Geography and Culture

Essential elements of geography: places and regions

Physical and human characteristics of places How people create regions to interpret Earth's complexity How culture and experience influence people's perceptions of places and regions

Plains

Plains are broad flat stretches of land. Plains are often called prairies. Major plains in the world include

Plateaus

Plateaus are also known as high plains or flat-topped mountains. Major plateaus include

What questions might you ask about a place to learn what makes it unique? List at least four questions.

Possible questions include: What natural resources does this place possess? What are its predominant physical features? What are the ethnic origins of the population? How has the location of this place affected its development?

Projection

Projection refers to the mapping of locations in the world onto a map. Because the world is spherical, flat maps ultimately distort spatial information. The Mercator projection is one of the most common and convenient projections of the world. It is a conformal projection that preserves angular relations among areas. A disadvantage of the Mercator projection is that it significantly distorts the size of land masses.

What is true about map projections?

An equal-area projection would retain correct country size, but would distort shape, distance, and direction. Equal-area projections most accurately represent size of place.

Geographical research skills: Analyzing data

Analysis includes identifying main ideas and distinguishing them from supporting details; evaluating cause-and-effect relationships, including determining if an event has more than one cause or effect and identifying whether events may be both causes and effects. Data analysis is additionally used for distinguishing between facts and opinion, determining the adequacy and relevance of information, and comparing different viewpoints, among other critical thinking skills.

Geography for Life

As part of a national effort in the early 1990s a collection of eighteen voluntary geography standards were produced to guide teaching and learning in the field. These standards are know as Geography for Life and are organized into six essential elements.

The study of the atmosphere (weather and climate) would most likely fall under which of the essential elements of geography?

As processes that shape the earth, weather and climate are best classified under physical systems.

Maps and Globes purpose

As representations of the Earth's surface, maps and globes provide us with physical representations of spatial information that would otherwise be impossible to see. These representations are scaled; in other words, they are reduced so that a specific distance on the map corresponds to a specific distance in the world (e.g., one inch may equal one mile on a road map). A key or legend should include the scale and any other information necessary for interpreting the map. It is conventional on most American maps to set north at the top of the map and to split the image in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, with the prime meridian at the center. It is also common to include lines of latitude and longitude to indicate absolute position. Lines of latitude run horizontally; lines of longitude run vertically.

What is an example of a landform surface region?

Coastal Plain As a region, the Coastal Plain has several shared physical characteristics (habitat, climate, and geology); French Canada, the Confederate South, and the Rust Belt are better defined by their human characteristics.

The Rockies

Colorado

Ethnic separatism

Creation of distinct groups or cultures based on ethnicity. The battle between the Hutu and the Tutsis in Rwanda is an example; the system of apartheid that prevailed for many years in South Africa is another.

Demographic cycle

Cyclical changes in population growth as a country or region grows. Researchers identify five phases High stationary (i.e., birth and death rates about equal, and both high) Early expanding (i.e., birth rate remains high while death rate declines) Late expanding (i.e., death rate continues to decline, birth rate begins to decline) Low stationary (i.e., birth and death rates about equal, and both low) Declining (i.e., death rate higher than birth rate)

Geographical research skills: presenting data

Data can be original or can be secondary information to support a point. Original data should be complete and unbiased. Data can be very effective when presented in graphic or table format.

Geographical information systems

Database software that includes geographical information that helps tag an item in space. Most contemporary maps are created digitally by using GIS. GIS can be used for a variety of purposes, including calculating population density, surveying land or other geographical features, or monitoring environmental conditions.

Technologies for collecting geographical data include:

- Geographic information systems (GIS) - Global positioning systems (GPS).

Primary sources

- census data - government reports - artifacts - satellite images and aerial photographs

Essential elements of geography

1. The world in spatial terms (location) 2. Places and regions (specific places and the interpretations of the regions; physical characteristics of specific places and how they form and change) 3. Physical systems (processes that change and shape the Earth) 4. Human systems (people) 5. Environment and society (interaction of the two) 6. Uses of geography (interpreting the past and present along with planning for the future)

Mercantor projection

A conformal projection that preserves angular relations among areas. A disadvantage of the Mercator projection is that it significantly distorts the size of land masses. Some alternatives include

The European Plain

A vast, flat area stretching from France's coast to the Ural Mountains in Russia

What is an example of a question that best illustrates the essential geographic element of places and regions?

