1. Important Concepts
Unit I

2. Distribution
Density
Concentration
Pattern

3. Total population
Density=
Area

4. Density Case Study: Belgium
Density= total population/ area
10.5 mil people /30,278 sq kilometers
345 Persons per square kilometer

5. China Population: Approx 1.3 billion Belgium Population:
A higher population doesn’t necessarily lead to a higher density. Let’s examine China as compared to Belgium
China Population:
Approx 1.3 billion
Belgium Population:
Approx 10.5 million
This is NOT to scale!

6. Belgium Area: China Area: Approx 30,278 sq k Approx 9,352,517 sq k
Although China has 123 times more inhabitants than Belgium, it has more than 300 times the land. This affects the density calculation.
Belgium Area:
Approx 30,278 sq k
China Area:
Approx 9,352,517 sq k
This is NOT to scale!

8. Concentration
The extent of a feature’s spread over space is its concentration.
If objects in an area are close together they are clustered.
If objects in an area are far apart they are dispersed.

9. Examine the map of the United States below
Examine the map of the United States below. Geographers use concentration to describe changes in distribution.
Dispersed
Clustered
The distribution across the United States is increasingly dispersed

10. The land area of the United States has remained virtually unchanged
The land area of the United States has remained virtually unchanged. But the population distribution is changing from relatively dispersed in the Northeast to more evenly dispersed across the country.

11. Examine the map of US Baseball Teams in the 1950s versus the late 1990s. It illustrates the difference between density and concentration.
Dispersed Distribution
Major league teams expanded from between 1960s and 1990s. So the density increases.

12. Alternate example to illustrate the difference between density and concentration.
Elite housing development by the Potomac
Baltimore City
Clustered
Dispersed.

13. Pattern

14. Regions Regions divide the world into manageable
units for geographic study. Regions have
some sort of characteristic that unifies the
area.
Formal
Functional
Vernacular

15. Overlapping: a single place can exist in several regions simultaneously. .
The Everglades are part of the Southern U.S. Region, but are also considered a Wetland Region

16. Linguistic Regions: The U. S
Linguistic Regions: The U.S. and Australia are in the same linguistic region, but the two countries share little elsewhere in culture, economy, or landscape.

17. Formal regions are those that are designated by official boundaries, such as cities, states, counties, and countries. For the most part, they are clearly indicated and publicly known.

18. Formal Regions: area within which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics.
Formal regions are those that are designated by official boundaries, such as cities, states, counties, and countries. For the most part, they are clearly indicated and publicly known.
When designating a formal unit, be aware of diversity.

19. Let’s begin with a political map of the Middle East
Let’s begin with a political map of the Middle East. When the government draws imaginary lines around an area calling it a state or province, one state or province becomes distinct from another.
On a smaller scale the formal region could be religious, focusing on the division of the area between inhabitants who are “Sunni” or “Shi’ite” Muslims

20. Functional Regions: area organized around a focal point
Functional Regions: area organized around a focal point. Functional regions are defined by their connections
Functional Region based on television markets in the U.S.

21. Vernacular Regions: a place that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity. They are perceived and while they have no formal boundaries, are understood in our “mental maps” of the world.
Vernacular regions are perceived regions. They have no formal boundaries but are understood in our mental maps of the world.
Cady’s Map from “Mean Girls.” There are no official boundaries, yet the mental map communicates a pretty segregated area.

22. Vernacular Regions: Dixieland

24. Do the same for functional and vernacular regions.
Class work: Write down
Name three formal regions that this school is located within and give a reason for each.
Do the same for functional and vernacular regions.

25. Culture: from Latin cultus, meaning to care for
What people care about
Their ideas, beliefs, values and customs
What people take care of
Their ways of earning a living and obtaining food, clothing and shelter

26. Speak with Conviction- Taylor Mali