What is Geography?
An introduction to basic
concepts of geography
What defines Geography?
 It is the study of the location of people and
places and the patterns in which they are
arranged on earth.
 Physical Geography – focuses on physical
patterns of Earth
 Human Geography – focuses on the political,
economic, or cultural aspects of human
behavior
 Understanding how physical and human
geography interact and impact each other is
largely what geographers focus on. Its the
interaction between people and their
environment!
What are the Geographer’s
Tools?
 Understanding how maps work is key
 It is also important to understand how
maps can distort information
 Ex. Two dimensional versus 3D
 Planer Projection, Cylindrical Projection, Conic
Projection
 Winkel Tripel Projection, Goode’s Interrupted EqualArea Projection, Robinson Projection, Mercator
Projection
2-D versus 3-D
How is location
determined on a map?
 Latitude (equator)
 Longitude (Prime
Meridian)
 The Global Grid
 Northern / Southern
Hemisphere
 Eastern / Western
Hemisphere
What types of maps
are there?
 NUMEROUS!! – all used to show all
kinds of different information
 Most maps show location and physical
features
 Some other types are qualitative and
flow-line maps.
 Good for showing historical changes and
showing movement of people and things.
Types of Maps
Qualitative
Qualitative
Flow-line
Why use Geography?
 Your turn!
What research methods
do geographers use?





Direct observation
Mapping
Interviewing
Analyzing statistics
Using Technology
Geography as a career?
 Look it up!!
 Bureau of Labor
Statistics