How is the Pacific Coast of the United States similar to or different from the Atlantic Coast? "How is the Pacific Coast of the United States similar to or different from the Atlantic Coast?" is a good example because it asks about a comparison between two regions.

Essential elements of geography: environment and society

How physical systems affect human systems The changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources

Essential elements of geography: the uses of geography

How to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future How to apply geography to interpret the past

Essential elements of Geography: The world in spatial terms

How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective How to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial context How to analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments on Earth's surface

Transarctic Mountains

Mountain Range in Antarctica

Mountain ranges

Mountain ranges are groups or chains of high, steep landforms

Geographic research skills: conducting research on a topic

Research can involve identification and evaluation of primary and secondary sources in the library and on the Internet, conduction of interviews with experts, or collection of new data in the field or in the laboratory. When evaluating sources, researchers should consider: Possible biases. For example, studies supported by corporations with monetary interests in the outcomes. Look for emotionally charged language or exaggerated claims. Identify the difference between facts and opinions. Author expertise and frame of reference. For example, studies conducted by university faculty with advanced degrees versus studies conducted for undergraduate credit. Try to identify the author's educational and professional background; this information is often presented in a footnote to an article, the introductory pages of a text, or an "about us" link on a website. The purpose for which a source is written. For example, articles that present an argument may be more one-sided than those intended to provide a description. Consider the thesis and/or title first, then consider the language used and the evidence presented. The content. This requires evaluation and critical thinking. For example, determine if the main idea is sound and consider whether the conclusion follows logically.

Geographic research skills

Research in geography, as in other social science areas, is aimed at addressing problems and questions that require specific solution strategies. Geographical research skills include asking appropriate questions, analyzing cause and effect relations, distinguishing between fact and opinion, determining the adequacy and relevance of information, and drawing conclusions. Each of these activities is purposeful and focused on solving problems to improve or better understand aspects of human life.

Geographical research skills: drawing conclusions

Researchers form conclusions by making inferences about the data — suggesting a cause-effect relationship, proposing a new solution to a problem, or offering an interpretation for an event. Conclusions should be logically derived from the data but should not stray far beyond the data presented and analyzed.

Ethnocentrism

The bias toward viewing and/or evaluating other cultures against one's own. Ethnocentrism often involves a feeling that one's own culture is superior to others.

Essential elements of Geography: human systems

The characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on Earth's surface The characteristics, distribution, and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics The patterns and networks of economic interdependence on Earth's surface The processes, patterns, and functions of human settlement How the forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of Earth's surface How human actions modify the physical environment

Habitat

The environment in which an organism is naturally found.

Maximum sustainable yield

The greatest amount of a species that can be removed and still replaced in natural order. If hunters or fishermen consistently trap, kill, or collect animals beyond the maximum sustainable yield, the species will eventually die out because the capture rate exceeds the natural birth rate.

Central Place Theory

The idea that, in an unevenly distributed population, settlements arise to serve as "central places," which produce goods and services for the surrounding more disparate areas.

Essential elements of geography: Physical Systems

The physical processes that shape the patterns of Earth's surface The characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on Earth's surface

Relative location

The position of a place in relation to another place

Assimilation

The process of integrating an organism into a new community. For example, immigrants are generally assimilated into the majority culture of the area in which they live. Plants or animals may also be assimilated into new ecosystems.

Cultural diffusion

The spread of ideas or behaviors associated with one culture to another culture.

Ecology

The study of ecosystems (i.e., the physical environment and the biological community it supports). Coral reefs and deserts are examples.

The Himalayas

These mountains separate India from China and are the tallest in the world.

The Atlantic Coastal Plain

a broad lowland along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean

What is the best example of human-environment interaction?

a law requiring that all highway bridges be earthquake retrofitted by 2014 The retrofitting of bridges is a human adaption of the environment to minimize damage in the event of an earthquake.

The Andes

a mountain chain of western South America

The North China Plain

a region in the Huang He River valley, where Chinese civilization began

The Indo-Gangetic Plain

a rich, fertile and ancient land encompassing most of northern and eastern India, the most populous parts of Pakistan, and virtually all of Bangladesh.

The atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere are examples of:

abiotic systems.

Atlases

collections of maps

Encyclopedias

collections of short articles on key topics in an area

A map that accurately portrays land shape is called a/an:

conformal projection.

