Geography and Culture Lecture Notes

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts from the geography and culture lecture notes.

Reference Maps

Maps that show information for a particular place, designed for people to refer to.

Thematic Maps

Maps that focus on a specific topic or theme, such as choropleth maps or dot distribution maps.

Map Projections

Methods of representing the 3D surface of the earth on a 2D surface, often distorting shape, area, distance, or direction.

Robinson Projection

A map projection that minimizes distortion but does not eliminate it.

GPS (Global Positioning System) and GIS (Geographic Information Systems)

Technologies used for accurate positioning and mapping, where GPS determines location and GIS processes spatial data.

Absolute Location

Exact location of a place, usually given in latitude and longitude.

Relative Location

Location of a place in relation to other locations.

Cultural Region

An area characterized by a sharing of cultural traits.

Formal Region

A region defined by a common characteristic, such as language or religion.

Functional Region

An area defined by a focal point and its relationship with surrounding areas, often linked by a nodal activity.

Perceptual Region

An area defined by subjective perceptions that reflect the feelings and impressions of the people living there.

Hearth

The point of origin for trends or cultural practices.

Distance Decay

The principle that as distance increases, cultural interaction decreases.

Time-Space Compression

The phenomenon where advances in transportation and communication reduce the time it takes for cultural diffusion.

Built Environment

The human-made surroundings that provide the setting for human activity, including buildings and infrastructure.

Environmental Determinism

The theory that the physical environment shapes human culture and behavior.

Possibilism

The theory that the environment sets certain constraints or limitations, but culture is otherwise determined by social conditions.

Centrifugal Forces

Forces that divide a state, such as ethnic conflict or religious divisions.

Centripetal Forces

Forces that unify a state, such as nationalism or shared culture.

Urbanization

The process by which populations move from rural areas to cities.

Gentrification

The process of renovating and improving a neighborhood, which often leads to an increase in property values and displacement of lower-income residents.

Neolocalism

The seeking out of regional culture in response to the uncertainty of the modern world.

Sustainability

The ability to meet current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Commodity Chain

The steps a product takes from producers to consumers.

Devolution

The process by which regions within a state gain greater autonomy from the central government.

Supranationalism

A form of international cooperation where countries give up some degree of sovereignty to achieve common goals.

Dependency Ratio

The ratio of non-working age people (young and elderly) to working-age people in a population.

Demographic Transition Model (DTM)

A model that describes the transition of a population from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates as a country develops.

Total Fertility Rate (TFR)

The average number of children born to a woman during her lifetime.

Epidemiological Transition Model

A model that describes shifts in the patterns of morbidity and mortality as cultures transition from pre-industrial to industrial.

Migration

The permanent or semi-permanent relocation of individuals from one place to another.

Push and Pull Factors

The reasons that drive people away from their origin (push factors) or attract them to a destination (pull factors).