AP HuGe - Unit 1 - Vocab

physical geography

The study of natural processes and the distribution of features in the environment, such as landforms, plants, animals, and climate.

human geography

the study of the events and processes that have shaped how humans understand, use, and alter Earth.

spatialize perspective

where something occurs.

ecological perspective

the relationships between living things and their environments.

location

the position that a point or object occupies on Earth.

absolute location

the exact location of an object.

relative location

a description of where a place is in relation to other places or features.

place

a place is a location on Earth that is distinguished by its physical and human characteristics.

site

a place's absolute location, as well as its physical characteristics, such as the landforms, climate, and resources.

situation

a place's location in relation to other places or its surrounding features.

space

the area between two or more things on Earth's surface.

situation

a place's location in relation to other places or its surrounding features.

distribution

how things are arranged within a given space

density

the number of things -people, animals, objects- in a specific area.

pattern

how things are arranged in a particular space.

flow

movement of people, goods, or information that has economic, social, political, or cultural effects on societies

environmental determinism

the idea that human behavior is strongly affected, controlled, or determined by the physical environment

possibilism

a theory that argues that humans have more agency, or ability to produce a result.

distance decay

a key geographic principle that describes the effect of distance on interactions.

time-space compression

a key geographic principle that is related to friction of distance.

sustainability

an important concept in thinking about human-environment interaction

scale

the area of the world being studied

region

an area of Earth's surface with certain characteristics that make it distinct yet cohesive from other areas

formal region

an area that has one or more shared traits; also called a uniform region

functional region

an area organized by its function around a focal point, or the center of an interest or activity

node

the focal point of a functional region

perceptual/ vernacular region

a type of region that reflects people's feelings and attitudes about a place

suburbs

the residential areas surrounding a city

globalization

the expansion of economic, cultural, and political processes on a worldwide scale

theory

a system of ideas intend to explain certain phenomena

world system theory

theory describing the spatial and functional relationships between countries in the world economy; categorizes countries as part of a hierarchy consisting of the core, periphery, and semi-periphery

core

classification of a country of region that has wealth, higher education levels, more advanced technologies, many resources, strong militaries and powerful allies

periphery

classification of a country or region that has less wealth, lower education levels, and less sophisticated technologies and also tends to have an unstable government and poor health systems

semi-periphery

classification of a country or region that has qualities of both core and peripheral areas and is often in the process of industrializing

sustainable development

Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

quantitative data

involving data that can be measured by numbers

qualitative

involving data that is descriptive of a research subject and is often based on people's opinions

census

an official count of the number of people in a defined area, such as a state

geographic information systems (gis)

a computer system that allows for the collection, organization, and display of geographic data for analysis

topography

the representation of earth's surface to show natural and man-made features, especially their relative positions and elevations

remote sensing

a method of collecting or analyzing data from a location without making physical contact

global positioning system (gps)

a network of satellites that orbit Earth and transmit location data to receivers, enabling users to pinpoint their exact location

cartographers

mapmakers

absolute distance

distance that can be measured using a standard unit of length

relative distance

distance determined in relation to other places or objects

absolute direction

the cardinal directions north, south, east, and west

relative direction

direction based on a person's perception, such as left, right, up, or down

map scale

the relationship of the size of the map to the size of the area it represents on Earth's surface

reference maps

a map that focuses on the location of places

thematic maps

any map that focuses on one or more variables to show a relationship between geographic data