Unit 1 Vocabulary

1. Write down the term 2. Write down the book definition 3. Put the definition in your own words 4. Draw an image and/or put a Real Life Example Absolute Location “Where Is It EXACTLY?” • The position or place of a certain item on the surface of the Earth as expressed in degrees, minutes, and seconds of latitude and longitude.

Empire State Building is located at 40.7 degrees north (longitude), 74 degrees west (latitude). Diffusion • the spreading of something more widely. Distortion

• A map projection is a systematic transformation of the latitudes and longitudes of locations from the surface of a sphere or an ellipsoid into locations on a plane. Maps cannot be created without map projections. All map projections necessarily distort the surface in some fashion. Distribution • the natural arrangement and apportionment of the various forms of animals and plants in the different regions and localities of the earth. Equator • an imaginary line drawn around the earth equally distant from both poles, dividing the earth into northern and southern hemispheres and constituting the parallel of latitude 0°. Formal Region • Regions defined by governmental or administrative boundaries (state, countries, cities) Functional Region • Regions defined by a function (newspaper service area, cell phone coverage area etc) Geographic Information System (GIS)

• a computer system that can capture, store, query, analyze and display geographic data Global Positioning System (GPS)

• a system that determines accurately the precise position of something on Earth Globalization • the process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale. Human Geography • the branch of geography dealing with how human activity affects or is influenced by the earth's surface. Latitude

• the angular distance of a place north or south of the earth's equator, or of a celestial object north or south of the celestial equator, usually expressed in degrees and minutes. Longitude • Lines of longitude, or meridians, run between the North and South Poles. They measure east-west position. The prime meridian is assigned the value of 0 degrees, and runs through Greenwich, England. Map Projection • the representation on a plane surface of any part of the surface of the earth or a celestial sphere. Map Scale • refers to the relationship (or ratio) between distance on a map and the corresponding distance on the ground. • For example, on a 1:100000 scale map, 1cm on the map equals 1km on the ground. Perceptual Region/Vernacular Region • An area defined by subjective perceptions that reflect the feelings & images about key place characteristics. When these perceptions come from the local, ordinary folk, a perceptual region can be called a vernacular region." Physical Geography • the branch of geography dealing with natural features and processes. Prime Meridian • a planet's meridian adopted as the zero of longitude. Relative Location “Where Is It COMPARATIVELY?” • The regional position or situation of a place relative to the position of other places. Distance, accessibility, and connectivity affect relative location. Thematic Map • is a type of map specifically designed to show a particular theme connected with a specific geographic area. Cartography the science or practice of drawing maps Cultural Landscape

• a geographic area the includes cultural resources and natural resources associated with the interactions between nature and human behavior. This means that the sum effects on human population has on an environment is a cultural landscape. Density is the number of things—which could be people, animals, plants, or objects—in a certain area Expansion Diffusion • The spread of a feature or trend among people from one area to another in an additive process. International Date Line is located at 180 degrees east or west of the Greenwich Meridian and is an imaginary line of longitude that differentiates between two different days. Mental Map

• is a person's point-of- view perception of their area of interaction. Meridians describes a gigantic imaginary circle that runs north and south on the earth's surface, from the North Pole to the South Pole. Also known as lines of longitude. Natural Landscapes • is the original landscape that exists before it is acted upon by human culture Parallels • imaginary lines around the Earth parallel to the equator. Also known as lines of longitude. Reference Map

• show locations of places as well as human and natural geographic features. Relocation Diffusion The spread of an idea through physical movement of people from one place to another. Sustainability

• The use of Earth’s renewable and nonrenewable natural resources in ways that do not constrain resource use in the future