WHAT IS GEOGRAPHY?

What is geography ?

Try to define it in 10 words or less.

Why what is where.

Why what is where.

Can be anything

Why what is where.

tallest buildings

fast food restaurants

slums

volcanoes

hurricanes

tallest buildings in a city

fast food restaurants

slumsl

volcanoes

hurricanes

Why what is where.

Spatial component

Why what is where.

tallest buildings

fast food restaurants

slums

volcanoes

hurricanes

centre of city

grouped together

close to downtown

edge of plates

Caribbean region

Where (the spatial component)

place or location is critical in geography

Where is one of the 1st questions usually asked when people hear about an interesting event –

fire, car accident, party, etc.

Think of geography as more of an approach than a set of specific topics

What is involved in the geographic approach ?

Six Key Components of the Geographic Approach

Location (2 types)

Region

Spatial pattern

Spatial Interaction

Human/Environment Interaction

Culture

Location

1 Ivy Street, Greenwood 45˚ 53' 26" N 65˚ 42' 17" W

Absolute (a specific address)

Location

just behind Tim Horton’s

approx. 1 km after the stop lights

Relative (a general description compared to someplace else)

Regions

we group areas together into regions for convenience

Atlantic Provinces, North America, Western Europe, the Annapolis Valley,the French Shore, MDCs, LDCs, etc.

Regions

defined by homogeneity:

physical geog. – Interior Lowlands

economics - Less Developed Countries

language - the French Shore

religion - the Protestant area of Belfast

etc.

Regions

Spatial Pattern how things are positioned

grouped clusteredlinear concentric ringssectors distance decay pattern

some possible patterns:

Spatial Pattern

people tend to live with others similar to themselves (wealth, colour, religion…

Religious neighbourhoods in Belfast

Spatial Pattern

grain elevators on the Prairies were originally very regularly spaces,

(apple warehouses in the Annapolis Valley)

Spatial Pattern

the concentration of pollution usually decreases as the distance from the source increases (distance decay)

Spatial Interaction

an action or change in 1 location causes a change in another location

Spatial Interaction

a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico causes a change in the price of gas/oil in Nova Scotia

Spatial Interaction

a new fashion trend that originates in Japan becomes popular in N.S. a few weeks later

Human/Environment Interaction

actions by humans result in environmental change

or

environmental activity results in changes for humans

Human/Environment Interaction

Human activity changing nature

Exxon Valdez oil spill off of Alaska

Environmental activity cause changes for humans

Hurricane Andrew in Florida

Human/Environment Interaction

Culture

people from different cultures may havevery different views on many topics

(environment, demographics, food, etc.)

Culturemany native groups live(d) in harmony with nature while many people of European descent, do not (did not)

Culturelarge numbers of children are accepted and expected in many societies, while in others, very few children are the norm

Cultureeating beef products are accepted by manyreligions but not by all

Any topic can be geography

if some of the previous 6 ideas are used to aid in the description, analysis, and/or synthesis of the topic, you are using a geographic approach

Geographers think spatially (where, patterns, connections)

Examples of great geography ‘topics’

How can these topics be approached geographically ?

Rock and Roll

Horses

The Crash of a Hercules in Alert

Why study geography ?

It is an holistic discipline

Science and/or Arts

Geography connects extremely well with many other courses.

BA Bachelor of Arts in Geography BSc Bachelor of Science in Geography BES Bachelor of Environmental Science in Geography

Geography

Economics

Biology

MathArt / Design

HistoryMusic

Sociology

Geology

Family Studies

Surveying

Environmental Science

Geography provides the links or connections necessary to understand the complex world we live in

Uses of geography in everyday life

Now:

hunting, fishing, other forms of recreation – interpreting maps

creating a summer or permanent employment opportunity for yourself (demographics – lawn care for an aging population)

(economic opportunities – where are the most potential customers for your new business)

understanding the benefits of urban or small town university life

Uses in your everyday life

Future:

Where are you going to buy or build your house ? (price, conflicting land use, proximity to … )

planning travel – business/vacation

understanding what is happening in the world – being a globally literate person

A Future in GeographyCareers

Land Use Planning (urban, rural, recreational)

CartographySurvey EngineeringNavigationArchitectureGeographic Information SystemsReal Estate / AppraisalsOil industryTransportation System DesignBusiness Location AnalysisRemote Sensing (satellite imagery)

Environmental ScienceWildlife ManagementResource ManagementTravel IndustryEducationResearcherDisease ControlWilderness GuideMeteorology / WeatherCriminologyRegional Economic Dev.and othershttp://www.horton.ednet.ns.ca/jptrites/future

Wildlife Biology: use of GPS & GIS for tracking various animals & birds and mapping their habitats

Criminology: the analysis and mapping capabilities of GIS have replaced the push pins and paper maps of days past

Remote Sensing: the use of satellite images can play a huge role in resource management, the search for new resources, tracking of storm systems, analysis of the effects of disasters, etc.

