Unit 1 - Thinking Geographically

Reference Maps

represents locations; used to display geographically info such as natural features and political data

Thematic Maps

Portrays the geographic pattern of a particular subject matter in a geographic area

Absolute Location

The exact location of an object (coordinates/address) that never changes, latitude and longititude

Relative Location

description of where a place is in relation to other places or features (near the river), can change over time

absolute distance

distance that can be measured using a standard measure of length (N.Y is 365 miles away from Washington)

relative distance

measured in terms of other criteria (time or money) (NYC is 2 hours away from Philly)

absolute direction

cardinal directions (nsew) (canada is north to wyoming)

relative direction

based on people’s perception (left, right, up, down, front, behind) (down in atlanta)

map projects are what?

map projections distort spatial relationships in SADD; SHAPE, AREA, DISTANCE, DIRECTION

mercator advantages

shows true direction, continents shapes are maintianed, good for navigation

mercator disadvantages

distorts area, size is distorted increasingly near the poles

robinson advantages

a globe-like apperance, distorts size and shape but not too much

robinson limitations

imprecise measurements, extreme distortion at the poles; flat on the poles and compressed near the equator

aziumuthal (polar) advantages

preserves direction, no country is seen as center (if used from North Pole)

azimuthal limitations

distorts shape and area, only shows one half of earth

goode-homolosine (interrupted) advantages

minimizes distortion for the entire world, continents are shown in correction proportional size

goode homolosine (interrupted) limitations

distorts shape, directions, angles, and distances, not useful for navigation

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

organizations and individuals using this to find precise locations, collect and share data, create maps, and track changes in characteristics of places; maps are created by organizing layers of info to form a combined image; can display info about the physical geography of the land, such as elevation/topography/demographic info; supports geovisualization: process of creating visuals for geographic analysis using maps, graphics, and multimedia

Remote sensing

some geospatial techs gather data without making physical contact; most rely on satellites or aircraft based sensors to collect data; satellites take images of sections of Earth at regular intervals to determine changes that occur on the surface; tracks hurricanes

Global Positioning System (GPS)

integrated network of at least 31 satellites in U.S. system orbiting Earth and transmit location data to handheld receivers, they use it at the time it takes to receive a transmitted signal to measure the distance to each satellite, receiver uses this data pinpointing the exact location of the receiver, accuracy of info allow people to determine the exact distance between 2 points; used for navigation

Geotagging

identification and storage of a piece of information by its precise latitude and longitude coordinates

How is data used?

Used to help people understand problems, consider options leading up to decisions, and measure the effect of those decisions; where people work and their commuting habits

How do they make decisions?

Use geographic data influencing where ppl live, consider walkability, school districts, proximity to work, property taxes, crime rates, floodplain; location decisions; potential customers, organization; mapping public health, government; local-police departments, national- disaster prevention and mitigation

Latitude

run parallel to one another (NEVER INTERSECT), center line is 0 north and south (equator), not equal in length, get shorter as they approach the poles; high = 60-90 deg, mid = 30-60 deg, low 0-30 deg

Longitude

also called meridians, 0 deg east and west is the prime meridian, located in greenwich england, meet at the poles, roughly 180 degrees for the international date line, time zones are approx 15. deg of longitude

space

location with no cultural meaning

place

specific human and physical characteristic of location, space evolve =s into place as humans place their cultural traits on the space

Site

characteristic of the location (soil type, climate, human structure)

Situation

syn. for relative location; can change over time

sense of place

people perceiving characteristics of places differently based on their personal beliefs, emotional ties/feelings for a place

flows

movement of ppl, things, info from 1 place to another, much faster and less technology

distance decay

as distance between the places increase, the interaction between the places decrease

friction of distance

distance requires time, effort, and cost to overcome

time-space compression

the shrinking “time distance” between locations due to improved transportation and communications, technology, global forces now influence culture almost everywhere, local diversity reduced

pattern

geometric arrangement of things like people, houses, stores, etc.., arrangement can be clustered, random, uniform, linear

diffusion

movement of people or their ideas, technologies, or preferences spread from 1 location to another through space and time

hierarchical diffusion

ideas leapfrogging from an important person, community, or city to another

contagious diffusion

wavelike spread of ideas in the manner of a contagious disease/forest fire

stimulus

specific trait is rejected, but the underlying idea is accepted

relocation diffusion

when individuals/group with a particular idea/practice migrate to another location bringing the idea or practice to the new homeland

sustainability

development serving current needs of people without making it harder for others to live in the future as well; modern problem due to mass consumption/increased pop, ppl placing greater burden on environment

natural resources

materials/substances like minerals, forests, water, and fertile land that occur in nature and can be used for economic gain; overconsumption is major treat, historical methods of conservation not effective

land use

reflects the society using the land, some have major environmental impact (recreational, transport, agriculture), study of how land is utilized, modified, and organized people

built environment

physical artifacts that humans have created and form parts of the landscape that is used to understand land use (buildings)

cultural landscape

how buildings vary from place to place, based on the culture of particular place

environmental determinism

belief that landforms and climate are most powerful forces shaping human behavior and societal development

possibilism

acknowledges limits on the effects of natural environment, focuses more on the human

scale

relationship of the size of map to the amount of area it represents on earth (global, regional, national, sub-national, local)

cartography scale

ratio (function) 1/24000, verbal (1 inch=1 mile), graphic (visual)

map scale

relationship of size of the map to the amount of area it represents on earth

scale of analysis

what is being shown, and the data

global

shows the world at one level of data, world, not that useful

regional

shows data by continents of world regions, australia has highest GDP per capita

national

shows data for 1 or more country, india has a high population dnsity

subnational

shows data by state/province, the states within the united states

local

show data in local areas (census tracts, counties)

reference

shows national/boundaries

formal (uniform/homogenous regions)

relatively uniform, 1 or more cultural trait, used to map spatial differences throughout the world united by political, physical, cultural, economic

functional (node/nodal)

organized around a focal point (node), defined y an activity (usually political, social, or economic) that occurs across the region; united by networks of communication, transportation, or other interactions (pizza delivery)

perceptual (vernacular)

sense of place that people ascribe towards it, boundaries vary widely because people have different sense of what defines and unifies these regions (northern va, american south)

analyzing regions

-formal regions must have borders, cultural overlap and mix (BOUNDARIES AREN’T SHARP), border zones (different regions meet and sometimes overlap), boundaries can be considered transitional (have changes or may changed)

regional identity

awareness of belonging to a group within a region (catalonian instead of spanish)

contested boundaries

where boundaries are subject of dispute (maybe religious, poitical, social economic), northern ireland is part of UK, not the Republic of Ireland??