ap human geo all terms

geography

the study of where things are found on earth's surface and the reasons for their locations

erostathenes

inventor of the word "geography" and calculated the earth's circumference

place

a specific point on earth distinguished by a particular characteristic

region

an area of earth defined by one or more distinctive characteristics

scale

the relationship between the portion of earth being studied and earth as a whole

space

the physical gap or interval between two objects

connection

relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space

map

a two-dimensional, or flat scale model of earth's surface or a portion of it

cartography

the science of mapmaking

GIScience (geographic information science)

analysis of data about earth acquired through satellite and other electronic information technologies

GIS (geographic information systems)

software that captures, manages, analyzes, and displays geographical data

photogrammetry

the science of taking measurements of earth's surface from photographs

remote sensing

the acquisition of data about earth's surface from a satellite orbiting the planet or other long-distance methods

GPS (global positioning system)

a system that determines the precise position of something on Earth

geotagging

identification and storage of a piece of information by its precise latitude and longitude coordinates

VGI (volunteered geographic information)

creation and dissemination of geographic data contributed voluntarily and for free by individuals

citizen science

scientific research by amateur scientists

PGIS (participatory GIS)

community-based mapping

mashup

a map that overlays data from one source on top of a map provided by a mapping service

mental map

an internal representation of a portion of earth's surface based on what an individual knows about a place

map scale

the relationship between a feature's size on a map and its actual size on earth

projection

the scientific method of transferring locations on earth's surface to a flat map

mercator projection

goode projection

winkel projection

types of distortion

shape, distance, relative size, direction

meridan

an arc connecting the north and south poles

longitude

the distance in degrees east or west of the prime meridian

prime meridian

0° longitude, it passes through Greenwich, England.

parallel

a circle drawn around the globe parallel to the equator and at right angles to the meridians

latitude

distance north or south of the equator, measured in degrees

isoline map

a map that connects places of a particular value by lines

dot distribution map

a map where dots are used to demonstrate the frequency or intensity of a particular phenomena

choropleth map

a map that uses differences in shading or coloring within predefined areas to measure the variable

graduated symbol map

uses symbols of different sizes to indicate different amounts of something

cartogram

a map that distorts the sizes of countries in proportion to the value of a variable

location

the position that something occupies on earth's surface

toponym

the name given to a place on earth

site

physical characteristics of a place

relative location

the location of a place relative to other places

absolute location

exact location of a place on the earth measured with geographic coordinates

situation (same as relative location)

the location of a place relative to other places

cultural landscape

a combination of cultural features, economic features, and physical features

formal region/uniform region

an area within which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics

functional region/nodal region

an area organized around a node or focal point

vernacular region/perceptual region

an area that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity

culture

beliefs, customs, and traditions of a specific group of people

spatial association

observed within a region if the distribution of one feature is related to the distribution of another feature

globalization

growth to a global or worldwide scale

transnational corporation

internationally conducts research, operates factories, and sells products in many countries

distrubution

the arrangement of a feature in space

density

the frequency with which something occurs in space

concentration

the extent of a feature's spread over space

pattern

the geometric arrangement of objects in space

humanistic geography

a branch of human geography that emphasizes the different ways that individuals perceive their surrounding environment

poststructuralist geography

examines how the powerful in a society dominate, or seek to control, less powerful groups, how the dominated groups occupy space, and confrontations that result from the domination

behavioral geography

emphasizes the importance of understanding the psychological basis for individual human actions in space

uneven development

the increasing gap in economic conditions between core and peripheral regions as a result of the globalization of the economy

diffusion

the process by which a feature spreads across space from one place to another over time

hearth

the place from which an innovation originates

relocation diffusion

the spread of an idea through physical movement of people

expansion diffusion

the spread of a feature form one place to another

hierarchical diffusion

the spread of an idea from persons or nodes of authority or power to other persons or places

contagious diffusion

the rapid, widespread diffusion of a characteristic throughout the population

stimulus diffusion

the spread of an underlying principle, even though a characteristic itself apparently fails to diffuse

distance decay

phenomenon of contact and interaction decreasing when distance increases

space-time compression

describes the reduction in the time it takes for something to reach another place

network

chain of communication that connects places

assimilation

the process by which a group's cultural features are altered to resemble those of another more dominant group.

acculturation

the process of changes in culture that result from the meeting of two groups, each of which retains distinct culture features

syncretism

the combining of elements of two groups into a new cultural feature

resource

a substance in the environment that is useful to people, economically and technologically feasible to access and socially acceptable to use

sustainability

the use of earth's resources in ways that ensure their availability in the future

renewable resource

a resource that is produced in nature more rapidly than it is consumed by humans

non-renewable resource

a resource that is produced in nature more slowly than it is consumed by humans

conservation

sustainable use and management of earth's natural resources to meet human needs such as food, medicine, and recreation

preservation

the maintenance of resources in their present condition, with as little human impact as possible

biotic

a system composed of living organisms

biosphere

all living organisms on earth, including plants and animals, as well as microorganisms

abiotic

a system composed of nonliving or inorganic matter

atmosphere

a thin layer of gases surrounding the earth

hydrosphere

all the water on and near earth's surface

lithosphere

earth's crust and a portion of upper mantle directly below the crust

climate

the long-term average weather condition at a particular location

ecosystem

a group of living organisms and the abiotic spheres with which they interact

ecology

the scientific study of ecosystems

erosion

the process by which wind, water, ice, or gravity transports soil and sediment from one location to another

depletion of nutrients

when plants withdraw more nutrients than natural processes can replace

cultural ecology

the geographic study of human-environment relationships

environmental determinism

belief that physical environment caused social development (the environment determines who people are culturally)

possibilism

theory that the physical environment may limit some human actions, but people have the ability to adjust to their environment

polder

a piece of land that is created by draining water from an area

coordinated universal time (UTC)

the official time reference for the entire world based on the time at greenwich, england

international dateline

the line of longitude that marks where each new day begins, centered at 180° longitude

carry capacity

maximum population size of a species that the environment can sustain indefinitely, given the available resources such as food and water

overpopulation

occurs when the number of people exceeds the capacity of the environment to support life at a decent standard of living

demography

the scientific study of population characteristics

ecumene

the portion of earth's surface occupied by permanent human settlement

non-ecumene

the portion of earth's surface that does not have permanent human settlements

arithmetic density (population density)

the total number of objects in an area (the total number of people divided by the total land area)