Map Basics and Vocab.
This term describes the physical characteristics of a location its landforms, climate, and resources as opposed to its connections to other places.
Site
This term describes the ratio between a distance shown on a map and the corresponding actual distance on Earth's surface.
map scale
This type of diffusion occurs when an idea, disease, or innovation spread through the actual physical movement of people from one place to another
relocation diffusion
This type of region is defined by one or more shared characteristics such as a common language, climate, or political boundary like the Sahara Desert
Formal Region
This satellite based navigation system allows a user to pinpoint their exact location anywhere on Earth
GPS
This term refers to the exact position of a place on Earth's surface, typically expressed using latitude and longitude
absolute location
This widely used map projection preserves accurate shapes and angles for navigation but drastically distorts size near the poles, making Greenland appear as large as Africa.
Mercator Projection
This measure of density compares the number of people to only the amount of farmable land in a region, rather than all land.
physiological / agricultural density
This philosophical approach argues that the physical environment strictly controls and limits the development of human culture
Environmental determinism
This computer based navigation technology layers multiple types of spatial data like roads, population, and elevation so geographers can analyze relationships between them
This term describes a place's position in relation to other places, such as being near the coast or along a major trade route.
On this type of map scale, a small representative fraction (like 1: 1,000,000) shows a large area with less detail counterintuitively named this even though it covers more ground.
small scale
This principle states that the greater the distance between two places, the less likely they are to interact with each other
distance decay
This type of region is organized around a central node or focal point, defined by the area connected to and interacting with that node like a newspaper's delivery zone
Functional region
This technique involves gathering data about Earth's surface using satellites or aircraft, without physically touching the area being studied
remote sensing
This term refers to the subjective, emotional meaning or identity people attach to a place based on their experiences and perceptions there.
Sense of place
This equal-area projection, shaped like an interrupted peeled orange, sacrifices continuous shape in order to preserve accurate land area
Goode's Homolosine Projection
Hierarchical diffusion
This concept holds that while the environment may present certain limits, humans have the ability to adapt to and modify their surroundings to meet their needs
Possibilism
This concept explains why a consumer might pass by a closer gas station to buy gas at a farther one with a better price a more attractive option located between two places
intervening opportunity
This word refers to th ename given to a place; studying these can reveal clues about an area's history, such as Los Angeles reflecting Spanish colonization.
toponym
A geographer studying how a single city's zoning laws affect one neighborhood's housing prices is working at this scale of analysis
local scale
This term describes how modern technology, like the internet and air travel, shrinks the perceived distance between places and speeds up diffusion.
Time space compression
This type of region exists based on people's subjective feelings and mental perceptions rather than official data such as calling somewhere the Midwest or Dixie
Perceptual (vernacular region)
This practice involves redrawing a voting district into a bizarre, non-compact shape to benefit a political party, and is a real world example of manipulating spatial data at different scales
Gerrymandering