Map Projections

Maps

• Mercator Projection focuses on longitude and latitude, maintaining accurate direction but distorting country size and location.
• All maps involve distortion, affecting direction, shape, area, and distance.
• Goode Homolosine projection is an interrupted map that minimizes distortion by removing portions of the globe, accurately shows size and shape while distorting distance and direction.
• Fuller map projection accurately shows size and shape but is hard to read due to the absence of cardinal directions.
• Robinson projection has distortion at the poles but accurately shows the size and shape of land masses.
• Winkle Tripel Projection resembles the Robinson projection but is rounder and larger, with the most distortion occurring at the poles.
• Gall Peters Projection accurately shows the true size of land masses but distorts direction and land shape.
• Reference maps are informational, indicating boundaries, place names, and geographic features of an area, such as public transportation maps.

Map Types and Data

• Topographic maps use contour lines to represent terrain and elevation.
• Absolute direction refers to the exact direction of a heading.
• Absolute distance is the precise measurement between two locations, typically in miles or kilometers.
• Absolute location pinpoints the exact spot, often expressed as GPS coordinates.
• Relative direction depends on the surrounding area.
• Relative distance is an approximate measurement between two places, often in terms of time or direction.
• Relative location describes a location using nearby geographic features.
• Thematic maps display spatial patterns and utilize quantitative data about specific topics.
• Choropleth maps present data using color, which involves generalizations.
• Small-scale maps represent a large portion of Earth's surface but include less detailed data.
• Large-scale maps represent a smaller portion of Earth's surface with more detailed data.
• Dot density maps use points to show data occurrence, indicating spatial distribution, but can be confusing if data is clustered.
• Isoline maps use lines to connect areas with similar or equal amounts of data, often used in weather maps.
• Cartogram maps represent data through the size of an area.
• Flowline maps illustrate the movement of goods, animals, people, or ideas between places.

Geographic Data and Tools

• Remote sensing involves gathering data about Earth's surface using satellites.
• Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer system used to collect, analyze, and display geographic data.
• Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite network that determines the location of objects on Earth.
• Field observations involve gathering information firsthand, which is valuable for obtaining accurate and feasible data.
• Travel narratives reveal perceptions of places from individuals, providing an unfiltered perspective.
• Government documents show how land is being used.
• Landscape analysis reveals how people impact a landscape.
• Photo analysis shows culture, demographics, population density, and activities within a place.
• Qualitative data is presented in word form and is open to interpretation, such as presidential approval ratings.
• Quantitative data is numerical and can be counted and presented in number form, such as population numbers.

Application of Geographic Data

• Local governments utilize data to decide where to build schools and to determine land zoning.
• Regional governments use data for determining voting districts and allocating funding.
• National governments use data to set laws, change tax policies, and allocate federal funding.
• Local scale businesses utilize zoning and census data to determine store locations and gather consumer information.
• Regional scale businesses compare sales across different store locations and analyze tax rates.
• National scale businesses assess country tax rates, environmental standards, and employment laws to determine production costs.

Spatial Concepts

• Distance decay is the effect of distance on cultural or spatial interactions where greater distance results in less interaction.
• Supply chain is a network involving people, resources, and activities that creates and sells products, often with countries providing raw materials at the base.
• Time-space compression reduces the time it takes to move something from one location to another, counteracting distance decay.
• Spatial association is the relationship between different objects in an area, including their arrangement and connectivity.
• Spatial distribution refers to the density, concentration, and patterns in a place.
• Physical characteristics are natural Earth-made elements such as rivers, mountains, vegetation, and climate.
• Human characteristics are human-controlled aspects like religion, language, population, and demographic data.
• Sense of place is a strong feeling or perception people have of a location.
• Placelessness is when a place lacks unique characteristics, failing to evoke strong responses from individuals.
• Site factors are the characteristics of a specific location.
• Situation factors are the locations surrounding a place and the connections between locations.

Human-Environment Interaction

• Desalination is the process of removing salt from seawater.
• Environmental possibilism is the concept that the environment sets limits, but humans can adjust/modify it to overcome restrictions.
• Environmental determinism is the environment sets the possibilities for humans and society
• Human-environment interaction focuses on how people shape the environment and vice versa.
• Land use is how land has been modified for a specific purpose or task.
  • Agricultural land is used for producing food for humans or animals.
  • Industrial land used for manufacturing products.
  • Commercial land for selling goods and services.
  • Residential land for housing.
  • Recreational land for leisure activities.
  • Transportation land for roads, railroads, and airports.
• Sustainability involves using Earth's resources in ways that ensure their availability in the future.

Regional Analysis

• A region is a geographic area sharing common characteristics.
• Formal regions have common attributes defined by economic, social, political, or environmental traits, often clearly visible and easy to identify.
• Functional regions are structured around a central node, often based on economic activities, travel, or communication.
• Perceptual/vernacular regions lack precise definitions and are based on beliefs, feelings, and attitudes.