earth’s resources in ways that ensure their availability in the future.

Three Pillars of Sustainability

Environmental, social, and economic actions that support sustainability.

Ecosystem

A group of living organisms and the abiotic spheres with which they interact.

Environmental Determinism

The theory that the physical environment causes social development.

Possibilism

The theory that the physical environment may limit some human actions, but people can adjust to their environment.

Polder

A piece of land created by draining water from an area.