Human Geography Key Terms
Geographic Tools, Mapping, and Spatial Technologies
Cartography (p. 6) is defined as the science of making maps. A map (p. 6) serves as a two-dimensional, or flat, representation of Earth's surface or a portion of it. Map scale (p. 10) represents the relationship between the size of an object on a map and the size of the actual feature on Earth's surface. To project this curved surface onto a flat medium, projection (p. 11) is utilized as a system used to transfer locations from Earth's surface to a flat map.
Geographic Information System (GIS) (p. 9) is a computer system that stores, organizes, analyzes, and displays geographic data. The academic and technical foundation behind these systems is Geographic Information Science (GIScience) (p. 9), which encompasses the development and analysis of data about Earth acquired through satellite and other electronic information technologies. Complementing this, Global Positioning System (GPS) (p. 8) is a system that determines the precise position of something on Earth through a series of satellites, tracking stations, and receivers. Remote sensing (p. 9) provides data acquisition about Earth's surface from a satellite orbiting the planet or from other long-distance methods.
Modern geographic data collection incorporates geotagging (p. 9), defined as the identification and storage of a piece of information by its precise latitude and longitude coordinates. Digital tools allow for a mashup (p. 9), which is a map that overlays data from one source on top of a map provided by a mapping service. Data collection also relies on Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) (p. 9), meaning the creation and dissemination of geographic data contributed voluntarily and for free by individuals. This integrates with Participatory GIS (PGIS) (p. 9), which represents community-based mapping that captures local knowledge and information, as well as Citizen Science (p. 9), defined as scientific research conducted by amateur scientists.
Fundamentals of Location, Place, and Space
Location (p. 14) refers to the position of anything on Earth's surface. A toponym (p. 14) is the name given to a portion of Earth's surface. Physical context is divided into site and situation: site (p. 15) is defined as the physical character of a place, while situation (p. 15) is the location of a place relative to another place. Place (p. 4) itself is a specific point on Earth, distinguished by a particular characteristic. Space (p. 5) is defined as the physical gap or interval between two objects. Scale (p. 4) generally refers to the relationship between the portion of Earth being studied and Earth as a whole.
Earth's grid system measures precise location through latitude and longitude. Latitude (p. 12) is the numbering system used to indicate the location of parallels drawn on a globe and measuring distance north and south of the equator (). A parallel (p. 12) is a circle drawn around the globe parallel to the equator and at right angles to the meridians. Longitude (p. 12) is the numbering system used to indicate the location of meridians drawn on a globe and measuring distance east and west of the prime meridian (). A meridian (p. 12) is an arc drawn on a map between the North and South poles.
The prime meridian (p. 12) is the meridian, designated as longitude, that passes through the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England. Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) (p. 12) is the time in the zone encompassing the prime meridian, or longitude. The International Date Line (p. 13) is an arc that for the most part follows longitude, although it deviates in several places to avoid dividing land areas. When the International Date Line is crossed heading east (toward America), the clock moves back , or one entire day. When it is crossed heading west (toward Asia), the calendar moves ahead one day. Personal spatial comprehension forms a mental map (p. 8), defined as a representation of a portion of Earth's surface based on what an individual knows about a place that contains personal impressions of what is in the place and where the place is located.
Spatial Arrangements, Interaction, and Globalization
Distribution (p. 22) represents the arrangement of something across Earth's surface. Within spatial distribution, density (p. 22) is the frequency with which something exists within a given unit of area, whereas concentration (p. 22) is the spread of something over a given area. Pattern (p. 23) refers to the geometric or regular arrangement of something in a particular area. Spatial association (p. 18) describes the relationship between the distribution of one feature and the distribution of another feature.
Connection (p. 5) refers to the relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space. A network (p. 30) acts as a chain of communication that connects places. Interconnection across space experiences distance decay (p. 30), which is the diminished importance and eventual disappearance of a phenomenon with increasing distance from its origin. Space-time compression (p. 30) is the reduction in the time it takes to diffuse something to a distant place as a result of improved communications and transportation systems.
Globalization (p. 20) consists of actions or processes that involve the entire world and result in making something worldwide in scope. A major agent of globalization is the transnational corporation (p. 20), defined as a company that conducts research, operates factories, and sells products in many countries, not just where its headquarters or shareholders are located. Globalization can lead to uneven development (p. 27), which is the increasing gap in economic conditions between core and peripheral regions as a result of the globalization of the economy.
Human and Regional Geography Perspectives
A region (p. 4) is defined as an area distinguished by a unique combination of trends or features. Geographers identify three main types of regions. A formal region (or uniform region) (p. 16) is an area in which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics. A functional region (or nodal region) (p. 16) is an area organized around a node or focal point. A vernacular region (or perceptual region) (p. 17) is an area that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity. Culture (p. 18) comprises the body of customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits that together constitute a group's distinct tradition. The cultural landscape (p. 16) approach emphasizes the relationships among social and physical phenomena in a particular study area.
