Chapter 1 Flashcards
(26 cards)
Geography
From geo ‘Earth’ and grapheim ‘to write’ or ‘to graph’
Geographers study the relationships among…
Natural systems
Geographic Areas
Society
Cultural Activities
Geography is…
Holistic (balanced, synthesis)
& Eclectic (diverse, integrated)
Spatial Analysis
The study of the nature and character of physical space. It is an approach, not a subject area.
Geographers study…
WHERE things are on Earth, and WHY they exist where they do.
Language of Geography
Space, territory, zone, pattern, distribution, place, location, region, sphere, province, distance, etc…
Physical Geography
The spatial analysis of all the physical elements and process systems that make up the environment.
Physical Elements
Air Water Weather Eroded Landforms Energy
The Scientific Method
Step 1: Observe and measure
Step 2: Form and test hypotheses
Step 3: Formulate theories
Earth’s Four Spheres
Atmosphere
Lithosphere
Hydrosphere
Biosphere
Latitude
Begins with Equator and divides Earth into hemispheres
Latitude
Parallels = lines connecting all points along the same latitudinal angle
Latitude
Measured north and south
Longitude
Begins with the Prime Meridian/IDL and divides the Earth in half
Longitude
Meridians = lines connecting all points along the same longitude
Longitude
Meridians measure east and west
Great Circles
Each pair of meridians forms a great circle
Arc
The shortest distance between any two points on the planet
Small Circles
Almost all parallels form small circles
Solar Day
One complete rotation of the earth (approx. 24 hours)
Earth’s axis
23.5 degrees
Maps
A generalized view of an area as seen from above and greatly reduced in size.
Maps are tools for…
Spatial analysis
Scale
The ratio of the image on the map as compared to the real world.
