Study Guide and Outline Notes

Study Guide on Geography and the Global Ecosystem
View or Print the Study Guide
 
PowerPoint Presentation Outline Notes
View or Print Introduction to Geography Outline Notes
 
View or Print Global Ecosystem Outline Notes

Study Questions

World Wide Web Exploration
View or Print the Study Questions

Practice Quizzes

Test your knowledge of geography and the global ecosystem after exploring the Web sites.
 

Geography Multiple Choice Quiz
 
The Global Ecosystem Multiple Choice Quiz

Quizzes, Tarbuck and Lutgens, Key Concepts 1, 2, 3, and 7

Geography on the World Wide Web

The textbook Earth Science by Tarbuck and Lutgens does not discuss the topic of geography as a discipline. Review the following Web sites to learn about geography.

What is Geography?
The American Association of Geographers presents a brief explanation of this exciting discipline.

What do Geographers Do?
Find out from the American Association of Geographers what you can do if you major in geography. This professional association provides a comprehensive list of careers in geography and tells you what you need to get an internship and find a good job.

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Mini Tutorials On The Global Ecosystem

The Food Chain as an Example of a System
How does solar energy move through the food chain?

Introduction to the Ecosystem Concept
Learn more about the flows of energy and matter in an ecosystem.

The Carbon Cycle
Learn how carbon, "the building block of life", constantly recycles between the earth, the atmosphere, the oceans, and the biosphere.

Maps on the World Wide Web

TerraServer Maps and Aerial Photographs
Find detailed maps and photographs for any place in the United States. Explore your neighborhood at the highest resolution. Compare the photograph with the topographic map.

TopoZone - Topographic Maps of the United States
TopoZone and the USGS (United States Geological Survey) provide access to every USGS 1:25,000, 1:50,000, 1:100,000 and 1:200,000 scale topographic maps of the entire United States. Select a scale at the top left of the map. Locate your own neighborhood or places you have visited.
(Note:  You do not need to subscribe to View Maps to download them.)

National Atlas - Make Maps
Make your own map using a simplified geographic information system (GIS). Scroll down to display detailed map layers showing the natural and sociocultural landscapes of the United States.

Color Landform Atlas of the United States
Find shaded relief maps of every state in the United States.

National Geographic Map Machine
Explore more map themes on the MapMachine. Go from the whole world, to the continent, country, city, and street levels.

Outline Maps
To print and copy outline maps of countries of the world use National Geographic's online Xpeditions Atlas.

Google Earth
This Web site is a geographer's paradise! Satellite imagery from the whole world can be explored here after a free download.

NASA's World Wind
NASA's World Wind lets you zoom from satellite altitude into any place on Earth. Using Landsat satellite imagery and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission data, World Wind lets you experience Earth terrain in visually rich 3D, just as if you were really there. Virtually visit any place in the world. Look across the Andes, look into the Grand Canyon, look over the Alps, or along the African Sahara.
 
To explore NASA's World Wind, you need to download this program.

Digital Flights
Enjoy digital flights over the landscapes of California, the Western United States, and the world, presented by William Bowen of the California Geographic Alliance and Cal State University, at Northridge.

General World Wide Web Exploration in Physical Geography

The Web sites shown here will be useful throughout the course.  Do not attempt to explore them all at once or you will become a webaholic!  They are research tools.

Earth Science The Online Companion Website
This textbook Web site provides quizzes, links to other interesting Web sites, and updates to the textbook.

Earth from Space
Have you ever wanted to travel in a spaceship?  This NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) Web site provides an overview of the earth from space.  It gives you a good sense of what geography is about.  You can visit each of the locations shown here.

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Earth Observatory
This NASA Earth Observatory site combines current satellite images with in-depth discussion of environmental issues. This is a great starting point for term paper research. Click on each of the Earth's spheres for dozens of articles and images exploring what is happening in the global ecosystem.

Earth As Art
View the beauty of the landscape and clouds as viewed from the Landsat-7 satellite miles above the earth.

Earth Pulse:  A Visual Guide to Global Trends
Explore the human condition, globalization, and our relationship with nature at this site sponsored by National Geographic.

Online Glossary for Physical Geography
Having a tough time with the vocabulary of physical geography? This Web site created by Dr. Michael Pidwirny, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia Okanagan, will make sense of all that terminology.

Fundamentals of Physical Geography Online Textbook
Want to learn more? Dr. Michael Pidwirny has created a high level online textbook.

Resources for Earth Science and Geography
Explore this comprehensive Web site with links to the worlds of earth science and geography.

Globe Project
This is a NOAA (National Oceanic and Aeronautics Administration) National Data Center Images and Maps of the Earth and various continents.

USGS (United States Geological Survey) in the San Francisco Bay Area
This is a wonderful resource for information about the Bay Area physical environment. Explore spectacular satellite imagery of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Internet Resources for Geography and Geology
This is a comprehensive and eclectic set of resources that includes virtual field trips, multimedia, links to government data and resources, and environmental information.

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Created by Rita D. Haberlin, Geography Professor
rhaberlin@aol.com
Peralta Community College District
333 East Eighth Street
Oakland, CA 94606
www.Peralta.edu