AP HuG Unit 1 terms

Unit 1 vocab terms flashcards—made by a freshman taking AP HuG!

Vernacular Region

An area that exists entirely in people's minds and opinions.

Syncretism

The blending of two distinct cultural traits to create a completely brand-new feature.

Sustainability

Using Earth's resources to meet our needs today without running out of them for future generations.

Stimulus Diffusion

When a core idea spreads to a new place, but the local people change the product to fit their culture.

Spatial Association

When two different things occur in the same places on a map, suggesting they are connected.

Space-Time Compression

When modern technology makes the world feel smaller because we can travel and communicate almost instantly.

Situation

The location of a place relative to other places, highlighting its connections and accessibility.

Site

The internal physical character of a place, such as its soil, elevation, water sources, and climate.

Region

An area of Earth's surface defined by one or more shared, unifying characteristics.

Projection

The mathematical method used to transfer the round, 3D Earth onto a flat, 2D map.

Possibilism

The belief that nature sets limits, but humans can choose how to adapt and modify the environment using technology.

Polder

A low-lying piece of land reclaimed from the sea or a lake by building walls and draining the water.

Map Scale

The link between map distance and actual real-world distance.

Longitude

Imaginary vertical lines that measure distance east or west of the Prime Meridian.

Latitude

Imaginary flat hoops that wrap around Earth to measure North or South of the Equator.

Hierarchical Diffusion

When a trend spreads downward from a person or place of authority or power.

Hearth

The exact birthplace or starting point where an idea or trend originates.

GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)

The master time standard measured at 0° longitude.

Globalization

The scaling up of actions to a worldwide level, making the whole planet interconnected.

GIS (Geographic Information Systems)

A computer software program that stores, analyzes, and displays layered geographic maps.

GPS (Global Positioning System)

A system that uses satellite signals to pinpoint your exact absolute location on Earth.

GIScience

The academic research behind gathering and analyzing Earth data using satellites.

Functional Region

An area held together by a central hub or focal point.

Formal Region

An area where everyone shares a common, distinctive, and factual characteristic.

Expansion Diffusion

The outward spread of a trend from a hearth that grows stronger and gains more total followers.

Environmental Determinism

The old belief that the physical environment completely controls and forces human behavior.

Ecosystem

A community where biotic things interact with each other and their abiotic surroundings.

Acculturation

When a group adopts some traits of a new culture while still keeping their original identity.

Cartography

The science and art of making maps.

Assimilation

When a minority culture completely loses its original traits and blends entirely into a dominant culture.

Climate

The average, long-term weather patterns of a specific place over a long period.

Conservation

The smart management of nature to protect resources while still allowing sustainable human use.

Contagious Diffusion

The rapid, widespread, and random spread of a trend throughout a population.

Cultural Ecology

The study of how human societies adapt to and modify their natural and physical environments.

Cultural Landscape

The visible imprint and modifications that human culture leaves on the natural environment.

Density

The frequency with which something exists within a given unit of area.

Diffusion

The process by which a feature or trend spreads from one place to another over time.

Distance Decay

The rule that interaction between two places drops automatically as the mileage between them increases.

Distribution

The arrangement of a feature or phenomenon across the space of Earth's surface.

Ecology

The scientific study of how living organisms interact with one another and their environment.

Ecosystem

A community where living things interact with each other and their non-living surroundings.

What is the scale of the map?

Local, Region, Global