Regions are:

defined by distinctive characteristics or features that are shared within a common area on Earth. Regions are areas with shared characteristics.

What classroom lessons would best illustrate the geographical concept of central place theory?

discussing the maximum range of influence of a local newspaper A local newspaper is distributed from a central place to surrounding areas. In central place theory, it is assumed that any good or service provided by a town or city has a constant range over which its sale could extend.

Equal-Area projections

drawn so that relative size of geographical features (i.e., square feet or kilometers) is preserved. A disadvantage of these maps is that they can distort the shapes of land masses and bodies of water.

Gnomic projections

drawn to preserve accurate directions from a given point. The scale of a gnomonic projection changes based on distance from the center point, and thus distortion of shapes is greatest for areas furthest from that point.

Equidistant projections

drawn to preserve accurate distances from a given point, which are usually placed at the center of the map. For example, an equidistant projection with Los Angeles as the center will be drawn so that both San Francisco and Las Vegas are shown at accurate distances from Los Angeles, using the same scale. A disadvantage is that distances from other places are not accurate. In this example, the distance between San Francisco and Las Vegas will be less accurate because the scale is set based on distance from Los Angeles.

Government reports

from federal agencies such as the U.S. Geological Survey or the Forest Service

A computer-based processing tool for gathering, manipulating, and analyzing geographic information is called a:

geographic information system.

"Knowledge of the characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on Earth's surface" is an appropriate learning objective for which of the essential elements of geography?

human systems Human systems emphasizes culture and encompasses topics such as the distribution and movement of human population.

The tremendous damage from Hurricane Katrina best exemplifies which of the following geographic themes?

human-environment interaction

The construction of dams and canals to irrigate desert regions is an example of the geographic theme of:

human-environment interaction. When humans alter the flow of water, they are interacting with the environment. The resulting environmental changes affect human behavior, including where they live and how they farm.

5 themes of geography: Human-Environment interaction

includes the ways in which people depend on and adapt to the environment (e.g., where homes are built, how civilizations deal with drought) as well as the ways they alter the environment, both intentionally and unintentionally (e.g., rebuilding following an earthquake, hurricane, or volcanic eruption; global warming).

Bibliographies

lists of references on a particular topic

A geographer would most likely use sonar for what?

mapping a section of the ocean floor Sonar is commonly employed to measure underwater objects using sound waves.

A discussion of "overfishing to the point in which certain species of fish are captured at a rate faster than their rate of natural birth" best illustrates the concept of:

maximum sustainable yield. Determining the extent to which a species can be removed before facing extinction is the sort of study that scientists interested in maximum sustainable yield might undertake.

The Sierra Madres

mountain range running along the eastern and western sides of mexico

Gazetteers and geographic dictionaries

or sources that name and describe places, typically including location, population, and key physical features

Lines of constant latitude and longitude are also known as:

parallels and meridians. All lines of latitude are parallel circles; meridians run across the Earth's surface from pole to pole.

Which method of data acquisition is not considered a form of remote sensing?

rain gauge data

5 themes of geography: region

refers to an area of the Earth that is defined by shared characteristics, which may be human, physical, or cultural. Continents, cities, oceans, and "the Deep South" are all examples of regions.

5 themes of geography: Movement

refers to changes in location, whether large or small (e.g., patterns of migration or a drive across town) and also the ways in which goods and ideas are shared across cultures, eras, and geographical areas. For example, movement occurs when American designers adopt European fashion trends.

The Tibetan Plateau

region of China called the "Roof of the World", is very rocky, is surrounded by mountain ranges, and is located in the Himalayan Mt. Range

Satellite images and aerial photographs

showing landmasses, bodies of water, weather patterns, and other geographical information

Artifacts

such as maps, photographs, or other human-made tools and objects

Which characteristic would NOT be included in a description of place?

the daily commute time in Chicago Daily commute time best exemplifies the geographic theme of movement.

In geography, movement usually refers to:

the migration of people, goods, and ideas. Movement includes the ways that people move from place to place as the diffusion of goods and ideas.

A geographer would most likely use a GPS for what?

to identify a particular location GPS devices rely on radio signals broadcast from satellites to help pinpoint locations.

