AP Human Geography: Map Types, Projections, and Spatial Scale, and Environmental Theory

Map Types and Definitions

  • Reference Maps: These are maps designed for people to refer to for general information about specific places.

    • Political Maps: A type of reference map that shows human-created boundaries and professional designations. These includes features such as countries, states, cities, and capitals.
    • Physical Maps: Maps that illustrate natural features of the landscape. Common examples include mountains, rivers, and deserts.
    • Road Maps: Maps specifically showing transportation infrastructure, including highways, streets, and alleys.
    • Plat Maps: Maps that provide details regarding property lines and specifics of land ownership.
    • Locator Maps: Small maps used in books or advertisements to show specific locations mentioned within a text.

  • Thematic Maps: These maps show spatial aspects of information or represent a specific type of phenomenon.

    • Choropleth Maps: Thematic maps that utilize colors, shades, or patterns to indicate the location and distribution of spatial data.
    • Dot Distribution Maps: These maps are used to show the specific location and distribution of a feature, with each individual dot representing a specific quantity.
    • Graduated Symbol Maps: Maps that utilize symbols of varying sizes to indicate different amounts of a particular variable. Larger sizes signify a higher quantity, while smaller sizes indicate less.
    • Isoline Maps: These maps use lines that connect points of equal value to depict variations in data across space. The distance between the lines is indicative of the rate of change.
    • Cartograms: Maps where the physical size of places is distorted or scaled according to a specific statistic rather than their actual land area.

Map Projections and Distortions

  • Map Projection: This is the systematic process of depicting the curved surface of a globe onto a flat surface.

  • Cartographic Decisions: When designing a map, cartographers must decide which of the following four aspects to preserve or distort:

    • Size
    • Shape
    • Distance
    • Direction

  • Mercator Projection

    • Purpose: Primarily used for navigation.
    • Strengths: Directions are shown accurately, and shapes of land masses remain relatively true to how they appear on a globe.
    • Distortion: The size of land masses is heavily distorted, particularly near the poles.

  • Peters Projection

    • Purpose: Illustrating spatial distribution.
    • Strengths: The size of land masses is depicted accurately.
    • Distortion: The shapes of land masses are inaccurate, especially near the poles.

  • Conic Projection

    • Purpose: Regional mapping.
    • Strengths: Best suited for specific regions as both size and shape are close to reality.
    • Distortion: Longitude lines converge at only one pole rather than two.

  • Robinson Projection

    • Purpose: General use.
    • Strengths: There is no single glaring distortion; the oval shape makes it look more like a globe.
    • Distortion: Area, shape, size, and direction are all slightly distorted.

Environmental Philosophy: Determinism vs. Possibilism

  • Environmental Determinism

    • Definition: A philosophy stating that human behaviors and culture are a direct result of the surrounding environment.
    • Key Ideas:
      • The environment controls the scope of human activities.
      • Humans are fundamentally dependent on the natural environment.
      • Human attitudes are directly impacted by the environment.
      • Culture is primarily determined by environmental conditions.
    • Examples:
      • Antarctica has zero permanent residents due to its extreme climate.
      • Diets are determined by the specific conditions of the environment.
    • Criticisms: This philosophy fails to account for the influences of culture, history, and technological advancement.

  • Possibilism

    • Definition: The theory that environmental conditions of a place may limit culture, but social conditions and human innovation allow humans to determine their own culture and activities.
    • Key Ideas:
      • The environment provides possibilities, but humans choose how to respond to them.
      • Humans are innovators possessing free will.
      • Humans adapt the natural environment to meet their specific needs.
      • Nature (climate and natural disasters) cannot be completely overcome by human will and innovation, but humans are not strictly controlled by it.
    • Examples:
      • Water is diverted from the Colorado River and brought into cities via aqueducts.
      • Air conditioning enables leisure, business activities, and general habitation in harsh climates.
      • Economies can be based on tourism despite environmental limitations.
      • Architectural designs are adapted for specific building needs.

Scale of Analysis

  • Scale Definitions

    • Small Scale Maps: These maps show a LARGE area but contain a SMALL amount of data. They are considered "Zoomed Out."
    • Large Scale Maps: These maps show a SMALL area but contain a LARGE amount of data. They are considered "Zoomed IN."

  • Hierarchy of Scale levels:

    • Global
    • Regional
    • State-Country-National
    • Sub-State (State)
    • County
    • City/Local
    • Census Tract: This is the smallest scale of analysis, typically comprising between 1,000−8,0001,000 - 8,000 people.

  • Impact of Scale on Analysis and Conclusions:

    • Different scales reveal different spatial patterns. Using the wrong scale can lead to inaccurate conclusions.
    • Global Scale (National Analysis): On a map showing the share of the population living in extreme poverty, a global scale leads to the general conclusion that Africa is in extreme poverty.
    • National Scale (Substate Analysis): On a map of the United States and Puerto Rico in 20182018, a national scale reveals that the Southern East has a higher rate of poverty.
    • National Scale (County Level Analysis): On a map of the United States from 2013−20172013-2017, county-level data shows that poverty is concentrated in more specific central parts of states, rather than the entire state being uniform.
    • Local Scale Analysis: Using maps of Cincinnati, local-scale analysis identifies specific neighborhoods with better median household incomes, which is information that cannot be concluded from larger-scale maps.
    • Regional Scale Analysis: This level is used for broader areas like sub-Saharan Africa, as seen in data tracking maternal mortality in Ethiopia and surrounding regions.