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Chapter 1

• In the Preface, de Blij summarizes the reasons why Americans should study geography: we have an obligation to be well informed because our decisions affect the whole planet, geographic literacy is a matter of national security, we need to make better use of maps and new technologies, and geography teaches us to use critical thinking skills to make unexpected linkages.

• In the first part of chapter 1, de Blij talks about how the world has changed over the last decade and is continuing to change.

• De Blij also explains the traditions of geography: it deals with the natural and human world, it assesses relationships between human societies and natural environments, and it researches foreign cultures and distant regions.

• Geographers look at the world spatially, not chronologically (like historians) or structurally (like political scientists and economists).

• Geography is a large, umbrella-like discipline, allowing geographers to pursue widely varying research...

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