Problems of studying geography. Actual problems of teaching geography at school
Geography is the most ancient branch of knowledge. Its roots go back much further than, for example, physics, chemistry, biology and other sciences.
Geography today is an understanding of the interrelationships of natural and social processes and phenomena, moreover, the ability to predict them. With modern geographical research in long-known territories, scientists make many new, sometimes amazing discoveries. But this is not the discovery of new objects, but the discovery of geographical patterns in nature and in society.
Geographical sciences have always had a practical purpose. In the past, they provided the public primarily with background information. Now the practical role of geography is determined primarily by its participation in solving the problems of interaction between nature and society. The exacerbation of these problems once again proves that geographical research must have a preliminary character. The precedence of comprehensive geographic studies to the development and approval of any projects is especially important when human intervention in nature can have planetary consequences.
The ecological problem cannot be solved without the participation of scientists from the entire complex of geographical sciences. And since this problem is closely connected with other global problems of mankind, geography rises to a qualitatively new level. Constructive geography comes to the fore, the task of which is not only to analyze the consequences of interference in nature, but also to predict them.
The whole difficulty of geographical research lies in the fact that not only complex natural phenomena and processes come into the field of view of geographers, but also no less complex patterns of economic development. A one-sided approach to their solution, ignoring the close relationships and became the reason for the emergence of the main problem of our time, called "the interaction of nature and society."
Human awareness of the complexity of this problem led to the emergence of such a research method as monitoring. Monitoring (from the Latin “one who reminds, warns”) is a complex information system, the main task of which is to observe and assess the state of the natural environment that is under anthropogenic influence. At present, the most developed part of monitoring is the observation of water and air pollution. The ultimate goal of monitoring is the development of measures for the rational (from the Latin "reasonable") use of natural resources, the preservation of natural balance.
The effectiveness of monitoring can only be ensured during research at three levels: local (local), regional (continents, oceans and their separate parts) and global (geographical envelope).
In the monitoring process, various scientific and technical methods and research tools are used. The traditional methods of collecting information - stationary and drifting scientific stations - also retain their importance. Observations in biosphere reserves are especially important, where human influence on the “standards” of natural complexes is monitored. Recently, however, the methods of space geography have become increasingly important. (Remember what it is.) They are based on remote comprehensive study of the geographic envelope from spacecraft.
The large amount of information that is obtained at the same time makes it possible not only to register, but also to predict certain changes that occur in nature during economic activity. Geographical forecasts are meteorological (for example, weather forecasts), hydrological - warning of floods, mudflows, etc.
But the most effective are complex forecasts, that is, those that provide for future changes in the natural complex. Neglect of just such a forecast, for example, led to the well-known environmental disasters of the Aral Sea, Kara-Bogaz-Gol in Central Asia, the Sahel zone in Africa, and many others.
Monitoring of the natural environment requires the joint efforts of all countries of the world. None of them can behave in this situation according to the principle “my hut is on the edge, I don’t know anything.” Everything that happens in the geographical shell will affect each of us sooner or later.
Mankind finally realized this and began to create a global system for protecting the geographic shell on the basis of broad international cooperation.
The practical role of geography is determined by its participation in solving the problems of interaction between nature and society.
Assessment of the state of the geographic envelope is carried out with the help of monitoring.
The constructive role of geography is manifested in the geographical forecast.
The global nature of the problem of interaction between society and nature determines broad international cooperation.
Municipal educational budgetary institution secondary school No. 2 in the village of Starobaltachevo of the municipal district Baltachevsky district of the Republic of Bashkortostan
"Actual problems of teaching geography in the context of the implementation of the Federal State Educational Standards LLC."
Prepared by: Sultanova Elza Anvarovna
School geography is a subject of an ideological nature, which forms in students a holistic, complex, systemic idea of the Earth as a planet of people. The scope of this subject includes natural and social objects and phenomena, so the goals of teaching geography are particularly broad. More generally, the goal of geographical education is to provide students with a complete system of geographical knowledge and skills, as well as the possibilities of their application in various life situations. The contribution of school geography to the formation of the student's personality is determined by the current stage of interaction between nature and society, when the activity of the individual is the most important factor in the system of relationships between man and nature. To bring it in line with the requirements of the time and the tasks of the development of the country, a significant update of the content of education is necessary. The main condition for solving this problem is the introduction of a state standard for general education.
Currently, geography belongs to a number of subjects, which are defined in the federal component of the state standard of 2004 as mandatory for studying in basic school. The basic content of education, the requirements for the preparation of students in the subject and control over the fulfillment of these requirements are independent of the type of educational institution or territory where education is conducted, its profile. Geography is a subject that provides an opportunity to develop goal-setting, planning, reflection and self-esteem during the lesson.
Recommendations on the use of existing textbooks and teaching materials. It is necessary to pay attention to the year of publication of textbooks, since textbooks should be used in the educational process no earlier than 2006 of publication (in accordance with the Federal State Educational Standard for Basic General and Secondary (Complete) General Education). When organizing the educational process, along with the previously used teaching materials, it is necessary to introduce a new generation of teaching materials, the features of which are:
reorientation from knowledge transfer to the formation of key competencies;
formation of competencies based on a systemic-activity approach in training;
strengthening the block of applied knowledge.
The teacher of geography in his work uses the author's program of the line of teaching materials on which he works. Each team of authors of geography training courses offers a program developed in accordance with the Federal State Educational Standard of the new generation and exemplary subject programs, which are based on continuity with exemplary programs of primary general education.
