| A | B |
|---|
| geography | The study of the earth's surface and the processes that shape it, the connections between places, and the complex relationships between people and their environments |
| GIS | A geographic information system, which uses computer technology to collect and analyze data about the earth's surface in order to solve geographic problems |
| absolute location | The position on the earth in which a place can be found |
| hemisphere | A half of the earth; the Equator divides the Northern and Southern hemispheres; the Prime Meridian divides the Eastern and Western hemispheres |
| relative location | The position of a place in relation to another place |
| character of a place | The physical and human characteristics that help to distinguish a place from other places |
| perception | A viewpoint that is influenced by one's own culture and experience |
| formal region | A group of places that have similar attributes, for example, a political region |
| functional region | A group of places connected by movement, for example, the region drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries |
| perceptual region | A group of places that is defined by people's feelings and attitudes |
| core | The earth's center, consisting of very hot metal that is dense and solid in the inner core and molten, or liquid, in the outer core |
| mantle | A thick layer of mostly solid rock beneath the earth's crust that surrounds the earth's core |
| crust | The solid, rocky, surface layer of the earth |
| lithosphere | The surface features of the earth, including soil, rocks, and landforms |
| atmosphere | The layer of gases, water vapor, and other substances above the earth |
| hydrosphere | The water contained in oceans, lakes, rivers, and under the ground |
| biosphere | The world of plants, animals, and other living things in earth's land and waters |
| continent | Any of the seven large land masses of earth's surface: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America |
| relief | The differences in elevation, or height, of the landforms in any particular area |
| plate tectonics | The therory that the earth's outer shell is composed of a number of large, unanchored plates, or slabs of rock, whose constant movement explains earthquakes and volcanic activity |
| continental drift theory | The idea that continents slowly shift their position due to movement of the tectonic plates on which they ride |
| Ring of Fire | A ring of volcanic mountains surrounding the Pacific Ocean |
| weathering | The chemical or mechanical process by which rock is gradually broken down, eventaully becomig soil |
| mechanical weathering | The actual breaking up or physical weakening of rock by forces such as ice and roots |
| chemical weathering | The process by which the actual chemical structure of rock is changed, usually when water and carbon dioxide cause a breakdown of the rock |
| acid rain | Rain whose high concentration of chemicals usually from industrial pollution, pollutes water, kills plant and animal life, and eats away at the surface of stone and rock; a form of chemical weathering |
| erosion | The movement of weathered materials including gravel, soil, and sand, ususally caused by water, wind, and galciers |
| sediment | Particals of soil, sand, and gravel carried and deposited by wind and water |
| loess | Fine-grained, mineral-rich loam, dust, or silt deposited by the wind |
| glacier | A huge, slow moving mass of snow and ice |
| moraine | A ridgelike mass of rock, gravel, sand, and clay carried and deposited by a glacier |