Census data

which (in the United States) includes demographic information collected every 10 years

Almanacs

which are annual reports typically containing astronomical and meteorological information for the upcoming year

West Siberian Plain

world's largest area of flat land

The Great Plains

A mostly flat and grassy region of western North America

What is a collection of demographic information gathered every ten years in the United States and used to count the population?

Census data on the size and characteristics of the population is collected every ten years in the United States.

The Alps

Europe's Largest Mountain system

Absolute location

Exact location of a place on the earth described by global coordinates

T/F: A road map of Columbia, Missouri, is a smaller scale map than a map showing the entire United States.

False is the correct answer because the larger the area represented on a map, the smaller the scale of the map.

Geographic research skills: selecting a topic

Good research topics typically address a problem and provide suggestions for a solution, based on previous research findings and/or new data. Topics should be researchable, narrowly defined, and appropriate for the audience.

In the Mercator projection, which part of the Earth is much larger than its actual size?

Greenland On a Mercator projection, Greenland appears to be about as large as Africa, when in reality it is only about one-tenth the size of that continent.

Built Environment

Human-designed and developed environment, which can include physical structures and organizations. Urbanization is, in part, the process of developing a built environment.

What would be appropriate for the area of applying skills and procedures used in geographic research?

In geographic investigations, researchers should define the problem, formulate a testable hypothesis, and carefully analyze data collected. The correct answer describes three important steps in the research process.

Interdependence

In geography, the relation among parts of an ecological or cultural system, where each part plays a role that affects the other parts.

Doubling time

In population studies, the amount of time for the population to double, if rate of growth remains constant

Cultural convergence

Interaction among cultures and in some cases adaptation or accommodation, such that initially distinct cultures become more similar as a result of that interaction.

5 themes of geography: Place

Is an area defined by its unique features. It is described in terms of both physical and human characteristics. For example, New York is a place that can be described by the mountains, rivers, beaches, topography, and animal and plant life (i.e., physical features) of the region as well as by its culture, architecture, food, and transportation systems (i.e., human characteristics).

Landforms

Landforms are geomorphological features or characteristic shapes on the land surface

Landmasses

Landmasses are continuous areas of land. Major landmasses on the Earth include the seven continents (i.e., Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, South America, and Antarctica). Islands are examples of landmasses as well (e.g., Greenland).

5 themes of geography: Location

Location is both absolute and relative. Absolute location, or place on Earth, is measured by applying the Earth's grid system: lines of latitude (i.e., imaginary parallel lines that circle the globe horizontally) and lines of longitude (i.e., imaginary vertical lines that run from pole to pole). Lines of latitude, also called parallels, always run east-west but measure distance north and south. Lines of longitude, also called meridians, always run north-south but measure distance east and west. Longitude and latitude are measured in degrees, minutes, and seconds, with the equator as zero degrees latitude and the prime meridian, running through Greenwich, England, as zero degrees longitude. For example, the absolute location of Paris, France, is 48°51' North latitude and 2.20' East longitude. Relative location generally refers to the relationship between one geographical feature with another. Paris, France, for example, is in the northern section or Ile de France region of the country of France, along the River Seine.

Five Themes of Geography

Location, Place, Human-Environment Interaction, Movement, Region

Complementarity

Mutual dependence among regions. For example, dry regions and wet regions are complementary in that each produces goods that the other needs.

Global positioning systems

Navigational devices that determine absolute position based on signals from satellites. GPS devices assist drivers to navigate from place to place, runners to determine their current pace, and scientists to take measurements of the environment.

6 elements of geography for life

The World in Spatial Terms. The national standards for this element include How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective How to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial context How to analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments on Earth's surface Places and Regions. Standards include Physical and human characteristics of places How people create regions to interpret Earth's complexity How culture and experience influence people's perceptions of places and regions Physical Systems. Standards include The physical processes that shape the patterns of Earth's surfaceThe characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on Earth's surface Human Systems. Standards include The characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on Earth's surfaceThe characteristics, distribution, and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaicsThe patterns and networks of economic interdependence on Earth's surface The processes, patterns, and functions of human settlement How the forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of Earth's surface How human actions modify the physical environment Environment and Society. Standards include How physical systems affect human systems The changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources The Uses of Geography. Standards include How to apply geography to interpret the past How to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future

Carrying capacity

The ability of land to hold a population, or the size of the population that an environment can support. If a population grows beyond the carrying capacity of the environment, the death rate typically increases and/or resources are depleted.