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Ice core
two types:
-
the ice
found in the middle of a
pingo.
-
a sample
of ice taken from the inner/lower parts of a glacier or
larger body of ice. Analysis of this ice can give us
information on past climate.
Ice lens
in periglacial areas, as winter sets in, land not under
continuous
permafrost will experience freezing of water in the
surface layer. Water from below this layer is then drawn up
through
capillary action. Frozen patches form in a lens
shape parallel to and just below the surface. This causes
stones to roll to the edges of the lens forming
patterned ground.
Ice
sheet a large area of ice, usually over 50000km2.
Currently found in Greenland and Antarctica.
Ice
wedge when temperature fall below -15°C, ice in soil
contracts. This causes cracks to open in the ground. These
may fill with water which then freezes to form an ice wedge.
During
interglacials, or periods of retreat, the ice melts
away and the crack may fill with solid material which stands
out and may show the shape of the old ice wedges within the
profile of the soil (fossilized ice wedge).
Igneous a
rock formed through the cooling of
magma or
lava.
The slower the cooling, the larger the rock crystals and the
harder the rock, although all igneous rocks are very hard.
Illuviation
inward movement of clays, minerals and organic matter to a
low soil
horizon
From one above.
IMF see
International Monetary Fund.
Immature
soil one which has not had time to develop. It will be
made mostly of
regolith. Organic components are
minimal.
Immigration
inward movement of people to a country.
Impermeable
a rock which cannot absorb water and does not allow it to
pass through.
Import
controls measures imposed by governments to restrict the
import of particular goods or goods from a particular
country. May involve mild measures such as lots of
red-tape requirements, through
tariffs and
quotas, to
embargoes in the most extreme form.
Import
penetration the proportion of the market for a particular
product-type taken up by imports.
Import
substitution the establishment and/or explicit government
support for an industry producing goods that were formally
exclusively, or nearly exclusively, imported. Usually used
in the
ELDW to try and add value to domestic raw
materials and reduce the flow of money out of the country.
Incised
stream one which has cut deeply down into the landscape.
Income
money received. Can be considered at three scales:
-
wages and
salaries for individuals
-
revenue
(turnover) for businesses
-
taxes,
tariffs, duties and others for governments.
Independent
variable - one which is not affected by another e.g. depth
is not affected by water temperature but the water
temperature will vary with depth (it is the
dependent
variable).
Indigenous
originating in a particular area, region or nation.
Usually applied to flora, fauna and people.
Industrial
estate planned area of integrated buildings and roads for
industrial use, especially by modern industrial businesses.
Often built on
brownfield sites as part of
urban
regeneration projects.
Industrial
inertia the continuing presence of industry in an area, or
at a location, after the initial
locational factors
have ceased to apply.
Industrialisation the move from an economy dominated by
agricultural output and employment to one dominated by
manufacturing.
Industrial
location theory any theory attempting to explain why
industries are found to have located in the places they are
found. Relate
locational factors to the goals of the
industry such as minimizing costs (least-cost location)
or maximizing profits.
Industrial
revolution a fundamental change in the way that goods are
produced and the behaviour of the people who produce them.
Essentially two have occurred:
-
17th
and 18th century move from small-scale,
low-tech., often home-based, production by thousands of
individuals to machine-based mass production in factories
owned by a few and employing people to do the work.
-
20th
century to present appearance of
hi-tech industry
which is
footloose and less dependent on
economies of scale.
Infant
mortality the number of deaths of infants below one year
of age as a proportion of every thousand live births in that
population in that year.
Infield-outfield farming system, largely obsolete now,
where the fields closest to the farm buildings receive the
most attention and most intensive cropping. The fields
further away may only be used for grazing or even left
fallow.
Infiltration movement of water from the surface into the
soil.
Infiltration rate the rate at which water moves into the
soil. Dependent on:
-
amount of
water already in the soil, especially near the surface.
Very wet and very dry soils have the slowest rates of
infiltration.
-
soil
texture which determines the size of pore spaces and thus
how easily water can pass through.
-
soil
structure as some ped shapes block water.
-
amount
and type of vegetation. Vegetation will influence rate at
which water arrives at the surface as well as the nature
of the soil.
Informal
sector self-employment and the jobs that are done by
self-employed people, and which are neither declared to, nor
regulated by, the authorities.
Information
technology (IT) technology tasked with processing, storing
and communication of information e.g. computers, mobile
phones, PDAs. Geographical effects have been widespread as
the advances in IT have begun to dramatically change
behaviour e.g. working from home, reducing business trips,
shopping from home. The irony of IT advances so far is that
a technology that essentially disperses activities (by not
requiring people to be at particular locations) has led to
greater concentration of economic wealth at the global level
as it is the
EMDW, and particular regions within it,
that have been able to adopt and adapt IT most effectively.
Infrastructure the collective name for all the
communication links and basic utility links that get built
across a country to facilitate movements. Good
infrastructure requires high levels of
capital input,
expertise, and political will. Differences in infrastructure
quality are a defining feature between the
EMDW and
ELDW.
