thinking geographically (chapter 1) - APHuman

space

the geometric surface of the earth

activity space

an area where activity occurs on a daily basis

spatial

the earth has a spatial surface, when you have objects on it, they are defined by their location and are separated by some amount of distance

place

an area of bounded space of some human importance

when we identify a place, it is important to ask why it matters

sense of place

think of it as knowing where an area of the earth’s spatial surface is important

toponym

when a place becomes recognized, we give them “place-names”, or toponyms

regions

regions are sections of the world, they are a type of place

remember that the three types of regiones (formal, functional, and vernacular) can overlap!

sequent occupancy

the succession of groups and cultural influences throughout a place’s history

remember when you learned about the chinese dynasties? this is very similar!

place-specific

many places have different layers that make up their culture, society, values, economy, etc.

place-specific is the idea that these make up a specific area, and these traits vary depending on a place

scale

the relationship of an object or place to the Earth as a whole. there is map scale and relative scale

map scale

the ratio of distance on a map to distance in the real world in absolute terms

it helps us use small ratios to represent big distances in an area

for example, ursuline is .5 meters away from Houston on a map scale (this is made up btw)

relative scale/scale of analysis

the level at which you group things together for examination (aka level of aggregation)

for example, ursuline might matter to dallas on a map, but not to the US. it is relative

we need relative scale because it helps us compare things accurately and at the same scale

formal regions

an area that has a uniformity (homogenous characteristic) across its entire regional boundary

formal regions - linguistic regions

linguistic regions share a common language

USA and Australia (both speak English, but this is one of the only things that is the same between them)

regional boundaries

these differ based upon the type of region

culture region boundaries have fuzzy borders

political region boundaries are typically well defined

environmental region boundaries are transitional and measurable

bioregions/biomes

large regions of the world that share similar animals and ecostystems, for example, the Sahara Desert

the transition zone between each is known as an ecotone

ecotone

transition zone between two biomes

functional/nodal regions

areas with a central place (node) that is the focus or point of origin that expresses some practical purpose. the influence decreases as you move away from the node

central place/node

the center of a functional/nodal region, most often centers of economic exchange

market areas

a type of functional region

the area in which the certain central place is marketed

for example, if you live in Dallas, you are marketed the Dallas Cowboys. as you get farther away, you are marketed OU football

area of influence

the sphere of influence, the amount of distance people will travel for something

attractions that are far spread apart → large area of influence

intervening opportunity

an attraction at a shorter distance that is more important than one farther away

vernacular regions

based on the perception or collective “mental map” of the region’s residents

people identify with this area based on their perception of what it is, not on official boundaries

the “south” is not officially defined as anything, but many people would say certain states (like texas) are a part of it

absolute location

define a point or place on the map using coordinates

commonly named using latitude and longitude

relative location

the location of a place compared to a known place or geographical feature

how far some place is from something else

latitude

latter like rungs on a ladder

longitude

this long cuz they go down

notation of absolute location

latitude first, then longitude, each with a cardinal direction and separated by a comma. degrees can be divided into smaller minutes, and minutes can be divided into seconds

absolute location of the capitol building is:

38° 53’ 23.2980” N, 77° 0’ 32.6016” W

decimal degrees

way of dividing partial degrees but instead using decimals

instead of using minutes and seconds, you can say 38.98305948 degrees (this is an example) instead

important parts of absolute location

the equator is 0 degrees latitude

north and south poles are 90 degrees latitude

prime meridian is 0 degrees longitude

international date line partly makes up 180 degrees longitude (see other side of flashcard)

prime meridian history

the Royal Naval Observatory in London was decided as 0 degrees longitude because the means to accurately calculate longitude at sea was developed by the British Royal Navy

time zones

they are divided in 15-degree wide longitudinal zones around the world (there are some exceptions, for example, China). this is because 360 degrees/ 24 hrs a day = 15

site vs situation

site is the physical characteristics of a place

situation is how a place is interrelated with other places

two types of distance

distance can be absolute or relative

absolute distance vs relative distance

absolute distance

the distance between two places as measured in linear units such as miles or kilometers

relative distance + distance decay (how they relate)

distance decay (gravity) means that the farther away different places are from a place of origin, the less likely interaction will be with the original place

relative distance is sort of like how close or far two things are in comparison + how it affects their relationship. measures the social/cultural/economic relation

tobler’s law

all places are interrelated, but closer places are more related than farther ones

fricition of distance

when the length of distance becomes a factor that inhibits the interaction between two points

space-time compression

decreased time and relative distance between places is called space-time compression

modes of transportation such as airplanes reduce time and create more interactions b/t places

Internet and technology would be an example!

human environment interaction - key topics

i think we will talk about these in detail but human-environment interaction is the affect that humans have on their environment and vice versa

some key elements are environmental determinism, resource depletion, sustainability, conservation efforts, various economic forces, and globalization

transportation nodes

a type of central place, a node that provides further accessibility to and from central places. markets are often located in these places

central place theory

developed in the 1930s by German geographer Walter Christaller. his model of the world said that city location and the level of urban economic exchange could be analyzed using central places within hexagonal market areas, which overlapped at different scales

you will take abt this later. ignore for now

core and periphery

think of a central place as a core of an area. most things happen in relation to the core, there are most opportunities near the core than in the periphery

periphery is an area where there is low development within relationship to its core

cores do not need to be in the center of a region!

