Chapter 1
Introduction to Human
Geography
A. Awakening to Hunger
• 1/6 of the world is
malnourished they have
food but not the right
balance (women and
children)
• Food issues from poverty,
poor food distribution, and
male dominance
• Lots of land does not = lots
of food (Bangladesh v.
Norway example)
What is Human Geography
• Study of people and
places and how
things in society
interact
• Globalization idea
that culture traits are
not restricted by
country boundaries
– Mcdonalds in South
Africa
– Constant interaction
with the whole world
– Fear it will create a
conforming world
What are geographic questions?
• Geography is the why
of where …why things
happen in certain
locations
• Spatial- where things
occur in places
– Spatial distributionseeing how things
are laid out across
space and why they
have certain patterns
• Medical geography- maps how diseases spread and
can learn how to treat them
– Cholera pandemic in Europe 1800s cured by
geography and maps
– Pandemic- worldwide disease
– Epidemic regional disease
• Spatial perspective- seeing how
geography varies based on where you are
located
Themes of Geography
• Location- position of people and things
– Absolute location exact longitude & latitude
– Relative location things positioned around you
– Location Theory- the explanation on the logic
of why things are placed in their location
(star bucks all over NYC)
• Region- An area defined by a shared
characteristic (Latin America…Spanish)
Themes of Geography
• Place- space distinguished by both human
and physical features (Orlando has orange
groves and Disney)
• Movement- How goods and ideas move in
and out of an environment
Landscape
• Physical landscape- natural landscape
• Cultural landscape- imprint a culture is
making on the land (buildings, theme
parks)
• Sequent occupance- cultural imprints that
last WAY after the culture is gone
(Egyptian pyramids)
Why do geographers use maps?
• Cartography- art of making maps
– Reference maps show location of features
(mountains rivers, country boundaries
– Thematic maps show “stories” like how many
people have HIV in Africa
• Mental maps-ideas we carry in our head of
how things look
• Activity space- area that you travel each
day
– Home
practice
school
mcdonalds
chicfil a
home
band
• Remote sensing- satellite information
• GIS- computer that stores “layers” of
information that can tell you multiple
things at once (a city's population and
racial breakdown)
Scale- how large or small of an
area the map covers
• Large scale- map covers a small area in
great (LARGE) details
• Small scale- map covers a large area in
SMALL details
• Jumping scale (rescale) when a local
issue becomes a global issue (swine flu)
Regions
• Formal- area where everyone shares a
distinct characteristic (language)
• Functional- area shares a practical
function, all receive the Orlando Sentinel
• Perceptual- how you think of a region
(your stereotype in your head)
– Wilbur Zelinsky created 12 US perceptual
regions based on phone book research of
culture traits
Functional region
•
A fun visualization about the geography of sports fans, specifically where
can you get a radio signal for games for the Red Sox or Yankees games
.
Culture
• Culture trait- single unit within a culture
(language) not biologically passed but
learned
• Culture complex- all culture traits
combined together to make up a unique
culture
• Culture hearth- source of a civilization
Cultural diffusion- how ideas
spread from one culture to another
• Time-distance decay further away a place
is the less likely a culture trait will diffuse
• Cultural barriers prevent diffusion of a trait
(no beef in Hindu countries)
Expansion diffusion- trait remains
strong while spreading to other areas
• Contagious- all areas near the central area are
affected by the idea first (like spreading of a
disease)
• Hierarchical- spreads to only a select few in an
area and then slowly to others (Fax machine)
• Stimulus- idea indirectly promotes local version
of the trait (veggie burger)
Relocation Diffusion- when a person
carries the trait to a new area
• Acculturation- one less dominant culture
adopts the practices and ideas of a more
dominant culture
• Assimilation- one culture becomes
dominant over another and they become
one
Geographic concepts
• Environmental determinism- human
behavior is controlled by the physical
environment (hurricanes)
• Possiblism- the environment may limit
actions but people can make adjustments
(raincoats)