AP human geography

What does physical geography study? Natural features like climate, water, landforms.

What does human geography study? Culture, economy, spatial patterns.

What does a political map show? Human-created boundaries (countries, states, cities).

What does a physical map show? Natural features like mountains and rivers.

What does a road map show? Highways, streets, and alleys.

What does a plat map show? Property lines.

What are thematic maps used for? To tell a story or show data (always read the title).

What does a choropleth map show? Data using shading; darker = more; shows density not distribution.

What does a dot distribution map show? Dots represent occurrences or values at specific locations.

What does a proportional symbol map show? Symbols sized to represent data values.

What does an isoline map show? Lines connecting equal values (like temperature or pressure).

What does a cartogram show? Distorts size of areas based on data values instead of land area.

What’s a contiguous cartogram? Shapes remain connected but distorted to show data.

What’s a non-contiguous cartogram? Shapes separated and resized to show data.

What’s a Dorling cartogram? Uses circles to represent data.

What is scale on a map? Ratio between map and real-world size.

What is a small-scale map? Large area, little detail.

What is a large-scale map? Small area, lots of detail.

What is absolute distance? Numerical measurement (ex: 1,022 miles).

What is relative distance? Qualitative description (ex: near the beach).

What does latitude measure? 0–90° north or south of the Equator.

What does longitude measure? 0–180° east or west of the Prime Meridian.

What are the 3 main reference lines? Equator, Prime Meridian, International Date Line.

What are the four categories of analysis (ESPN)? Economic, Social, Political, Environmental.

What does clustered distribution mean? Features grouped together.

What does dispersed distribution mean? Features spread out.

What do topographical maps show? Elevation with contour lines.

Why are all maps distorted? Because Earth is round and maps are flat.

What does a conformal projection preserve? Shape of areas.

What does an equal-area projection preserve? Size of land.

What does the Mercator projection preserve? Direction (distorts size near poles).

What does the Gall-Peters projection preserve? Size (distorts shape).

What does the Robinson projection preserve? Balance of size and shape (distorts poles).

What does the Goode’s projection preserve? Size and shape of land (cuts oceans).

What is remote sensing? Collecting data from satellites or aircraft.

What is GPS used for? Exact coordinates for location/navigation.

What is GIS? Computer system for storing, layering, and analyzing data.

What is fieldwork in geography? Collecting data through observation, notes, photos, or interviews.

What are other sources of geographic data? Census, surveys, media, government documents, smartphones.

Why is data sometimes limited? Errors, bias, excluded groups (ex: homeless, undocumented).

What is absolute location? Exact coordinates (latitude/longitude).

What is relative location? Location compared to other places.

What is site? Immediate characteristics of a place.

What is situation? Location relative to connections with other places.

What are flows in geography? Movement of people, goods, or info.

What is distance decay? Interaction decreases with increasing distance.

What is time-space compression? Technology makes places feel closer together.

What is sustainability? Using resources to meet needs without harming future generations.

What are examples of land use? Agriculture, residential, industrial, transportation, recreation.

What is environmental determinism? The environment controls human culture/behavior.

What is possibilism? Humans adapt and make choices regardless of environment.

What is scale of analysis? The level (global, regional, national, local) at which data is examined.

What is a global scale example? United Nations.

What is a national scale example? One country (ex: U.S.).

What is a local scale example? A city, neighborhood, or state.

What is a formal region? Area with shared trait (ex: Sahara Desert).

What is a functional region? Area organized around a focal point (ex: metro area).

What is a perceptual/vernacular region? Defined by people's perception (ex: "the South").

What is a subregion? A smaller unit within a larger region that shares traits but has unique characteristics.

Why are regions tricky to use? They generalize and can hide diversity within them.