City College of San Francisco___________________________
Earth Sciences
 
Geography 4 - Spring 2001
Study Guide for the first Midterm
 
Weeks ONE and TWO
 
Key Terms:
map, thematic map, cartogram, scale, projections, globe, axis, pole, latitude/longitude coordinates, site and situation, exact/relative location, distance decay, context (cultural, historical and spatial), process, boundary, ecology, four types of regions: 1) formal region, 2) nodal or functional region, 3) perceptual or vernacular region, 4) natural region.
 
Study Questions:
Define the word "map", Define "perspective", Define "scale" What would be the specialty of an area studies specialist? (a regional geographer). How does the 'Man-Land' tradition differ from the Earth Sciences Tradition? How are flat map projections created? How are they distorted and why? How does scale limit the amount and type of information that can be shown on a map? Distinguish between different types of regions. How do the borders of different regions differ? How did Columbus' mental map of what he discovered influence early maps of the Americas?
Week THREE
 
Key Terms:
GIS, overlay, buffer, spatial analysis, distance decay, gatekeeper, cartogram, mass media, .
 
Study Questions:
How did New Jersey use GIS to prove its rights to most of Ellis Island? How does the editor of a newspaper shape the worldview of the reader? Why did Columbus insist that he had discovered a new route to Asia? Why aren't Americans better acquainted with the geography of the U.S.?
Week FOUR
 
Key Terms:
urban sprawl, mass transit, automobility, commute, suburbanization, urban morphology, perception/mental map, environmental justice, lead poisoning, demographics, census data.
 
Study Questions:
How did changes in transportation technology change the morphology and size of North American cities? How did the cultural geography of American cities change? What factors influence the contents of an individual's personal perception map? What are the main sources of lead contamination in American cities? How can lead poisoning be prevented? How can GIS be used to pinpoint potential lead exposure? Why hasn't more been done to prevent lead exposure?
Week FIVE
 
Key Terms:
cultural community, social movement, territory, social construct, suburbanism, deviance, social prejudice, legal repression, political organization, gentrification.
Study Questions:
What are the two main causes of segregation? Explain the historical geography of the San Francisco gay and lesbian community. Why was World War Two so important in the development of the San Francisco Gay Community? What combination of factors made the Castro develop as a center for the gay/lesbian/transgender community? What does gentrification involve? How has the gay/lesbian/transgender community evolved since the 1980's?