Transcript Geography Basics

Think Like a
Geographer
Geographers ask the
questions...
Where?
and
Why There?
What tools
do you need
to …
Think Like a
Geographer?
Early mapmaking
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Most of the first known
maps are of the heavens,
not the earth.
Dots representing the stars,
dating to 16,500 B.C., are
found on the walls of caves
in both Spain and France.
The earliest surviving world
maps were drawn by the
Babylonians on clay
tablets about 2,300 B.C.
The first map???
Approx. 6,300 B.C. (Cave Painting in Turkey)
Early mapmaking
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The word geography was
invented by Eratosthenes
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(air –a- tos - theens)
(276?-194? B.C.)
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It is based on two
Greek words
Geo – “Earth”
Graphy – “Write”
Early mapmaking
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Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) was the first person
to demonstrate that the Earth was spherical.
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Matter falls toward a common center
Earth’s shadow on the Moon is
circular during an eclipse
Visible group of stars change
as one travels north or south
He was a student of Plato
(student of Socrates)
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Teacher of
Alexander the Great
Early mapmaking
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Ptolemy (A.D. 100?-170?)
wrote an eight-volume
“Guide to Geography”
Early mapmaking
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The father of Chinese Cartography, Phei Hsiu (or Fei
Xiu) produced elaborate maps of China in 267 A.D.
Arab geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi (1100-1165?)
prepared both a world map and a geography text in
1154, building on Ptolemy’s long neglected work.
Early mapmaking
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After the fall of the
Roman Empire – maps
became less
mathematical and more
mythical, showing Earth
surrounded by fierce
animals and monsters
It wasn’t until the Age
of Exploration &
Discovery that
Geography and
mapmaking enjoyed a
revival.
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Columbus, Magellan, and other
explorers required accurate maps
to reach their desired destinations
safely.
In turn, cartographers like
Gerardus Mercator (1512-94)
&
Abraham Ortelius (1527-98)
took information collected by the
explorers to create even more
accurate maps.
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By the 17th Century, maps
accurately displayed the outline of
most continents and the position
of oceans
Age of
Exploration
Mental Map
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wimps
The concept of
a mental map
refers to a
person's personal
perception of
their own world.
Projections
Projections are the
transformation of a
spherical object to a
flat object
“All maps lie flat, and all
flat maps lie”
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Earth’s
spherical shape
poses a
challenge for
cartographers
because
drawing Earth
on a flat piece
of paper
unavoidably
produces some
distortions.
Let’s Review…
There are four main types of distortions:
1. The shape of an area can be
distorted, so that it appears more
elongated or squat than in reality
2. The relative size of different areas may
be altered, so that one area may
appear larger than another on a map
but in reality be smaller
3. The distance between two points
may become increased or decreased
4. The direction from one place to
another can be distorted.
Composite image – Geosphere Project of Santa Monica, CA.
Thousands of images of the Earth were taken over a ten-month period.
The images were then electronically assembled. – Jigsaw Puzzle
INTERMISSION
Check out this scene from the West Wing.
Why does it matter what type of map projection
Americans use?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n
8zBC2dvERM
All “Good” maps
have 5 parts!
Title
 Date
 Compass
 Key / Legend
 Scale
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Map Scale
How large of an area is being shown here?
What’s missing from this map?
DON’T WRITE THIS DOWN
Map Scale
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The level of detail &
the amount of area
covered on a map
depends on its scale.
Scale refers to the
relationship of a
feature’s size on a
map to its actual size
on the Earth.
Map scale is presented in three ways
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A fraction or ratio – 1/24,000 or 1:24,000
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1 unit on the map represents 24,000 of the same unit
1 on the left always refers to a unit of distance on the map
Number on the right always refers to the same unit of
distance on the Earth’s surface
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Written statement – “1 inch = 1 mile”
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Graphic bar
Small Scale = less detail
Larger number on right
Large Scale = more detail
Smaller number on right
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Types of Maps
Reference Maps
• Political
• Physical
• Historical
• Road
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Types of Maps
Thematic Maps
• Isoline
• Topographic
• Choropleth
• Proportional symbol
• Dot Density
Types of Maps
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Cartogram
Types of Maps
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Pictoral
Thinking Like a
Geographer has
not changed…
but our
tools
have!
GPS (Global Positioning System)
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GPS is a system that
determines accurately
the precise position of
something on Earth
using several
satelittes.
GPS is most commonly
used in navigation of
aircraft and ships, and
newer models of
Remote Sensing
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The acquisition of data
about Earth’s surface
from a satellite
orbiting Earth or from
other long-distance
methods is known as
remote sensing.
Geographic
applications of remote
sensing are primarily
environmental
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Vegetation
Ice Cover
Weather Pattern changes
Deforestation
Urban Sprawl
GIS
(geographic information system)
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GIS is a
computer system
that can capture,
store, query,
analyze, and
display
geographic data.
GIS is used in
part to produce
maps, that are
more accurate
and attractive
than those drawn
by hand.
GIS
(geographic information system)
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Each type of
information can be
stored in a layer.
Multiple layered
maps are possible.
GIS enables
geographers to
calculate whether
relationships
between objects on a
map are significant
or merely
coincidental.
GIS
(geographic information system)
FATHER OF GIS
Scottish
environmentalist
Ian Mc Harg set
forth the basic
concepts that
would later
develop into GIS.
(before computers)
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Google Map
Chicago pizza restaurants
Once we know...
Where?
We can ask...
Why There?