what is geography? geography is the study of what is where and why it’s there
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What is Geography?Geography is the study of what is where and why it’s there.
What Is Geography?
Geo:Earth
Graphy write, map, describe
Geo vs. History Human
Patterns & processes of human understanding, use, and alteration of the Earth’s surface
Employ spatial concepts & landscape Analysis
Overlaps with other fields:
What is geography?
Connects to:PsychologySociologyAnthropologyEconomicsPolitical ScienceEnvironmental ScienceHistoryPhysical Geography
(Earth Science)
Why do we study geography?
Increased interconnected world
Overlaps with other disciplines when viewed spatially
Place matters!Science and art
We balance… World patterns/processes Individual uniqueness of
place (sense of place) Globalization – greater
connectedness that does not recognize traditional human divisions (borders).
De Blij: “What happens at the global scale affects the local, but it also affects the individual, regional and national, and similarly the processes at these scales impact the global.” (8)
Globalization of the Economy
Fig. 1-17: The Denso corporation is headquartered in Japan, but it has regional headquarters and other facilities in North America and Western Europe.
Big Mac Geography
Physical and Human Geography
Physical Geography:
Earth’s natural environsProcesses that shape the earth’s surfaceDistribution of landforms
Rocks and Minerals Landforms Soils Animals Plants Water Atmosphere Rivers and Other Water Bodies Climate and Weather
World Climate Regions
Fig. 1-14: The modified Köppen system divides the world into five main climate regions.
Physical and Human Geography
Human GeographyDistribution and characteristics of peopleHow people use spaceWhat people do
Population Settlements Economic Activities Transportation Recreational Activities Religion Political Systems Social Traditions Human Migration Agricultural Systems
Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Place – Local human and physical characteristics uniquely defines place
Usually have name and boundariesExamples
Imparts meaning on inhabitants
Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Human-Environment Interaction
The ways in which human society and the natural environment affect each other
How do people use features of place in different ways?
How do people adapt to the environment?How do people change their environment?How have people created problems with
their environment?
Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Human – Environment InteractionEnvironmental Determinism – people more
determined by their environment
Possibilism – People adapt and change their environment
Cultural Ecology - A branch of ecology. The study of the interaction of human societies with one another and with the natural environment.
Five “Key Spatial Themes” of GeographyMovement – interconnectedness of places…this is
spatial interaction.People, goods, and ideas between placesHistoricallyPeople are interdependentAccessibility – reaching one location from anotherConnectivity – linkage between placesIntervening Opportunity (think accessibility) – a more
attractive option closer at hand. Reduces the pull of opportunities of a distant location.
Migration? (A human commodity flow?) WWI African Americans, Latin America to U.S.
Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Movement – spatial interactionMeasuring interaction:
Time-space convergence – accelerated movement due to technological innovations (comm., trans.)
Time-space compression – psychological and social effects of the intensity of time-space convergence.
Distance decay – the effects of distance on interaction.
Space-Time Compression, 1492-1962
Fig. 1-20: The times required to cross the Atlantic, or orbit the earth, illustrate how transport improvements have shrunk the world.
Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Regionformal region –
Functional Region –
Perceptual Region –
Election of 1860
Formal Region - Ecoregions
Colorado Landforms
Colorado - physiographic
Functional Region - economics
Vernacular Regions
Fig. 1-12: A number of features are often used to define the South as a vernacular region, each of which identifies somewhat different boundaries.
Perceptual Regions - Baseball
Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Location
Distribution:Density, Concentration, & Pattern
Fig. 1-18: The density, concentration, and pattern (of houses in this example) may vary in an area or landscape.
Density and Concentration of Baseball Teams, 1952 & 2007
Fig. 1-19: The changing distribution of North American baseball teams illustrates the differences between density and concentration.
Al Frankenhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HfcrqXtxOM
Ignorant Americanshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=e6W3T7MTh4M
BBC Articlehttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/
2496427.stm
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