AP Human Geography Unit 1 Vocab

absolute location

the coordinates of a place using latitude and longitude

accessibility

the ability to reach a place with respect to another place

agricultural density

the number of farmers per unit of farmland

arithmetic density

the total number of objects in an area

cartography

the science of map-making

choropleth map

a thematic map using shading to show a pattern of a variable (the darker the shading, the higher the concentration of the variable)

concentration

the extent of a feature's spread over space

connectivity

relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space

contagious diffusion

the rapid, widespread diffusion of a characteristic throughout the population

core-periphery

central, wealthy, technologically advanced countries vs. less-developed, poor, and dependant countries

cultural ecology

the geographic study of human-environment relationships

cultural landscape

forms superimposed on the physical environment by humans

density

the frequency with which something occurs in space

diffusion

the process by which a characteristic spreads across space from one place to another over time

distance decay

contact diminishes with increasing distance and eventually disappears

distribution

the arrangement of a feature in space

environmental determinism

the theory that the physical environment causes social development

equator

the parallel with the largest circumference and the place with 12 hours of daylight (0 degrees latitude)

Eratosthenes

created the word geography, accepted the Earth is sperical, calculated its circumference, and created a map of the Earth dividing it into climatic regions

expansion diffusion

the pread of a feature from one place to another in a snowballing process

formal region

an area within which everyone shares in a common one or more distinctive characteristics

functional region

an area organized around a node or central point

GIS

a computer system that can capture, store, query, analyze, and display geographic data

globalization

a force or process that involves the entire world and results in making something worldwide in scope

GPS

a system that accurately determines the precise position of something on Earth

Greenwich Mean Time

the master reference time for all points on Earth; the time at the prime meridian

hearth

the place from which an innovation originates

hierarchical diffusion

the spread of an idea from persons or nodes of authority to other persons or places

human geography

the study of where and why human activities are located where they are

International Date Line

a line following the 180 degree latitude line where when you cross it going west, you set the clock forward by 24 hours

isoline map

a thematic map with continuous lines joining points of the same value

Land Ordinance Act of 1785

divided the West into townships and ranges to help with the buying and selling of land

latitude

the numbering system to indicate the location of a parallel

location

the position that something occupies on Earth's surface

longitude

a numbering system used to locate each meridian on Earth's surface

map

a two-dimensional or flat-scale model of Earth's surface, or a portion of it

mental map

an internal representation of a portion of Earth's surface

Mercator projection

rectangular-shaped maps with little shape and direction distortion, but a lot of size distortion

meridian

an arc drawnbetween the North and South poles

pattern

the geometric arrangement of objects in space

physiological density

the number of persons per unit of land suitable for agriculture

possibilism

theory that the physical environment may limit some human actions, but people have the ability to adjust to their environment

prime meridian

the meridian that is 0 degrees longitude

principle meridian

the north-south lines seperating townships

projection

the scientific method of transferring locations on Earth's surface to a flat map

Ptolemy

an ancient Greek who wrote Guide to Geography and made many maps

reference map

help people find and identify physical and/or political features

region

an area of Earth distinguished by a distinctive combination of physical and cultural traits

relative location

lets us find unfamiliar locations by comparing them to familiar ones

remote sensing

the acquisition of data about Earth's surface from a satellite orbiting Earth or other long-distance methods

Robinson projection

maps that are useful for displaying information across the oceans, but land areas are smaller than on interrupted maps of the same size

scale

refers to the relationship of a feature's size on a map compared to its actual size on Earth

sense of place

a feeling for the features that contribute to the distinctiveness of a particular spot on Earth

sequent occupance

the notion that successive societies leave their cultural imprints on a place, each contributing to the cumulative cultural landscape

site

the physical character of a place

situation

the location of a place relative to other places

space-time compression

the reduction in time it takes for something to reach another place

spatial

depending on the scale, different spatial assumptions can be made

stimulus diffusion

the spread of an underlying principle, even though a characteristic itself apparently fails to diffuse

thematic map

shows how a particular feature is distributed over an area

Tobler's First Law of Geography

everything is related to everything else, but near things are more related than far things

toponym

the name given to a place on Earth

vernacular region

a place that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity