Download Section 1 - Burnet Middle School

Chapter Introduction
Section 1: Thinking Like a
Geographer
Section 2: The Earth in
Space
Visual Summary
Human-Environment Interaction
The world is a large place. To better
understand the Earth—its people,
places, and environments—we must
develop certain geography skills.
Geography skills can help us decide
where to live, how to predict the
weather, and how to find solutions to
environmental problems such as
pollution and global warming. By
understanding geography, we can
better understand the complex
relationships between people and
the land. Why is it important to
have geography skills?
Section 1:
Thinking Like a Geographer
Geography is used to
interpret the past,
understand the present, and
plan for the future.
Geography is the study of the
Earth. It is used to analyze the
Earth’s physical and human
features. People can use
geographic information to
plan, make decisions, and
manage resources.
Section 2:
The Earth in Space
Physical processes shape
Earth’s surface. Earth has
different seasons because of
the way it tilts and the way it
rotates around the sun. The
warmth of the sun’s rays
makes life on Earth possible.
Geography is used to interpret the
past, understand the present, and
plan for the future.
Content Vocabulary
• geography
• millennium
• absolute
location
• Global
Positioning
System (GPS)
• relative
location
• environment
• decade
• century
• Geographic
Information
Systems (GIS)
Academic Vocabulary
• theme
• physical
The Italian Research Center, also known as
the Pyramid, allows researchers from around
the world to study everything from the effects
of altitude on humans to the impact of global
warming on the Earth. The Pyramid is
located at the base of Mount Everest in
Nepal. It is completely self-contained and
can house up to 20 people. To get to the
Pyramid, scientists have to trek through a
national park and allow their bodies time to
adjust to the extremely high altitude. To learn
more about how geographers use
information about the world to
plan for the future, read
Section 1.
Do you agree that technology has
played an important role in the study
of geography?
A. Agree
B. Disagree
A. A
B. B
0%
A
0%
B
The foundation of today’s map-making is technology,
but maps still require the human touch for accuracy.
Map-checking teams include a car and driver, a
passenger/checker, computers, global positioning
systems, and video cameras. While the driver drives,
the checker compares the most recent map to what
actually exists. Physical changes, such as a new
street, are entered into the computer and later added
to the map.
The Five Themes of Geography
Geographers use the Five
Themes of Geography to help
them study the Earth.
The Five Themes of Geography (cont.)
• Geography is the study of the Earth and
its people, and people who study
geography are geographers.
The Five Themes of Geography (cont.)
• Location is the position of a place on the
Earth’s surface.
– Absolute location is the exact spot on
Earth where a geographic feature, such
as a city or mountain, is found.
– Relative location describes where that
feature is in relation to the features
around it.
The Five Themes of Geography (cont.)
• Place describes the characteristics of a
location that make it unique, or different.
– A place can be defined by physical
features, such as landforms, plants,
animals, and weather patterns.
– Other characteristics of a place, such as
the language spoken there, describe the
people.
The Five Themes of Geography (cont.)
• Human-environment interaction describes
how people affect or change their
environment, or natural surroundings, to
meet their needs, and how their environment
affects them through conditions they cannot
control.
The Five Themes of Geography (cont.)
• Movement explains how and why people,
ideas, and goods move from place to place.
• Regions refers to areas of the Earth’s
surface that have several common
characteristics, such as land, natural
resources, or population.
Which of the following is best defined
by common characteristics?
A. Place
B. Region
C. Location
D. Human-environment
interaction
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
A Geographer’s Tools
Geographers use many
different tools to help them
study and analyze Earth’s
people and places.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• Physical geographers study Earth’s land
areas, bodies of water, plant life, and other
physical features.
• They also study an area’s natural
resources, such as water, forests, land,
and wind, and help people decide how to
manage the resources.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• Human geographers look at people’s
religions, languages, and ways of life;
compare different places to see how they
are similar and different; and help plan
cities and aid in international business.
• Similarly, studying history helps geographers
understand how places appeared in the past
and changed over time.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• History is divided into blocks of time known
as periods.
– A period of 10 years is called a decade.
– A period of 100 years is known as a
century.
