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Human Geography
Jerome D. Fellmann
Mark Bjelland
Arthur Getis
Judith Getis
Human
Geography
Chapter 1
Insert figure CO1
Introduction
© Thinkstock/Masterfile
Site of the wind farm pictured?...
Why at that particular spot?
Image Copyright 2003 by Jon Malinowski, All rights reserved.
What Is Geography?
• “Description of the Earth”
– Greek: “geo graphein”
• The physical and cultural landscape
• Human Geography is a spatial science
– We attempt to explain what, where and
why?
What Is Geography?
• Study of Spatial Variation (Vocab alert!!)
– How and why things differ from place to
place…Solving spatial riddles…
– Why do Brazilians burn the rainforest?
– What are the effects?(2)
• What good is such understanding?
• Traditional Slash and Burn
• Soy
Terms Review/Discussion:
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Globalization
Glocalization
Interdependent
Nationalism
Supra-nationalism
Cultural Imperialism
Cultural Homogenization
Centrifugal forces
Centripetal forces
Environmental determinism
Human Modification of the environment
The Power of Place #1
One Earth, Many Scales
Syria Explained
Evolution of the Discipline
• Ancient Period…Summarize the contributions
of each to the field of geography:
– Eratosthenes
• Greek, Head Librarian at Alexandria during 3rd century B.C.E., Computed
the earth’s circumference with incredible accuracy, early cartographer,
coined the term geography.
– Strabo
• Describe the physical and cultural traits of the known world…compare and
contrast countries
– Herodotus
• Applied a study of geography to analyze the Persian wars and to predict
consequences and outcomes
– Idrisi
• 11th century Arab geographer, assembled an early world map…trade
routes interconnectedness…globalization
Evolution of the Discipline
Other notable Geographers
• Ptolemy
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Developed a global grid system – the precursor to lat. & long. (also
recalculated the earths circ. 500 years after Eratosthenes…and got it
wrong by 9,000 miles.)
• George Perkins Marsh
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Wrote Man and Nature in 1864. Focused on Human modification of
the environment and warned of the disastrous effects of environmental
degradation on human society.
• Carl Sauer
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Early 20th century, “father of “Human Geography” - argued that the
main focus of geography should be cultural landscapes (the products
of the interactions between humans and their environments)
Human Geography 11e
Evolution of the Discipline
• What changed geography in the “modern
period?” (4)
Geography as an integrative science
Focus of Geography
Explain each of the following three
themes (4)
• Areal Variation on the Earth’s
Surface
• Spatial Systems
• Regional Geography
Focus of Geography
– Areal Variation on the Earth’s Surface
• Examines relationships between human societies and
the natural environments that they occupy and
modify
– Spatial Systems
• Link physical phenomena and human activities in
one area of the earth with other areas
– Regional Analysis
• Studies human-environmental-”ecological”relationships and spatial systems in specific
locational settings
Challenge: Provide one example of each of the above
themes from the Bloomer area
Human Geography:
“The world as it is and as it might be made to be”
• Subfields:
– Behavioral
– Political
– Economic
– Cultural
– Social
– Urban
– Medical
– Population
Core Geographic Concepts
Geography is descriptive and analytical
Oakwood
WHAT?
WHERE?
WHY THERE?
Spatial Analysis
-Its relationship to other places in the
region
Core Geographic Concepts
• Space and Place
– Absolute
• Physically real with measureable extent
– Relative space
• Perceptual and variable over time
– Sense of place
• The attachment we have to specific locations
– Placelessness
• Uniformity; elimination of uniqueness
Review: Location
• Absolute Location
• Relative Location
• Site vs. Situation
• Absolute Location
– Identification of place by some precise
and accepted system of coordinates
• Relative Location
– The position of a place in relation to that
of other places or activities
• Site
– Physical and cultural attributes of a place
• Situation
– Expression of relative location with
particular reference to items of
significance to the place in question
Location
• Explain Site vs. Situation
(figures 1.6, 7 on p.9)
Review questions
• What is geography?
– Study of Spatial Variation
• How and why things differ from place to place…Solving spatial
riddles
• In what two meanings and for what two
purposes do we refer to location?