Inner-city
the older parts of large urban areas found near to the
CBD and containing both residential and industrial
landscapes, sometimes integrated. They are the remnants of
nineteenth century urban expansions that were at the heart
of the first
industrial revolution. By the 1970s they
were identified with decline and deprivation but since the
late 20th century, many have been
redeveloped
or
gentrified.
Inorganic
non-living things. Also
abiotic.
Input in
systems theory, any element introduced to the system
from outside.
Inselberg
lit. island mountain (from the German). A stand-alone
mountain or hill which rises steeply from much flatter
surroundings.
Insolation
incoming solar radiation measured from when the atmosphere
is engaged.
Instability
the continued rising of an
air mass
as it is warmer
than the surrounding, or environmental, air. This is
especially common after the rising mass has passed the
dew point and so cools at the
saturated adiabatic
lapse rate as the release of
latent heat keeps
the mass warmer. The term instability is used as the
continued rising leads to further opportunity for
condensation and thus the build up of large, dense storm
clouds.
Intensive
agriculture the application of high levels of capital
and/or labour
inputs to units of land area. Thus is
can be true of agriculture in both the
ELDW and the
EMDW.
Interception when precipitation deposits onto a surface
that Is not the actual land such as vegetation or animals.
Interdependence the connections between different
components of systems or between separate systems which mean
that changes in one will necessarily cause changes in
another.
Interglacial a period of warmer climate conditions between
glacial periods.
Interlocking spurs the landform resulting from the winding
path of a river in its upper course cutting a
V-shaped
valley. The slopes on the inside of each bend jut out
giving an interlocking appearance.
Intermediate technology see
alternative technology.
International dateline a line of longitude at
approximately 180˚ which is internationally agreed as the
official start point of each day.
International Monetary Fund (IMF) an organization
framework for international economic co-operation conceived
by the United Nations.
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/glance.htm
Interquartile range statistical measure of the spread of
values around the median. When the upper, or higher,
25% of values and the lower 25% of values are removed, the
spread of the remaining, interquartile, values is derived.
Interstadial a relatively short and temporary period of
warming during a
glacial. Not long enough to be
classed as a proper
interglacial.
Inter-tidal
zone the land between the low tide mark and high tide
mark. See also
littoral.
Intertropical convergence zone where the surface level
winds from the two
Hadley Cells come together. The
term was introduced to take into account the seasonal
movement of the
heat equator which causes the cells
to change position through the year.
Interventionist belief in significant government presence
in modifying markets to improve their efficiency and to
protect consumers from unscrupulous or irresponsible
business behaviour. Such government action could include:
-
fines for
firms who break standards across a range of criteria
-
laws to
impose standards and minimum wage levels
-
protection for consumers and workers
-
regional
policies to maintain balance across the national space
-
support
to start-up businesses or ailing older ones
-
training
schemes
Intrazonal
soil one whose main characteristics are controlled by a
single local factor. Climate is not dominant and so they
occur in localized places rather than zones.
Intrusive
landform one produced by the cooling of
magma into
solid
igneous rock within the crust.
Invisible
export the sale of a service to a customer overseas,
particularly of financial products such as banking and
insurance.
Invisible
import the buying of a service from an overseas provider.
Invisible
trade import and export of services in industry sectors
such as banking, tourism and education. Forms part of the
balance of payments.
Irrigation
when humans water the land, usually for agriculture but
also for leisure (e.g. golf courses), either during a period
of dry weather or to bring areas of land in drier zones into
use.
Island arc
a chain, often arc-shaped, of volcanic islands. These are
undersea
volcanoes which have grown through repeated
eruptions to break the surface. They are the product
of a
subduction zone where either the
continental
plate is so low lying that its edge is submerged, or two
pieces of oceanic plate have collided, the denser being
subducted.
Isobar -
A line on a weather map that
connects points of equal pressure. On a weather map, isobars
extend around areas of high and low pressure.
Isodapane
line connecting points of equal total transport cost.
Isopleth
map a map which uses lines joining points of an equal
value to show variations in that value e.g. contour lines on
a topographical map, isobars on a weather map.
Isostatic
the rise and fall of the land relative to the sea (as
opposed to
eustatic) due to the removal or addition
of ice sheets respectively.
Isostatic
depression the sinking of a landmass due to the overlying
weight of ice.
Isostatic rebound the rising of a landmass after the removal of ice.
Isotim
a
line connecting points of equal transport costs.
Intersecting isotims for multiple materials/products allow
isodapanes to be drawn by connecting the points of
intersection.
Isotope
some elements have more than one form. They differ only in
nuclear terms rather than chemical ones and have different
relative atomic mass as a result. They may behave slightly
differently which allows us to use them in geography for a
number of measurements relating to constructing past
conditions.
Isotropic
physically uniform in all directions. Usually used to
describe flat plains with uniform soil and climate
properties in models seeking to isolate other variables.
ITCZ see
Intertropical Convergence Zone.
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