Introduction to Geography Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World (2-23) Chapter 2: Planet Earth (24-47) Chapter 3: Climate, Environment, and Resources (48-77) Chapter 4: The World’s People (78-103)

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World What is Geography? Geography is a science: Geographers look at data, measure, and observe the natural world. Geography is a social science: Geographers study people, how they live, and their communities.

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World A region can be defined by its physical characteristics, but also the human characteristics of a particular place. Q What are some physical characteristics that might define a region?

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World A Mountain ranges, flat grasslands, lowland swamps, beaches, oceans. Q What are some human characteristics that might define a region? A Language, religion, history, etc.

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World Q Why do geographers divide the world into regions? A The world is huge, with billions of people. Dividing the world into regions makes it easier to study and compare places.

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World The Geographer’s Tools Q How is absolute location different from relative location? A Absolute is a specific place and relative is a general description of where a place lies.

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World Five Themes of Geography 1. Location: Absolute and Relative 2. Place: Landscapes, features that make an area different from other places. 3. Human-Environment Interaction 4. Movement: Why and how people move between cities and countries. 5. Regions

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World The Six Essential Elements 1. The World in Spatial Terms 2. Places and Regions 3. Physical Systems 4. Human Systems 5. Environment and Society 6. Uses of Geography

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World The Branches of Geography Physical Geography: What do geographers want know about the world’s physical features? How they were formed

Chapter 1: The Geographer’s World Human Geography: Q What do human geographers study? A How people meet their needs, such as the foods they eat or types of government.

Chapter 1: A Geographer’s World Cartography: The science of making maps. Meteorology: The study of weather and what causes it.

Chapter 2: Planet Earth Earth and the Sun’s Energy Tilt and Latitude Q Which parts of Earth get the most solar energy? A The parts tilted toward the sun

Chapter 2: Earth and the Sun’s Energy Q How does tilt affect temperatures on Earth? A Places receiving more solar energy have higher temperatures Latitude: the distance north or south of the equator

Chapter 2: Earth and the Sun’s Energy Q Why do lower latitude locations receive more solar energy? A Locations closer to the equator receive direct rays of the sun for more of the year.

Chapter 2 Earth and the Sun’s Energy Q Why is it colder during the winter months? A The tilt of Earth’s axis positions those locations further away from the sun.

Chapter 2: Earth and the Sun’s Energy Water on Earth Q What kind of water makes up most of the water on Earth? A Salt Water (97%): It covers 71% of Earth’s surface.

Chapter 2: Earth and the Sun’s Energy Q How does evaporation differ from precipitation? (see The Water Cycle, p. 32) A Evaporation: water goes from liquid to vapor. Precipitation: water that condenses and falls as rain, snow, etc.

Chapter 2: The Earth and the Sun’s Energy The Land Q What do geographers think explains the movement of the continents? A Plate tectonics: Earth’s surface is divided in to 12 or so plates, slowly being pushed by energy deep inside the planet.

Chapter 2: Earth and the Sun’s Energy Forces on Earth’s Surface Weathering: process in which rock is broken down into smaller pieces. Q What are some things that cause weathering? A In deserts, the heating in the day and cooling and the night. Water in cracks freezing and expanding.

Chapter 2: Earth and the Sun’s Energy Erosion: movement of sediment from one location to another. Q What are some forces that cause erosion? A Wind, ice, water

Chapter 2: Earth and the Sun’s Energy Landforms Influence Life? Q Why do you and your family live where you do?

Chapter 3 Climate, Environments, and Resources Sec. 1: Weather and Climate : Q What are the short term changes in the air for a given place and time? A Weather Q How is weather different from climate?

Climate, Environment, and Resources A Weather is what is happening now and soon, Climate is the expected weather, over time, based on data and experience.

Climate, Environment, and Resources Because of the tilt of Earth’s axis, different locations receive different amount of sunlight. Q How might that affect which locations are warmer than others? A Locations tilted toward the sun are warmer than those tilted away from the Sun.

Climate, Environment, and Resources Q What are the winds that blow in the same direction over large areas of the Earth? A Prevailing winds A front is the place where two air masses of different temperatures and/or moisture content meet.

Climate, Environment, and Resources Sec. 2: World Climates Q Where do tropical climates occur? A Near the equator, in low altitudes. Temperate zones occur about half way between the equator and the poles. (See pages 56 – 57)

Climate, Environment, and Resources In humid tropical climates, rainfall averages 70 to 450 inches a year. Q Where do we find humid tropical climates in the world? A Near the equator from the Tropic of Cancer to the Tropic of Capricorn.

Climate, Environment, and Resources Temperate climates occur in the middle latitudes, halfway between the equator and the poles. Q In what type of climate zone do we live? A The U.S. southeast is a humid subtropical climate.

Climate, Environment, and Resources Sec. 3: Natural Environments Plants and animals that depend on each other for survival make up an ecosystem. (see page 63) Q What is a major cause of species extinctions? A Extreme changes in ecosystems.

Climate, Environment, and Resources Sec. 4: Natural Resources Even though coal is a non-renewable resource, it still makes up a larger percentage of energy production. Q Why do we still use so much coal? A It is still very plentiful and cheap to produce.

Climate, Environment, and Resources Q How is hydroelectric power generated? A Water running through turbines in dams. Q How does the availability of resources affect the economies of countries? A Countries with a wide variety of natural resources tend to be wealthier countries.

Chapter 4 The World’s People Sec: 1 Culture A culture trait is an activity or behavior in which people take part. Q How do cultures develop? A Culture traits are learned and passed down from generation to generation

The World’s People A culture region is an area in which people share many culture traits. Q What are some examples of shared culture traits? A Language, religious beliefs, food, music, architecture, lifestyle.

The World’s People Cultural Diffusion: The spread of culture traits from one region to another. Q How does cultural diffusion happen. A When people move from one place to another and come into contact with different cultures.

The World’s People Sec. 2: Population Q Based on the map on page 87, which areas of the world have the highest population densities? A China and India, which area has the lowest population density?

The World’s People 3 Key Statistics geographers use to track population changes 1. Birthrate: births per 1,000 people 2. Deathrate: deaths per 1,000 people. 3. Rate of natural increase of a population.

The World’s People Q How might a population grow other than by more people being born than dying? A Migration: the process of moving from one place to live in another.

The World’s People Sec. 3: Government and Economy Q What is the difference between Communism and Democracy? A In Communism, the government owns all property and dominates all aspects of life. In Democracy, private citizens own property and businesses.

The World’s People Developed countries have strong economies (large GDP) and stable governments. Q In which kind of country do most people in the world live? A Developing countries, almost 2/3 of all people.

The World’s People Sec. 4: Global Connections Globalism: the process in which countries are increasingly liked to each other through culture and trade. Q Food, sports, music, and movies are examples of what kind of culture? A Popular Culture: culture traits that are well known and widely accepted.

The World’s People Global Trade: Improvements in transportation and communication have helped link the world’s economies and lead to globalization. Q What has also increased with globalization? A Interdependence: Countries reliance on each other for resources, goods, and services.