WHY IS EACH PLACE ON THE EARTH UNIQUE?

HOW DO GEOGRAPHERS USE REGIONS TO SPATIALLY ORGANIZE PLACES ON A MAP?

The Uniqueness of Placesand

Organization of Regions

Adapted from Rubenstein Chapter 1 lecture

Name the Place

“The Windy City”

How are these related to one another?

Place: Unique Location of a Feature

1) Toponyms- Where do they come from?

2) Site Physical character? Modified by humans?

3) Situation Location relative to other

places? Importance of location?

4) Mathematical Location Parallels and Meridians Latitude and Longitude

Site:Lower

Manhattan Island

Fig. 1-6: Site of lower Manhattan Island, New York City. There have been many changes to the area over the last 200 years.

Situation: Singapore

Fig. 1-7: Singapore is situated at a key location for international trade.

With a partner… choose a particular place and describe its SITE SITUATION

World Geographic Grid

Fig. 1-8: The world geographic grid consists of meridians of longitude and parallels of latitude. The prime meridian ( 0º) passes through Greenwich, England.

World Time Zones

Fig. 1-9: The world’s 24 standard time zones each represent about 15° of longitude. They are often depicted using the Mercator projection.

Eastern Standard (@ 75 degrees longitude, 5 hours earlier than GMT)

Central Standard (6 hours earlier)

Mountain Standard (7 hours earlier than GMT)

Pacific Standard (8 hours earlier than GMT)

Moving eastward—“catching up with the sun”

Because every place to the east goes under the sun earlier, the clock goes ahead every 15 degrees longitude as you go east.

If you move west 15 degrees, the clock goes backward

Regions: Areas of unique characteristics

Regions

Cultural landscape Types of regions

Formal Functional Vernacular

Spatial association Regional integration of culture Cultural ecology

Also called a uniform or homogenous region.

Everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics.

(Economic characteristic, cultural value, environmental property)

Also called a nodal region.

Organized around a node or focal points… influence of certain defining characteristic

diminishes outward.

(Newspaper areas, radio broadcasting areas, etc)

Also called a perceptual region.

A place that people believe exists as part of their cultural identity.

AHEAD

Presidential Election 2004Regional Differences

Fig. 1-10: Presidential election results by county & state illustrate differences in regional voting patterns.

GO BACK

Formal and Functional Regions

Fig. 1-11: The state of Iowa is an example of a formal region; the areas of influence of various television stations are examples of functional regions. GO BACK

Vernacular Regions

Fig. 1-12: A number of features are often used to define the South as a vernacular region, each of which identifies somewhat different boundaries.

GO BACK

World Climate Regions

Fig. 1-14: The modified Köppen system divides the world into five main climate regions.

CULTURE

To care aboutLanguage, religion, ethnicityTraditions, values

To take care of Food, clothing, shelter Wealth, material goods,

means of income

Cultural Ecology

The geographic study of human-environment relationships

Environmental Determinism

The idea that the physical

environment causes social development.

Possibilism

The physical environment may

limit human actions, but people have the ability to adjust to the environment.

A Case Study ofDjibouti

usachppm.apgea.army.mil/hiomtb/content/.../DJIBOUTI_05.06.ppt

Where in the world is Djibouti?

Physical Environment

Topography Coastal plain and

plateau separated by central mountains

Climate Desert Torrid Dry

Physical Environment

Average Max/Min Temperature in Djibouti City

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20

40

60

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100

120

J F M A M J J A S O N D

Month

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gre

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fa

hre

nh

eit

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Minimum

Physical Environment

Average Total Precipitation in Djibouti City

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0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

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1.2

J F M A M J J A S O N D

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Environmental Health Risk

Greatest short-term health risks

Water contaminated with raw sewage or runoff containing fecal pathogens and water contaminated with industrial waste

Extreme heat

Environmental Issues

Food Fecal and chemical contamination

Soil Localized to specific areas surrounding industrial

facilities and waste disposal sites

Water Municipal water treatment and public sanitation

services inadequate Persistent discharge of untreated sewage into surface

waters and coastal areas Discharges from offshore tanker traffic contribute to

petrochemical contamination of Djibouti's coastline

Infectious Diseases

Foodborne and Waterborne Diseases diarrhea (bacterial & protozoal), hep A/E,

typhoid/paratyphoid fever Cholera

Vector-borne Diseases Malaria Chickungunya, Leishmaniasis, Crimean-Congo fever,

Dengue, Leishmaniasis, Rickettsioses, Rift Valley fever, Sand-fly fever, West Nile fever, Yellow fever

Infectious Diseases Cont.

Sexually Transmitted Diseases HIV, Hepatitis B gonorrhea / chlamydia

Water-contact Diseases leptospirosis, schistosomiasis

Respiratory Diseases meningococcal meningitis,

tuberculosis

Economic Issues

Economy is based on service activities connected with the country's strategic location and status as a open or free trade (imports and exports) zone in the Horn of Africa

Scarce rainfall limits crop productionFew natural resources and little industryHeavily dependent on foreign aid Unemployment figures of nearly 60 per

cent

Economic issues

Per capita consumption dropped an estimated 35 per cent between 1999 and 2006 because of recession or slump, civil war, and a high general populace growth rate (including immigrants and refugees)

Social Issues

Literacy rate of the population over 15 years of age as 46 percent (males 60 percent; females 33 percent)

Total enrollment at primary and secondary schools was equivalent 26 percent of the school-age population.

No university in Djibouti--technical skills are often found lacking.

Social Issues

Life-expectancy estimates are 49 years for males and 53 years for females in 2001

Infant mortality stands at 102 per 1,000, (the U.S. rate is 7 per 1,000).

There is a 600-bed hospital in the capital and a 60-bed maternity and pediatric hospital in Balbala.

Large prostitute population=high incidence of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV.

“Location Gives Tiny State Prime Access to Big Riches” by Jeffrey Gettlemen

Considering this information and the article you read for homework, let’s consider how Djibouti exhibits

Environmental determinism?

Possibilism?