Geography An Overview

Geography is a broad field, and this lecture serves as part one of the introductory material for week one.
Students are required to watch both parts (including "earth basics") entirely, as they will be tested on the content.

Many students have encountered geography in their K-12 education within history classes.
Geography is often perceived as memorization and map-based knowledge; however, this is only partially true.
While K-12 geography involves maps, geography at the university level is very different.
This course will provide a taste of what geography truly is, but maps will still be used to some extent.
The focus will not be on memorizing locations like the Rocky Mountains or African lakes.
A specific definition of geography is not provided because the lecturer finds definitions too limiting.
Geography stems from the ancient term "Geographia," meaning to write and study about Earth.
The course will not focus on memorizing planetary features or map details.

Geography is a multidisciplinary field examining Earth's physical and human landscapes, and the relationship between them.
It is divided into three main subfields:
- Physical Geography
- Human Geography
- Geospatial Technologies
Geography majors receive training in all three subfields and specialize as they advance in education.

Focuses on physical landscapes, systems, processes, and changes over time.
Draws from geology, climatology, oceanography, meteorology, biology, etc., to understand spatial distribution of features.
This course is primarily about physical geography and includes a lab component for practical learning and application.

Examines human landscapes and patterns over time.
Interfaces with history, migration patterns, population demographics, urbanism, sociology, resources, and war.
Looks at the human landscape superimposed over the physical landscape, studying patterns.

Formerly the cartography portion of geography, now uses advanced computer software.
Includes Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
GIS is widely used in cities, utility companies, fire departments, crime analytics, real estate, census information, and the U.S. Government.
Earning a GIS certificate is popular among geography majors due to its job prospects.
GIS involves systems like ArcGIS, ArcMaps, made by Esri, a billion-dollar company.
Students will see some ArcGIS maps in labs but will not build them themselves.

Maps are used in this course, including basic maps and Google Earth assignments.
Humans have an innate desire to organize space around them.
In ancient times, communal settings like nomadic tribes had organized layouts with central bonfire areas and separate structures for sleeping and storage.
Even in camping, people organize campsites, considering privacy, flat ground, and safety.
Humans organize space to make sense of it, even in personal spaces like rooms。

Mapping is an extension of the human desire to organize space.
The Roman Empire used maps to understand and document borders, cities, infrastructure, and troop locations.
Ancient Chinese maps and maps from the Muslim Golden Age of the Mediterranean also reflect this.
Today's maps are more advanced, such as population cluster maps, transportation maps, and census data maps.
Examples:
- Population cluster map of India, Iran, and Saudi Arabia
- Transportation cluster map of the Middle East
- U.S. Census Bureau maps showing states with the most divorcees at age 30
- Cal Poly Humboldt's