Chapter 1
Geography: An Exploration of
Connections
World Regional Geography Concepts
Pulsipher and Pulsipher

 What is Geography?
A study of the Earth’s surface and the processes that shape it.
 The word Geography is a combination of two words: “Geo” means earth and “graphy” means description.
Therefore, ‘Geography’ means: “description of the earth.”
 The ancient Greek scholar Eratosthenes first used the word Geography.

The Discipline of Geography: Two Major Divisions.
 Physical Geography and Human Geography
 Geography is a unique discipline which connects physical sciences: geology, physics, chemistry, biology and social sciences: anthropology, sociology, history, economics, and political science.
 Therefore, Geography is interdisciplinary.

Circumference of
Geography

Three Central Questions:
Where is it?
Why is it there?
Why does it matter?
 Geographers study:
 Locations
 Spatial Relationships
 Connection between environment and people A Childhood Landscape Map: Cognitive
Space

Concept of Space in geography
Definition: Space is the extent of an area, usually expressed in terms of the earth’s surface.
 the term “spatial” and “spatial relationships” are at the heart of geography
 Absolute space: It refers to clearly distinct, real, objective space. It can be measured in absolute units of distance (kilometers or miles).
 Relative Space: Space is perceived in terms of time, cost, profit, and production.
e.g. Socio-economic space or cultural space

Metro System in Milan, Italy

Topological Space is defined as the connections between particular points
Nature and degree of connectivity between locations

Cognitive Space: It is defined and measured in terms of people’s values, feelings, beliefs, and perceptions about locations, districts, and regions.

Connection/
Interaction between environment and people in the Sundarban
Biosphere Reserve, West
Bengal, India

QUICK REVIEW
What is Geography?
Two Major branches of Geography
Definition of Geography
Circumference of Geography and interdisciplinary nature of the subject
Concept of space: Absolute, Relative, and
Cognitive space
Topological space: A type of absolute space
Three central Questions: Where is it? Why is it there? And Why does it matter?
Geographers study:
Locations
Spatial Relationships
Connection between environment and people

Sudanese children working and playing
Work: collecting fire-wood

 Geographer’s visual Tools:
 Map: may be defined as a two dimensional scale model of a part of the surface of the Earth.
 Geographers who specialize in producing and interpreting geographic information graphically are called cartographers.  Cartography: The production and study of maps and charts  Scale is the heart and soul of Geography and Cartography.
 Scale: The relationship between map distance and corresponding ground distance
 R.F. or Representative Fraction: Numeric ratio
 e.g. 1: 1,000,000 or 1/1,000,000
 Numerator and denominator expressed in the same unit of measurement Maps

Thematic Maps: Concentrate on spatial variations of a single phenomenon or the relationship between phenomena
e.g. Map showing vegetation zones of KY

Thematic

Topographi c Topographic maps:
Topographic maps depict as much of the surface features
(Physical and human features) of a particular area as is possible within the limitation of the scale.

What Kind of
Map is this?
Thematic or
Topographic ?

Thematic or Topographic?

TOTAL POPULATION: THE WORLD

Thematic or
Topographic?
Colors are used to show spatial distribution.
These are qualitative maps as the mapping procedure does not consider any numerical information. This is a chorochromatic map:
“Choro” means area
“Chromos” means color Thematic or Topographic ?

Examples of
Scale

The Basic component of a map: Scale, North-line,
Title, caption and legend
GLOBAL CITIES

Latitudes and Longitudes
 Most map contains lines of latitudes and longitudes  Lines of Latitudes and Lines of