Discovering the earth

THE STUDY OF GEOGRAPHY

Geography - is the study of the earth. The word geography comes from two Greek words, ge, meaning "earth," and graphein, meaning "to write." Geography is the study of particular places on the earth and their characteristics. It includes looking at the earth's landforms, water features, weather patterns, plant life, animal life, human life, and the effects of human activity on the earth.

Clearly, there is much to learn about a topic as vast as the earth's geography. One way to begin is to investigate the variety of places on the earth.

Through time, people have settled all over the world. Why did they settle where they did? How does where people live affect their lives? How have people affected the places where they live?

A WORLD OF ENVIRONMENTS

The world looks beautiful and colorful from space because geography varies greatly from place to place. The earth has many different environments. An environment is made up of all the surroundings of a place. An environment includes the land and the water. It includes weather patterns and all the plants and animals that live in a place. It also includes the things people have done to change a place.

People live in many different environments. They live in deserts, on mountains, on small islands, and in forests. They live along winding rivers or near great oceans. Wherever people live, they develop special connections with their environment. They learn how to live in or change their environment to suit their needs.

Do you know why people originally settled in your area? What were their reasons? Were they attracted by the good soil, natural harbor, a wide river? If you live in Pittsburgh, Pennysylvania, you know that the city was originally settled because of ots special geographic features. Pittsburgh lies between two rivers, the Monongahela and the Allegheny. These rivers unite at Pittsburgh to form the great Ohio River, which can take travelers and goods deep into the heart of America.