40 terms

human geography unit 1

remote sensing
the scanning of the Earth by satellite or high-flying aircraft in order to obtain information about it
functional region (nodal)
an area organized around a node or focal point
formal region (uniform)
an area in which everyone shares in one or moree distinctive characteristics
theory that the physical environment may set limits on human actions. but people have ability to adjust to physical environment and choose course of action from many alternatives
environmental determinism
19th-20th study of geographic that argue that general laws sought by human geographers found in physical sciences. Geographers therefor study of how physical environment caused human activities.
Land Ordinance of 1785
land that divided much of U.S. into system of township to facilitate that sale of land of settlers
Longitude (meridian)
latitude (parallel)
numbering system used to indicate the location of parallels drawn on globe and measuring distance North and South of equator
Cultural landscape
fashioning of a natural landscape by a cultural group
the physical character of a place
the name given to a portion of Earth's surface
dot map
used to locate each occurcence of a phenomenon
proportional symbol map
Isoline map
a line on a map, chart or graph connecting points of equal value also called isograms
choropleth map
map showing the distribution of a phenomen usually using various colors, color graduation are correlated to the density per unit area of the phenomenon.
cartogram map
presentation of statistical data in geographical distribution on a map
pull or twist out of shape
Global Positioning System (GIS)
space-based global navigation satellite system (GNSS) that provides locations and time information in all weather anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellite
Geographic Information System (GIS)
system designed to capture, store, manipulate, anaylze, manage and present all types of geographically referenced data.
arithmetic density
the total number of people divided by the total land area
physiological density
the number of people per unit of area of arable land which is land suitable for agriculture
agricultural density
(dispersed/scattered or clustered/agglomerated) the spread of something over a given area
the geometric or regular arrangement of something in a study area
the region from which innovative idea originate
relocation diffusion
expansion diffusion
hierarchial diffusion
contagious diffusion
the rapid widespread diffusion of a feature or trend throughout a population
stimulus diffusion
distance decay
the diminishing in importance and eventually disappearance of a phenomenon with increasing distance from its origin
time (space compression
the reduction in the time it takes to diffuse something to a distant place as a result of improved communications and transportation systems.
time zone
is a region on Earth that has a uniform, legally mandated standard time.
Carl Saur
He was largely responsible for shifting the focus of American geography from environmental "determinism" to the study of landscape and cultural geography.
absolute location
is a way of describing the position of an object or place, perhaps (but not limited to) on the surface of the earth.
relative location
the location of a place in relation to another place
perceptual region
a point or place in relation to another point or place
carl Ritter
one of the founders of modern geography