GEOG 130 Study Guide - Fall 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Canada, Africa, Saskatoon
GEOG 130
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
What is human geography? (key question)
The study of geography
Three themes central to any study of the human world:
Relations between humans and land
The human world is the ever-changing product of the
activities of human beings, as individuals and as
group members, working within human and
institutional frameworks to modify pre-existing
physical conditions
Human geographers often focus on the
evolution of the human world with reference to
people, their cultures, and physical
environments
®
As human geographers, we are interested in
landscape both for what it is and for what it
means to live in it
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1)
Regionalization
To facilitate the task of writing about the world,
human geographers often divide large areas into
smaller areas that exhibit a degree of unity
Referred to as regions
®
Building on a long tradition, contemporary
human geography considers regions at a wide
range of scales - from local to global
®
In acknowledge the relevance of different
spatial scales of analysis, human geography
reveals the importance of place in all aspects of
our lives
®
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Regions are artificial: standard Canadian regions
Justifications for traditional regions:
Easy to understand
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Reflect political nature of Canada
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Facilitate use of existing statistical data
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Represents vernacular (how to perceive
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2)
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Introduction (week 1 & 2 pt.1)
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Represents vernacular (how to perceive
the world/ understood) regions
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associated with a core set of physical
features
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Nordicity in Canada: An alternative way of defining
Canadian regions
Based on 10 natural and social factors
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East-west regions may better reflect population
densities some ecological areas, economies,
etc.
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Nordicity reflects differences in technologies
required for living and transportation
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Provides an effective way to break down larger
regions
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Spatial analysis
Understanding the human world requires that we
explain location (why things are where they are)
Typically a geographer uses a spatial analysis
approach to tackle this question through:
Theory construction
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Models
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Hypothesis testing
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Using quantitative methods
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Primary goal is to explain locational regularities
Secondary goal is often of identifying
alternative locational patterns that might
be more efficient or more equitable (e.g.,
identifying ridings for electrons)
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Spatial science (spatial - "of or pertaining to space on
the Earth's surface")
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Study of spatial variation (physical and human
characteristics)
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Spatial 'context' is also key (idea of place and local
characteristics)
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Space and place (place - something at a given
location)
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Spatial distribution - what processes create and
sustain the pattern of a distribution?
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3)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Three themes central to any study of the human world: The human world is the ever-changing product of the activities of human beings, as individuals and as group members, working within human and institutional frameworks to modify pre-existing physical conditions. Human geographers often focus on the evolution of the human world with reference to people, their cultures, and physical environments. As human geographers, we are interested in landscape both for what it is and for what it means to live in it. To facilitate the task of writing about the world, human geographers often divide large areas into smaller areas that exhibit a degree of unity. Building on a long tradition, contemporary human geography considers regions at a wide range of scales - from local to global. In acknowledge the relevance of different spatial scales of analysis, human geography reveals the importance of place in all aspects of our lives.
