Chapter 1: Thinking Geographically

rectilinear township

A(n) \________ and range survey system based upon lines of latitude and longitude.

City location

\________ and the level of urban economic exchange could be analyzed using central places within hexagonal market areas, which overlapped at different scales.

homogeneous characteristic

A(n) \________ can be a common language.

Long lot patterns

\________ have a narrow frontage along a road or waterway with a very long lot shape behind.

The concept of sequent occupancy is considered over a long term

in other words, the succession of groups and cultural influences throughout a places history

Regions are categorized into three groups

formal, functional, and vernacular

1

50,000

1

1,000,000

accuracy is based upon two concepts

area preservation and shape preservation

space

the geometric surface of the Earth

activity space

the area wherein activity occurs on a daily basis

place

an area of bounded space of some human importance

sequent occupancy

the succession of groups and cultural influences throughout a place’s history

scale

the relationship of an object or place to the Earth as a whole

map scale

the “absolute” form of the scale concept

relative scale/scale of analysis

the level of aggregation, or in other words, the level at which you group things together for examination

formal regions

areas of bounded space that possess some homogeneous characteristic or uniformity

functional/nodal regions

areas that have a central place, or node, that is a focus or point of origin that expresses some practical purpose

vernacular regions

the perception or collective mental map of the region’s residents

absolute location

a point or place on the map using coordinates such as latitude and longitude

time zones

divided up into 15-degree-wide longitudinal zones around the world with some exceptions. This is because 360° divided by 24 hours a day equals 15°.

relative location

the location of a place compared to a known place or geographic feature

site

the physical characteristics of a place

situation

the place’s interrelatedness with other places

linear absolute distance

the distance between two places as measured in linear units such as miles or kilometers

distance decay

the farther away different places are from a place of origin, the less likely interaction will be with the original place

Tobler's law

all places are interrelated, but closer places are more related than farther ones

friction of distance

the length of distance that becomes a factor that inhibits the interaction between two points

Space-Time Compression

decreased time and relative distance between places

Human-Environmental Transportation

the effect that humans have on their environment, and vice versa

central places

any node of human activity and are most often the centers of economic exchange

central place theory

developed in the 1930s by the German geographer Walter Christaller and states that

core and periphery relationships

displayed by different regional, cultural, economic, political, and environmental phenomena and human activities

central business district (CBD)

the core of the urban landscape, a country’s capital is the core of its political landscape

cluster

things are grouped together on the Earth’s surface

agglomeration

when clustering occurs purposefully around a central point or an economic growth pole

random pattern

no rhyme or reason to the distribution of a spatial phenomenon

scattered pattern

objects that are normally ordered but appear dispersed

linear pattern

straight line

sinous pattern

wavy line

land survey patterns

affect the property lines and political boundaries of states and provinces

long-lot patterns

a narrow frontage along a road or waterway with a very long lot shape behind

arithmetic density

the number of things per square unit of distance

physiologic density

he number of people per square unit of arable land, meaning land that either is actively farmed or has the potential to be

agricultural density

the number of farmers per square unit of arable land

contagious diffusion

begins at a point of origin and then moves outward to nearby locations, especially those on adjoining transportation lines

hearth

the point of origin or place of innovation

expansion diffusion

originates in a central place and then expands outward in all directions to other locations

hierarchical diffusion

originates in a first-order location and then moves down to second-order locations and from each of these to subordinate locations at increasingly local scales

stimulus diffusion pattern

a general or underlying principle that diffuses and then stimulates the creation of new products or ideas

relocation diffusion pattern

begins at a point of origin and then crosses a significant physical barrier, such as an ocean, a mountain range, or a desert, and then relocates on the other side

topographic maps

show the contour lines of elevation, as well as the urban and vegetation surface with roads, buildings, river, and other natural landscape features

thematic maps

express a particular subject and does not show land forms for other features

mental map

the cognitive image of landscape in the human mind

large-scale map

a map with a ratio that is a comparatively large real number

small-scale map

a map with a ratio that is a comparatively very small real number

equal-area projections

maintain the relative spatial science and the areas on the map

conformal projections

attempt to maintain the shape of polygons on the map

spatial models

show the commonalities in pattern among similar landscapes

urban models

show how different cities have similar spatial relationships and economic or social structures

demographic transition models

non-spatial models that use population data to construct a general model of the dynamic growth in national scale populations without reference to space

concentric zone model

modified to create a graph showing the cost-to-distance relationship in urban real estate prices

gravity model

a mathematical model that is used in a number of different types of spatial analysis

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

incorporates one or more data layers in a computer program capable of spatial analysis and mapping

Global Positioning System (GPS)

utilizes a worldwide network of satellites, which emit a measurable radio signal

toponym

a place-name assigned to a location when human importance is recognized

regions

a type of place, and there are other categories of places, such as urban places, places of work, resource locations, and transportation nodes

culture regions

tend to have fuzzy borders

political regions

boundaries are finite and well-defined

environmental regions

boundaries are transitional and measurable

ecotone

the environmental transition zone between two bioregions

intervening opportunity

an attraction at a shorter distance that takes precedence over an attraction that is farther away

Prime Meridian

0° longitude and runs through Great Britain because the means to accurately calculate longitude at sea was developed by the British Royal Navy

equator

a circle dividing a sphere or other surface into two usually equal and symmetrical parts at 0° latitude

rectilinear township and range survey system

based upon lines of latitude and longitude

spatial analysis

the mathematical analysis of one or more quantitative geographic patterns

choropleth map

a thematic map that expresses the geographic variability of a particular theme using color variations

isoline map

calculates data values between points across a variable surface

dot density map

uses dots to express the volume and density of a particular geographic feature

flow-line map

uses lines of varying thickness to show the direction and volume of a particular geographic movement pattern

cartograms

uses simplified geometries to represent real-world places

map scale

the “absolute” form of the scale concept

linear map scale

expresses distance on the map surface

ratio scale

the mathematical relationship between the distance on the map compared to the real distance on the Earth’s surface

projection

creates different levels of accuracy in terms of size and shape distortion for different parts of the Earth

Robinson projection and Goode’s homolosine projection

balance area and form, sacrificing a bit of both to create a more visually practical representation of the Earth’s surface

model

an abstract generalization of real-world geographies that share a common pattern

aerial photographs

images of the Earth from an aircraft, printed on film, but digital camera usage is on the increase

remote-sensing satellites

use a computerized scanner to record data from the Earth’s surface