Geography and Cultural Processes Lecture Notes

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts from various units in geography, including cartography, human geography, population and migration, cultural patterns, political organization of space, agriculture, urbanization, and industrial development.

Cartography

The science or art of making maps.

Human Geography

Branch of geography that studies how human activity affects or is influenced by Earth’s surface.

Reference Map

A map showing general spatial properties such as boundaries and physical features.

Thematic Map

A map showing specific types of information (e.g., population, language).

Choropleth Map

Uses colors or shading to represent data values.

Dot Distribution Map

Uses dots to represent the presence of a feature or phenomenon.

Graduated Symbol Map

Uses different sizes of symbols to show data value.

Isoline Map

Uses lines to connect points of equal value (e.g., elevation, temperature).

Cartogram

Distorts space to represent data (e.g., size of countries changes based on population).

Compass Rose

A figure on a map showing cardinal directions (N, E, S, W).

Scale

The ratio of map distance to ground distance.

Projection

A method for representing Earth’s 3D surface on a 2D map.

Mercator Projection

Preserves direction but distorts size near the poles.

Peters Projection

Preserves area but distorts shape.

Absolute Location

Exact coordinates using latitude and longitude.

Relative Location

Location in relation to other places.

Latitude

Imaginary horizontal lines measuring distance from the equator.

Longitude

Imaginary vertical lines measuring distance from the Prime Meridian.

GIS (Geographic Information System)

A system that captures and analyzes geographic data.

Diffusion

The spread of something from one place to another.

Relocation Diffusion

Spread through physical movement.

Push Factor

Reason to leave a place (e.g., war, famine).

Pull Factor

Reason to move to a place (e.g., jobs, safety).

Refugee

Person fleeing danger or persecution.

Cultural Landscape

The visible imprint of human activity on the landscape.

Environmental Determinism

The idea that the environment dictates human activity.

Urbanization

Growth of cities and migration to urban areas.

Pro-Natalist Policy

Government encourages births (e.g., tax incentives).

Anti-Natalist Policy

Government discourages births (e.g., China’s One-Child Policy).

Cultural Hearth

Origin area of a culture.

Globalization

The spread of ideas, goods, and people across the globe.

Centripetal Force

A force that unifies people.

Centrifugal Force

A force that divides people.

Urban Sprawl

Spread of urban development into rural areas.

Gentrification

Wealthier people move into and renovate poorer urban areas.

Ravenstein’s Laws of Migration

Patterns and reasons behind migration.

Sustainability

Using resources in a way that meets future needs.