– Absolute and Relative
• Describe the site and situation of Bloomer.
Physical & Cultural Attributes
• Natural Landscape
– Climate, soil, water
resources, minerals
and terrain features
– Provides the setting
within which human
actions occurs
Insert figure 1.10
• Cultural Landscape
– Visible expression of
human activity
© Doug Sherman/Geofile
Places
• Changing Attributes of Place
– Across both space and time
(Fig. 1.11,12, p.12,13)
• Interrelations between Places
– Accessibility and Connectivity (1.13, p.14)
– Spatial Diffusion and Globalization
• The Rational Structure of Place
(1.14,15, p.15)
– Density
– Dispersion
– Pattern
Patterns revealed in light
Places
• The Rational Structure of Place
– Density
• a measure of the number of anything within
a defined unit area
• Number of items in relation to the space in
which they are found
– Dispersion
• The amount of spread of a phenomenon
over an area
– Pattern
• The geometric arrangement of objects
For Wed. Place Similarity & Regions
• 1 Read pp.15,16 pay attention to figs.
1.17,1.17 as well
• 2. Define Region
• 3. Distinguish between formal/uniform
regions, functional/nodal regions and
perceptual regions providing two examples
for each type of region.
• Read pp. 17-27 and respond to 6, 7, 8 on
p. 28
Human Geography 11e
Place Similarity & Regions
• The Characteristics of Regions
• Types of Regions:
– Formal
• Uniform regions; uniformity in one or a
limited combination of physical or cultural
features
– Functional
• Give an organizational basis
– Perceptual
• Reflect feelings and images
Human Geography 11e
Maps
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Map Scale
The Globe Grid
How Maps Show Data
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
Mental Maps
Application
• Constructing a mental (perceptual) map
– Your task is to draw a mental map of the
“Chippewa Valley”. Your map should include
the following:
• Physical landscape (rivers/lakes in our case)
• Cultural landscape
– Cities, Hwy’s, and other important cultural
features that tie this specific are together as a
region (i.e., spatial interaction).
– Population
» Density,dispertion, pattern(1 dot = “x”people)
– How will you deal with location/distance? (i.e., absolute
vs.relative?)
Large scale: The larger the scale the smaller the area depicted
and the greater the detail shown
Map Scale
aka. How much can I confuse you
Small Scale: The
smaller the scale the
larger the area
depicted and the less
detail visible.
What is the best map?
• With a globe the
four main map
properties are
preserved:
– Area
– Shape
– Distance
– Direction
The Global Grid
• Type of location?
• Key Reference points?
– Natural reference points:
• Poles & Equator
– “constructed” reference
point?
• Prime Meridian
– Latitude
– Longitude
How maps show data
• General Purpose maps
– These maps show natural or human
made features with no analysis
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Streets
Topography
Water bodies
Etc.
How maps show data
• Thematic Maps
– Show spatial distribution of some specific
variable
• Climate, vegitation, soil types, population characteristics,
etc.
– Thematic maps can be qualitative or quantitative
Qualitative maps show the distribution of some phenomenon
Sand Mines in Wisconsin
Quantitative maps show the quantity of some phenomenon
World Oil Production
Types of Thematic maps
Types of Thematic Maps
• Statistical Maps
– Population Cartogram
Contemporary Geospatial
Technologies
Global Positioning Systems (GPS)
Satellite triangulation
Remote Sensing
Imaging earths surface
Arial Photog. Infrared, Radar
Geographic Information Systems
• GIS Explained
GIS (cont.)
• Used to analyze geographic data tied
to specific locations
GIS Aggregation of data:
Raster approach
-Describes the content of
rectangular cells
Vector approach
Precise location of each object or
phenomenon in a distribution
Mental Maps
• Our understanding
of distributions
• Our view of spatial
reality
• images about an
area or an
environment
developed by an
individual on the
basis of information
or impressions
received,
interpreted, and
stored
Insert figure 1.25
Systems, Maps, and Models
• Spatial System
– The content of area is interrelated
– Component parts are interdependent
– Maps can segragate a limited amount of
data…GIS takes this to a higher level
• Model
– Simplified abstraction
– Clarifies causal relationships