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111 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What are the Greek origins of the word geography? |
-Geo: earth -Graphia: description |
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What did Eratosthenes estimate? |
Estimated the earths circumference was and was accurate to within 2% |
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What is the definition of geography? |
The study of spatial relationships among earths physical and cultural features and how they develop and change through time |
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What does geography emphasize the role of? |
Geography emphasizes the role of spatial relationships between people and the physical world to gain insight into cultural and physical phenomenon |
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What two areas to Greeks organize their knowledge? |
Geography: the study of the terrestrial world cosmography: the study of the sky, stars, and the universe and beyond |
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What are geographies basic characteristics? |
-Looks at how things different from place to place -no particular body of facts or objects that It can call wholly on its own -broadfield of inquiry-borrows from other disciplines - both the physical and social science and bridges the gap between the two -looks at interrelationships |
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What is Cognate discipline? |
Geographers must interact with researchers and related fields |
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What is physical geography? |
The study of earths living and nonliving physical systems and how they change the space and time naturally or by human activity |
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What is human geography? |
The human imprint on the landscape |
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What are the three main elements of geography? |
1.Physical geography 2.human geography 3.geographic techniques |
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What are anthropogenic landscapes? |
Landscapes created or influenced by people -people modify earth physical landscapes to meet their needs and in doing so they are an active force of change -all of our material goods are connected to natural resources derive from earth physical systems |
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What is the spacial scale? |
Physical size, length, distance, or area of an object or the physical space occupied by a process |
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What is a Temporal scale? |
Window of time used to examine phenomenal and processes for the length of time over which they develop or change |
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What is a large scale? |
A geographic scale that pertains to a geographically restricted area, such as the city or neighbourhood |
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What is a small scale? |
A geographic scale that includes a large area of the earth surface, such as a map of the continent or hemisphere |
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How do you calculate map scale? |
Map distance\ earths distance |
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What is a representative fraction? |
1:1000000 |
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What is a verbal scale? |
1cm represents 1 km |
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Graphic scale? |
Picture** |
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Compare a large scale map with a small scale map?. |
Large scale map has more detail and small area where as a small scale map has less detail and a large area |
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What is the system? |
A set or collection of things that are somehow related or organized |
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What are characteristics of matter flow systems? |
Can be open or closed |
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What are characteristics of energy flow systems? |
are always open |
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What is the systems approach? |
-Use processes and landforms as assemblages of interrelated and interacting components -connected by energy flows -function as a unit -emphasizes the multivariate nature of geography and the relationship between processes and landscapes |
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What is a sub system? |
-A component of the larger system can act independently, but operates with, and is linked to, the larger system |
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What are flow system components? |
1.Pathways 2. Inputs ( coming in) and outputs( leaving) 3.power sources (solar radiation , gravity, internal/geothermal heat) |
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What is the systems response to change? |
1.Equilibrium 2. Feedback |
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What is an equilibrium? |
Measure of the degree to which systems internal state or output is adjusted to its input -balance between force and resistance |
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What are feedbacks and what types of feedbacks are there? |
Feedbacks create changes and other parts of the system. -two types of feedbacks are positive feedbacks and negative feedbacks |
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What is positive feedbacks? |
A process in which an intial change will bring about an additional change in the same direction |
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What is negative feedbacks? |
And initial change will bring about an additional change in the opposite direction |
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What is the ice albedo feedback? (Positive feedback ) |
1.Initial change 2.climate cooling 3. increase snow and ice higher reflectivity 4.less solar radiation absorbed at surface greater cooling |
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What is the water vapour feedback? (Positive feedback) |
1.Initial change 2.climate warming 3.increase atmospheric water vapour 4.increased greenhouse trapping of radiation 5. increased warming |
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What components make up the greenhouse effect? |
1.Water vapour and clouds together account for 75% 2. carbon dioxide accounts for 20% 3. Minor gases and aerosols make up the remaining 5% |
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Explain how vegetation and CO2 is a negative feedback? |