– A period of 1,000 years is a millennium.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• Satellites circling the Earth provide
information for maps in the form of detailed
digital images, photographs, and
measurements of temperatures and the
amount of pollution in the air or land.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• Other satellites make up the Global
Positioning System (GPS), or a system
using radio signals to determine the exact
location of every place on Earth.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are
computer hardware and software that gather,
store, and analyze geographic information
and then display it on a screen.
• It can display maps and even show
information such as types of soil and
vegetation.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• Governments at all levels hire geographers
for different kinds of tasks, such as helping
decide how land and resources might be
used and for analyzing population trends.
A Geographer’s Tools (cont.)
• In business, geographers often work as
researchers and analysts, helping
companies decide where to locate new
buildings or providing information about
other places and cultures where companies
do business.
• As more schools recognize the importance
of geography education, the demand for
geography teachers is expected to grow.
Do you agree that geography plays an
important role in your everyday life?
A. Agree
B. Disagree
A. A
B. B
0%
A
0%
B
Physical processes shape Earth’s
surface.
Content Vocabulary
• solar system
• atmosphere
• orbit
• summer solstice
• revolution
• winter solstice
• leap year
• equinox
• rotate
• Tropics
• axis
Academic Vocabulary
• significant
• reverse
• identical
From space, the Aral Sea in Central Asia can
be easily seen. Once the fourth-largest lake
in the world, the Aral Sea has shrunk
significantly. Satellite photographs, taken
over a period of years, help scientists
measure the total area of water that has
been lost. These images, in addition to other
information, help scientists understand what
has caused the sea to change size.
Scientists also continue to explore space
and how the Earth’s location in the solar
system affects our planet. Read Section 2 to
learn how the Earth’s rotation,
orbit, tilt, and latitude affect
life on Earth.
Which is your favorite season?
A. Spring
B. Summer
C. Fall
D. Winter
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Leap years are the only years in which January 1 and
December 31 of the same year do not fall on the
same day of the week. In 2009, for example, both
dates fall on Thursday. In 2010, both fall on Friday,
and in 2011, they both fall on Saturday. But 2012 is a
leap year; January 1 falls on Sunday, and December
31 falls on Monday. In 2013, the dates will again fall
on the same day of the week.
The Solar System
The Earth is one of eight
planets in the solar system. It
rotates on its axis every 24
hours and takes a year to
orbit the sun.
The Solar System (cont.)
• Earth, seven other major planets,
thousands of smaller bodies, and the sun
form our solar system.
– The inner planets—Mercury, Venus,
Earth, and Mars—are relatively small
and solid.
– The outer planets—Jupiter, Saturn,
Uranus, and Neptune—are larger and
composed mostly or entirely of gases.
The Solar System (cont.)
• Pluto was once considered a major planet,
but an international group of scientists in
2006 decided to call it a minor planet.
• Each planet follows its own path, or orbit,
around the sun.
The Solar System
The Solar System (cont.)
• Earth takes almost 365¼ days, or one
year, to make one revolution, or a
complete circuit, around the sun.
– Every four years, the extra fourths of a
day are combined and added to the
calendar as February 29th.
– A year that contains one of these extra
days is called a leap year.
The Solar System (cont.)
• As Earth orbits the sun, it rotates, or
spins, on its axis.
– The axis is an imaginary line that passes
through the center of Earth from the North
Pole to the South Pole.
– Earth rotates in an easterly direction,
making one complete rotation every 24
hours.
The Solar System (cont.)
• As Earth turns, different parts of the planet
are in sunlight or in darkness.
• The part facing the sun experiences daytime,
and the part facing away has night.
• We do not feel Earth moving as it rotates
because the atmosphere, the layer of
oxygen and gases that surrounds Earth,
moves with it.
Which planet orbits the sun in the
shortest period of time?
A. Jupiter
B. Neptune
C. Earth
D. Mercury
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Sun and Seasons
The tilt of Earth and its
revolution around the sun
lead to changing seasons
during the year.
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• Because Earth is tilted 23½ degrees on its
axis, seasons change as Earth makes its
year-long orbit around the sun.
– Sunlight falls directly on the northern or
southern half of Earth at different times
of the year.
– Direct rays cause the warmth of summer
in a hemisphere, and indirect rays allow
the cold of winter.
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• Four days in the year are significant
because of the position of the sun in
relation to Earth.
• These days mark the beginnings of the
four seasons.
