AP Human Geography

Ptolemy’s First World Map, c. AD 150

What is Geography?Geography is a representation of the whole known world together with the phenomena which are contained therein.

Ptolemy, Geographia 2nd Century A.D.

Geography is the science of place. Its vision is grand, its view panoramic. It sweeps the surface of the Earth, charting the physical, organic and cultural terrain, their areal differentiation, and their ecological dynamics with humankind. Its foremost tool is the map.

Leonard Krishtalka, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, 20th Century A.D.

What is Geography?Geography is the study of what is where and why it’s there.

Mr. Buck

Okay, but what exactly is it?Well, it’s a way of thinking about intellectual problems, both natural and societal, which emphasizes the importance of spatial relationships.. Take any social, environmental, or physical question or problem and ask yourself whether there is a spatial aspect to it. Chances are that space and place play a role in the explanation and distribution of that question.

Mike Reed, Making It Up As I Go

For example: Why are so many plant and animal species becoming extinct at the end of the twentieth century?

Why do there always seem to be been so many wars in Africa?

Why is corn such an important part of a traditional Mexican diet?

Why are some beers known as India Pale Ales?

Divisions of Geography

Physical Geography Human Geography

Rocks and Minerals Population

Landforms Settlements

Soils Economic Activities

Animals Transportation

Plants Recreational Activities

Water Religion

Atmosphere Political Systems

Rivers and Other Water Bodies Social Traditions

Environment Human Migration

Climate and Weather Agricultural Systems

Geography is a bridge between the natural and social sciences. Geography is a holistic or synthesizing science.

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What is Human Geography?

The study of how people make places, how we organize space and society, how we interact with each other in places and across space, and how we make sense of others and ourselves in our locality, region, and world.

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Geography is a spatial study

This means that geographers look at the way humans interact within and with their space.

Spatial – of or pertaining to space on or near the Earth’s surface

how are things organized on Earth?

how do they appear on the landscape?

why? where? so what?

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Spatial distributionWhat processes create and sustain the pattern of a distribution?

Map of Cholera Victims in London’s Soho

District in 1854.

The patterns of victim’s homes and water pump locations helped uncover the source of the disease.

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1. Location – Where is it?

2. Space Patterns and regularities across Earth –

depicted on maps; What is it like there?

3. Place Unique location of everything on Earth;

What makes a place unique?

Key Geographic Concepts

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Key Geographic Concepts cont…

4. Scale truth is scale dependent, phenomena you

study at one scale (e.g. local) may well be influenced by developments at other scales (e.g. regional, national, or global)

5. Pattern e.g. migration patterns, diffusion of

cultures, languages, religions etc.

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Key Geographic Concepts cont…

6. Region Areas formed by distinctive

combinations of features; What do areas have in common?

7. Interconnections (Globalization) Relationships of places and regions;

How does one area relate to another?

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History of Geography

The oldest existing map appears on a clay tablet made in Babylonia before 2000 B.C.

They developed the system of dividing a circle into 360 degrees.

Greek and Roman geographers measured (not always accurately) and devised a grid system of latitudes and longitudes

Ptolemy (2nd c. CE) created first index of locations using grid

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Ptolemy’s Map

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Eratosthenes (273-192 BC)

Father of Geography First to use term

Geographica Calculated

circumference of the Earth

Produced map of “Known World”

The First Geographers

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Advances in Geography included:al Idrisi – Muslim

geographic compiler – master of “known world” circa 1050 CE

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Exploration - 12th to 18th c.Portugal leads the early

explorations – practical in nature

The astrolabe, caravel (ship) and compass assist mariners from Europe who must map what they find

In 1730, John Harrison discovered longitude.

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Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859)

Naturalist Traveled extensively Scientific descriptions

Focused on humanity’s interaction with nature

First to include humans as part of natural world

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Carl Ritter (1779-1859)

Organic view of geographyUniversal laws

Anatomy of the Earth

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Carl Sauer (1889-1975)

Rejected “environmental determinism” [human behavior is determined by one’s physical environment]His ideas

Cultural Landscape = visible imprint of human activity on the landscape

Possibilism = one’s natural environment only limits the range of choices available to a culture

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Environmental Determinism

Is when human behavior, individually and collectively, is strongly affected by-even controlled or determined by-the physical environment; climate is the critical factor in how humans behave.

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PossibilismWhen the natural environment merely serves to

limit the range of choices available to a culture.

1. Choices a culture makes depends on their needs and levels of technology

2. Environmental constraints are less binding as a culture increases its level of technology

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Example of Possiblilism

The Cultural Landscape

The result of the natural environment and all of the changes to it as a result of a particular culture. (Carl Sauer) Environmental Determinism:

environment is primary determinant of culture.

Possibilism: humans are primary determinant of culture.

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The Natural Landscape

Physical characteristics of a locale

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The Cultural LandscapeVisible expression of human activity

on the landscapeCreated by Carl SauerHas layers of imprints from years of

human activity.Successive occupiers bring own

technological and cultural traditions and transform the landscape

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Cultural Landscape cont…

Sequent Occupance – Layers of imprints in a cultural landscape that reflect years of differing human activity.

