Chapter 1
Essentials of Physical Geography
Glaciated valley in the Front Range, Colorado Rocky
Mountains
Courtesy Michael Ritter
Geography touches every aspect of our lives. At its
simplest, geography is concerned with where something is
at, why it's there, and how it relates to things around
it. Geography influences where we live, affects our
economic prosperity, has dictated the outcome of
significant historical events, and shapes our local,
regional, and global relationships with each other. This
textbook focuses on physical geography and can answer many
questions that you might have about the natural world and
how it relates to your life. Ever wondered why present-day
volcanoes occur on the west coast of the United States but
not on the east coast? Why tornadoes seem to be unique to
the United States? Why palm trees are found in Florida and
pine trees in Maine? Where to go for a break from cold
winter weather, or to escape a hot summer day? Physical
geography can answer these questions, and more.
In this chapter you'll be introduced to the discipline of geography and what it means to study the Earth from a geographic perspective. You will become familiar with the array of tools geographers possess to investigate the Earth system. We'll conclude by looking at how geographers are well suited to address issues related to current trends in environmental change.
Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the chapter you should be able to:
- Explain why geographers describe their discipline as a spatial science and uniquely qualified to tackle issues related to environmental change.
- Construct a diagram showing how hypotheses are developed and become theories in physical geography.
- Compare and contrast qualitative and quantitative map
data.
Explain what a map projection is. - Choose the appropriate type and scale of map for its intended purpose.
- Use latitude and longitude to determine location.
- Explain how a global positioning system works.
- List and give examples of remote sensing techniques.
- Differentiate between standard time and daylight saving time.
- Explain how a GIS is used to solve problems in physical geography.
- Explain how models are used in physical geography.
- Calculate the mean and range to describe a set of data.
See if you are prepared for this chapter by Getting Ready for Chapter 1: The Essentials of Physical Geography.
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