1.Atmospheric carbon dioxide increases 2.plants grow 3. atmospheric carbon dioxide decreases |
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Explain the open system of a glacier ? |
The primary material imports of a glacier include snow, rock, and ice was his “include melt water, water, and walk transported by the salt ice. The energy into changing foods in coming so radiation and the exchange of lateent heat between ice, liquid water, and water vapor. |
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What is the system international? |
Metric system |
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What is energy? |
Performs work on or can change the state of matter |
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What is matter? |
Any material that occupies space and possesses mass |
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What is a solid-state? |
In a solid,molecules are bonded together to form a rigid structure . Energy is added to water molecules, the ice will melt into liquid. |
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What is the liquid? |
Molecular bonds continually form and break. If he energy is added, the water will evaporate into a gas |
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What is in the gas? |
In a gas, molecules are not bonded together. Instead, they don’t freely about. |
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What are two categories of energy? |
Potential and kinetic energy |
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What is potential and kinetic energy? |
Potential Energy: energy stored in an object or material Kinetic Energy: energy of movement |
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What are three categories of energy and physical geography? |
1.Radiant energy 2.geothermal energy 3.chemical energy |
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What is radiant energy? |
The energy of electromagnetic waves ( Exogenic) |
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What is geothermal energy? |
Heat from the earths interior (endogenic) |
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What is chemical energy? |
Energy in a substance that can be released through a chemical reaction (example photosynthesis) |
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What is heat energy? |
A form of energy created by the combined internal motion of Atoms in the substance |
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What is the Geometric shape shape of the earth? |
Oblate spheroid (A slightly flattened sphere with an uneven surface) |
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Where is earths rotation the fastest? |
At the equator |
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What are the two main factors that affect the earths shape? |
1.At the equator the earth bulges out more than any other latitudes because the rotation of the earth is fastest at the equator 2. It has topographical irregularities -The earth shape sags and bulges as a result of its relief and as a result of differences in the thickness of the mass of it’s crust, the rigid outermost portion of the earths surface |
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What is relief? |
Relief is the difference in elevation between two or more points on earth surface |
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What is crust? |
The rigid outermost portion of the earths surface. The unevenness Causes different gravity fields across the surface |
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What is the actual (true) shape of the earth? |
Geoid |
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What is the circumference of the earth In kilometres? |
40,000 km |
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What is geodesy? |
The study of the size and shape of the earth (pioneered by Eratosthenes) |
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What are the four Great earth realms a.k.a. the earth environmental spheres? |
1.The atmosphere :The layer of gases surrounding the earth 2.the biosphere :All life on earth 3.the lithosphere :The rigid outer layer of earth, called the cross, and the heated layer beneath it to about 100 km 4.the hydrosphere: all of the earths water in it’s three phases solid, liquid, and gas |
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What composes the atmosphere? |
The atmosphere is composed of molecules in Adams that extend outward from the surface of the earth for hundreds of kilometers. It contains over a dozen different gases but consist mainly of nitrogen and oxygen. |
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What are some functions of the atmosphere? |
1.Provides oxygen for life 2.gases that block harmful rays from the sun 3.Moderate temperature on the earth surface, making life on land possible |
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How many plates make up the lithosphere? |
14 large plates |
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What percentage of water covers the earth? |
71% |
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What is the life layer of the four great earth realms? |
Interface between the four realms which is the biosphere |
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What is spatial phenomenal? |
The unique tools that geographers use to represent (Cartography, geographic information systems, remote-sensing, models and statistics) |
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What is the weather? |
The state of the atmosphere at any given movement and is made up of ever changing events on times scales ranging from minutes to weeks |
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What is cartography? |
The science and art of not making. Maps are the most efficient means of communicating spatial information, and they are central to geographic inquiry |
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The earth orbits the sun and what shape? |
elliptical orbit |
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What is the polarity of the earths axis? |
A characteristic of the earth access where it always points towards Polaris (the Northstar) at every position in the earths orbit around the sun |
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What is alphelion? |
When the earth is farthest from the sun occurs around July 4 |
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What is the perihelion? |
When the earth is closest to the sun occurs around January 3 |
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What direction does the earth rotate at the north pole? |
Counterclockwise |
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One rotation of the earth takes how long? |