When an area has been occupied and transformed by successive residents

Area remains imprinted with each successive occupation which creates the cultural landscape

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Sequent Occupance

Athens, Greece ancient Agora surrounded by modern buildings

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Sequent OccupanceDar es Salaam, TanzaniaAfrican, Arab, German, British, and Indian layers to the

city.Apartment in Mumbai, India Apartment in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

The Five Themes of Geography

Human features

Physical featuresRegion united by similar physical conditions

United by common cultural traits

People adapt to the environment

People change the environment

Absolute location (latitude and longitude)

Relative location (in relation to another place)

Travel from place to place

Exchange of goods and ideas

Location

Movement

Place

Region

Interaction

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WHERE DID THE 5 THEMES COME FROM?

The 5 Themes of Geography originated by the National Geographic Society to fulfill a need for geographers (people who study the earth and everything on it) categorize everything they learn. These 5 places are easy to remember. Just say the word “PRILM”.

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WHAT IS “PRILM”?PRILM is a mnemonic device that can be

used to help remember what the 5 Themes of Geography are. Simply put, take the first letter of each Theme to create the word PRILM. They are:

PlaceRegionInteraction (Human-Environment)LocationMovement

Where is AIDs?Where do we find hunger?Where are American blacks?Where are cows produced?

Describing Distributions

Describing Distributions

Diffusion

• Relocation

• Hierarchical

• Contagious

• Stimulus

Tobler’s 1st Law of Geography

All things are related. However, all other things being equal, those things that are closest together are more related.

Related Concepts: Distance Decay

Place and Sense of PlaceEvery place is unique. Imagine where

you lived as a child. What made that special? Sensory Architecture Symbolic

Humanistic Geography - values the individual perspective.

Place and Placelessness (Relph, 1978)

What kinds of cultural values are reflected in each of these American houses?

Gated community?

Climate Characteristics

Areas where certain climates can be found

N.Y.C.

Environmentally Determined?

What about Bali,

Indonesia?

Key Concepts:Core-Periphery

Core U.S., Europe,

Japan, Australia Wealthy Powerful Controls Media

and Finance Technologically

advanced

Periphery Less Developed Poor Dependent upon

Core countries for: Education Technology Media Military Equipment

Key C

on

cep

ts:

Core

-Peri

ph

ery

GlobalizationThe increasing

interconnectedness of different parts of the world through common processes of economic, political, and cultural change. The economic, cultural, and environmental effects of globalization are highly contested.

Panama, 1997

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Location

Location: Where something is

Absolute Location• Describes the exact location of a place.• Often described using Latitude and Longitude or an exact address (14051 Spriggs Rd.)

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Location

Relative Location Describes where a

place is in relation to something else.

Ex: Hylton is between Bottom Dollar & Saunders Middle School

Types of Maps

There are three basic types of maps:

PHYSICAL POLITICAL THEMATIC

Physical MapsShow natural features of Earth.

Do not contain man made features For example, it would appear as if you were looking down on Earth from space.

Political Maps-show how humans impact landscape.

ie:city names, roads, country borders

-change frequently (physical maps change very, very slowly through geologic processes) and must be redrawn often. political map of the world that is 50 years old is no longer accurate.

-wars and ethnic conflict are two major causes political maps change.

Thematic Maps

represent variety of information ie:climate, precipitation, vegetation, elevation, population, life expectancygenerally used when looking at single piece of info

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Whenever we attempt to take a round globe and make it flat, we run into a problem.

It is impossible to take a round Earth and make it look flat without stretching or “messing up” part of the earth.

This part that gets messed up is called:

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There are several ways that a map can be distorted:

Shape: The shape of the landmasses change

Area: The size of the landmasses changeDistance: The distances between the landmasses

change

Direction: The directions between the landmasses change

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It is distorted greatly at the poles and is least distorted near the equator. (ex: Greenland is huge compared to South America)

This projection is useful for ship navigation because the directions are accurate.

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The major problem with this projection is that it does not show all of the earth at one time.

It is useful for airplane navigation because distance is shown correctly

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The most commonly used map

It minimizes distortion

It is used most often for Data Representation because it has minimal distortion.

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Shows correct sizes and shapes of landmasses by cutting out parts of oceans

Impossible to measure distances accurately

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Information can come from a variety of Geographic Sources

GIS - Geographic Information SystemsThis system collects information from a variety of sources and compiles it by computer into useful forms.

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Information can come from a variety of Geographic Sources

Satellite ImagesImages taken from space have a variety of different uses:

Weather Cartography Defense

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Aerial Photography & Remote Sensing

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Which way is up? North

South

EastWest

NE

SE

NW

SW

Maps will usually give you a way to determine orientation.

This may be a single direction arrow or a compass rose.

Compass Rose

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An image or picture of the way space is organized as determined by an individual’s perception, impression, and knowledge of that space; also known as a cognitive map.

