KEY QUESTION #4:
WHY ARE
GEOGRAPHERS
CONCERNED WITH
SCALE &
CONNECTEDNESS?
(4 slides)
KEY QUESTION #4: WHY ARE
GEOGRAPHERS CONCERNED WITH SCALE
& CONNECTEDNESS?
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Scale has two meanings
• Distance on a map compared to the distance on the
Earth
• Territorial extent of something
In HG, we will use the 2nd definition
For example, if we study the scale of wealth globally…
• We see wealth in Western Europe, Canada, USA,
Japan & Australia
• We do not see it in Sub-Saharan Africa
If we study it in just North America, we see the
greatest wealth on the coasts; lesser wealth in the
interior & south
Scale
KEY QUESTION #4: WHY ARE
GEOGRAPHERS CONCERNED WITH SCALE
& CONNECTEDNESS?
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Geographers also divide the world into regions for
analysis(shows connectedness)
A region shares similar characteristics
• Formal region: places that share one or more
homogenous phenomenon
• Functional region: Defined by a set of activities that
take place and the limits in which they occur
• Perceptual region: Exists just as an idea in
someone’s mind
 This is definitely the most difficult to agree on
 One person’s perception of the Southern U.S., or
the Middle East, or Africa might be completely
different than another’s
Formal and Functional
Regions
Fig. 1-11: The state of Iowa is an example of a formal region; the areas of influence
of various television stations are examples of functional regions.
Perception
of Place
Where Pennsylvanian
students prefer to live
Where Californian
students prefer to live
The meanings of regions are often contested. In Montgomery,
Alabama, streets named after Confederate President Jefferson Davis
and Civil Rights leader Rosa Parks intersect.
Photo credit: Jonathan Leib
KEY QUESTION #4: WHY ARE
GEOGRAPHERS CONCERNED WITH SCALE
& CONNECTEDNESS?
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The concept of culture is also critical(again,
can show elements of connectedness)
• Its an all-encompassing term that
identifies not only the whole lifestyle of
people, but also their values & beliefs
Cultural trait: single attribute of culture
Culture complex: combination of traits
Cultural hearth: area where traits develop
and from where traits spread(fancy term is
called “diffusion”)
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KEY QUESTION #4: WHY ARE
GEOGRAPHERS CONCERNED WITH SCALE
& CONNECTEDNESS?
Terms relating to diffusion
• Distance decay: farther you are from a hearth,
the less likely the traits/innovations will spread
• Cultural barriers: things that work against the
spreading of an idea, trait or innovation
• Types of diffusion
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EXPANSION: spreads outward
CONTAGIOUS: all nearby individuals are usually
affected
HIERARCHICAL: spreads to a certain group first
RELOCATION: people move who carry new traits with
them
STIMULUS: takes a part of an idea(not all of it)
Stimulus
Diffusion
Because Hindus believe cows are
holy, cows often roam the streets in
villages and towns. The McDonalds
restaurants in India feature veggie
burgers.
Types of Diffusion
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Relocation diffusion –
Paris, France
movement of individuals who
carry an idea or innovation
with them to a new, perhaps
distant locale.
Kenya
Photo credit: H.J. de Blij
Photo credit: A.B. Murphy
KEY QUESTION #5:
WHAT IS THE “HISTORY”
OF “GEOGRAPHY”?
(5 slides)
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KEY QUESTION #5: WHAT IS THE “HISTORY”
OF “GEOGRAPHY?”
Greeks were the first to classify geography
• Wrote about the Earth being round
• In Homer’s “Odyssey” and “Iliad” he makes
several geographic references
• First to name the continents of Asia, Europe &
Africa
• Greek named Anaximander made the first map
• Aristotle, Plato & Pythagoras furthered the
belief the earth was round
• Eratosthenes was first to use the term
“geography”…he also made the first accurate
calculation of the Earth’s circumference
KEY QUESTION #5: WHAT IS THE “HISTORY”
OF “GEOGRAPHY?”
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Romans also had an influence
• Ptolemy was 1st person to write and describe
cities & civilizations
• Romans made maps, but were more into the
artistic style than being accurate
Dark Ages(500-1000 AD) led to a halt in
geographic & academic study in Europe
• Led to the emergence of Middle Eastern
influence through more mapmaking
• Chinese eventually furthered the study--eventually stopped as they cut themselves off
from the world
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KEY QUESTION #5: WHAT IS THE “HISTORY”
OF “GEOGRAPHY?”
Around the time the Chinese shut
themselves off, the European Age of
Exploration Began(1300-1600 AD)
• Marco Polo started it
• Gerardus Mercator was first to make a
map that accurately showed the
continents
In the last 100 years, two geographic
philosophies emerged:
• Environmental determinism & possibilism
KEY QUESTION #5: WHAT IS THE “HISTORY”
OF “GEOGRAPHY?”
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ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINISM
• Human behavior is strongly affected(if not
controlled) by the physical environment
• Suggests climate is the critical factor in
how human’s behave(even implying
environment affects the intelligence of
people)
• The counterargument to this is
“possibilism”
KEY QUESTION #5: WHAT IS THE “HISTORY”
OF “GEOGRAPHY?”
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POSSIBILISM
• Environment simply serves as a limit
to the range of choices available to a
culture
• Human decision making is the crucial
factor in human development
• Much more widely accepted theory to
modern geographers