A solar day (23 hours 56 minutes) |
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What are poles of earth? |
Two points on the earth surface where the axis of rotation emerges |
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What is an axis of the earth? |
And imaginary straight line through the centre of the earth around which the earth rotates |
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What are environmental effects of the earths rotation? |
1.Day and night 2.diurnal temperature 3.Coriolis effect 4.tides |
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What is the Earth‘s tilt From a perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic? |
23.5° |
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What is the degrees from the plane of the ecliptic? |
66.5° |
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What is a geographic grid? |
The coordinate system that uses latitude and longer to to identify locations on the earth surface |
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What is a graticule? |
System of meridians and parallels on a chart/map |
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What are the four earth features that provide the set of reference points? |
1.North pole 2.south pole 3.rotation axis 4.equatorial plane |
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What is the equator? |
The line of latitude that divides earth into two equal halves. The equator is exactly perpendicular to the earths axis of rotation |
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What is a steady state? |
Equilibrium is an average condition of a system where the trajectory remains unchanged in time |
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What is a dynamic equilibrium? |
Occurs when there are on repeated average states through time. And equilibrium state where the fundamental control is very overtime (example rainfall, temperature |
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What is the Cryoshpere? |
-A sub component of the hydrosphere -include all forms of frozen water, including glaciers, floating ice, snow cover and permafrost -could be considered as part of the hydrosphere, the crysopjere does not have its own distinct properties |
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What is Latitude? |
The angle between a point on a parallel and the centre of the earth and a point on the equator |
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What is a parallel? |
Pearls connect points of equal lattitude |
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What is longitude? |
-The angular distance east or west of the prime meridian -meridians correct lines of equal longitude |
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What is the parallel of the Tropic of Cancer? Tropic of Capricorn? |
23.5° north; 23.5° south |
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What Zone of latitude is Winnipeg found in? |
Mid latitude |
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1° longitude at the equator is how many kilometers? At Poles? |
111 km at equator; 0 km at poles |
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What is the prime meridian? |
0° longitude |
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What are three Map properties? |
1.Equivalent : ratio of a real size on map and earth is same 2.conformal : shape of locations on the map is the same as on earth 3.compromise:Projections that are neither conformal nor equivalent , but are almost both |
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What are challenges for the cartographer? |
-Equivalence versus conformality dilemma combine - geographic exactness of globe with convenience of flat map |
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What is a map projection? |
A system in which the spherical surface of the earth is transform for display on a flat surface |
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What is an isoline? |
A line on a map or chart along which there is a constant value (as of temperature and rainfall) |
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What is an iso bar? |
Line of constant pressure |
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What is an isotherm? |
Line of constant temperature |
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What is an isohyet? |
Line of constant rain |
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What is a global positioning system (GPS)? |
Satellites to locate precise latitude, longitude and elevation of a point |
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How many GPS satellites are there in the atmosphere? |
24 |
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What is a GIS? |
Computer-based system that allows maps, diagrams, satellite images and aerial photographs to be stored and manipulated -uses geographically (spatially) reference data |
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Who came up with the geographic information system (GIS) |
Roger Tomlinson |
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What is remote sensing? |
Any technique of imaging objects without the sensor being in direct contact with the object or scene itself ( Benjamin Richardson) |
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Name six different kinds of remote-sensing? |
1.Aerial photographs 2.orOrtha photographs 3. satellite images 4.visible light/infrared scanning 5. thermal IR scanning 6.radar and sonar systems |
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How is radar sensing unique? |
Radar sensing is unique in its ability to penetrate atmospheric moisture, so it can analyze wet tropical areas that can be sent by other systems |
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What are two different types of radar and sonar systems? |
1.Passive-measures energy 2.active-transmits energy |
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What is photogrammetry ? |
Science of obtaining reliable measurements from photographs, by extension, the science of napping from aerial photographs |
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What is the definition of a model? |
Simplified, idealize representation of part of the real world |
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What is convection? |
Movement of air in the atmosphere |
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Science does not actually prove things, but rather____ |
Eliminates explantations |
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What are theories? |
Logical and well tested explanation encompassing numerous facts and observations |
