Transcript Geography: Its nature and perspectives

Geography: Its nature and
perspectives
UNIT I
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At McDonald's in Israel, you can get a hamburger -- but you may not be able to get a cheeseburger,
as a number of restaurants are strictly kosher. The first McDonald's opened in 1993 and the first
kosher McDonald's opened in Mevasseret Zion in October 1995.
At the kosher restaurants, the familiar yellow and red signs have been replaced with the
McDonald's name in blue and white in Hebrew and the word "kosher." All McDonald's restaurants
here use kosher beef, chicken and other products -- and the beef used is leaner than elsewhere,
with only 9% fat (versus 20-24% in the U.S.). The burgers are not cooked on a griddle, but charcoalgrilled, catering to Israelis' preference for healthier foods. They've even created their own version
of a Middle Eastern favorite with the McShawarma -- turkey, tahini and pickles wrapped in lafa
bread.
Geography
• “Write about Earth”
• Greek roots
• Tries to find the “Why of where?”
Spatial Perspective
• Concerned with SPACE… rooms, countries,
parks, continents, cyberspace, rivers, etc…
• AND the PATTERNS contained within
• SPATIAL PERSPECTIVE
– Identifying, explaining, and predicting human and
physical patterns in space and the
interconnectedness of various spaces
– Utilize GEOGRAPHIC MODELS
Geographic Models
• Simplified versions of what exists on the earth
and what might exist in the future
• Can be used by others to help explain what
they see
• Ex. Demographic Transition Model, Von
Thunen Model, Concentric Zone Model
Physical vs. Human Geo
• Physical
– is concerned with spatial analysis of earth’s
natural phenomenon
• Human geography
– Is concerned with Earth’s Human creations and
their interactions
5 Themes of Spatial Perspective
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Location
Human/Environment interaction
Region
Place
Movement
Themes…
• Think of them like lenses
1st Theme: Location
• Analyzing WHERE something is and the effects
that position has on Human life
• ABSOLUTE vs. RELATIVE
Absolute location
• Position on the global grid
– Lines of Latitude
• Never intersect
• N and S of the Equator
• North pole is 90 degrees N latitude
– Lines of Longitude
• E and W of the Prime Meridian (Greenwich, England)
• International date line is opposite the Prime Meridian
– May be influenced by Politics
• Is this ANGLOCENTRIC?
Cont…
• Each “line” can be broken down into minutes
(60 min per degree) and Seconds (60 seconds
per minute)
• 1 degree is about 69 miles, minute=1.1miles, 1
second=100’
GMT or Universal time
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Baseline
24 timezones…15 degrees each
May be based on politics
China… one time zone (centripetal)
Great circles
Relative location
• Location as described in relation to places
around it
• Site: Internal physical and cultural
characteristics
• Situation: the context of a place relative to the
physical and cultural characteristics around it.
– Strong vs. Weak
2nd theme: Human/Environ Interaction
• Cultural Ecology
• How we affect the environment and vice versa
3rd theme: Region
• Regions-spatial units that share some similar
characteristics
– Formal regions- have common cultural or physical
features
– Functional region- (nodal) places linked by a
functional influence
• Central node
– Perceptual Region-(vernacular) determined by
people’s beliefs
4th theme: Place
• Unique combo of physical and cultural
attributes that gives a location its “stamp”
• Religion, language, politics, artwork, etc…
• Sense of Place
– Persons perception of a location
5th theme: movement
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Movement in space
Information, people, goods, etc…
Spatial interaction
Friction of Distance
– Degree to which distance interferes with some
interaction
– Space-Time compression
• Increasing connectivity and accessibility
• Distance decay-as distance increases interaction decreases
How Do Geographers
Describe Where Things
Are?
I. By using Maps
Geography
• Word invented by Greek scholar
– Eratosthenes
• “Geo” means earth
• “graphy” means to write
• Human Geography vs. Physical
– Study of where and why human activities are
located where they are
Distortion
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Shape
Size
Distance
Direction
Cardinal Points
• N, S, E, W
• Vs. Intermediate directions
• Vs. Relative directions
Types of maps
• Equal area
• Conformal/orthomorphic
– Maintain shape
• Azimuthal
– Maintain Direction
• Equidistant
– Maintain distance
Ptolemy’s World Map (A.D. 150)
First Chapter
• Geographers “where” and “why” questions
– Mapping
• What is a map?
– Uniqueness
• Place vs. Region
– Similarties
• Scale, Space, and connections
– Space- gap
– Connections- relationships across space
Which of the following is a “where”
category?
• 1) Mapping
• 2) Uniqueness
• 3) Similarities
Map Scale
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the relationship between a feature’s
map size and actual size
• Map scale is shown in 3 ways:
– fractional (1:24,000)
– written/verbal
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(one inch = 24,000 inches)
– graphic or bar line
Large Scale vs. Small Scale Maps
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Small-Scale Maps
Number after 1: large
Area covered large
Large features only
Has the most distortion
Example:
World Map
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Large-Scale Maps
Number after 1: small
Area covered small
small features shown
Has the least distortion
Example:
Map of Deland
True or False:
This is an example of a small
scale map.
True or False:
This is an example of a large
scale map.
Map Projections
• A systematic method of transferring the globe
grid system from the earth’s curved surface to the
flat surface of a map.
• This results in 4 types of distortion:
- shape
- distance
- relative size
- direction
Equal Area Projection
Benefits:
◊ relative size of landmasses are realistic
◊ minimizes distortion in shape of landmasses
Distorts:
◊ size & shape of the oceans
◊ meridians (vertical lines)
Mercator Projection
Benefits:
◊ easy to see directions (used especially in marine
navigation)
◊ minimizes distortion in shape of landmasses
Distorts:
◊ size of landmasses especially near the poles
Azimuthal Projection
Benefits:
◊ Distances measured from the center point are accurate
◊ Used by airline pilots to show routes
Distortion:
◊ increases as one moves away from the center point
Township & Range System
• Land Ordinance of 1787
–Divided U.S. into sections to make land
sales in the west easier.
• Townships
– a 6 x 6 mile area (36 square miles)
– divided into 36 sections
– the principal meridian in Florida runs
through Tallahassee.
II. By using
Contemporary
Tools
GIS
• Geographic Information System
– a computer program that displays
geographic data.
– information is stored in layers
– can be used to compare spatial data
– shows relationships among different
kinds of information
Remote Sensing
• The acquisition of data about
Earth’s surface from a satellite.
– used in navigation (GPS)
– especially good at locating heat
sources…growing plants, animals,
currents, air temperatures.
Orlando 1973
Orlando 2000
GPS
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Global Positioning System
24 satellites
Rely on timing…atomic clocks
Receivers only receive
Can be used with GIS