Unit 1 Vocab

Absolute Location

Exact position using coordinates. Ex: NYC is 40°N, 74°W

Relative Location

Position described in relation to other places. Ex: Texas is south of Oklahoma

Cartography

Science of making maps. Ex: National Geographic makes world maps

GIS

Computer system layering geographic data. Ex: Google Maps uses GIS

GPS

Satellite system giving exact locations. Ex: iPhone tracking your location

Remote Sensing

Collecting data from satellites or aircraft. Ex: NASA imaging hurricanes from space

Scale

Level of geographic detail shown. Ex: world map vs. city street map

Formal Region

Area with shared measurable trait. Ex: Corn Belt, Bible Belt

Functional Region

Area organized around a central node. Ex: Chicago metro area

Vernacular Region

Area defined by perception or culture. Ex: "The South" in the US

Distance Decay

Interaction decreases as distance increases. Ex: you shop at nearest grocery store

Time-Space Compression

Technology shrinks perceived distance. Ex: flight makes LA feel closer to NYC

Environmental Determinism

Environment controls human behavior. Ex: hot climates cause laziness (discredited)

Possibilism

Humans adapt to and modify environment. Ex: Dutch built dikes to reclaim land

Sustainability

Using resources without depleting future supply. Ex: solar energy replacing coal

Qualitative Data

Non-numerical descriptive data. Ex: interview about why someone migrated

Quantitative Data

Numerical measurable data. Ex: census population counts

Map Projection

Method of showing round Earth on flat surface. Ex: Mercator distorts Greenland's size

Site

Physical characteristics of a place. Ex: Manhattan is on an island

Situation

Location relative to surrounding places. Ex: NYC near Atlantic Ocean and major rivers

Choropleth Map

Shaded map showing data by region. Ex: election maps showing red vs. blue states

Isoline Map

Lines connecting equal values. Ex: weather maps showing temperature zones

Dot Distribution Map

Dots represent quantity in an area. Ex: map of US population clusters

Proportional Symbol Map

Symbol size shows data quantity. Ex: circles showing city populations

Cognitive Map

Personal mental image of a place. Ex: your mental picture of your school layout

Reference Map

Shows locations of places. Ex: road map, political map

Thematic Map

Shows spatial pattern of a topic. Ex: map of global literacy rates

Topographic Map

Shows elevation using contour lines. Ex: hikers use topo maps on trails

Spatial Interaction

Movement or connection between places. Ex: trade between US and China

Intervening Opportunity

Closer alternative reduces movement. Ex: students choose nearby state college

Transferability

Ease of moving goods across space. Ex: oil is easy to ship, live concerts are not

Geographic Grid

Latitude and longitude coordinate system. Ex: used on all GPS devices

Time-Space Convergence

Travel time between places decreases. Ex: transcontinental railroad shrank US

Sense of Place

Emotional attachment to a location. Ex: New Orleanians' pride in their city

Topophilia

Love and emotional connection to place. Ex: deep bond people feel to their hometown

Mercator Projection

Cylindrical map preserving shape and direction but distorting size near poles. Ex: Greenland looks as big as Africa but is 14x smaller

Peters Projection

Equal-area map showing true size of landmasses. Ex: Africa shown much larger than on Mercator

Robinson Projection

Compromise map with slight distortion of both shape and size. Ex: used by National Geographic for decades

Winkel Tripel Projection

Minimizes distortion of shape, area, and distance. Ex: now used by National Geographic replacing Robinson

Conic Projection

Made by wrapping cone around globe accurate for mid-latitudes. Ex: used for US weather maps and road atlases

Equal-Area Projection

Preserves correct relative size of landmasses. Ex: Peters and Goode's are both equal-area

Conformal Projection

Preserves correct shape but distorts size. Ex: Mercator is conformal and used for navigation

Distortion

All flat maps distort shape, size, distance, or direction. Ex: no flat map perfectly represents a sphere

Scale of Analysis

Level at which a phenomenon is interpreted/studied.

Local Scale

Within city, neighborhood, community. Ex: traffic patterns in downtown Dallas.

Regional Scale

Defined region such as state, climate zone, or cultural area. Ex: the U.S. Midwest.

National Scale

Within a single country. Ex: population distribution in India, urban vs. rural in country.

Global scale

Worldwide patterns and comparisons. Ex: Global trade networks, climate change patterns, migration flows.