Introduction to World Geography What is Geography Geography

Introduction to World Geography

What is Geography? ? • Geography is the study of place and space: Geographers look at where things are and why they are there. • Study of human activity, the natural environment, and the relationship between the two (humanenvironment interactions).

Physical v. Cultural Geography Physical Geography Cultural Geography Rocks/Minerals Population/Settlements/Urbanizati on Landforms Economic and Political Systems Animal and Plant Life Transportation Soils Human Migration Atmosphere/Climate/Weather Social Systems Environment Recreation Rivers/Oceans/Other bodies of Water Religion/Belief System Physical Geography is the study of the Natural Landscape of the Earth while Cultural Geography is the study of the Human Landscape of the Earth.

What types of jobs do geographers have (in the U. S. )? Location Analysts, for: franchises (like “Burger King”) stores (like big department stores) public facilities (like new schools) Environmental Scientists and Consultants GIS (computer mapping) Urban and Regional Planners Real Estate and Residential Development Analysts Transportation and Tourism Planners and Analysts University and public school teachers

CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS Geologists Taxonomy: kingdom, phylum, Class, order, family, genus, species Geological time Historians Eras, ages, periods Biologists Geographers Geographic Regions

GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS: What defines a region? Regions are based on Spatial Criteria • physical (natural) characteristics – landforms, climate, vegetation • human (cultural) characteristics – language, religion, ethnicity, population

MORE ON GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS: • Regions change over time. • Regions do not have definite borders, but rather are separated from other regions by transition zones.

TRANSITION ZONES • An area of change where borders of two adjacent regions join • Marked by a gradual shift (rather than a sharp break) in the characteristics that distinguish neighboring realms

Sub-classification of Regions Dominated by one political power: • • North America: U. S. Middle America: Mexico South America: Brazil Russian Realm: Russia East Asia: China South Asia: India Southeast Asia: Indonesia Australian Realm: Australia No dominant State • • Europe Sub-Saharan Africa North Africa / Southwest Asia Oceania (Pacific Realm)

SUB-REGIONS • Further classification of Regions based upon physical features and human characteristics. Examples: The United States is in the North American Region. However, the U. S. has several sub-regions: Northeast, Midwest, South, etc. • Region & Sub-region boundaries are based on criteria we establish. • Criteria can be: u Human (cultural) properties u Physical (natural) characteristics u or Both

Properties of Regions u Area u Boundaries u Location

FORMAL REGION • Marked by a certain degree of homogeneity in one or more phenomena. Limited number of characteristics. • Example: Latin America, Europe

FUNCTIONAL REGION • A region marked less by its functional structure. Organized around a set of interactions and connections between places. Example: Metropolitan Area

Perceptual Region • Region in which people perceive the characteristics of the region in the same way. • Example: American Midwest © CSCOPE 2008

Maps and More Maps • Types of maps and projections – Physical maps – Cultural maps – Political maps – Population maps – And more. . • Why do geographers use each type map? http: //www. sitesatlas. com/Atlas/Phys. Atlas/A 8. htm http: //www. mapsofworld. com/world-population-density. htm

The Grid System • Latitude: Lines of latitude run horizontal around the globe or a map. They are designated as either North or South of the Equator. • Longitude: Lines of longitude run vertically around the globe or map. They are designated as either West or East of the Prime Meridian. • http: //www. worldatlas. com/aatlas/imageg. htm

SUMMARY • Geography means “description of the earth” and is also known as “the study of the earth as the home of humankind. ” Four main goals for this class: (1) to understand important geographic problems and their potential solutions, (2) to become better able to make connections between different kinds of information as a means of understanding the world, (3) to understand current events, and (4) to develop skills in interpreting places and reading landscapes.

SUMMARY • Maps are the geographers’ most basic tools. To be able to use maps effectively, one must understand their basic language, especially the concepts and terms of scale, coordinate systems, projection, and symbolization. There a variety of ways in which maps can depict spatial data.

Basics of Geography Video • http: //player. discoveryeducation. com/index. cfm? guid. Asset. Id=8575 F 2 FB 5 C 73 -4 E 8 A-B 71 F-3998 AF 9 D 161 A © CSCOPE 2008