Absolute Distance
The distance that can be measured with a standard unit length, such as a mile or kilometer.
Absolute Direction
Based on the cardinal points of north, south, east, and west
Relative Distance
Distance measured in terms such as cost or time which are more meaningful for the space relationship in question
Relative Direction
Directions such as left, right, forward, backward, up, and down based on people's perception of places
Clustering
When objects in an area are close together.
Dispersal
When objects in an area are relatively far apart.
Elevation
The height of land above sea level.
Map Projection
the scientific method of transferring locations on Earth's surface to a flat map.
Absolute Location
The exact position of an object or place, measured within the spatial coordinates of a grid system.
Relative Location
The position of a place in relation to another place.
Geographic Information System (GIS)
A collection of computer hardware and software that permits spatial data to be collected, recorded, stored, retrieved, manipulated, analyzed, and displayed to the user.
Satellite Navigation System
a device used to plot the user's position on a map, using GPS technology to obtain the location.
Remote Sensing
The acquisition of data about Earth's surface from a satellite orbiting the planet or other long-distance methods.
Field Observations
A method of studying what people are doing and observing how their actions and reactions vary.
Media Reports
Articles published by newspapers and magazines and television news programs.
Travel Narratives
records of the places, people, and occurrences of a particular region that a traveler visits.
Landscape Analysis
Using field observation, spatial data, and aerial photography to gather data to define and describe landscapes.
Photographic Interpretation
The identification, description and measurement of objects in images, especially in aerial photographs, for geologic, cartographic or military purposes.
Satellite Imagery
Images of the earth taken from orbiting satellites. Images can be taken in a variety of forms so as to detect specific information about the earth, vegetation and other types of land cover.
Space
The physical gap or interval between two objects
Place
A specific point on Earth distinguished by a particular character.
Flows
the movement of objects, people and ideas between places.
Distance Decay
The diminishing in importance and eventual disappearance of a phenomenon with increasing distance from its origin.
Time-space compression/convergence
The increasing sense of connectedness between a space due to technology
Pattern
the geometric arrangement of objects in space
Human Environment Interaction
The geographic theme that explores how people use, adapt to, and modify the environment
Sustainability
meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
Natural Resources
Materials or substances such as minerals, forests, water, and fertile land that occur in nature and can be used for economic gain.
Land Use
Various ways humans use the land such as agricultural, industrial, residential, or recreational
Environmental Determinism
the view that the natural environment has a controlling influence over various aspects of human life including cultural development
Possibilism
The theory that the physical environment may set limits on human actions, but people have the ability to adjust to the physical environment and choose a course of action from many alternatives.
Scales of Analysis
the study of a phenomena globally, regionally, or locally
Global Scale
the level of geography that encompasses the entire world as a single unified area
Regional Scale
Interactions occurring within a region, in a regional setting.
National Scale
Interactions occurring within a country.
Local Scale
the level of geography that describes the space where an individual lives or works; a city, town, or rural area
Regional Analysis
The study of the cultural, economic, political, physical, or other factors that contribute to the distinctiveness of geographical areas.
Formal Region
An area within which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics.
Functional (Nodal) Region
An area organized around a node or focal point
Perceptual (Vernacular) Region
A region that only exists as a conceptualization or an idea and not as a physically demarcated entity.
Geographic Data
information that identifies the geographic location of features and boundaries on earth (natural and constructed).
Mercator Projection
a projection of a map of the world onto a cylinder in such a way that all the parallels of latitude have the same length as the equator, used especially for marine charts and certain climatological maps.
Robinson Projection
A projection that maintains overall shapes and relative positions without extreme distortion. Most classrooms use this projection.
Isoline Map
Map displaying lines that connect points of equal value; for example, a map showing elevation levels
Dot Map
Maps where one dot represents a certain number of a phenomenon, such as a population.
Cartogram Map
A map in which the shape or size is distorted in order to demonstrate a variable such as travel, population, or economic production.
Travel Documents
All the necessary documents you would need to take with you on a trip i.e passport or ID card, visa, etc.
policy documents
Documents created by the government or other organizations
personal interview
A face-to-face conversation in which a researcher surveys an individual to obtain research data
Climate
The average weather conditions in an area over a long period of time
Landforms
natural features of the earth's surface
Water Bodies
inland areas of water (rivers, lakes, reservoirs etc)
Distribution
The arrangement of something across Earth's surface.
