AP Human Geography: Unit 1 Vocabulary

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Geography

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

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 obejcts

Connection

relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space

Location

the position that something occupies on Earth's surface

Toponym

the name given to a place on Earth

Site

the physical characteristics of a place

Situation

the location of a place relative to other places

Cultural landscape

a combination of cultural features, economic features, and physical features that a region derives its unified character through

Formal Region (Uniform Region)

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

Function 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

the body of customary beliefs, material traits, and social forms that together constitute the distinct tradition of a group of people

Spatial Association

when the distribution of two features are related to each other

Globalization

a force or process that involves the entire world and results in making something worldwide in scope

Transnational Corporations

A company that conducts research, operates factories, and sells products in many countries, not just where its headquarters or shareholders are located

Distribution

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

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 combination of elements of two groups into a new cultural feature

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 from one place to another

Expansion Diffusion

the spread of a feature from one place to another in an additive process

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 diminishing with increasing of distance and eventually disappearing

Space-time Compression

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

Network

a chain of communication that connects places

Sustainability

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

Conservation

the 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

Climate

the long-term average weather condition at a particular location

Cultural Ecology

the geographic study of human-environmental relationships

Environmental Determinism

the belief that the physical environment caused social development

Possibilism

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

Cartography

the science of mapmaking

Global Positioning System (GPS)

a system that determines the precise position of something on Earth through a series of satellites, tracking stations, and receivers

Geotagging

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

Geographic Information Science (GIScience)

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

Geographic Information System (GIS)

a computer system that stores, organizes, analyzes, and displays geographic data.

Remote Sensing

the acquisition of data about Earth's surface through satellite or other long-distance methods

Mashup

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

Map Scale

the relationship of a feature's size on a map to its actual size on Earth

Projection

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

Distortion

a change in the shape, size, or position of a place when it is shown on a map

Latitude

the numbering system used to indicate the location of parallels drawn on a globe and measuring distance north and south of the equator

Longitude

the numbering system used to indicate the location of meridians drawn on a globe and measuring distance east and west of the prime meridian

Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)

the time at the prime meridian - the master reference time for all points on Earth

Time Zone

any of the 24 longitudinal areas of the world within which the same time is used