Innovation originates from a hearth (p. 28), defined as the region from which innovative ideas originate. Diffusion (p. 28) is the process of spread of a feature or trend from one place to another over time. Relocation diffusion (p. 28) is the spread of a feature or trend through bodily movement of people from one place to another. Expansion diffusion (p. 29) is the spread of a feature or trend among people from one area to another in an additive process. Expansion diffusion includes hierarchical diffusion (p. 29), defined as the spread of a feature or trend from one key person or node of authority or power to other persons or places; contagious diffusion (p. 29), defined as the rapid, widespread diffusion of a feature or trend throughout a population; and stimulus diffusion (p. 29), defined as the spread of an underlying principle even though a specific characteristic is rejected.
Cultural contact results in distinct processes. Acculturation (p. 28) is the process of changes in culture that result from the meeting of two groups, each of which retains distinct culture features. Assimilation (p. 28) is the process by which a group's cultural features are altered to resemble those of another more dominant group. Syncretism (p. 28) is the combining of elements of two groups into a new cultural feature. Theoretical approaches to human geography include behavioral geography (p. 26), which is the study of the psychological basis for individual human actions in space; humanistic geography (p. 26), which is the study of different ways that individuals form ideas about place and give those places symbolic meanings; and poststructuralist geography (p. 26), which is the study of space as the product of ideologies or value systems of ruling elites.
Environmental Geography, Earth Systems, and Sustainability
Earth systems are divided into abiotic and biotic components. Abiotic (p. 34) means composed of nonliving or inorganic matter, while biotic (p. 34) means composed of living organisms. Earth's physical environment includes three abiotic systems: the atmosphere (p. 34), which is the thin layer of gases surrounding Earth; the hydrosphere (p. 34), which encompasses all of the water on and near Earth's surface; and the lithosphere (p. 34), which consists of Earth's crust and a portion of upper mantle directly below the crust. The biotic sphere is the biosphere (p. 34), containing all living organisms on Earth, including plants and animals, as well as microorganisms. Climate (p. 34) is the long-term average weather condition at a particular location.
Ecology (p. 36) is the scientific study of ecosystems, where an ecosystem (p. 36) is defined as a group of living organisms and the abiotic spheres with which they interact. Cultural ecology (p. 36) is a geographic approach that emphasizes human-environment relationships. Historical perspectives include environmental determinism (p. 37), a nineteenth- and early twentieth-century approach to geography which argued that the general laws sought by human geographers could be found in the physical sciences, meaning geography was the study of how the physical environment caused human activities. In contrast, possibilism (p. 37) is the theory that the physical environment may set limits on human actions, but people have the ability to adjust to the physical environment and choose a course of action from many alternatives.
A resource (p. 32) is a substance in the environment that is useful to people, is economically and technologically feasible to access, and is socially acceptable to use. Resources are categorized into renewable resource (p. 32), which is something produced in nature more rapidly than it is consumed by humans, and nonrenewable resource (p. 32), which is something produced in nature more slowly than it is consumed by humans. Sustainability (p. 32) is the use of Earth's renewable and nonrenewable natural resources in ways that do not constrain resource use in the future. Resource management approaches include conservation (p. 32), defined as the sustainable management of a natural resource, and preservation (p. 32), defined as the maintenance of resources in their present condition, with as little human impact as possible. Humans physically transform environments through land creation, such as a polder (p. 38), which is land that the Dutch have created by draining water from an area.
Geographic Exploration and Video Analysis Exercises
Spatial exploration of coastal environments centers on Google Earth observations of 3253 Ouddorp along the Netherlands Coast. Key investigative tasks include flying directly to Ouddorp, Netherlands, and using the measuring ruler to determine the precise distance in kilometers or miles from the pin marking Ouddorp to the coastline. Analysis requires counting the exact number of dams visible in the geographic image and entering street view on the dam situated to the north to observe what infrastructure or feature occupies the top of the dam. Further investigation involves identifying which side of the dam faces the open sea and which side faces the protected inland waterway, locating which side contains marinas filled with boats, and determining the functional reasons why boats are moored on that specific side. Land elevation analysis requires recording the elevation of Ouddorp, comparing it with the elevation of Visschershoek directly on the coast to the west, and measuring the elevation of Melissant further inland to the east. These observations serve to establish whether elevation increases or decreases further inland compared to the coast and to explain the physical or engineered causes behind this elevation structure.
Digital spatial reasoning and course material engagement are supported through Mastering Geography at www.masteringgeography.com. This study platform provides access to MapMaster interactive maps, instructional videos, In the News RSS feeds, study flashcards, curated web links, self-study assessment quizzes, and an eText version of The Cultural Landscape to develop spatial reasoning skills and geography chapter content comprehension.
Applied media analysis includes the GeoVideo Log titled How GPS Works, which explores how space-based Global Positioning Systems (GPS) deliver near-instantaneous geographic location and time information. The activity requires examining three primary analytical questions: describing the supporting infrastructure that maintains operational GPS devices, assessing the current accuracy and structural limits of GPS technology according to the video, and evaluating the strategic reasons why the U.S. Navy has decided to reinstate celestial navigation instruction.