Emergence of Modern Geography PDF

**BATAAN PENINSULA STATE UNIVERSITY** **Dinalupihan Campus** **Handout in BSOS 0213 -- GEOGRAPHY 1** **Emergence of Modern Geography** **Some people have trouble understanding the complete scope of the discipline of geography because geography is interdisciplinary, meaning that it is not defined...

**BATAAN PENINSULA STATE UNIVERSITY** **Dinalupihan Campus** **Handout in BSOS 0213 -- GEOGRAPHY 1** **Emergence of Modern Geography** **Some people have trouble understanding the complete scope of the discipline of geography because geography is interdisciplinary, meaning that it is not defined by one particular topic.** Instead, ***geography is concerned with many different topics---people, culture, politics, settlements, plants, landforms, and much more.*** ***Geography asks spatial questions---how and why things are distributed or arranged in particular ways on Earth's surface.*** It looks at these different distributions and arrangements at many different scales. ***It also asks questions about how the interaction of different human and natural activities on Earth's surface shape the characteristics of the world in which we live.*** ***Geography seeks to understand where things are found and why they are present in those places***; ***how things that are located in the same or distant places influence one another over time***; and ***why places and the people who live in them develop and change in particular ways***. Raising these questions is at the heart of the "[**geographic perspective**](https://www.nationalgeographic.org/society/education-resources/standards/)." **Exploration has long been an important part of geography**, and ***it's an important part of developing a geographic perspective***. Exploration isn't limited to visiting unfamiliar places; it also means documenting and connecting relationships between spatial, sociological, and ecological elements. ***The age-old practice of mapping still plays an important role in this type of exploration***, ***but exploration can also be done by using images from satellites or gathering information from interviews***. Discoveries can come by using computers to map and analyze the relationship among things in geographic space, or from piecing together the multiple forces, near and far, that shape the way individual places develop. **Applying a geographic perspective demonstrates geography's concern not just with where things are, but with "the why of where"---a short but useful definition of geography's central focus**. The insights that have come from geographic research show the importance of asking "the why of where" questions. Geographic studies comparing physical characteristics of continents on either side of the Atlantic Ocean, for instance, gave rise to the idea that Earth's surface is comprised of large, slowly moving plates---plate tectonics. ***Studies of the geographic distribution of human settlements have shown how economic forces and modes of transport influence the location of towns and cities.*** **For example**, **geographic analysis has pointed to the role of the United States Interstate Highway System and the rapid growth of car ownership in creating a boom in U.S. suburban growth after World War II.** The geographic perspective helped show where Americans were moving, why they were moving there, and how their new living places affected their lives, their relationships with others, and their interactions with the environment. **Geographic analyses of the spread of diseases have pointed to the conditions that allow particular diseases to develop and spread.** Dr. John Snow's cholera map stands out as a classic example. When cholera broke out in London, England, in 1854, Snow represented the deaths per household on a street map. Using the map, he was able to trace the source of the outbreak to a water pump on the corner of Broad Street and Cambridge Street. The geographic perspective helped identify the source of the problem (the water from a specific pump) and allowed people to avoid the disease (avoiding water from that pump). **Investigations of the geographic impact of human activities have advanced understanding of the role of humans in transforming the surface of Earth, exposing the spatial extent of threats such as water pollution by artificial waste.** For example, geographic study has shown that a large mass of tiny pieces of plastic currently floating in the Pacific Ocean is approximately the size of Texas. Satellite images and other geographic technology identified the so-called "Great Pacific Garbage Patch." These examples of different uses of the geographic perspective help explain why geographic study and research is important as we confront many 21st century challenges, including environmental pollution, poverty, hunger, and ethnic or political conflict.