The Sun and Earth’s Seasons
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• On or about June 21, the North Pole is
tilted toward the sun.
– On noon of this day, the sun appears directly
overhead at the Tropic of Cancer.
– In the Northern Hemisphere, this day is the
summer solstice—the day with the most hours
of sunlight and the beginning of summer.
– In the Southern Hemisphere, that same day is
the day with the fewest hours of sunlight and
marks the beginning of winter.
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• Six months later—on or about December
22—the situation is reversed. The North
Pole is tilted away from the sun.
– At noon, the sun’s direct rays strike the Tropic
of Capricorn.
– In the Northern Hemisphere, this day is the
winter solstice—the day with the fewest hours
of sunlight and the beginning of winter.
– This same day marks the beginning of summer
in the Southern Hemisphere.
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• Spring and autumn each begin on a day that
falls midway between the two solstices.
• These days are the equinoxes, when day
and night are of identical length in both
hemispheres.
The Sun and Earth’s Seasons
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• On or about March 21, the spring equinox
occurs.
• On or about September 23, the fall
equinox occurs.
• On both days, the noon sun shines directly
over the Equator.
The Sun and Earth’s Seasons
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• Earth’s temperatures also are affected by
the sun.
• The sun’s rays directly hit places in the
Tropics, the low-latitude areas near the
Equator between the Tropic of Cancer and
the Tropic of Capricorn.
• As a result, temperatures in the Tropics
tend to be very warm.
The Sun and Earth’s Seasons
Sun and Seasons (cont.)
• At the high latitudes near the North and
South Poles, the sun’s rays hit indirectly,
so temperatures in these regions are
always cool or cold.
The Sun and Earth’s Seasons
What is the longest day in the
southern hemisphere?
A. Summer solstice
B. Winter solstice
C. Spring equinox
D. Fall equinox
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Themes of Geography
• Geography is the study of
the Earth and its people.
• In their study of people
and places, geographers
use five themes: location,
place, humanenvironment interaction,
movement, and regions.
Kinds of Geography
• Physical geography examines physical aspects of
the Earth, such as land areas, bodies of water,
and plant life.
• Human geography focuses on people and their
activities, including religions, languages, and
ways of life.
Geographers at Work
• To study the Earth,
geographers use maps,
globes, photographs, the
Global Positioning
System (GPS), and
Geographic Information
Systems (GIS).
• People can use
information from
geographers to plan,
make decisions, and
manage resources.
Solar System
• The sun, eight planets, and many smaller bodies
form our solar system.
• Earth takes almost
365 ¼ days to make
one revolution around
the sun.
• Earth spins on its
axis, causing day
and night.
Sun and Seasons
• The Earth’s tilt and its revolution around the sun
cause the changes in seasons.
• Four days in the year
mark the beginning
points of the four
seasons.
geography
study of the Earth and its people
absolute location
exact spot where a place is found
relative location
description of where a place is in
relation to the features around it
environment
natural surroundings of people
decade
a period of 10 years
century
a period of 100 years
millennium
a period of 1,000 years
Global Positioning System
(GPS)
group of satellites that uses radio
signals to determine the exact location
of places on Earth
Geographic Information
Systems (GIS)
combination of computer hardware
and software used to gather, store,
and analyze geographic information
and then display it on a screen
solar system
planets, along with their moons,
asteroids and other bodies, and the
sun
orbit
specific path each planet follows
around the sun
revolution
one complete circuit around the sun
leap year
year with 366 days, which happens
every fourth year to make calendars
match Earth’s movement around the
sun
rotate
to spin on an axis
axis
imaginary line that passes through
the center of Earth from the North
Pole to the South Pole
atmosphere
layer of oxygen and other gases that
surrounds Earth
summer solstice
day that has the most daylight hours
and the fewest hours of darkness
winter solstice
day of the year that has the fewest
hours of sunlight and the most hours
of darkness
equinox
either of the days in spring and fall in
which the noon sun is overhead at the
Equator and day and night are of
equal length in both the Northern and
Southern Hemispheres
Tropics
area between the Tropic of Cancer
and the Tropic of Capricorn, which
has generally warm temperatures
because it receives the direct rays of
the sun for much of the year
theme
topic
physical
related to natural science
significant
important
reverse
opposite
identical
exactly the same
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