AMSCO Unit 1 Geography - Maps and Geographic Data

Vocabulary flashcards covering AMSCO Unit 1 Topics 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 including types of maps, spatial patterns, scale, locations, map projections, geospatial technologies, and geographic data sources.

Spatial Patterns

The general arrangements of things being studied and the repeated sequences of events or processes that create them.

Reference Maps

Maps designed for people to refer to for general information about places, including political, physical, road, and plat maps.

Political Maps

A type of reference map that shows and labels human-created boundaries and designations, such as countries, states, cities, and capitals.

Physical Maps

A type of reference map that shows and labels natural features, such as mountains, rivers, and deserts.

Road Maps

A type of reference map that shows and labels highways, streets, and alleys.

Plat Maps

A type of reference map that shows and labels property lines and details of land ownership.

Thematic Maps

Maps that show spatial aspects of information or of a phenomenon.

Choropleth Maps

Thematic maps that use various colors, shades of one color, or patterns to show the location and distribution of spatial data.

Dot Distribution Maps

Thematic maps used to show the specific location and distribution of something across a map.

Graduated Symbol Maps

Thematic maps that use symbols of different sizes to indicate different amounts of something.

Isoline Maps

Thematic maps that use lines connecting points of equal value to depict variations in data across space.

Topographic Maps

Maps connecting points of equal elevation to create contours that depict surface features.

Scale

The ratio between the size of things in the real world and the size of those same things on a map.

Cartographic Scale

Refers to the way a map communicates the ratio of its size to the size of what it represents.

Small-Scale Maps

Maps that show a larger amount of area with less detail.

Large-Scale Maps

Maps that show a smaller amount of area with a greater amount of detail.

Absolute Location

The precise spot where something is located according to a system, which cannot change.

Latitude

The distance north or south of the equator, measured using global grid lines.

Equator

An imaginary line that circles the globe exactly halfway between the North and South Poles.

Longitude

The distance east or west of the Prime Meridian.

Prime Meridian

An imaginary line that runs from pole to pole through Greenwich, England, designated as 0^\bar{\text{o}} / 180^\bar{\text{o}}.

International Date Line

A line that roughly follows the Prime Meridian opposite longitude but makes deviations to accommodate international boundaries.

Relative Location

A description of where something is in relation to other things, which can change as accessibility changes.

Absolute Distance

Distance measured in explicit physical units such as feet, miles, meters, or kilometers.

Relative Distance

The degree of nearness based on time or money, which is often dependent on the mode of travel.

Elevation

The distance of features above sea level, usually measured in feet or meters.

Distribution

The way a phenomenon is spread out over an area.

Distribution Patterns

General arrangements of phenomena across space (such as clustered/agglomerated, linear, dispersed, circular, geometric, or random) that give clues to causes or effects.

Map Projection

A method of displaying the curved surface of the spherical Earth on a flat surface, which inherently introduces distortion.

Mercator Projection

A map projection designed primarily for navigation.

Peters Projection

A map projection characterized by showing accurate sizes of land masses.

Conic Projection

A map projection featuring unconstant direction where only one pole is covered on longitude lines on a world map.

Robinson Projection

A map projection that distorts four main properties: area, size, shape, and direction.

Landscape Analysis

The task of defining and describing landscapes.

Field Observations

The act of physically visiting a location, place, or region and recording first-hand information there.

Spatial Data

All information that can be tied to specific locations.

Remote Sensing

Information gathered from cameras or sensors on satellites that orbit the Earth or other craft above the atmosphere.

Aerial Photography

Professional images captured from planes operating within the atmosphere.

Geospatial Data

Quantitative or qualitative location-aware data that can be gathered by organizations or individuals.

Geovisualizations

Visual representations that allow people to zoom in or out to examine data in ways that were previously impossible.

Global Positioning System (GPS)

A network of receivers on the Earth's surface used to determine exact locations, precisely locate borders, and map lines or points.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Computer systems that share, analyze, and display information from multiple digital maps or geospatial data sets, used for tasks like analyzing crime data and planning urban areas.

Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)

A non-governmental organization that can utilize geographic data to help people improve their living standards.

London Underground Map Standard

A simplified transit map style that remains useful despite spatial inaccuracies because it is small and uses straight lines for readability.