World Geography°
Study Guide
Unit 1 - Introduction to Geography
Mapping, 5 Themes, and Topography
1. What is the advantage of a globe over a map?
2. What is the disadvantage of a globe?
3. What are the two basic questions that geographers are always asking when they study the
earth?
4. What do latitude and longitude lines help geographers identify?
5. Which theme would geographers use to study the consequences of peoples’ actions?
6. How would a person describe the human features of a place?
a. Hilly and hot or cold
b. How the moon and stars interact with the earth
c. Discuss how many people live there, what types of they do, and what they do for fun
7. Do you know the cardinal directions on a map and how to use them when talking about other
places related to a place?
8. Why is a globe more accurate than a map?
9. What type of navigation is a Mercator map primarily utilized for?
10. What is the system of angular measurement for specifying a location north or south of the
equator known as?
11. What is it called when parallels and meridians intersect on a map?
12. Historical maps might show things like colonies, battles, former borders of countries, or,
population changes over time.
13. What is the line at 0 degrees latitude called?
14. “Out West” or “down South” are examples of what type of location?
15. Scale can also imply the size of a map and the size of an area on a map compared with the
area’s actual size.
16. What are the tools that geographers use?
17. If the absolute location of an area is 20° N, 80° E, what hemisphere is that location found in?
18. What are contour lines used to demonstrate?
19. Imaginary east-west circles parallel to the equator are called?
20. What circles the globe halfway between the North and South poles horizontally at 0 degrees?
21. Name the man who created a flat map in the 1500s to help ships navigate the globe.
22. How does distortion apply to maps?
23. What does a compass rose show?
24. What is the section of a map that explains the symbols for the map features called?
25. Describe what the Prime Meridian is.
26. Know the 5 themes of geography and their definitions and give an example of each theme.