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Geography helps us to understand where we live and where others live.
What Is Geography?
SS.8.G.1.2, SS.8.G.2.1
What are the five themes of geography?
Geography is the study of the Earth and its people. A geographer tries to understand a place—not just where it is, but what it
is like, what takes place there, and how the people there live.
To help them build this understanding, geographers organize their study into themes, or subjects. For example, geographers
often speak of the five themes of geography: location, place, regions, movement, and human-environment interaction.
Location describes where something is. Absolute location describes a place's exact position on the Earth's surface.
Relative location expresses where a place is compared to another place. For example, the absolute location of
Tallahassee, Florida's capital, is 30°25' N latitude and 84°17' W longitude. One way to describe its relative location is
"west of Jacksonville" or "north of Apalachee Bay."
Place explores the physical and human features that make a city, state, or country unique. Orange groves and theme
parks are examples of what makes Florida a special place.
Regions are areas that share common features. A region may be land, water, or a specific area in a city or state. For
instance, New England is a region in the northeastern United States. The West Coast is a region bordering the Pacific
Ocean and includes the states of California, Oregon, and Washington.
Movement explains how and why people, things, and ideas move. For instance, a group of people may move for
various reasons. Ideas spread from one place to another. Both types of movement lead to change.
Human-environment interaction explores the relationship between people and their environments. For example,
early Native Americans in the southwestern United States used materials from plants, animals, and the land to build
their homes and to clothe and feed themselves.
Applying If you were describing the town where you live—its people, its sights—which theme would you be using?
Maps and Globes
SS.8.G.1.1, SS.8.G.2.3, SS.8.G.4.1, SS.8.G.4.6, LA.8.1.6.1
What stories do maps and globes tell?
The tools of the geographer include maps and globes. These help us to learn more about the Earth.
Globes and maps serve different purposes, and each has its advantages and disadvantages.
A globe is a round model of the Earth. It shows the Earth's shape and its lands. The shapes, sizes, and locations of the lands
are accurate.
A map is a flat drawing of all or part of the Earth's surface. Cartographers, or mapmakers, use complex mathematics to
transfer shapes from the round globe to a flat map. Still, all maps change the shapes of the places they show.
Maps can show small areas such as a college campus. They can show the streets in a city. Or, they can show whole
continents or even the entire world. They can show places as they exist now. There are also historical maps, which show the
features of a place at some time in the past.
Understanding Parts of a Map
Maps can contain a large amount of information in a small space. In order to get at this information, however, you need to
know how to read a map. You need to understand the different parts, what they represent, and how they work together. The
map on the next page shows some of the most basic map parts.
Physical and Political Maps
Maps are very useful tools. You can use them to show information and make connections between different facts, such as
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how the location of cities relates to the location of waterways.
Geographers use many different kinds of maps. Maps that show a wide range of information about an area are known as
general purpose maps. Two of the most common general purpose maps are physical maps and political maps.
Physical maps show landforms and water features. Landforms are natural features on the Earth such as deserts, mountains,
plains, or plateaus. Physical maps may also show relief, or ups and downs of the Earth's surface, and elevation, the height of
an area above sea level.
Political maps show the names and political boundary lines, or borders, of a place. Political maps may also show humanmade features, such as cities or transportation routes.
Special Purpose Maps
Some maps present specific kinds of information. These are called thematic or special purpose maps. They usually show
themes or patterns, or emphasize one subject. For example, special purpose maps may present information on climate or
natural resources. They may display where different Native American languages are spoken, what industries are found in an
area, or what kind of vegetation grows there.
One type of special purpose map shows population density. A population density map appears below. Population density
refers to how thickly a place is settled—how many people live in each square mile. Cities have a high population density.
Rural areas have a low population density. These maps use different colors or dots to show this.
Special purpose maps may also display events that occurred over time. Maps that display historical information, such as
migration and changes in boundaries, are called historical maps. In this textbook, you will study many historical maps.
Identifying What are some examples of landforms?
The Elements of Geography
SS.8.G.2.2, SS.8.G.3.1, SS.8.G.3.2, SS.8.G.4.2, SS.8.G.4.3, SS.8.G.4.4, SS.8.G.4.5, SS.8.G.5.1, SS.8.G.5.2
What are the six essential elements of geography?
You have read about the five themes of geography. Geographers have also broken down the study of their subject into six
essential elements. Thinking about these six elements is another good way to organize your study and understanding of
geography.
The World in Spatial Terms
When studying a place, geographers are interested in where it is located. Every place has an absolute location and a relative
location. Absolute location refers to the exact spot of a place on the Earth's surface. For example, the city of Jacksonville,
Florida, is located at a specific spot on the Earth—30°20' N latitude and 81°40' W longitude. No other place on Earth has the
same absolute location as Jacksonville.
Relative location tells where a place is compared with one or more other places. Miami is southeast of Tampa, west of the
Atlantic Ocean, and about 228 miles (367 km) north of the capital city of Havana on the island of Cuba. Knowing a place's
relative location may help a historian understand how it was settled and how its culture developed. For example, Miami is the
closest large U.S. city to Cuba. This fact helps explain why Miami and the surrounding area is home to such a large
population of Cuban Americans.
