Geographic Data

Not only are there two methods for gathering data, but there are also two types of data gathered.

Quantitative data is information that can be expressed by numbers or that can be placed into specific categories.

• Provides quantifiable information.

• Data easily be transformed into statistics.

• Used to test & prove previously-specified concepts or hypothesis.

Qualitative data is descriptive information, usually in the form of text.

• Tells you about features (quality) & mostly involves an intuitive process.

• Commonly used to formulate theories & hypothesis.

Spatial Concepts

Two ways to describe a place’s location:

Site: refers to a place’s physical & cultural characteristics

• Ex: Terrain or dominant religions

• Hawaii’s tropical location, sandy beaches, volcanoes, volcanic soil & plentiful moisture play an important role in its economic activity

Situation: refers to location (or context) of a place relative to physical & cultural characteristics around it

• Situation of a place is best described by where it is located in respect to other places

• More interconnected a place is to other powerful places, the better it’s situation

Human–Environmental Interaction

Cultural ecology is the study of how humans adapt to the environment

Two theories as to how geography shapes culture

• Old Theory– Environmental Determinism:

  • Climate & the physical landscape of an area greatly affect the behavior & culture of the people living there

  • Factors of physical geography that affect the culture include:

    • Climate, landforms, access to water (including whether a country is landlocked) & arability of land

• New Theory – Possibilism: modification to determinism that states that physical geography can limit the possibilities of a culture, but it doesn’t control them

  • Human cultures with the ability to adapt to the environment or changing it

    • Advancement in technology has becomes more & more apparent

  • Different cultures may respond to the same natural environment in diverse ways, depending on their beliefs, goals & available technologies

Regional Analysis

Regionalization is the process of dividing an area into smaller segments called regions.

Region is a group of places, that share the similar characteristic

Formal region (or uniform region or homogeneous region) is an area that has common cultural or physical features

• Region that has at least one similar physical or cultural trait that unifies it

  • Language or religion

• No set borders, as these cultures often overlap in border zones

  • Corn belt, Rust belt or Bible belt

Functional region (or nodal region) is a group of places linked together by some type of movement (or function)

• Area with certain political, economic or social activity that unifies it.

• Contains at least one node that is the center of activity & connects it to the market area (hinterland) around it

  • Typically connects the region by trade, communication or transportation.

• Map showing a group of places all infected by a type of disease

  • Dr. John Snow’s Cholera Map

Perceptual region (or vernacular) is an area defined by a person’s beliefs or feelings, created by an individual’s own associations & attachment to the area.

• May be defined by prejudices or personal thoughts

• Borders vary from person to person, based on their own perceptions.

• Similar to mental map or something created in their mind based on their own experience or knowledge

  • Region of the U.S. that is called “the South”