1. What is Geography?
Geography is the study of what is where and why it’s there.

2. What Is Geography? Geo: Earth Graphy write, map, describe
Geo vs. History
Human
Patterns & processes of human understanding, use, and alteration of the Earth’s surface
Employ spatial concepts & landscape Analysis
Overlaps with other fields:

3. What is geography? Connects to: Psychology Sociology Anthropology
Economics
Political Science
Environmental Science
History
Physical Geography (Earth Science)

4. Why do we study geography?
Increased interconnected world
Overlaps with other disciplines when viewed spatially
Place matters!
Science and art
We balance…
World patterns/processes
Individual uniqueness of place (sense of place)
Globalization – greater connectedness that does not recognize traditional human divisions (borders).
De Blij: “What happens at the global scale affects the local, but it also affects the individual, regional and national, and similarly the processes at these scales impact the global.” (8)

5. Globalization of the Economy
Fig. 1-17: The Denso corporation is headquartered in Japan, but it has regional headquarters and other facilities in North America and Western Europe.

6. Big Mac Geography

7. Physical and Human Geography
Physical Geography:
Earth’s natural environs
Processes that shape the earth’s surface
Distribution of landforms
Rocks and Minerals
Landforms
Soils
Animals
Plants
Water
Atmosphere
Rivers and Other Water Bodies
Climate and Weather

8. World Climate Regions
Fig. 1-14: The modified Köppen system divides the world into five main climate regions.

9. Physical and Human Geography
Distribution and characteristics of people
How people use space
What people do
Population
Settlements
Economic Activities
Transportation
Recreational Activities
Religion
Political Systems
Social Traditions
Human Migration
Agricultural Systems

10. Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Place – Local human and physical characteristics uniquely defines place
Usually have name and boundaries
Examples
Imparts meaning on inhabitants

11. Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Human-Environment Interaction
The ways in which human society and the natural environment affect each other

12. How do people use features of place in different ways?
How do people adapt to the environment?
How do people change their environment?
How have people created problems with their environment?

13. Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Human – Environment Interaction
Environmental Determinism – people more determined by their environment
Possibilism – People adapt and change their environment
Cultural Ecology - A branch of ecology. The study of the interaction of human societies with one another and with the natural environment.

14. Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Movement – interconnectedness of places…this is spatial interaction.
People, goods, and ideas between places
Historically
People are interdependent
Accessibility – reaching one location from another
Connectivity – linkage between places
Intervening Opportunity (think accessibility) – a more attractive option closer at hand. Reduces the pull of opportunities of a distant location.
Migration? (A human commodity flow?)
WWI African Americans, Latin America to U.S.

15. Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Movement – spatial interaction
Measuring interaction:
Time-space convergence – accelerated movement due to technological innovations (comm., trans.)
Time-space compression – psychological and social effects of the intensity of time-space convergence.
Distance decay – the effects of distance on interaction.

16. Space-Time Compression, 1492-1962
Fig. 1-20: The times required to cross the Atlantic, or orbit the earth, illustrate how transport improvements have shrunk the world.

17. Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Region
formal region –
Functional Region –
Perceptual Region –

18. Election of 1860

19. Formal Region - Ecoregions

20. Colorado Landforms

21. Colorado - physiographic

22. Functional Region - economics

23. Vernacular Regions
Fig. 1-12: A number of features are often used to define the South as a vernacular region, each of which identifies somewhat different boundaries.

24. Perceptual Regions - Baseball

26. Five “Key Spatial Themes” of Geography
Location

27. Distribution: Density, Concentration, & Pattern
Fig. 1-18: The density, concentration, and pattern (of houses in this example) may vary in an area or landscape.

28. Density and Concentration of Baseball Teams, 1952 & 2007
Fig. 1-19: The changing distribution of North American baseball teams illustrates the differences between density and concentration.

29. Al Franken Ignorant Americans BBC Article
Ignorant Americans
BBC Article