World Regional Geography 201 - Lecture 01

Geography is the study of what 6 things?

Earth, places, people, natural environment, human-environment interaction, and the interconnectedness of society

Name 4 complex problems that geography helps us solve.

Food shortage and supply, the environment, political antagonism, and economic development

What is the difference between Geography and History?

History deals with time (chronological), while geography deals with place (chorologic)

Name 4 reasons we study geography.

1. To fully understand our environment.

2. To enhance the flow of information and events occurring in other places.

3. To make effective business and political decisions.

4. To monitor weather conditions.

What two Greek words make up geography?

geo (Earth) and graphos (to describe; to write)

Name 3 common questions asked in geography.

"What is it," "where is it," and "why is it there?"

Name 6 areas of study that geographers are interested in.

1. Location

2. Spatial Distribution

3. Human-Environment Interactions

4. Movement

5. Place

6. Regions

Who was Herodotus?

The "father" of geography and history

What 4 Earth processes was Aristotle interested in?

Temperature, wind, alluvial deposition, and volcanism.

What did Eratosthenes measure the Earth’s circumference to?

25,000 miles (40,572 km)

What is the Earth’s actual circumference at the equator?

24,900 miles (40,091.4 km)

What is the Earth’s diameter at the equator?

7,927 miles (12,758 km)

What is the Earth’s diameter at the poles?

7,900 miles (12,714 Km)

Who was Ptolemy?

early mapmaker who designed a map of 8,000 known locations using the coordinate system

Who was Strabo?

map compiler who described the world

Who was Ibn Batuta?

Arab scholar who recorded his travels throughout the Arab World, North Africa, Southern Asia and beyond into Northern China

Who was Avicenna?

Arab scholar who discovered some of the processes by which mountains are formed and destroyed.

What happened in Europe during the Dark Ages?

Geographic knowledge in Europe was disappointing, suffering a major setback and almost being destroyed

What was the Dark Ages in Europe called in the Arab World?

The Golden Era

What did the Renaissance and Age of Discovery do?

Bring about a resurgence of geography and other sciences

Who founded the first Geographical Institute in 1418?

Prince Henry of Portugal, Christopher Columbus, and Ferdinand Magellan.

Geography is no longer solely based on description, but on what?

the testing of hypothesis

What are the 4 Traditions of Geography?

Spatial Tradition, Man and Land Tradition, Areal Studies, and Earth Science Tradition

What is Spatial Tradition?

The way things are organized in area.

What are the 4 parts of Spatial Tradition?

Distance, form, direction, and position

What is Man & Land Tradition?

The relationship between people and the land that supports them.

What are Areal Studies?

Regions, including analysis and explanation of why things are distributed as they are.

What does the Earth Science Tradition involve?

The physical Earth, perhaps the oldest of all geographic traditions.

What is a region?

A concept used to classify certain areas of the Earth that helps us comprehend the similarities and differences on the Earth’s surface.

What is a formal (homogeneous) region?

A geographical area where a single characteristic, like climate, language, or political system, is relatively uniform throughout the entire region.

What are the 5 characteristics of a formal region?

Homogenous, Static, Uniformity, Immobile, and Commonality

What is a functional (nodal) region?

An operational unit that is interdependent and operates over space.

What is the Node (Core Area)?

Part of a functional region that directs and coordinates that function.