CBD

central business district, core of an urban landscape

clusters

when things are grouped together on the Earth’s surface

growth pole

an area of economic development/ central point

agglomeration

used to refer to clustering around a central point/growth pole

random pattern

when there isn’t any reason for where things are distributed

scattered

objects that are normally ordered but appear dispersed ( in patterns)

land survey patterns

affect the property lines and political boundaries of states and provinces (where things are divided up)

metes and bounds was a technique used in Europe in old times

after the 1830s, surveyors in US and CA started using the township and range lines, based on lat. and long.

colonial french areas use(d) long-lot patterns

arithmetic density

number of things per square unit of distance

physiologic density

number of people per square unit of arable land (land that is farmed or could be farmed)

agricultural density

number of farmers per square unit of arable land (land that is farmed or could be farmed)

diffusion patterns

there are different ways human phenomena diffuse spatially (spread across the earth)

we study how culture, ideas, or technology spread from a point to other parts

we often call this point a hearth

expansion diffusion

originates in a central place and moves outwards in all directions, the amt it moves does not need to be equal

types of expansion diffusion patterns are heirarchal, contagious, and stimulus

hierarchal diffusion

basically a freaking family tree

contagious diffusion

point of origin and then moves outward to nearby locations, especially with transportation lines or diseases or news in rural areas

stimulus diffusion

a general or underlying principle diffuses and then stimulates the creation of new products or ideas

for example, vegetarian eating habits (principle) → more vegetarian food in restaurant (product)

relocation diffusion

pattern begins at a point of origin and then crosses a significant physical barrier (ocean, desert, etc.) and then relocates on the other side

the journey often influences the item being spread

why are maps important

they separate geographers from other groups

they result from spatial analysis (mathematical analysis of 1 or more quantitative geographic patterns)

topographic maps

show lines of elevation, urban and vegetations, other natural landscape features

thematic maps

maps that show one specific topic/subject

chloropleth maps, isolne maps, dot density maps, flow-line maps, cartograms

contour lines

(isotherms) which are temperature lines

choropleth maps

show geographic variability of a particular theme with color variations

isoline maps

calculate data between points on a variable surface

weather maps are a good example

dot density maps

they use dots to show volume and density of a geographic feature

you will often see a dot represent a larger number

flow-line maps

use lines of varying thickness to show direction and volume of a particular geographic movement pattern

ex: migration patterns

cartograms

use simplified geometries to represent real world places

more abt the data shown than the landscape

ex: subway maps in nyc

mental map

the cognitive image of landscape in the human mind

we have good mental maps abt places that are important to us, and weak mental maps abt anything else

map scale

the “absolute” scale version

linear map scales express distance on the map surface

you can find the ratio of the map as well (distance on map to distance irl) ex. 1:4000

large scale map has a ratio that is very large irl, small scale map is the opposite, breaking point to tell the difference is abt 1:250000

equal area projections

attempt to maintain the relative spatial science and the areas on the map, which often distorts actual shapes

lambert projection squished Canada to fit other things

conformal projections

try to maintain the shape of polygons on a map, unfortunately this causes distortion of distance between two parts

mercator projection keeps greenland happy but makes it look bigger than it actually is compared to south america

robinson projection + goode’s homolosine projection

goode is on this side of the flashcard

both try to compromise between shape distance and distortion issues

photo → robinson

models

model is an abstract generalization of real-world geographies that share a common pattern

Spatial models attempt to show the commonalities in pattern among similar landscapes

Urban models try to show how different cities have similar spatial relationships and economic or social structures

Demographic transition models are non-spatial models that use population data to construct a general model of the dynamic growth in national scale populations without reference to space

please find some examples lol

why do we use models

to gain understanding of patterns you can’t see on maps and address questions

gravity model

a mathematical model that is used in a number of different types of spatial analysis

used to calculate transportation flow between two points, determine the area of influence of a city’s businesses, and estimate the flow of migrants to a particular place

formula: location 1 pop. x location 2 pop. all divided by distance²

this shows you the gravity (pull) of the relationship between two places

geographic information systems (GIS)

• became practical with the onset of the desktop computer in the 1970s

  • incorporate one or more data layers in a computer program capable of spatial analysis and mapping

• each layer can show you a different type of feature

• spatial analysis capabilities!!

global positioning system (GPS)

use satellites which emit radio signals

when this signal comes from 3+ Navstar satellites, the signal triangulates a location of where you are

remote sensing

aerial photography (photos taken of the earth from an aircraft) + satellite-based remote sensing (using a computer scanner to record data with light and radar info) make up much of GIS and geographic data today