Geography In Everyday Life (GIEL) Notes

Elective Geography Notes

Geography in everyday life Done By: Nutcracker Contacts: - Discord: nutcracker_cool Extra friendly reminder: ● Bring calculator, pencil, ruler, eraser and pen (drawings of diagrams may be needed)

Topic 1: Thinking geographically 1.1 Relationship between people and the nature in their neighbourhoods - Learn about relationship between people and nature in their neighbourhoods. Content concepts: - Community : A group of people in a particular place who has a sense of belonging both to the place and to the group. - Nature area: Also known as the natural environment, it refers to the nonhuman world, which are areas that are untouched or barely affected by humans. - Recreation: Any voluntary activity undertaken for purposes of enjoyment , pleasure, and personal satisfaction. What is the relationship between people and nature? 1. local communities and nearby nature areas are dependent upon each other. a. people depend on nature for many things: - Nature provides essentials like air and water for human to survive. - Living organisms like bees help pollinate crops for a continuous supply of food. - Nature provides spaces for recreation and leisure activities which allows people to bond with their family and friends, thus helping to maintain human’s physical and mental well-being. b. some nature areas are also dependent on the local communities to thrive. - People in the neighbourhood may tend to tne health of nearby nature areas, ensuring the plants and animals living there thrive - Individuals in local communities can encourage one another to enjoy nearby nature areas in a sustainable manner without causing irreversible damage.

How do people and nature bring about benefits to each other? 1. Nature areas benefit people by lowering temperatures, removing pollutants, and providing space for recreation. a. lowering air temperature i. The presence of vegetation: - Provides shape and reduces the amount of direct sunlight that reaches the surface - Cools the surrounding air through evapotranspiration as the water that plants absorb through their roots is released into the air as water vapor. this process uses heat from the surrounding, fast cooling it. b. removal of pollutants i. During photosynthesis vegetation absorbs carbon dioxide and other air pollutants and releases oxygen. ii. Small particles are intercepted by leaves which are washed to the ground when it rains. iii. what land plants can trap suspended materials and absorb excess nutrients in the water thus improving water quality. c. Provision of recreational space i. Natural areas offer numerous opportunities for outdoor activities. ii. Direct and frequent interactions with nature can bring about health and well-being benefits to people, which reduces severity and occurrence off house conditions. What are the disadvantages people and nature bring to each other? 1. People bring disadvantages to nature by causing soil erosion, damaging vegetation, worsening pollution and disturbing wildlife. a. Causing soil erosion and damaging vegetation. i. When people hike along non-designated trials in nature areas b. Worsening pollution and disturbing wildlife i. littering

2. Nature may bring disadvantages to people as wildlife from nearby nature areas may harm people and environmental protection may limit development. a. Human-wildlife conflicts may increase due to an increase in human-wildlife encounters: Reasons for increase in human-wildlife encounters in Singapore Urban expansion People’s growing interest in outdoor recreation Greening efforts by the state - Singapore continues to urbanise and develop, leading to nature habitats shrinking. Wildlife may venture out of the nature areas in search of food or shelter, potentially increasing the frequency of human - wildlife encounters. - With growing interest in outdoor recreational activities, people are now spending more time in nature areas, which increases the frequency of human - wildlife encounters - Singaoire aims to bring nature back into the city and promote human - wildlife encounters 1.2 A sense of place in the neighbourhoods What is a sense of place? - A sense of place is developed when people associated meanings and memories with locations. - It reflects the relationship people have with the places around them. - A sense of place helps to build our identity, enabling us to understand ourselves and others better. How do people acquire a sense of place in their neighbourhood? 1. Repeated encounters with objects and people a. This helps us to recall the character and features of places that we come across and create meanings and memories of them. 2. Significant or memorable events at local landmarks and gathering places. a. We may acquire a sense of place from significant or memorable events that occur at local landmarks and gathering places. b. Landmarks are highly visible and easy for most people to remember c. They may serve symbolic or historical purposes How is sense of place represented? - Sense of place may be represented through different forms and types of media by individuals and organisations which reflects people’s ideas, memories and significance of the location. (e.g. texts, audios, graphs, posts)

How may representations of sense of place enhance ot contradict an individual’s sense of place? - Different emotions expressed in media might enhance ot contradict our sense of place. - Our sense of place shapes our identity, hence, we respond well to representations that agree with how we feel about places on our neighbourhood. - Such representations add new layers of meanings tp these places by revealing interesting information about them, thus enhancing our sense of place. 1.3 Relationship between locations in a neighbourhood What are regions? - Areas with similar physical and/or human characteristics - Regions may vary in size - Regions may be classified according to: - Environmental characteristics : Nature or build-up areas - Human characteristics: e.g. Commercial or residential areas - Geographical location: e.g. East or West What are spatial patterns? - Spatial patterns reflect non-random arrangements that are recognisable as shapes, clusters, geometry, or repeated orcurrence at regular intervals What are spatial associations? - Spatial associations refer to the tendency of a pair of services, events and objects to be located near each other. - E.g. Lifts and stairways are often located next to each other. - Understanding spatial associations in our neighbourhood enhances our everyday living. 1.4 Organisation of neighbourhoods in Singapore What are spacial scales? - Spacial scales refer to the extend of area whic