Geography notes

September 4, 2013

• Sources of Information• -Prehistory: period of time before writing.• -Before writing, people could only leave

physical evidence of their lives. This included:• -Remains of settlements and graves.

• Types of Sources• -Primary Sources: Historical records such as

documents and artifacts that come from the time being studied.

• -Examples: land deeds, written speeches, military orders, letters, and blueprints

• -Secondary Sources: Historical writings dating from a time later than the one being studied.

• -Examples: history books and reference books.•

• Map Projections• -Projections: methods of representing the

round world on flat paper. Different projections are used for different purposes: one may show continents accurately, but not distance.

• Common Projections• -Mercator• -Rectangular.• -Accurately shows areas around the Equator.• -Heavily distorts the polar areas.• -Robinson• -Has rounded edges.• -Some polar distortion.• -Widely used due to accuracy and little distortion.

Mercator Projection

• Latitude vs. Longitude• -Latitude: imaginary lines that cross the globe

from East to West.• -They are also known as parallels.• -The Equator: 0 degrees latitude.• -Longitude: imaginary lines that cross the globe

from North to South.• -They are also known as meridians.• -The Prime Meridian: 0 degrees longitude

latitude

longitude

• Types of Maps• -Political Maps: maps that show human-made

features, such as national boundaries, cities, and roads.

• -Physical Maps: maps that show natural features such as landforms, elevation, and bodies of water.

• -Historical Maps: maps that show features as they were at certain times in the past.

•

Political map

Physical map

Historical map

• Map Tools• -Cardinal Directions: North, South, East and West.• -Compass Rose: tool used to show direction on a map.• -Map Key/Legend: shows the meaning of special symbols on

maps.• -Scale Bar: shows distance on a map.• -Contours: show levels of elevation.• -Crosshatching and Shading: two ways of showing various

features on a map:• -Crosshatching: two sets of lines crossing each other.• -Shading: an area of gray, black, or another color.

• Geographic Influence on Development• Geography-The study of the earth and its features and

of the distribution of life on the earth, including human life and the effects of human activity.

• -Early civilizations developed along river valleys to have water for farming and larger populations.

• -Rivers, seas, and oceans provided the fastest and easiest method of transporting goods and people.

• -Mountains and deserts have helped to isolate or protect civilizations near them..