5+Themes+of+Geography

[|THE FIVE THEMES OF GEOGRAPHY]

media type="youtube" key="i95OOkTudI8" height="360" width="480" This video shows the five themes of geography and how they affect the world.


 * The first theme of geography is **location**. Location is the position of a place on Earth`s surface. Geographers describe location in two ways.
 * **[|Absolute location]**is the exact spot on Earth where a geographic feature, such as a city or mountain, is found.
 * [|**Relative location**]describes where that feature is in relation to the features around it.


 * The second theme of geography is place. Place describes the characteristics of a location that make it unique, or different. A place can be defined by **physical** features, such as land forms, plants, animals, and weather patterns. Other characteristics of a place describe the people who live there.

media type="youtube" key="aGhazUS9jtI" height="360" width="640" This video shows how people affect the world and how the world affects them.
 * Human-environment interaction** describes how people affect their [|environment], or natural sorroundings, and how their enviroment affects them.


 * Movement:**

The movement of people, the import and export of goods, and mass communication have all played major roles in shaping our world. People everywhere interact. They travel from place to place and they communicate. We live in a global village and global economy. People interact with each other through movement. Humans occupy places unevenly on Earth because of the environment but also because we are social beings. We interact with each other through travel, trade, information flows (E-Mail) and political events.Not only do humans move but also ideas move; fashions move; fads move. What is an example of an idea that moves? Fashion? Fad? How do we depend on people in other places? How would our lives change if our movement options changed? What would happen if we traveled by camel or horse? How do we move from place to place? How do we actually get food? media type="youtube" key="AIqC79WrpKg" height="315" width="420" Movement starts at 1:20. Talks about all Five Themes of Geography.


 * Regions:**

A region is the basic unit of study in geography. A region is an area that displays a coherent unity in terms of the government, language, or possibly the land form or situation. Regions are human constructs that can be mapped and analyzed. There are three basic types of regions. **__Formal regions__** are those defined by governmental or administrative boundaries (i. e., United States, Birmingham, Brazil). These regional boundaries are not open to dispute, therefore physical regions fall under this category (i. e., The Rockies, the Great Lakes States). **__Functional regions__** are those defined by a function (i. e., TVA, United Airlines Service area or a newspaper service area). If the function ceases to exists, the region no longer exists. **__Vernacular regions__** are those loosely defined by people's perception (i. e., The South, The Middle East). What region do we live in? What type of region is it? What are its characteristics? South, North Alabama, the Shoals, the University community? What states do you define as the South? The Northeast? The Bible Belt? What characteristics and perceptions go along with these regions?

media type="youtube" key="SJeR4k7wkNU" height="315" width="560"

Sam Adamo and Nathan Grabel 2011-2012