Thinking Geographically Why is each point on Earth

Thinking Geographically

Why is each point on Earth unique? A. Place: Unique Location of a Feature 1. Toponym is the name given to a place on Earth 2. Site is the physical character of a place. Includes climate, water sources, topography, soil, vegetation, latitude, and elevation

Site: Lower Manhattan Island Fig. 1 -6: Site of lower Manhattan Island, New York City. There have been many changes to the area over the last 200 years.

Why is each point on Earth unique? 3. Situation is the location of a place relative to other places. Situation helps us find an unfamiliar place by comparing its location with a familiar one. Situation, also, helps us understand the importance of a location.

Situation: Singapore Fig. 1 -7: Singapore is situated at a key location for international trade.

Downtown Singapore

Why is each point on Earth unique? 4. Mathematical location or in other words latitude and longitude.

World Geographic Grid Fig. 1 -8: The world geographic grid consists of meridians of longitude and parallels of latitude. The prime meridian (

World Time Zones Fig. 1 -9: The world’s 24 standard time zones each represent about 15° of longitude. They are often depicted using the Mercator

Why is each point on Earth unique? B. Regions: Areas of Unique Characteristics 1. A region derives its character through the cultural landscape- a combination of cultural features such as language, and religion, economic features such as agriculture and industry, and physical features such as climate and vegetation.

Why is each point on Earth unique? 2. Types of Regions a)Formal, also called a uniform region or homogeneous region, is an area within which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics.

Formal and Functional Regions Fig. 1 -11: The state of Iowa is an example of a formal region; the areas of influence of various television stations are

Why is each point on Earth unique? b) Functional Region- also called a nodal region, is an area organized around a node or focal point.

Why is each point on Earth unique? c) Vernacular Region, or perceptual region, is a place that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity.

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

Why are different places similar? 1. Scale: From Local to Global 2. Space: Distribution of features a) Density is the frequency with which something occurs in space b) Concentration is the extent of a feature’s spread over space c) Pattern is the geometric arrangement of objects in space

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.

U. S. Baseball Teams, 1952 Fig. 1 -19: Baseball teams were highly concentrated in the Northeast and Midwest in 1952.

U. S. Baseball Teams, 2007 Fig. 1 -19: By 2007, U. S. baseball teams were much more dispersed than in 1952, and their number and density

Why are different places similar? 3. Connections between places a) Spatial Interaction *distance decay-the farther away one group is from another, the less likely the two groups are to interact

a) Diffusion *relocation-the spread of an idea through physical movement of people from one place to another *expansion-the spread of a feature from one place to another in a snowballing process *hierarchical-the spread of an idea from persons or nodes of authority or power to other persons or places *contagious-the rapid, widespread diffusion of a characteristic throughout the population