Geography as a Science
Science, by definition, is:
‘…the systematic study of the structure and behaviour of the physical
and natural world through observation and experiment…’ 1
Geography is divided into physical and human dimensions; in the past,
physical geography had taken pre-eminence over the latter due to the
need of geographers to establish their discipline as an actual
educational subject in colleges and universities. They therefore
needed to impress upon the world its yummy importance as a science 5,
which held much weight at the time, but can geography still be based
in the world of natural sciences or has it shifted to that of a more
social basis? As the subject in itself is now no longer entirely
devoted to the simple science of, for example, gauging how fauna and
flora evolve, it is important to evaluate whether geography has
changed into just another extension of sociology and economics or
whether it still as scientific as ever, even with these changes.
The sciences relating to the physical world, like, are so
collectively termed as physical geography. The natural sciences are
those that focus on how the world and the organisms, including humans,
living on and within it operate. The social sciences are those that
centre more with humans and their role in the world; the difference
between the two is often a very narrow line. Geography in the past has
traditionally been placed in the category of natural (or true)
sciences, as a subject of exploration, forecasting and cartography.
Over the hundreds of years that geography has established itself
(though not officially recognised until the latter half of the 19th
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...mu.edu/~bloxom/circumference.html - What is
geography? - A discussion of The Circumefernce of Geography (by N.M.
Fenneman), written by Tiffany Bloxom.
3. http://www.census.gov/cgi-bin/ipc/popclock
4. http://ejournals.ebsco.com/article.asp?contributionid=5586726
5. Ideology, science and human geography / [by] Derek Gregory.
London : Hutchinson, 1978
6. The dictionary of human geography / edited by R.J. Johnston ...
[et al.]. 4th ed. Imprint Oxford : Blackwell, 2000.
7. The dictionary of physical geography / edited by David S.G.
Thomas and Andrew Goudie. Edition 3rd ed. Imprint Oxford : Blackwell,
2000.
8. The Future of geography - by Nigel Thrift. Geoforum article,
march 2002
9. Geography - History and concepts by Arild Holt-Jensen, 2nd
edition, Paul Chapman publishing ltd, 1988
Modern scientific trends developed from philosophies of the past, they are part of the philosophical path that a philosopher must walk when undergoing self-reflection. They are a presentation of modern-day prejudices, which the philosopher must seek to understand and overcome
In East Africa, archaeologists have unearthed bones and tools of human ancestors called hominids that go back about five million years ago. Australopithecus, known as “the southern ape”, were an example of hominid creatures whom were short, hairy, and limited in intelligence. They walked upright, had some ability to communicate verbally, and could travel over long distances to obtain particular stone to fashion tools. These tools included choppers, scrapers, and more for food preparations. About one million years later, a new species of hominids that belong to the genus Homo evolved called Homo erectus. Homo erectus possessed a larger brain than the australopithecines and fashioned more advanced tools such as cleavers and handaxes, which were useful in hunting and
The book A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah has a setting, which coincides with “Geography Matters” (Chapter 19 of How to Read Literature like a Professor). This chapter explains how geographical location can explain how a novel will turn out to be. Geography also sets circumstances and limitations in a novel. Themes, symbols, plot, and most important character development can all be introduced from geographical location.
The phone is an example of an Independent Invention, because different people in different countries claimed to be the first to invent it.
This essay outlines the five themes of Geography for Italy. The five themes are location, place, human and environment interaction, movement, and regions.
The Five Themes of Geography are: Location – Absolute points on a map or grid or Relative to where something may be; Place – The physical and/or human characteristics of a locations; Human/Environment Interactions – How humans have impacted the landscape or environment; Relationship between places Movement – How humans interact on the earth (i.e. how they communicate over distance (short or long)) and Regions – a unit of space that has commonalities defined by physical, human and environmental geography. The Explorers of the New World may have not known what the Five Themes of Geography were but they quickly learned. Of the five themes the ones that they all took advantage of was the physical Location and Place as they learned to navigate to and from as well as through their new environments. Over Time the explorers began to discover the relationships within their environments and original occupants of the lands as well as the regions in which they now occupied.