Urban Planning:Many town and city planners enter their profession through geography.

Transportation system design:planning of efficient transportation networks revolves around recognizing vital spatial patterns

Travel consultant: imagine recommending travel plansfor people if you didn’t understand the geography (distances, directions, time differences, culture and politics) of various destinations.

Medical geography / disease control:

geographers play a vital role in identifying the pattern of the spread of disease and in implementing plans for preventing further diffusion

Meteorology:

many meteorologists studied geography as the starting point of their careers

Mike Jordan has stated that if he hadn’tmade it in professional b’ball, he probably would have relied upon his geography degree and become a weather man.

Real Estate:a good understanding of location factors is essentialfor a successful career in real estate

Why is one property worth so much more than another ?

A Future in GeographyPost-secondary institutions (universities and community colleges)

Mount Allison UniversitySt. Mary’s UniversityMemorial UniversityMcGill UniversityBishop’s UniversityUniversity of WaterlooUniversity of TorontoWilfred Laurier UniversityYork UniversityUniversity of Western Ont.McMaster University

Brock UniversityTrent UniversityLakehead UniversityLaurentian UniversityUniversity of ManitobaUniversity of AlbertaUniversity of CalgaryUniversity of Sask.University of B.C.University of Victoria

Centre of Geog. Sciences

http://www.horton.ednet.ns.ca/jptrites/future

Sources of Images Toronto CBD http://www.stanford.edu/~wavelet/photos/Summer04/Toronto-NiagaraFalls/TorontoDowntown_large.jpg

fast food place http://www.thelifestylecompany.com/articles/images/FastFood04.jpg

Slums http://www.forestave.org/images/Bangalore%20slums.jpg

Ring of Fire http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Components/Interactives/Technology_Science/Science/Ring_of_fire.jpg

Hurricane Damage http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/470000/images/_474296_georges300.jpg

Hurricane Floyd http://rsd.gsfc.nasa.gov/rsd/images/Floyd/Floyd_19990914_1259_hg.jpg

house with house # and street sign mj trites

2 researchers with owls mj trites

map with lats. and longs. http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/geology/leveson/core/linksa/longlatquiz1.html

Tim Hortons http://www.dsra.ca/projects_tim_hortons.html

Traffic light http://www.esandafleet.co.nz/

grain elevators http://davidplowden.com/photographs/Rural/image/22DPRualAmerica.jpg

smoke stack http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/images083104/smokestack.jpg

Canadian regions http://www.unb.ca/web/transpo/mynet/map.gif

Appalachia http://www.a-spi.org/AGF/

Hercules http://www.airforce.forces.gc.ca/news/2004/10/grfx/wallpaper/IS2004-8045a.jpg

Clearcutting http://www.mcgregor.bc.ca/forestResearch/forestPractices/images/Clearcut.jpg

Bryan Adams http://www.adayonthegreen.com.au/images/media/badams2.jpg

Horses http://www.nwclydes.com/images/hankhunt.jpg

Shamanism https://vault2.secured-url.com/counter_culture_secure/images8/21%20exploring%20shamanism.jpg

Oil tanker http://www.planktos.com/images/techno1.jpg

Sources of Images cont’d.

Exxon Valdez cleanup http://www.fathom.com/course/21701790/hose.jpg

China population policy http://www.iisg.nl/~landsberger/images/pop08.jpg

Poster for many children http://www.lotsofkids.com/mainsite/lok-button2.gif

Protestant school in Belfast http://saltspring.gulfislands.com/weisner/Belfast%20School.jpg

Neighbourhood in Belfast http://saltspring.gulfislands.com/weisner/Ireland.html

Flags in Protestant neigbourhood http://sophiebaquey.free.fr/home/ireland.htm

Beef steak http://www.chile-pepper-sauces.com/images/Grilled%20steak%20with%20peppers.jpg

Michael Jordan http://www.kenston.k12.oh.us/khs/feature_stories/michael_jordan.jpg

Real Estate http://www.rickwall.ca/images/Rick_TO_RLP2.jpg

Urban Planning http://www.nc3d.com/albums/ArchPlanning/demoliton_proposed_sm.jpg

Woman at Gas Station http://www.jasonbaker.net/world/spain/woman-at-gas-station.jpg

Travel agent http://www.suneasttours.com/travel_agent.jpg

Calgary LRT http://www.calgaryplaceapts.com/img/shots/train.jpg

Calgary LRT map http://www.calgarytransit.com/Routes/ct_train_map.gif

B of Fundy satellite image http://www.ccrs.nrcan.gc.ca/ccrs/learn/tour/23/23ns_e.html

Ellemere Is. http://www.geo.de/GEO/wissenschaft_natur/2004_11_GEO_kompakt_eisplanet/auto_01.jpg

Ellesmere Is. map http://www.ourhollowearth.com/Arctic2.jpg

Iraq map http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iraq/images/iraq-map_un1996.jpg