Chapter 1 – Thinking Geographically
– What is Where, Why There, and
Why Care?
AP Human Geography (HuGs)
Boucher

Which is the real map?

Robinson Projection

Peters Projection

Spatial
Distribution Map
The patterns of victim’s homes and water pump locations helped uncover the source of the disease.

Reference v. Thematic Map
Reference Map – Shows locations of places and Thematic Map – Tells a story geographic features

Geography v. Human Geography
• Human Geography – the scientific study of location of people and activities on the Earth’s surface
• Spatial Perspective v.
Interaction
• Diffusion (movement) of people and ideas
• What do Geographers do? (Look back at
Scavenger Hunt for answers!)
– Political conflicts
– Economic and development
• Connects with history, sociology, economics, and political science

Wales – Longest city name in the world (Good luck)
-
Location and Place
- Why places are names certain things (Why is Dunwoody Dunwoody?)
- Historical names
- Descriptive names
- Stories-behind-the-names
- Absolute v. Relative Location (2 Minute
Paper Challenge!)
- Site v. Situation

Montgomery, AL
Place names can reflect the culture of the area – or in this case, conflicting cultures.

Site
New Orleans, LA
Situation

Geographic Information
Systems
GIS v. GPS
Global Positioning System

Regions and Regionalization
• Regions – Areas where spatial regularities exist
– Formal (uniform) regions
– Area that has striking similarities in terms of one or a few physical or cultural features
• Formal political region created when a government draws imaginary lines around an area (states or provinces)
• May also be defined by cultural characteristics, such as language or religion

More Formal Regions in Middle East

Functional (nodal) Regions
• Areas organized around cores, or nodes
– Core area (like a city) has distinct characteristics that lessen in intensity as one travels to the periphery (region’s margins)
– How is Denver, CO a good example of a functional region?

Perceptual (vernacular) Regions
• Places that people believe to exist as a part of their cultural identity
– How do you classify Northeasterners?
– What states are in the South?
– What defines “Southerners”?
– Where is the Midwest?

Regions Around Us Activity!

How Are Different Places Similar?
• Globalization – The expansion of economic, political, and cultural activities that have impact on many areas of the world
– How fast do these changes get to different places and regions?
– Transnational
Corporations – Wellknown companies that have centers of operation in many parts of the globe (Why are people critical of this?)

Connections Between Places
• Distance Decay –
Greater distance = less chance of cultural interaction
• Diffusion – Spread of an idea from the hearth (source area) to other places

Innovation Diffusion

History of the Cell Phone

History of the Cell Phone, Pt. 2

History of the Cell Phone, Pt. 3
• Text Messages Sent
– 2000 – 17 Billion
– 2001 – 250 Billion
– 2004 – 500 Billion
– 2007 – 1.9 Trillion
– 2011 – 7 Trillion!

Types of Diffusion
• Expansion Diffusion
– Contagious Diffusion –
Nearly all adjacent individuals and places are affected
– Hierarchical Diffusion –
Spread of an idea from one node to another
– Stimulus Diffusion –
Spread of a principle rather than a specific characteristic (Veggie
‘hamburgers’ in
McDonald’s in India
• Relocation (Migration)
Diffusion

Which Type of Diffusion Are
These? What Are Some Barriers to
Diffusion?