Chapter 1: Geographic Skills Flashcards

100 practice flashcards covering core concepts from Chapter 1: Geographic Skills.

What are the five essential skills of human geography?

Use and think about maps and spatial data; understand and interpret associations among phenomena in places; recognize and interpret patterns and processes at different scales; define regions and evaluate the regionalization process; characterize and analyze changing interconnections among places.

What does GIS stand for?

Geographic Information System.

What is the main purpose of GIS?

To capture, store, query, analyze, and display geographic data in layered form to reveal relationships and patterns.

What are vector and raster data in GIS?

Vector data use points, lines, and polygons; raster data use a grid of cells (pixels) to represent data.

What is remote sensing?

Acquiring data about Earth’s surface from satellites, aircraft, or other long-distance methods without direct contact.

What is a mashup in GIS?

Overlaying data from multiple sources to create a new map showing combined information.

What is cartography?

The science and art of mapmaking.

What is a reference map?

A map that shows location and the spatial distribution of features; used as a reference.

What is a thematic map?

A map that emphasizes a particular theme or data distribution across space.

What is a choropleth map?

A thematic map where regions are shaded according to data values to show spatial patterns.

What is a dot-density map?

A map that uses dots to represent a number of occurrences or quantities in an area.

What is a cartogram map?

A map in which the size of geographic areas is distorted to convey a data value (e.g., population).

What is a topographic map?

A map that shows elevation and the terrain features of an area.

What is a map projection?

The method by which the curved surface of the Earth is represented on a flat map, which inevitably causes distortion.

List four types of distortion in map projections.

Distortion of shape, distance, relative size, and direction.

Which map projection is commonly used for navigation but distorts size near the poles?

Mercator projection.

Name three common map projections.

Mercator, Robinson, Peters (Gall-Peters).

What is latitude?

Parallels that run east-west; measure north-south distance from the equator; range 0° to 90°.

What is longitude?

Meridians that run north-south; measure east-west distance from the Prime Meridian; range 0° to 180°.

What is the Prime Meridian?

The 0° longitude line that passes through Greenwich, England.

What is GMT?

Greenwich Mean Time, the master reference time for all points on Earth.

What is the International Date Line?

Approximately 180° longitude; it marks the change of calendar date.

What is a geographic grid?

A grid of lines formed by meridians (longitude) and parallels (latitude) used to locate any point on Earth.

What are meridians?

Arcs that connect the North and South poles; lines of longitude.

What are parallels?

Circles drawn parallel to the equator; lines of latitude.

What is 0° latitude called?

The equator.

What is 0° longitude called?

The Prime Meridian.

What is the difference between absolute and relative location?

Absolute location is a precise point using coordinates; relative location describes a place’s position in relation to other places.

What is site in geography?

The physical and cultural characteristics of a place.

What is situation in geography?

The location of a place relative to other places; its connectivity and context.

What is a toponym?

The name given to a place; can reflect people, features, or origins; can change over time.

What is a cultural landscape?

The visible imprint of human activity and culture on the landscape.

What is a formal region?

A region defined by shared cultural or physical characteristics with boundaries that are not easily disputed.

What is a functional region?

An area organized around a node or focal point, with a center and diminishing influence outward.

What is a vernacular region?

A region identified by people’s perception or cultural identity, not strictly bounded.

What are the three main properties of distribution across space?

Density, concentration, and pattern.

What is density in geographic terms?

The frequency of a feature within a given area (arithmetic density, physiological density, agricultural density).

What is concentration?

The extent of spread of a feature across space; clustered vs dispersed.

What is a pattern in geography?

The geometric arrangement of objects in space (linear, centralized, geometric, rectangular, random).

What is spatial distribution?

The arrangement of phenomena across space, including density, concentration, and pattern.

What is spatial association?

A relationship where one feature is found in the same area as another.

What is diffusion?

The spread of a feature from one place to another over time.

What is relocation diffusion?

Spread of a feature through physical movement of people.

