Geography For Freshman Unit One Short Note PDF

Chapter one Introduction 1.1.1 Meaning of Geography Geography is the scientific study of Earth, describing and analyzing spatial and temporal variations of physical, biological, and human phenomena and their relationships over its surface, making it difficult to de...

Chapter one Introduction 1.1.1 Meaning of Geography Geography is the scientific study of Earth, describing and analyzing spatial and temporal variations of physical, biological, and human phenomena and their relationships over its surface, making it difficult to define universally. 1.1.2. The Scope, Approaches and Themes of Geography y Geography: A Holistic and Interdisciplinary Field m Geography explains natural and cultural features on Earth's surface. Contributes to understanding changing spatial structures from past to future. Scope: Earth's surface, the interface of atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and de biosphere. Approach: Human-physical continuum and topical regional continuum. ca Topical fields view physical or human phenomena as distributed over Earth. Regional geography focuses on associations within regions of elements and their interrelationships. rA Five basic themes: location, place, human-environment interaction, movement, and region. to Geographic Concepts Location: Defined as a specific place or position, often the starting point of Tu geography studies. Types: Absolute location (defined by latitude and longitude or exact address) and relative location (defined by environmental conditions). Place: Refers to the physical and human aspects of a location, associated with TD toponym, site, and situation. Unique characteristics: Landforms, hydrology, biogeography, pedology, human population, and cultures. Helps geographers compare and contrast different places on Earth. Human-Environment Interaction Humans have a profound impact on the environment. Human adaptations have allowed them to dominate other species. 1  Human-environment interaction involves dependence, adaptation, and modification. Dependency refers to humans' dependence on nature for survival. Adaptation involves humans modifying themselves and behaviors to adapt to new environments. Modification allows humans to "conquer" the world for comfortable living. Movement Translocation of human beings, goods, and ideas. Physical movement enabled human colonization of all continents and islands. y Transport of goods from one place to another. m Flow of ideas promotes human civilization's unification and growth. Region de Geographic area with distinctive characteristics. Formal region characterized by homogeneity in certain phenomena. Functional or nodal region characterized by functional interrelationships in a spatial system. ca 1.2 Location, Shape, and Size of Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa rA The Horn of Africa is a narrow tip in eastern Africa, separating it from the Gulf of Aden. It is home to Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia, each with unique cultures. Ethiopia is the largest of all Horn of African countries, while Djibouti is the to smallest. The region includes highlands of the Ethiopian Plateau, Ogaden desert, Eritrean Tu and Somali coasts, and has long-standing contact with the Arabian Peninsula and southwestern Asia. 1.2.1 Location of Ethiopia TD Astronomical Location: Ethiopia is a landlocked country located between 3o N (Moyale) and 15o N (Bademe) latitudes and 33o E (Akobo) to 48o E longitudes. The east-west distance is 150 meters longer than the north-south distance. Latitudinal and longitudinal extensions of Ethiopia result in a tropical climate and a one-hour difference between the most easterly and westerly points. The 3 hours-time zone is used for convenience. Relative Location Ethiopia's location is relative to other countries, landmasses, or water bodies. 2  Ethiopia's Location Implications Climate: Ethiopia's tropical climate, influenced by altitude and proximity to the Indian Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and African and Asian landmass. Socio-cultural: Early recipients of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism due to proximity to the Middle East. Linguistic and cultural relationships reflect the influence of location on neighboring countries. Ethiopia's Political History Influenced by Superpowers y Adjacency to the Red Sea. m Middle East geopolitical paradigms. 1.2.2 The size of Ethiopia de Ethiopia's Size and Impact 8th largest country in Africa and 25th globally. Extends 1,639 kilometers East-West, 1,577 kilometers North-South. ca Covers 0.7% of the country by water bodies. Size impacts both natural and human environment. rA Advantage and disadvantage to Tu TD 1.2.3. The shape of Ethiopia and its Implication Compact, fragmented, elongated, perforated, and protruded shapes. Influence on defense, administration, and economic integration. Advantages depend on other factors. 3  Compact Shape: Easy for defense, socioeconomic, and cultural integration. Fragmented Shape: Divided by water, land, or other countries. Elongated Shape: Geographically long and narrow, like Chile. Perforated Shape: Surrounds another country completely, like South Africa. Protrude Shape: One portion is more elongated than the rest, like Myanmar and Eritrea. Country Shape Measurement Indices of compactness measure deviation from circular shape. y Countries approximating circular shape are considered more compact. m No country has absolutely circular shape. de 1, Area-Boundary ratio: Measures the ratio of a country's area to its boundary length. Higher ratios indicate greater compactness. 2, Boundary-Circumference ratio: Measures the distance a country's boundary ca approximates the circumference of a circle of its own size. Nearer ratios indicate greater compactness. rA 3, Area-Circumference ratio: Compares country's area with the circumference of a circle passing through extreme points. Higher ratio indicates greater compactness. 4, AreaArea (A/A’) ratio: Measures the area of the smallest possible inscribing to circle passing through extreme points. Nearer ratio indicates greater compactness. Tu 1.3. Basic Skills of Map Reading What is a Map? Maps are two-dimensional scaled representations of Earth's surface. TD Reading maps involves identifying natural and manmade features. Natural features include mountains, plateaus, hills, valleys, rivers, oceans, rocks, etc. Manmade features include roads, railways, buildings, dams. Maps are crucial for Geographers as they display and analyze spatial distributions, patterns, and relations. 4  Importance of Map Provide a basis for geographical details like relief, drainage, and settlement. Powerful tools for spatial analysis of geographical facts. Useful for locating geographical features through grid reference and place naming. Used in various disciplines including land use planning, military science, aviation, tourism, marine science, population studies, epidemiology, geology, economics, history, archaeology, and agriculture. Store geographical data of represented areas. y Potentially used to assess reliable measurements of geographical features. m Types of Maps 1, Topographical Maps: de Depict natural and cultural features of an area. Can be small, medium, or large scale. Contents depend on purpose, scale, compilation date, and land nature. ca 2, Special Purpose/Statistical Maps: Show distribution of various aspects like temperature, rainfall, settlement, rA vegetation. Marginal Information on Maps Title: The map's heading indicating the area's significance. to Key: A list of all convectional symbols and signs on the map. Scale: The ratio between the map's distance and actual ground distance. Tu North Arrow: Indicates the north direction of the mapped area. Margin: The frame of the map, showing the end of the mapped area. Date of Compilation: The date of map publication, indicating if the map is TD updated or outdated. Basic Principles of Map Reading Map-readers must understand the symbol and the real world. Each map symbol should be visualized for effective reading. Symbols should refer to landscape features that the reader already has images of. Knowledge of directions is crucial for effective map use. Before locating features, readers should determine the north (north arrow). 5  They should learn to read direction on a specific map and the location of features in relation to each other. Maps are covered in a grid, with numbers accompanying lines for accurate location pinpointing. The grid system provides an accurate description of location, known as a grid reference. Thanks for Downloading Our pdf y For free psychology counseling, please call on 0970992121 m If you need a private tutor, we also include other extra benefits like IELTS, TOFEL, and SAT de Our private tutor includes: Mathematics ca Physics Chemistry rA Biology History Geography Economics to SAT or IELTS or TOEFL Based on your Chooies Tu To contact us Phone: 0970992121 or 0983064096 Email: [email protected] Telegram: @Tenkrate TD YouTube: TD Tutor Academy Telegram: https://t.me/tdtutoracademy101 6