Geography’s Impact on Culture and Society. When studying ancient civilizations and the beginning societies of the world, the geography has shaped its story significantly. Depending on the location of the civilization, whether or not water was nearby was crucial for its survival. With trade networks, metals, foods, and languages were spread.
Psychology is the study of the mind and the behavior of mammals. Geology is a science that deals with the history of the earth and its life, recorded in rocks. The earth is consistently moving its tectonic plates. Therefore, there may be over 100 earthquakes a day; most of these earthquakes go unnoticed by humans on the crust of the earth. Other earthquakes for example, the one in 2011 located in Japan and the Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989 (Earth- Marshak). Unfortunately, many people died in horrific ways during these deadly earthquakes, leaving thousands diagnosed with psychological disorders such as, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Specific Phobias directly related to the natural environment of the earth.
As applications of geospatial technologies continuously break the disciplinary barrier, the need for books on these technologies to reach diverse audiences is greater than ever. The challenge, however, is to write a book on this complicated subject that incorporates the knowledge of multiple disciplines and makes it valuable for those who may or may not have diverse educational backgrounds, but require using these technologies. Most books on geospatial technologies target a specific audience. Contrary to this, Geographical Information Science tries to target three different audiences (users, students, and engineers) by using formats and languages comfortable to them. While this effort is laudable, maintaining the balance and attractiveness to all the three audiences is challenging. The author, Narayan Panigrahi, has accomplished this balancing act but with mixed outcomes. His computer science background is clearly seen in the structure and contents of the chapters.
Since the beginning of humankind, the study of geography has captured the imagination of the people. In ancient times, geography books extolled tales of distant lands and dreamed of treasures. The ancient Greeks created the word "geography" from the roots "ge" for earth and "grapho" for "to write." These people experienced many adventures and needed a way to explain and communicate the differences between various lands. Today, researchers in the field of geography still focus on people and cultures (cultural geography), and the planet earth (physical geography).
This has led to the promotion of philosophy that of natural science included, emerging from the
There is a lot of conflict to the question “is anthropology a science?” A lot of this conflict leads from defining what a science is, in the dictionary science is, “a branch of knowledge or study dealing with a body of facts or truths systematically arranged and showing the operation of general laws.” (Dictionary.com, 2011) Anything that can be studied is considered a science. Without science anthropology would be nearly impossible to study, science makes everything quantifiable. Anthropology should continue along its current path of being a science. Anthropology is quantifiable; by using science you can determine information much more precisely. Anthropology is absolutely 100 percent a science in every way shape and form, and should also be considered one.
everyone since teh beginning fo time has had their own views and standards for the way that everything around them should be. these views are seemingly set in stone and unchangeable. there are many examples in the past of terrible consequences for expressing views other than the norm at the time. more recently this apprehension to change was described by Thomas Kuhn in his book, The Structure of Scientific Revoulutions.
Division Between Ancient and Modern Science Introduction Power has played a significant role in the motivation of scientific progress, specifically in comparing modern science and ancient science. Power-seekers have been greatly attracted to scientific pursuits, seeking monetary, life-giving or glory-earning ends. In ancient science "the lure of health, wealth, and eternal life charmed many an alchemist to the poorhouse, madness, or an untimely death" (Coudert 35), while modern society itself has embraced scientific development with a similar fervor. Amidst many similarities, the rift between ancient and modern science is enormous and has frequently left historians puzzled. Although it is clear to historians that the stagnant science of ancient times developed into the modern scientific pursuit in the 17th century, it is not clear what specifically caused this revolution of scientific thought.
Hirsch, E. 1995. “Introduction, Landscape: between place and space” in Hirsch, E. (ed.) The Anthropology of Landscape: Perspectives on Place and Space. Oxford : New York: Clarendon Press.