Geography 100 Unit An Introduction To Geography The Meaning of The Word

Geography 1100 Unit 1 - An Introduction To Geography

• The Meaning of The Word

• Geo – World (Earth)
• Graphei – To Write

Three Recurring Themes

• Humans and Land

• Regional Studies

• Spatial Analysis

The Goal of Human Geography

• The goal of human geography is to teach us about the world we live in and how we live in the world.

• Geographers often tend to be generalists who are seeking to identify and understand the interconnectedness of things.

Human Geographic Concepts:

• Geographers use a variety of key concepts to interpret and analyze the world.

Human Geographic Concepts: “Space”

• Absolute Space

• Relative Space

Human Geographic Concepts: “Distance”

• Distance

• Distance Decay (Friction of Distance)
• Accessibility
• Interaction
• Agglomeration
• Deglomeration

• Types of Distance

• Absolute (Linear) Distance
• Time Distance
• Economic Distance
• Psychological (Cognitive & Social) Distance

Human Geographic Concepts: “Location”

• Location

• Absolute Location:
• Site – The characteristics of a location
• Relative Location:
• "Situation" – The location relative to other locations

Human Geographic Concepts: “Place”

• Place

• Sense of place
• Sacred space
• Placelessness
• Topophilia
• Topophobia

Human Geographic Concepts: “Region”

• Formal (Uniform) Regions

• Functional (Nodal) Regions

• Vernacular Regions

Human Geographic Concepts: “Distance”

• Distance

• Distance Decay (Friction of Distance)
• Accessibility
• Interaction
• Agglomeration
• Deglomeration

• Types of Distance

• Absolute (Linear) Distance
• Time Distance
• Economic Distance
• Psychological (Cognitive & Social) Distance

Human Geographic Concepts: “Scale”

• Scale –

• Technical
• Small Scale
• Large Scale
• Subjective
• Temporal Scale
• Social Scale

Human Geographic Concepts: “Diffusion”

• Diffusion

• Relocation Diffusion
• Contagious Diffusion
• Hierarchical Diffusion

Human Geographic Concepts: “Perception”

• Perception

• Mental images of other places are changing. We are becoming increasingly aware of the interconnectedness of places.
• Mental maps demonstrate that we all perceive places in different ways.
• The metal maps of specific individuals can greatly impact many other people. (Can impact industrial location)
• Serious problems are created if people in power have distorted mental maps.
• Mental maps and people’s perceptions of places can change.

Human Geographic Concepts: “Development”

• Development

Human Geographic Concepts: “Discourse”

• Discourse