AP hg full notes

What are the two main branches of geography?

Physical geography (study of natural features like climate, ecosystems, erosion) and Human geography (study of spatial characteristics like culture and economy).

What is a political map?

A reference map that shows human-created boundaries such as countries, states, and cities.

What is a physical map?

A reference map that shows natural features such as mountains, rivers, deserts, etc.

What is a road map?

A reference map that shows highways, streets, and alleys.

What is a plat map?

A reference map that shows property lines and ownership boundaries.

What is a thematic map?

A map that tells a story by showing specific data or information; always read the title.

What is a choropleth map?

A map that uses shading or coloring to represent density (darker = more), shows density not distribution.

What is a dot map?

A map where dots or symbols represent the location of something.

What is a graduated/proportional symbol map?

A map that uses symbols sized in proportion to the data they represent.

What is an isoline map?

A map that uses lines to connect places with equal values, often resembling fingerprints, usually showing weather or elevation.

What is a cartogram?

A map that distorts the size of areas to represent data such as economy or population, looks cartoon-like.

What is a contiguous cartogram?

A map where shapes and sizes are distorted but remain connected, showing population or other data.

What is an example of a contiguous cartogram?

Canada looks smaller than the U.S. because population is much larger in the U.S.

What is a non-contiguous cartogram?

A cartogram where areas are separated, enlarged, or shrunk based on data value.

What is an example of a non-contiguous cartogram?

U.S. states shown separated and resized based on population.

What is a Dorling cartogram?

A cartogram that represents areas with shapes (usually circles) instead of their actual geography.

What is scale in geography?

The ratio between the size of things in the real world and their representation on a map.

What is cartographic scale?

The size ratio used in a map (e.g., 1 inch = 10 miles).

What is a ratio scale?

A map scale expressed as a ratio, e.g., 3:15.

What is a linear or graphic scale?

A line on a map showing distance, sometimes called a bar scale.

What is a small scale map?

A map that shows a large area with less detail.

What is a large scale map?

A map that shows a small area with more detail.

What is absolute distance?

A quantitative measurement of distance (numbers), e.g., Nashville to Denver is 1022 miles.

What is relative distance?

A qualitative measurement describing distance in relation to other places, e.g., “my house is near a beach.”

What is latitude?

Lines that run 0–90° north and south.

What is longitude?

Lines that run 0–180° east and west ("longggg").

What is the equator?

The line at 0° latitude that divides the Earth into northern and southern hemispheres.

What is the Prime Meridian?

The line at 0° longitude that divides the Earth into eastern and western hemispheres.

What is the International Date Line?

A line opposite the Prime Meridian that zigzags to keep consistent times across islands.

What are clustered patterns?

When things are grouped together in space.

What are dispersed patterns?

When things are scattered or spread out in space.

What is topography?

The arrangement of natural and artificial features of an area, often shown with contour lines for elevation.

Why are maps distorted?

Because the Earth is round and flat maps cannot perfectly represent spatial relationships.

What four things are distorted in maps?