Maps Review

Five Themes Location Place Human-Environment Interaction Movement Absolute Latitude and Longitude Relative Place Human Physical Human-Environment Interaction Use of Environment Adaptation Movement Travel of people, ideas, and goods Region Grouping of places Five Themes

Types of Regions Formal Functional Vernacular Defined by governments Set border Functional Central place and the area surrounding it Metropolitan Vernacular Regions that share characteristics Not formally defined Types of Regions

Tools of the Geographer Primary Sources Fieldwork Satellite images Photographs Secondary Sources Geographic Information System (GIS) Maps and Globes Database Collection of digital information Tools of the Geographer

Relative Location Spatial relationships among places Where something is in relation to something else Relative Location

Mental Maps A map in your mind How you remember where a place is Where a place is in relation to somewhere else Indicates how well a person knows an area Refined through experience and learning Mental Maps

Improving a Mental Map Compare to maps Describe location in terms of reference points Describe location in terms of geographic features and landforms Describing location in terms of human characteristics Improving a Mental Map

Tools on a map Title Compass Rose Labels Symbols Legend/Key Scale Colors Contour Lines Tools on a map

Absolute and Relative Location Latitude and Longitude Relative NOT an exact location Use direction, distance, other places to give general idea Absolute and Relative Location

Measure north or south of the Equator Runs east to west Latitude

Longitude Measure east or west of the Prime Meridian Runs north to south, connect at the poles Longitude

Types of Maps Physical Political Thematic Shows physical features such as mountains, rivers, deserts, etc. Political Shows boundaries between countries, cities, human-made features Thematic Uses symbols, colors, labels to show specific information Population, economic activity, resources, language, ethnicity, climate, precipitation, vegetation, elevation (contour maps) Types of Maps

Distortion Shape Distance Size Mapping Challenges

Map Projections Mercator Robinson Polar Straight lines Distorts area near poles Used mostly in ship navigation Robinson Lines of longitude curve Used to compare data in atlases Polar Viewed from one of the poles Airline navigation Map Projections

Mapping Changes Knowledge Place names change Boundaries change Exploration, technology, GIS mapping software Place names change Formosa – Taiwan Palestine – Israel Boundaries change Decolonization, war, countries break apart, UN People have different names for different places Arabian Gulf vs. Persian Gulf, Sea of Japan vs. East Sea Ownership of areas can be disputed North and South Korea, Yugoslavia, Kashmir Mapping Changes