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Isoline

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Isoline - Contour

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Dot map

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Choropleth

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Cartogram

Latitude and LongitudeLay down

L

O

N

G

W

A

Y

s

Lines

Longitude lines run north and south.

Latitude lines run east and west. Measure distances in degrees.

Latitude

Longitude

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Lines of latitude are measured north and south of the equator and are also called parallels

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Lines of Longitude are measured east or west of the Prime Meridian and are also called Meridians

0º

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The Global Grid: Using Latitude and Longitude

CoordinatesEvery measurement using latitude and longitude has a set of coordinates.

One coordinate will be for degrees latitude north or south of the equator

Ex: 30º North lat. is this line30º South lat. is this line

The other coordinate will be degrees east or west of the Prime (Greenwich) Meridian

Ex 30 º East Longitude is this line30 º West Longitude is this line

Put the two together and you have a location Ex: 30 ºN, 30 ºE Latitude should always be listed first. Your north/south will be before your east/west coordinate.

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Hemisphere (part or half of the world)

The earth is divided into 4 hemispheres: North, South, East, and West.

We live in the Northern and Western Hemispheres

Where is 0 degree?

equator is 0 degree latitude. imaginary belt that runs halfway

point between North Pole and South Pole.

Equator

Where is 0 degree?

prime meridian is 0 degrees longitude.

imaginary line runs through United Kingdom, France, Spain, western Africa, and Antarctica.

Directions

Cardinal directions are north, south, east, and west.

Intermediate directions are northeast, southeast, southwest and northwest.

Map LegendsObjects or colors represent something

on map.

Religions Legend

Time Zones

Earth divided into 24 time zones, corresponding to 24 hours in day.

As earth rotates, sun shines in different areas, moving from east to west during course of day.

Places that have the same longitude will be in same time zone.

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Size and ScaleScale: tells us the relationship between

the distance on the map and the true distance on the surface of the Earth.

Scale can be represented 3 different ways: Local Regional Global

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Scale

Scale is a powerful concept because:

-Processes operating at different scales influence one another.

- What is occurring across scales provides context for us to understand a phenomenon.

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Be careful to make sure you have the correct unit.

Many maps have both miles and kilometers

How to use the ScaleTo calculate distance measure the distance on the map and then place on the scale to measure the true difference

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Comparing maps of different scale

Different maps need to show different levels of detail.

Sometimes you need to show a lot detail for a small area, and sometimes you need to show little detail of a larger

area.

A Small-Scale Map shows a large area with small

details.

It is good for relative locations

A Large-Scale Map shows a small area with large

details.

It is good for detailed looks at small areas

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Map ScalesThe smaller the right hand number the larger the map scale

1:75000 is a more detailed map than 1:600000 which is a small scale map

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Large-scale

Small-scale

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Scale

Key ConceptsREGION - an area that shares common

characteristics Formal - all members legally share a characteristic

(U.S.A.) Functional - defined by a node of activity and

distance decay from center (i.e. cell phone coverage) Vernacular – common perception of cultural identity

(“Deep South”)

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Regions: Areas of Unique Characteristics

Defined by certain unifying characteristics

All have boundaries which are sometimes evident but are determined by point of view or perception of the definer

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Formal/Uniform Region

Areas where specific characteristics are uniform across space Physical

Tibet Cultural

Francophone World Economic

European Union

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Formal Region

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Functional/Nodal Regions

Specific social/economic relationships tie area together

Usually a “core” and “periphery” Metropolitan area

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Functional Region

Functional Regions

Functional Regions

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Perceptual/Vernacular Regions

Ideas in our minds, based on accumulated knowledge of places and regions, that define an area of “sameness” or “connectedness.”

e.g. “the South” or the “Bible Belt” Most are determined by local residents

and may not be recognized by outsiders

Vernacular Regions

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Some 75 percent of the more than 260 million people in the United States live in towns and cities. Yet farmers, accounting for less than 2 percent of the population, lead the world in production of

soybeans and corn.

The 455 million people of North America produce more goods and consume more resources than those on any other continent. Canada and the United States share a 5,500-mile (8,850-kilometer) border, the longest and one of the friendliest anywhere.

The continent has a relatively small population of only 319 million. The population of Brazil almost equals that of all the other South American countries combined. Industry accounts for one-third of the continent's economic activity.

From 1990 to 1995 the countries of Europe mushroomed from 33 to 43, most of which have access to the ocean. In these countries live 686 million people who speak some 80 languages.

Africa is home to 53 independent countries and 720 million people. Africa's population is expanding by 3 percent a year, the highest growth rate of any continent.

Asia consists of more than 40 countries. Its population exceeds three billion. Asia has the distinction of having the most populous country in the world, China.

Despite abundant claims to the Antarctic landmass, in 1991 the parties to the Antarctic Treaty proposed rules to safeguard the continent's environment and to prohibit mining for at least 50 years.

The vastness of the oceans has long isolated this country continent. In this land that is virtually the same size as the contiguous United States, sheep outnumber the 18 million people.

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9 Nations of North America