Places and Regions
Place describes all of the characteristics that give an area its own special quality. These can be physical features such as
mountains, waterways, climate, and plant or animal life. Places can also be described by human features. These include
language, religion, and architecture. If you were trying to tell someone about the town where you live, you would be
describing place.
Each place is unique. Still, many places share features in common with others. A region is a group of places that share
common features.
Physical features, such as a type of landform or plant life, can define regions. Human features, such as religion, language, or
industry, also shape regions. For example, the South during the early 1800s was a largely agricultural region. The economy
was based on trading agricultural products. The widespread practice of slavery also defined the region.
Physical Systems
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Have you ever wondered where mountains come from or how the oceans formed? What are the factors that cause storms?
The planet Earth is subject to powerful forces. These physical systems have shaped the planet.
Physical systems include the complex forces that create weather—wind, rain, snow, and storms. These, of course, can
change the Earth. There are also physical systems that make the surface of the Earth move and change shape. These forces
build mountain ranges, cause earthquakes, and form volcanoes.
Physical systems affect where and how humans live. For example, people may decide not to live on the slopes of an active
volcano that could erupt at any time. Almost every place that people choose to live feels some sort of impact from storms,
earthquakes, fires, or other physical systems.
Ecosystems are a type of physical system. An ecosystem is a community of living beings and the surroundings in which they
live. A lake is an example of an ecosystem. The ecosystem includes the plants, animals, water, and everything that lives
beneath the water. Other major ecosystems in the United States include forests, wetlands, grasslands, and deserts.
In an ecosystem, all the creatures and features are connected. A change to one part can affect other parts.
Human Systems
Geographers are also interested in human systems. A human system includes all the things humans create as they build
their lives together on Earth. It includes all the people and their settlements, as well as the cultures they form. It also includes
the way different groups of people interact with each other, how they work to get along—and how they settle conflicts when
they occur.
Human systems are always changing. Movements of people, ideas, and goods also shape the world. At all times of day,
people are flying across oceans and continents, delivering goods to distant cities or supermarkets. They are piloting boats
filled with goods across the ocean or learning about other cultures through textbooks and the Internet. People move to new
places and take up new lives. Cultures spread into new areas.
Environment and Society
People shape the world in which they live. In turn, the world shapes them. People settle in certain places and change their
environment to suit them. For example, people create cities with buildings, streets, and homes. People tunnel through
mountains to create roads, and they use nonrenewable resources such as coal to make electricity. People also adapt to the
world around them. For example, they use renewable energy sources.
The relationship between people and their surroundings is an important one. Landforms, waterways, climate, and natural
resources have all helped and hindered human activities.
People have responded to their surroundings in different ways. Sometimes they have adjusted to them. At other times,
people have changed their environment to meet their needs.
Human beings tend to have a great impact on the ecosystem they live in. For instance, your school is a building that took a
great amount of time and energy to build. The ground had to be leveled. Workers built walls with wood and concrete. Roads
were laid down to allow people to come and go from the school. All of these actions affected the environment, causing plants
to be destroyed and forcing animals to find new places to live.
Florida’s ecosystems have been greatly affected by human development. One clear case is the Everglades, a unique area of
lowlands connected by freshwater resources such as rivers, streams, and shallow sheets of water. It has a diverse animal
population that includes many varieties of fish, wading birds, and alligators. However, the growth of nearby cities and their
need for freshwater has drained many of the original freshwater resources for the Everglades. Today, many of the formerly
wet areas are dry, and some freshwater areas near the coasts are now filled with salt water.
The people of Florida need to consider their state’s ecosystems as it continues to grow. They must find ways to balance their
needs with the needs of the world around them.
The Uses of Geography
Knowledge of geography helps people understand the relationships between people, places, and the environment. Just as
Native Americans and European explorers used knowledge of geography to live in and explore our land, your ability to
understand geography and tools and technology available for its study will equip you for life in our modern world.
Defining What are ecosystems?
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Florida CONNECTION
Renewable Energy in Florida
Florida has a plentiful supply of sunshine, which is a source of renewable energy. In 2009, the largest facility for converting sunlight
to electricity in North America opened in Florida. The plant at Arcadia uses 90,000 photovoltaic cells to produce electric power. Like
all states, Florida must decide whether it wants to continue investing in what is today a costly—but Earth-friendly—source of
electric power. SS.8.G.3.2
LESSON 2 REVIEW
Review Vocabulary
1. Use the following terms in a sentence that explains the relationship between the terms.
a. globe b. map
LA.8.1.6.1
2. Use the following terms in a sentence that explains the relationship between the terms.
a. landforms b. relief c. elevation
LA.8.1.6.1
Answer the Guiding Questions
3. Identifying What are the five themes of geography? Why are they important?
SS.8.G.1.2
4. Listing What are the different disadvantages of globes and maps?
SS.8.G.2.1
5. Applying What is the absolute location of your community? What is the relative location?
SS.8.G.1.2
6. Assessing How do physical systems affect humans?
SS.8.G.2.1, SS.8.G.5.1
7. Speculating What are two examples of ways that people shape the world they live in? Why do you think people do this?
SS.8.G.2.1, SS.8.G.5.2
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8. Identifying What is one ecosystem in Florida that is endangered by human development? How has it been changed?
SS.8.G.5.2
9. EXPOSITORY WRITING What is the definition of a place? Give two examples of places that you are familiar with.
SS.8.G.1.2
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