What is expansion diffusion?

Spread of a feature from one place to another in an additive process (hierarchical, contagious, stimulus diffusion; and reverse hierarchical diffusion).

What is hierarchical diffusion?

Spread from nodes of authority to other places (e.g., from cities to smaller towns).

What is contagious diffusion?

Rapid, widespread diffusion of a feature through a population.

What is stimulus diffusion?

Spread of an underlying principle even though the feature itself may not diffuse completely.

What is glocalization?

Local-scale adaptation of global-scale phenomena to incorporate local cultures and needs.

What is globalization?

The process by which ideas, goods, and people move globally, creating worldwide connections.

What are the three pillars of sustainability?

Environment, economy, and society.

What is possibilism?

The view that humans have agency to modify their environment; environment sets possibilities but does not rigidly determine outcomes.

What is environmental determinism?

The belief that the physical environment determines human actions and societal development; criticized as Eurocentric.

What are abiotic systems?

Nonliving components: atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.

What is the biosphere?

All living organisms on Earth; interacts with the abiotic systems.

What is the difference between site and situation (revisited)?

Site is the physical characteristics of a place; situation is the location relative to other places and its connections.

What is a map projection distortion that affects size?

Relative size of areas may be distorted on a map.

What is a map projection distortion that affects distance?

Distances between places may be distorted on a map.

What is a map projection distortion that affects direction?

Directions between places may be distorted on a map.

What is a map projection distortion that affects shape?

The shape of an area may be distorted on a map.

Where is the Prime Meridian located?

Greenwich, England (0° longitude).

What is the range of longitudes on Earth?

0° to 180° east or west.

What is the range of latitudes on Earth?

0° to 90° north or south.

What did Eratosthenes contribute to geography?

Coined the term geography and prepared one of the first world maps (ca. 276–194 B.C.).

Name ancient non-European geography contributors.

Yu Gong, Pei Xiu, Muhammad al-Idrisi, Ibn Battuta.

What is the difference between reference maps and thematic maps?

Reference maps show location; thematic maps emphasize distribution or patterns of a theme.

What is large-scale vs small-scale mapping?

Large-scale maps show greater detail for a smaller area; small-scale maps show less detail for a larger area.

What is true about meridians?

Meridians are lines of longitude; they converge at the poles and are the same length.

What is true about parallels?

Parallels (lines of latitude) run east-west and measure north-south position.

When was the first known world map created?

Eratosthenes’ era (ancient Greece), around 276–194 B.C. for the early world map.

What is cartography?

The science of mapmaking.

What does GIS layering mean?

Data are stored in layers (roads, rivers, etc.) and can be overlaid to see relationships.

What is the role of remote sensing in environmental monitoring?

Acquiring data about Earth’s surface from sensors (satellites, aircraft) to detect changes over time.

What is photogrammetry?

Using imagery (e.g., drone photos) to measure and map features on Earth’s surface.

What is a Polynesian stick chart?

An ancient map from the Marshall Islands showing islands with shells and palm-strip wave patterns.

What is a polder?

Land created by draining water from a area in the Netherlands; used for reclaiming land.

What is a choropleth map used to show?

The distribution of data values across regions by shading or color.

Fill in the blank: The process of transferring locations on Earth’s surface to a flat map is called __.

projection

Fill in the blank: The study of mapmaking is known as __.

cartography

Fill in the blank: A map that uses color shading to show data values is called a __ map.

choropleth

Fill in the blank: A GIS stores information in __.

layers

Fill in the blank: The term for the spatial distribution of a feature across space is its __.

distribution

Fill in the blank: The 0° longitude line is called the __.

Prime Meridian

Fill in the blank: The 0° latitude line is called the __.

Equator

Fill in the blank: The International Date Line is near __ longitude.

180°

Fill in the blank: The Global Positioning System provides exact __ on Earth.

locations

Fill in the blank: The three pillars of sustainability are environment, __, and society.

economy