AP Human Geo

Physical Geography

the study of natural processes and natural things in the environment like landforms, climate, plants, and animals.

Human Geography

The study of how humans understand, alter, and use earth.

Spatial Perspective

where things are located and why they're there

Ecological perspective

the relationships between living things and their environment

location

where something is on earth

absolute location

the exact location of something (example: coordinates or an address)

Relative location

where something is in relation to the things around it (Example: by the mcdonalds)

place

a location on earth that is distinguished by its physical and human characteristics

site

a place's absolute location and physical characteristics, such as landforms, climate, and resources

situation

a place's connections to other places, such as transportation routes, political associations, and cultural economic tiles

Mental maps

an internalized representation of a place (a map in your head from memory)

Space

the area between two or more areas on earth's surface

distribution

how things are arranged within a given space

density

the number of things in a specific area

pattern

how things are arranged in a particular space

concentration

clustered vs. dispersed

flow

the movement of people, goods, or information from one place to another

distance decay

a principle that says the farther away one thing is from another, the less interaction the two things will have

time space compression

the shrinking of relative distance between places due to advances in transportation and communication

environmental determinism

the belief that the physical environment places limitations on human activity

possibilism

the belief that the physical environment may limit some human activity, but humans ultimately have the ability to adjust and adapt to their environment

sustainability

the use of earth's land and natural resources in ways that ensure they will be available in the future

scale

the area of the world being studied

geographic scale

the size at which a map's data is being represented (Large scale, medium scale, and small scale)

Large scale map

very detailed map with tons of information (example: a detailed map of a town)

medium scale map

a medium amount of info (Example: a map of a state that lists major cities)

small scale map

very little detail (example: A map of the US)

region

an area of earth's surface with certain characteristics that distinct it from other areas (Formal, functional, and perceptual/vernacular)

formal region

an area with one or more shared traits (Example: A state or country)

functional region

an area organized by its function around a node

perceptual/vernacular region

a region defined by people's feelings or attitudes about the area (example: the midwest)

node

the center or hub of a functional region

globalization

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

Wallerstein's World Systems Theory

1. The world economy has one market and a global division of labor.

2. Although the world has multiple states, almost everything takes place within the context of the world economy.

3. The world economy has a three-tier structure. (Peripheral, Semi-peripheral, Core)

sustainable development

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

Qualitative data

interpretations of data sources

quantitative data

information measured by numbers

census

an official count of the number of people in a defined area

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

sophisticated mapping systems that capture, store, organize, and display geographic data that can then be used to configure simple and complex maps

Remote sensing

a way of collecting data without making physical contact (Example: satellites, aircraft, etc)

Global Positioning Systems (GPS)

an integrated network of at least 31 satellites in the US system that orbit earth and transmit location data to the handheld receivers

Map Projections

any method used to represent the world or part of the world in two dimensions

Map scale

the mathematical relationship between the size of a map and the part of the world it shows

reference maps

generalized sources of geographic data and focus on location

thematic maps

maps focused on a particular topic or theme

Graduated symbol map

Differently sized symbols are used to indicate quantitative data, such as gasoline consumption or earthquake magnitude.

Larger sizes indicate more of something, and smaller sizes indicate less.

Cartogram map

show the relative size of an area based on a particular attribute, such as population.

Cartograms are useful because they allow for data to be compared, and distance and distribution are also visible.

isoline map

Lines connect data points of the same value.

choropleth map

uses colors or shading to represent categories of data for areas such as census tracts, counties, or states. Choropleth maps are useful for showing quantitative data such as election results.

They often show data in defined areas.

dot map

Dots are used to show locations of observations or events, such as the distribution of milk cows across the United States.

Each dot represents a specified quantity.

Robinson Projection

The shapes of the continents become more distorted farther away from the equator or the map's central meridian.

Mercator Projection

The continents' shapes are maintained and direction is displayed accurately, but the sizes of the continents are very distorted.

Gall-Peters Projection

The relative size of the continents is more easily displayed than with other projections, but the shape of the continents is distorted.

Azimuthal Projection

A flattened disk-shaped portion of Earth is shown from a specific point.