Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
THE GEOGRAPHER'S
TOOLS
C H A P T E R T W O
Before you begin to study the various concepts associated with physical geography, it is useful to understand
some of the tools that geographers use to gather, manipulate, and display spatial information. Some of these tools,
such as maps, are probably familiar because you have used them yourself and because they are generally as-
sociated with geography. Other aids, such as remote sensing, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and Global
Positioning Systems (GPS), are more technical and not well understood by most people. This chapter focuses on
these tools, with the goal of providing a better understanding of how geographers do their work. The material in
this chapter will also help you understand how much of the information presented in this text was obtained and
how it should be interpreted.
