AP Human Geography Unit 1: Thinking Geographically

absolute direction

a compass direction such as north or south (30 degrees North East)

absolute location

the precise point where a place is located on Earth

choropleth map (thematic)

uses various colors

formal region

an area in which everyone shares in one or more distinctive characteristics

functional region

an area organized around a node or focal point

geographic information system (GIS)

a computer system that stores

satellite navigation system (GPS)

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

latitude

the distance north or south of the equator

longitude

distance east or west of the prime meridian

Prime Meridian

imaginary line drawn from the North Pole through Greenwich

map projection/distortion

the system used to transfer locations from Earth's surface to a flat map.

reference maps

maps designed for people to refer to for general information about places

remote sensing

process of gathering data about Earth from instruments far above the planet's surface

global scale

the level of geography that encompasses the entire world as a single unified area (seen on small-scale maps)

geospatial data

data that describe both the locations and characteristics of spatial features on the Earth's surface

time-space compression

the shrinking of time distance between locations because of improved methods of transportation

thematic map

a map that tells a story

dot distribution map

a map where dots are used to demonstrate the frequency or intensity of a particular phenomena

isoline map (thematic map)

a thematic map with lines that connect points of equal value

cartogram (thematic)

the sizes of countries are shown to some specific statistic

Mercator Projection

a projection of a map of the world onto a cylinder in such a way that all the parallels of latitude have the same length as the equator

Peters Projection

focuses on keeping landmasses equal in area. As a result

Robinson Projection

projection that attempts to balance several possible projection errors. It does not maintain completely accurate area

local scale

a spatial scale that is essentially equivalent to a community (a large-scale map)

topographic map (thematic map)

a map that shows the surface features of Earth

possibilism

viewpoint that while environment does have some influence on people

sustainability

the use of Earth's renewable and nonrenewable natural resources in ways that do not constrain resource use in the future.

national scale

the whole country

large-scale map

Depicts a small area (such as downtown Phoenix) with great detail

small-scale map

A map that shows a larger area without much detail

absolute distance

The distance that can be measured with a standard unit length

area distortion

referring to a map projection with skewed size of certain areas/landmasses

census data

Taken every 10 years in the US

clustering

Gathering; forming in a group

direction distortion

Direction from one place to another on a map is distorted

dispersal

Movement of individuals away from centers of high population density or their area of origin

distance decay

The effects of distance on interaction

distance distortion

Distance between two points may be longer or shorter than in reality

elevation

The height of land above sea level

environmental determinism

A doctrine from the early 1800s that claims that cultural traits are formed and controlled by environmental conditions; outdated

pattern

the geometric or regular arrangement of something in a study area.

perceptual/vernacular region

an area that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity

place

uniqueness of a location (both physical and cultural characteristics)

geographical data

usually numerical information used to describe or measure geographical phenomena

regional analysis

the study of the cultural

regional scale

interactions occurring within a region

relative direction

directions such as left

relative distance

distance measured in terms such as cost or time which are more meaningful for the space relationship in question

relative location

where a place is located in relation to another place

satellite imagery

images generated at intervals from satellites orbiting the Earth. Can show visible

shape distortion

misrepresentation by unequal projection of the actual shape of the landmass on a map

space

the physical gap or interval between two objects

Azimuthal Projection

a map projection in which a region of the earth is projected onto a plane tangential to the surface