sec 1 geography chapter 1

what is physical geography

focuses on the study of the physical environment

four components of the physical environment

atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, biosphere

atmosphere

layer of gas and tiny particles that surrounds the Earth

hydrosphere

all water found on Earth and in the atmosphere

lithosphere

solid layer of rock that surrounds the Earth's surface

biosphere

all living things found on Earth, including plants and animals found on land and in the sea

what is human geography

focuses on the study of human life in the built environment

many aspects such as

housing, transport systems

housing

houses or buildings developed by people to shelter themselves from elements

transport systems

equipment, infrastructure and networks to support the movement of people and goods from one location to another

what is geographical concepts

important idea that geographers make use of to understand the world

four key geographical concepts

space, place, environment, scale

space

physical area on Earth's surface

place

an area of the Earth's surface that holds a special meaning for people

environment

physical and built environments, processes that occur naturally or result from human actions

scale

level of detail at which geographers study something

how geographers conduct geographical investigations

1. framing the geographical investigation

2. collecting data

3. analysing and presenting data

4. drawing conclusions

5. reflecting and taking action

1. framing the geographical investigation

pose geographical questions to decide on the focus of the geographical investigation

2. collecting data

- decide what types of primary and secondary data need to be collected in order to answer the geographical questions posed

- determine which methods will be used to collect the required data to ensure that it is accurate and reliable

3. analysing and presenting data

- organising the raw data collected, process and present them using maps, field sketches and suitable graphical representations such as tables and graphs

- make sense of the data by identifying patterns or relationships

4. drawing conclusions

provide evidence-based responses to the geographical questions posed at the start

5. reflecting and taking action

- reflect on how stages 1 to 4 were carried out and evaluate the data collection methods

- suggest ways to improve the investigation

- propose ways to improve the relationship between the phenomenon and people

location

an idea that is closely related to space

latitude

horizontal

longitude

vertical

time scale

period of time which something happens

1 decade

10 years

1 century

100 years

1 millennium

1000 years

geographical inquiry

approach that geographers take to understand the world