Geography Explain the Core Concepts

Geography

Explain the core concepts of geography

Perhaps the most fundamental concept of geography is that the nature of the earth, and the way that it has evolved in terms of its climate, structure, and terrain, has had a fundamental impact on human and animal agriculture, living conditions, the use of available land for living quarters, and the clothes and food people wear and eat. Another equally fundamental concept, however, is that the life forms that have evolved as the result of geographical developments have had a fundamental impact upon the development of the earth. For example, a human society in a cold, snowy climate will eat differently and build differently structured homes than human societies in warmer and more temperate climates. The ability of a species to survive or to dominate an area will affect the vegetation of an area, and impact the earth's atmosphere, depending on what that species consumes. And of course, the greenhouse effect and the development of modern industry have had a dramatic effect upon the earth's temperatures, across all climates.

The earth's surface is shape by two forces, give some examples of each.

The earth is shaped by both external and internal pressures. The external pressures include erosion, the movement of the glaciers, sediment deposits and the wearing away of such deposits, fire, rains (such as major hurricane storms), and changes in temperature (such as global warming, which has resulted in greater vegetation in some areas or the ability of certain species that eat plants to survive in greater numbers in some areas and reduce the amount of plant life in the territory) ("Earth's surface," 2007, Discovery Magazine). Internal forces include the movement of the tectonic plates on the earth's molten layer, which resulted in the current formation of the continents, as opposed to their original configuration as a unified surface mass ("Earth's surface," 2007, Discovery Magazine).

Explain the major factors that determines the climate of a place

Climate is influenced by a location's latitude, elevation, nearby water, ocean currents, topography, vegetation, and where the winds blow from, and whether they are buffeted or can intensify easily ("Exploring Earth," 2007, Houghton Mifflin). For example, the polar regions of the earth reflect sunlight because their solar angle is so low, due to their latitude, so they derive little heat from the constant sun they receive. At the equator's latitude, in contrast, things are much warmer and more humid because there is less reflection. Higher altitudes are colder and dryer than lower elevations. Oceans moderate temperature and increase humidity, while inland locations are dryer and more prone to extremes of hot and cold, and also more extreme weather events, like the tornados that often affect the Midwest. Local terrain like mountains can cause clouds and precipitations on the side of the summit closest to the wind ("Earth's climate and climate change," 2007, PowerPoint Presentation).

Explain why our energy depends on fossil fuel and why it is a major problem for the U.S. And environmentally for the world.