Chapter 1 Vocabulary

The study of the Earth's surface and the processes that shape it, the connections between places, and the complex relationships between people and their environments.

• hemisphere

• geography

• formal region

• absolute location

a geographic information system, which uses computer technology to collect and analyze data about the Earth's surface in order to solve geographic problems.

• relative location

• geography

• GIS

• functional region

The position on the Earth in which a place can be found

• absolute location

• perception

• formal region

• atmosphere

A half of the earth; the Equator divides that Northern and Southern; the Prime Meridian divides the Eastern and Western.

• place

• continent

• region

• hemisphere

The position of a place in relation to another place

• functional region

• relative location

• absolute location

• formal region

The physical and human characteristics that help to distinguish a place from other places.

• perceptual region

• GIS

• character of a place

• core

A viewpoint that is influenced by one's own culture and experiences

• perception

• perceptual region

• absolute location

• functional region

A group of places that have similar attributes, for example, a political region

• perceptual region

• functional region

• relative location

• formal region

a group of places connected by movement, for example, the region drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries

• character of a place

• perceptual region

• formal region

• functional region

a group of places that is defined by people's feelings and attitudes.

• character of a place

• perceptual region

• functional region

• formal region