AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY Chapter 1: Basic Concepts – Flashcards
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globalization
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a force or process that involves the entire world and results in making something worldwide in scope.
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transnational corporation
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corporation that conducts research, operates factories, and sells products in many countries, not just where its headquarters and principal shareholders are located.
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distribution
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the arrangement of a feature in space
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density
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the frequency in which something occurs in space
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arithmetic density
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the total number of objects in an area
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physiological density
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the number of persons per unit of area suitable for agriculture
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agricultural density
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the number of farmers per unit area of farmland
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concentration
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the extent of a feature's spread over space
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pattern
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the geometric arrangement of objects in space
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space-time compression
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the reduction in the time it takes to diffuse something to a distant place as a result of improved communications and transportation systems.
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distance decay
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the diminishing importance and eventual disappearance of a phenomenon with increasing distance from it's origin
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diffusion
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process by which a characteristic spreads across space from one place to another over time.
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hearth
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the place from which innovation originates
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relocation diffusion
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the spread of an idea through the physical movement of people from one place to another
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uneven development
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the increasing gap in economic conditions between regions in the core and periphery that results from the globalization of the economy
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stimulus diffusion
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the spread of an underlying principle, even though a characteristic of itself apparently fails to diffuse.
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expansion diffusion
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the spread of a feature or trend among people from one area to another in a snowballing process
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hierarchical diffusion
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the spread of an idea from persons or nodes of authority or power to other persons or places
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contagious diffusion
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rapid, widespread diffusion of a characteristic throughout the population
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mental map
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a representation of a portion of Earth's surface based on what an individual knows about a place, containing personal impressions of what is in a place and where places are located.
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culture
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the body of customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits that together constitute the distinct tradition of a group of people
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cultural ecology
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the geographic study of human-environment relationships.
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environmental determinism
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the concentration of how the physical environment caused social development.
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possibilism
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the physical environment may limit some human actions , but people have the ability to adjust their environment.
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resources
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substances that are useful to people
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polder
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a piece of land that is created by draining water from an area.
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location
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the position that something occupies on Earth's surface, and in doing so consider four ways to identify location: place name, situation, and mathematical location
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toponym
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the name of a given place on Earth
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site
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physical character of a place
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situation
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location of a place relative to other places
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meridian
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an arc drawn on a map between the North and South poles
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longitude
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numbering system used to identify the location of each meridian on the Earth's surface
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prime meridian
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The meridian that passes through the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England, is 0 degree longitude.
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parallel
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a circle drawn around the globe parallel to the equator and at right angles to the meridians.
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latitude
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the numbering system used to indicate the location of a parallel
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cultural landscape
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a combination of cultural features such as language and religion, economic features such as agriculture and industry and physical features.
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regional studies
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the contemporary cultural landscape approach to geography
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formal region
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an area within which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics.
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international date line
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a line that goes across the 180 degree line, that when you cross moves ahead or back a whole 24 hours.
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functional region
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an area organized around a node or focal point
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vernacular region
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a place people believe exists as part of their cultural identity.
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Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
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The time in that time zone encompassing the prime meridian, or 0 degree longitude.
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base line
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an east-west line designated under the Land Ordinance of 1785 to facilitate the surveying and numbering of townships in the U.S.
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cartography
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the science of making maps
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connections
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relationships among people and objects across the barrier of space
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Geographic Information System (GIS)
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A computer system that stores, organizes, analyzes, and display geographic data
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Global Positioning System (GPS)
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A system that determines the precise position of something on Earth through a series of satellites, tracking stations, and receivers
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Land Ordinance of 1785
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A law that divided much of the United States into a system of townships to facilitate the sale of land to settlers.
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Map
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A two-dimensional, or flat, representation of Earth's surface or a portion of it.
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place
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A specific point on earth distinguished by a particular character.
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principal meridian
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A north-south line designated in the Land Ordinance of 1785 to facilitate the surveying and numbering of townships in the United States.
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projection
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The system used to transfer locations from Earth's surface to a flat map.
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region
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An area distinguished by a unique combination of trends or features.
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remote sensing
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The acquisition of data about Earth's surface from a satellite orbiting the planet or other long-distance methods.
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scale
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Generally, the relationship between the portion of Earth being studied and Earth as a whole, specifically the relationship between the size of an object on a map and the size of the actual feature on Earth's surface.
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section
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A square normally 1 mile on a side. The Land Ordinance of 1785 divided townships in the United States into 36 sections.
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space
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The physical gap or interval between two objects.
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township
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A square normally 6 miles on a side. The Land Ordinance of 1785 divided much of the United States into a series of townships.
