| A | B |
|---|
| geography | study of the earth and the ways people live and work on it |
| absolute location | position at a place on the earth's surface |
| latitude | imaginary lines running east and west |
| longitude | imaginary vertical lines running from pole to pole |
| relative location | where a place is located in relation to others |
| culture | way of life of a group of people who share traditions, interests, ect. |
| hydrosphere | watery areas of the earth; oceans, lakes, rivers |
| lithosphere | surface land areas of the earth's crust |
| biosphere | part of the earth life-people, plants, and animals-exists |
| mantle | thick, middle layer of the earth's interior structure |
| erosion | wearing away of the earth's surface by wind, flowing water, or glaciers |
| glacier | large bodies of ice that move across the surface of the earth |
| isthmus | narrow piece of land connecting two large landmasses |
| archipelago | a group or chain of islands |
| continental shelf | shallow ocean area near the coast of a continent |
| water cycle | regular movement of water from ocean to air to ground and back to the ocean |
| evaporation | changing of liquid water into vapor, a gas |
| natural resources | element or substance from the earth that isn't made by people but can be used by them |
| renewable resources | resource that can be grown by people or renewed naturally, such as trees |
| weather | condition of the atmosphere in one place during a short period of time |
| climate | weather patterns typical for an area over a long period of time |
| axis | imaginary line that runs throught the earth's center between the norht and south poles |
| equinox | one of two days on which the sun is directly above the equator, making day and night equal in length |
| solstice | one of two days on which the sun's rays strike directly at latitude 23 1/2ºN or 23 1/2ºS, marking summer or winter |
| natural vegetation | plant life that grows in a certain area if people haven't changed the natural environment |
| deciduous | trees, usually broadleaved such as oak and maple, that lose their leaves in autumn |
| timberline | elevation above which it's too cold for trees to grow |
| smog | irritating haze caused by the interaction of ultraviolet solar radiation with chemical fumes |
| prevailing winds | wind in a region that blows in a fairly constant direction pattern, such as the trade winds that blow toward the equator |
| windward | facing toward the direction from which the wind is blowing |
| leeward | facing away from the direction from which the wind is blowing |
| rain shadow | dry area found on the leeward sude of a mountain range |
| subsistence farming | traditional agriculture whose goal is to produce just enough to eat for a family or villiage |
| population density | average number of people in a square mile or square kilometer |
