1. The Basics of Geography
geography- the study of the distribution and interaction of physical and human features on the earth

2. Vocabulary
absolute location- exact place on earth where a place is found using latitude and longitude
relative location- describes a place in comparison to other places around it
latitude- lines that run parallel to the equator

3. Vocabulary
longitude- lines that go over the earth around the poles

4. Vocabulary
prime meridian- imaginary line diving the earth east and west
map projection- is a way of drawing the earth’s surface that reduces distortion caused by presenting a round earth on flat paper
topographic map- a general reference map; it has natural and man-made features of earth
Landsat- a series of satellites that orbit more than 100 miles above Earth and can scan the Earth in 16 days

5. Vocabulary
physical map- shows natural features of Earth; landforms, bodies of water and other physical characteristics of a location
political map- show features on the Earth that humans have created; cities, states, countries
qualitative maps- use colors and patterns to show a specific idea
Check the title
Study the legend closely
Determine the theme
Determine the relationships among the data

6. Vocabulary
Geographic Information System (GIS)- stores info about Earth in a digital database; it can combine info from a variety of sources and keep it in one place

7. Five Themes Location Where is it?
Describe location using absolute location and relative location

8. Five themes Place -What is it like?
-includes physical features (climate, landforms, vegetation)
-includes cultural characteristics of a location
-human influence (dams, highways, houses, building, bridges)

9. How are places similar or different?
Five Themes
Region
How are places similar or different?
Area of the earth’s surface with similar characteristics

10. Regions
(1)Formal region- a region that has a limited number of related characteristics
The US and Canada
Latin America
Europe
Russia
Southwest Asia
South Asia

11. Regions
Functional region- a region organized around a set of interactions and connections between places
a hub or central place and links to that place
New York city is a functional region because it is a main hub with many suburbs surrounding it

12. Regions
Perceptual regions- in region where people perceive the characteristics of a region in the same way
*perceptual regions can be different from person to person because everyone views how regions are defined differently
ex: everyone knows what the Southwest region is but they may differ on what states it contains

13. Five Themes Human-Environment Interaction
the relationship between humans and the environment
people learn what the environment can give them and uses it to meet their needs
living with aspects of the environment they can’t control
Altering the environment (irrigation ditches, bridges)

14. Five Themes
Movement- how do people, goods, and ideas move from one location to another?
Geographers analyze movement by looking at three types of distance
(1) linear- how far across the earth a person, idea,
or product travels
(2) time- the amount of time it takes a person,
idea or product to travel
(3) psychological- the way people view distance (thinking something is farther away than it really is)

15. Practice Turn to page 23 and answer questions 1-5
Turn to page 25 and answer questions 1-3 under the Geographic Skills section
How have modern technologies such as the airplane, television and Internet affected people’s perceptions of linear distance, time distance and psychological distance?