THE BASICS OF GEOGRAPHY

 “Geography”  The study of the distribution and interaction of physical and human features on the earth  Greek word geographia means "to describe the earth”  A geographer views the world in terms of the use of space.  Maps  Most common tool used to study the use of space on Earth  Visual representations of a portion of the earth  Mental maps (those that one carries in their mind)  Photographs: to gain visual evidence  Charts, graphs, tables: to understand patterns  Models: to make the study of the real world easier  5 Themes of Geography: to help the geographer describe the use of space THE BASICS OF GEOGRAPHY

5 THEMES OF GEOGRAPHY

Where is it?  Geographers describe location in two ways: absolute location and relative location. 1.Absolute location (36)  Uses grid lines (imaginary) on a map to determine the exact location  Earth is divided into two equal halves (hemispheres); a hemisphere can be north-south, or east-west  Lines of Latitude: parallel to Equator (0); Lines of Longitude: parallel to Prime Meridian (0) 2.Relative location  Explains a location compared to another's location 1. LOCATION

What is there? What is it like? both  A place has both physical and human characteristics.  While the physical characteristics will almost always stay the same, the human characteristics can and often do change over time.  Physical  Physical characteristics: landforms, climate, and vegetation.  Human  Human characteristics: religion, language, demography, economy, politics, and culture. 2. PLACE

How are the earth's spaces organized? How are places similar or different?  Area of earth's surface with similar human/physical characteristics 1.Formal region --> A limited number of shared characteristics. In this course, the units of this course make up the formal regions; example: Latin America 2.Functional region --> organized around a set of connection/interactions between/among places; example: The Loop 3. REGION

How do people adapt to, and change, their environment? How do people relate to the physical world?  This is a reciprocal lens  Adaptation, resource scarcity, natural disasters, technology, and pollution.  People living in similar environments do not always respond to them in the same ways; sometimes the alterations create new problems, such as pollution… 4. HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTION

How do products, people, and ideas move?  Transportation, travel, migration, push-pull factors, exchanging of ideas, and global trade.  Geographers analyze movement by looking at three types of distance: 1.Linear Distance --- A to B on earth, with physical geography possibly presenting obstacles. 2.Time Distance --- A to B as measured by time taken, technological innovations (time-space compression). 5. MOVEMENT