1. Map Projections & Scale Chapter 1 – Key Issue 1 Lecture

2. Geography is…  “The study of the physical features of the earth and its atmosphere, and of human activity as it affects and is affected by these, including the distribution of populations and resources, land use, and industries”

3. The Two Types of Geography  Physical Geography  Topography  Climate  Flora & Fauna  Soil Composition  Etc.  Human Geography  Population & Migration  Culture  Politics & Economics  Agriculture & Industry  Urbanization

4. Our Geography Course  Everything we do can be traced to 2 questions…  Where?  Why There?

5. Our Tool… The Map  Cartography is the science of mapmaking…  Cartographers create maps for two unique reasons  Reference  Where things are, how to get there, their relationship to other locations, etc.  Communication (Thematic Maps)  Depicting information for dissemination or analysis

8. Map Scale  Level of detail and the amount of area covered on the map depend on its map scale.  Relationship of a feature’s size on a map to its actual size on Earth

9. Map scale is presented in three ways…  Ratio or Fraction Scale: Ex. 1:24,000 or 1/24,000  Number on left is one unit of distance, while number on right represents same unit of distance on Earth’s surface.  Written Scale: Ex. 1 inch equals 1 mile  Number on left is one unit of distance, while number on right represents a different unit of distance on Earth’s surface.  Graphic Scale: Usually consists of a bar line marked to show distance on Earth’s surface  Distance between two points can be overlaid on the scale bar to determine the distance on Earth’s surface.

10. Large Scale vs Small Scale  A Large Scale Map shows a more detailed view that covers less area.  A Small Scale Map shows a very large area with little detail.

11. Projection  Transferring locations on the Earth’s surface to a flat map is called projection.  Earth’s spherical shape causes distortion when drawing it on a flat piece of paper.  Four types of distortion 1. Shape of an area can be distorted. 2. Distance between points may become increased or decreased. 3. Relative size of different areas can be altered. 4. Direction between points can be distorted.

12. The Three Families of Projections  Cylindrical Projections  A cylindrical projection is produced by wrapping a cylinder around a globe representing the Earth.  There are also Psuedocylindrical Variations  Conic Projections  A conic projection is derived from the projection of the globe onto a cone placed over it.  Azimuthal Projections  An azimuthal projection is a projection of the globe onto a plane.

13. Mercator Projection - Cylindrical

14. Eckert IV Projection – Psuedocylindrical Equal Area

15. Albers Projection – Conic Equal Area

16. Azimuthal Equidistant Projection Trivia! Used by the USGS as well as the ___, for their emblem.

17. Remember Thematic Maps  There are TONS of kinds of thematic maps

18. The Cartogram… My Favorite Thematic Map!!!

21. A Cartogram is…  A map that distorts area in order to communicate information.

22. The Four Traditions vs Five Themes  1964, W.D. Pattison, a professor at the University of Chicago, wanted to counter the idea that geography was an undisciplined science by saying that there were four distinctive, but affiliated traditions.  In the 1980s the National Geographic Society created the Five Themes of Geography

23. Four Traditions vs Five Themes  1964, W.D. Pattison, a professor at the University of Chicago, wanted to counter the idea that geography was an undisciplined science by saying that there were four distinctive, but affiliated traditions.  An earth-science tradition - physical (natural) geography.  A man-land tradition - relationships between human societies and natural environments.  A spatial tradition - spatial unifying theme, similar patterns between physical & human geography.  An area-studies tradition - regional geography

24. Four Traditions vs Five Themes  In the 1980s the National Geographic Society created the Five Themes of Geography  Location -absolute (latitude and longitude) and relative location.  Place- the distinctive physical and human characteristics of a place.  Human-Environmental Interaction- how people interact with their environment.  Movement- the mobility of people, goods and ideas-the patterns and change in human spatial interactions-accessibility & connectivity of places.  Regions -an area that displays a selected criteria-one or more distinctive characteristics.