Exploring Human Geography: The Why and How of the World's Patterns

1. Human Geography What are we looking for? • Understand the World and its patterns • “Why of Where?” • Why do certain events occur in certain places? • Why are places located where they are? • “What is there, why there, why care?”

2. Human Geography Why do I care? • Globalization • Interconnectedness of the world • Increasing interaction of peoples • Positive and Negative Effects • Sharing ideas / cultures / technologies • Desire for products -> Cheap Labor • Ideas / Culture Clash

3. Globalization Maquiladora

4. Globalization

5. Globalization Japanese McDonalds

6. Globalization Al-Farooq Masjid Atlanta, GA

8. Nasa.gov After Impact of a Tsunami Before

9. Geographers How do they work? • Need to create a spatial perspective • The location of things and events • Used to explain why human events occur • Used to show how events are related • Nothing lives in isolation

10. Geographers How do they work? • Collecting data • Put data in spatial perspective • On a map • Use databases • US government • UN • WHO • Collect Data • Quantitative • Qualitative

11. Spatial Perspective Human and Physical Geography • Physical Geography • Analyzes structures, processes, and locations of the earth’s natural phenomena • Human Geography • Analyzes structures, processes, and locations of the earth’s humans and their interactions

12. New York City, USA

13. Shanghai, China

14. Carving of Buddha

15. Carving of Buddha, Afghanistan Many statues of the Buddha have been destroyed by the Taliban in Afghanistan.

16. Unit 1 Geography It’s Nature and Perspectives

17. 5 Themes of Spatial Perspective (or the 5 Themes of Geography) • Location • Human – Environment Interaction • Region • Place • Movement

18. 5 Themes Location • Where is something located? • 2 Types of Location • Absolute Location • Relative Location • 2 Ways to Describe a location • Site • Situation

19. 5 ThemesLocation • Absolute Location • A precise, mathematical location • A location on the global grid • We use latitude and longitude to find Absolute Location

20. 5 ThemesLocation • Latitude • Lines parallel to the Equator • Horizontal • Measure North and South

21. 5 Themes Location • Longitude • Parallel to the Prime Meridian • Vertical • Measure East and West

22. Absolute Location Intersection between latitude and longitude. http://help.goro.am

23. 5 Themes Location • Measuring Latitude and Longitude • Degrees, Minutes and Seconds • 60 Minutes in a Degree • 60 Seconds in a Minute

24. 5 Themes Location • Time Zones • 24 Time Zones • Start at Prime Meridian • Use Latitude • Driven by economics for scheduling

25. Time Zones http://www.physicalgeography.net

26. 5 ThemesLocation University of Georgia • Relative Location • Relative to it’s surroundings • Can change • With person / perspective • As area changes • Not precise The Big Chicken

27. 5 Themes Location • Relative Location Georgia Tech

28. 5 Themes Location • Site • Internal Physical and Cultural Characteristics Mt. Kilimanjaro, Kenya Horses in Argentina?

29. Islamic Population Around the World http://www.digital-kaos.co.uk

30. 5 ThemesLocation • Situation • Location relative to physical and cultural characteristics • Relative to things around it

34. 5 ThemesHuman / Environment Interaction • Cultural Ecology • How do humans affect the environment? • How does the environment affect humans?

35. 5 Themes Region • Used to classify information • Organizational tool • Not exact

36. 5 ThemesRegion • 3 Types • Formal • Functional • Perceptual

37. 5 Themes Region • Formal • Tied to a physical or cultural characteristic

38. Appalachian Mountains

39. The Sun Belt

40. 5 ThemesRegion • Functional • “Nodal” Region • A link that is established • Connects the people • Created by an outside influence

41. Functional Regions Fig. 1-11: The state of Iowa is an example of a formal region; the areas of influence of various television stations are examples of functional regions.

42. 5 Themes Region • Perceptual (Vernacular) • Created by “perception” • Not exact • Based on opinion • Can change

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

44. 5 Themes Place • Has Human and Physical Attributes • Human • Religion, Language, Politics, Artwork, etc • Physical • Climate, Terrain, Natural Resources

45. 5 Themes Movement • How / where do things “move” within a given space? • Ideas, people, goods, information, etc

46. 5 Themes Movement • Spatial Interaction • How do places interact through movement? • Show impact of one place on the other

47. 5 Themes Movement • Friction of Distance • How distance interferes with interaction • Interaction made easier over time • Improved Technology • Space – Time Compression • Increased connectivity due to increased technology

48. 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.

49. 5 Themes Movement • Distance Decay • Influence of one area over another over distance • Less important with improved travel technology

50. 5 Themes Movement • Diffusion • How things spread or move within an area • From person to person or place to place • The characteristic of that spread