Arithmetic Density
The total number of people divided by the total land area.
Physiological Density
The number of people per unit of area of arable land, which is land suitable for agriculture.
Agricultural Density
The ratio of the number of farmers to the total amount of land suitable for agriculture
Carrying Capacity
Largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support.
Population Pyramid
A bar graph that represents the distribution of population by age and sex.
Demographics
the characteristics of a population with respect to age, race, and gender.
Birth Rate
the number of live births per thousand of population per year.
Death Rates
the number of deaths in a year for every 1,000 people in a population.
Life Expectancy
The average number of years a newborn can expect to live.
Dependency Ratio
The number of people under age 15 and over age 64 compared to the number of people active in the labor force.
Rate of Natural Increase (RNI)
The difference in births and deaths in a population, usually expressed as a percentage; does not take into account migration into or out of an area.
Population Doubling Time
The number of years required for a population to double in size.
Fertility
the incidence of childbearing in a country's population
Mortality
death
Demographic Transition Model
a model of how the size of a population changes as a country develops its economy
Stage 1 DTM
Low Growth, very high CBR, High CBR, Low NIR
Stage 2 DTM
High CBR, Lowering CDR, Increasing NIR, exploding population
Stage 3 DTM
Decreasing CBR, Low CDR, Decreasing NIR, population growth
Stage 4 DTM
Low CBR, Low CDR, Low NIR, stable (but large) population
Stage 5 DTM
Low CBR, Increasing CDR, Negative NIR, decreasing population
Zero Population Growth (ZPG)
A decline of the total fertility rate to the point where the natural increase rate equals zero.
Epidimiological Transition Model
A model that describes the major causes of death between the different stages of development. It goes from famine and natural plagues and diseases to man made afflictions such as smoking and heart attacks due to diet and lack of exercise.
ETM Stage 1 (Pestilence and Famine)
Pestilence, famine, and human conflict cause high CDR (Ex. Black Plague)
ETM Stage 2 (Receding Pandemics)
Receding pandemics with improved sanitation and nutrition, rapidly declining CDR
ETM Stage 3 & 4 (Degenerative Diseases)
Elderly diseases, CBR down, Population stable. The introduction of healthcare & antibiotics led to an increased life expectancy—obesity-related and degenerative disease.
ETM Stage 5 (Reemerging Diseases)
a proposed stage of reemergence of infectious and parasitic diseases and some become resistant to antibiotics; CDR increases
Thomas Malthus
Eighteenth-century English intellectual who warned that population growth threatened future generations because, in his view, population growth would always outstrip increases in agricultural production.
Malthusian Theory
The theory that population grows faster than food supply
Neo-Malthusians
group who built on Malthus' theory and suggested that people wouldn't just starve for lack of food, but would have wars about food and other scarce resources
Esther Boserup
Geographer who believed that our farming technology will always improve in order to be able to feed the growing population of the planet.
Pronatalist
a government policy that encourages or forces childbearing, and outlaws or limits access to contraception
Antinatalist
Policies that discourage people from having children (China's One Child Policy)
Contraception
Intentionally preventing pregnancy from occurring
Laws of Migration (Ravenstein)
Most migrations are over a short distance.
Migration
movement of people from one place to another
International Migration
Permanent movement from one country to another.
Interregional Migration
Permanent movement from one region of a country to another.
Intraregional Migration
movement within a region
Push Factors
Incentives for potential migrants to leave a place, such as a harsh climate, economic recession, or political turmoil.
Pull Factors
Factors that induce people to move to a new location.
Forced Migration
Human migration flows in which the movers have no choice but to relocate.
Voluntary Migration
Permanent movement undertaken by choice.
Slavery
A system of enforced servitude in which some people are owned by other people.
Refugees
A person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster
Internally Displaced Person (IDP)
someone who is forced to flee his or her home but who remains within his or her country's borders
Asylum Seeker
a migrant hoping to be declared a refugee in a foreign country
Transnational Migration
a process of movement and settlement across international borders in which individuals maintain or build multiple networks of connection to their country of origin while at the same time settling in a new country