AP Human Geography: Space, Place, Distribution, Regions, and Diffusion

Flashcards covering core AP Human Geography concepts from lecture notes, including space, place, location, scale, cultural landscapes, spatial interaction and distribution, regional classifications, map scales and projections, the globe grid, and cultural diffusion.

What does the term "areal" mean in human geography?

Related to a specific area, region, or 2D surface.

What is the difference between absolute space and relative space?

Absolute space refers to fixed coordinates like latitude and longitude, whereas relative space is comparative and varies with context.

How is "place" differentiated from "location"?

Location specifies where something is, while place encompasses the attributes and meanings associated with that location.

What is "placelessness," and what is an example of it?

Placelessness is a lack of a sense of place, exemplified by uniform shopping malls in different cities or a lack of unique buildings.

How do "site" and "situation" differ, according to the example of New Orleans?

Site refers to the physical and cultural characteristics of a place, while situation refers to the external relations of a locale. For example, New Orleans has a poor site but an ideal situation in relation to the Rockies.

What is the difference between absolute distance and relative distance?

Absolute distance uses standard units like miles, whereas relative distance uses variable units that change, such as time.

In what two distinct contexts is the term "scale" used?

Scale is used as map scale (large-scale map vs. small-scale map) and as scale of analysis (local, regional, and global).

What is a cultural landscape, and what examples are noted?

The built environment that shows the imprint of a culture group, exemplified by LA's Chinatown and the rapid development of Miami's cultural landscape.

What is distance decay?

The principle that the level of interaction between places decreases as distance increases (e.g., visiting a closer restaurant more frequently than a distant restaurant).

How do accessibility and connectivity differ in influencing spatial interaction?

Accessibility is the relative ease with which a destination can be reached from other locations, while connectivity refers to the directness of routes linking pairs of places (such as phone lines, roads, and other networks).

What is a "node" in spatial diffusion, and what is an example?

A point or hub from which ideas can diffuse, such as Silicon Valley serving as an employment node.

How do arithmetic density and physiological density differ?

Arithmetic density is the number of people per unit of area (such as per $\text{mi}^2$ or $\text{km}^2$), while physiological density is the number of people per unit area of arable land (land good for farming).

What is the difference between density and dispersion?

Density is the number of a feature per unit of area, whereas dispersion is the amount of spread of a phenomenon over an area or around a central location (the opposite of concentration).

What geometric arrangements can a spatial pattern have?

Spatial patterns can be linear (e.g., homes along a railroad), centralized, random, grid or rectilinear (e.g., township and range system in the West), or hexagonal (e.g., central place theory).

What does spatial association indicate, and what does it NOT prove?

It indicates that the spatial arrangements of two distributions of features correspond or covary with each other (telling what occurs together), but it does not prove that one caused the other.

What are the characteristics of administrative regions and formal regions?

Administrative regions are created by law or regulation and have sharp, precise borders (e.g., countries and political units). Formal regions are defined by one or more objectively measured themes and have fuzzy borders (e.g., dialect areas).

What are the characteristics of functional regions and perceptual regions?

Functional regions are based on spatial and temporal interactions (e.g., radio areas and bank regions). Perceptual regions are created based on feelings and have fuzzy borders (e.g., Dixie and the Midwest).

What are the three ways to report map scale?

1) Verbal scale, 2) representative fraction, and 3) graphic scale.

How do meridians and parallels differ on the globe grid?

Meridians measure angular distance East and West of the Prime Meridian (encoding longitude) and run as straight lines from the North Pole to the South Pole. Parallels measure angular distance North and South of the Equator (encoding latitude).

How does the $180^\circ$ meridian line differ from the International Date Line?

The $180^\circ$ meridian is a straight line connecting the poles, whereas the International Date Line separates calendar days and zig-zags around islands.

What are two barriers to diffusion noted in addition to distance and cultural acceptance?

Technology mismatch and financial cost (money).

What is independent innovation, and what historical example illustrates it?

Independent innovation occurs when similar ideas develop separately in different places, showing the difficulty in determining where an idea began; for example, the idea of pyramids did not diffuse from Egypt to Central America.

What is the difference between relocation diffusion and expansion diffusion?

Relocation diffusion occurs when innovations spread because people move, whereas expansion diffusion occurs when ideas spread while remaining in the original place.

What three factors determine the diffusion of an innovation?

Diffusion depends on communication, distance, and cultural acceptance.