Practical work is an integral part of the process of teaching geography. The implementation of practical work provides the formation of skills to apply theoretical knowledge in practice, equips with vital skills, such as reading, analyzing and comparing physical maps, statistical materials, etc. Practical work contributes to the education of industriousness in schoolchildren, the development of independence and is one of the important stages in preparing for the Unified State Exam in geography. The implementation of the system of practical work provided for by the program contributes to the mastery of cartographic, comparative-historical, geoecological, geosystemic approaches and methods by schoolchildren. According to the didactic purpose, all practical work is divided into training (training), independent (creative), final (evaluative). No more than 20% of the study time of the corresponding program is allocated to the implementation of practical work. The final (estimated) work is about 50% of the work. The performance of training and creative work by the teacher is evaluated selectively and only satisfactory marks are given in the school magazine.
Special attention still needs to be paid to the time allotted for studying geography in the 6th grade. Despite the decrease in the number of hours of the federal component to 35 hours, it is still supposed to allocate 70 hours for the study of the initial course of geography. Additional hours have been transferred to the regional component: in the 6th grade, 1 hour of study time per week is allocated for teaching the local history module. At the present stage of development of the school, the attitude to local history is changing. It becomes one of the ways to implement the regional component. Highlighting separately the problem of creating and comprehending the integrity of a certain territory by students, one should point out two ways of studying local history in school practice. Local material involved as additional information on the subject, due to its importance, can become the basis for the development of the regional component of geographical education. At the same time, local history material remains an additional source for the formation of basic concepts and ideas of geography.
The basic curriculum of the new generation standards includes the heading "Extracurricular work", which is allocated 10 hours in each class. And, of course, while this is not the case at the middle and senior levels of the school, nevertheless, one of the areas is preparation for the Olympiads. The organization of extracurricular activities contributes to the expansion of the skills of practical activities of students. It connects the theoretical foundations of knowledge with their practical application, and also involves a large number of forms of activity that cannot be implemented in the classroom. One of the pedagogical conditions for successful preparation for the Olympiad is a combination of classroom and extracurricular work. All Olympiad tasks are built on the basis of school geography courses. Tasks only develop, logically complicate basic knowledge and clothe them in a more entertaining form. The content of the Olympiad tasks is determined by the "Exemplary program of basic general education in geography" in accordance with the sections:
Sources of geographic information
Earth nature and man
Continents, oceans, peoples and countries
Geography of Russia
Nature management and geoecology.
Nature and man in the modern world
world population
Geography of the world economy
Regions and countries of the world
Russia in the modern world
Geographical aspects of modern global problems of mankind.
When preparing the winners of the district-city stage of the subject Olympiad for participation in the regional Olympiad, you can use the tasks of the regional Olympiads of the last 5 years. In preparation, emphasis should be placed on the practical component of them. In particular, for the construction of a geological and geomorphological transverse profile; to work with a square-kilometer grid of a topographic map; determination of azimuths on the map and the ability to calculate the length of various routes. In addition to the listed tasks, it is possible to include in the structure of practical tours and other tasks, including creative ones related to the independent development of search and research projects (for example, business plans, territorial development programs, local history, etc.). Tasks of this type, as a rule, are offered to high school students studying economic geography.
When preparing for the theoretical part, emphasis should be placed on geographical discoveries and travels that have a significant date in 2010-2011; recognize and describe specific areas of the earth's surface by contour or image; determine special (specific) points of the earth by coordinates. Explain the geographical consequences of the movement of the Earth around the Sun and the rotation of the Earth around its axis; days of equinox and solstice, their specific manifestations in specific territories. According to the description, be able to determine a particular territory (country or region of the country). Clearly know and apply climate-forming factors and their territorial manifestations in a changed situation, be able to analyze the climatogram. Features of the water regime of rivers and lakes, causes of changes in the salinity of the surface waters of the World Ocean, causes of formation, directions and features of cold and warm ocean currents. Understand the peculiarities of the territorial concentration of many economic phenomena. Be able to read and analyze various cartograms and cartograms, diagrams, tables and graphs. We remind you that when preparing the participants of the Olympiad of the regional tour, you should use materials published in the journal "Geography at School" over the past 5 years, in the newspaper "Geography" (supplement to the newspaper "First of September"), the journal "Geography and Ecology at School XXI ", as well as in the new popular science magazine for schoolchildren "Geography for schoolchildren", which began to be published in 2008.
The USE has become the usual form of final certification. Considering the small number of participants in the USE in geography (less than 5% of graduates), it is difficult to determine the level and characteristics of training in geography for all graduates of general educational institutions of the region. However, based on the analysis of these results, one can get an idea about the features of assimilation of the material of school geography courses. The results obtained make it possible to identify some strengths and weaknesses in the preparation of graduates, to identify certain trends, to determine the levels of mastering knowledge and skills by individual groups of students in geography, and to offer recommendations for improving the learning process. Positive changes in the quality of the geographical education of examinees recorded in recent years, of course, were the result of the systematic work of teachers aimed at achieving by students the appropriate requirements for the level of preparation of graduates. This indicates the need to continue to pay special attention to the use of various sources of geographical knowledge (maps, statistical materials, drawings and texts) in the learning process and the formation of skills to independently use them to compare and explain the studied territories, geographical objects and phenomena. Teaching students these important activities should be systematically paid attention to in the educational process, based on an analysis of the results of the USE in geography in 2009-10. Focusing students' attention on the typical mistakes of graduates and their analysis can be an effective means of preventing the formation of distorted geographical knowledge.
The inclusion of USE tasks that test the formation of these skills, both in thematic and final test work, using them in the current control will, on the one hand, allow the teacher to get an objective picture of the state of formation of skills, and on the other hand, will encourage students to focus not only on the text of the textbook, but also illustrative material, statistical applications. When organizing the control of mastering the basic concepts, it is important to pay more attention to the use of questions and tasks that test the understanding of general concepts that reflect the studied geographical objects and phenomena, the ability to give examples of them, the ability to apply them. The ability to clearly formulate one's thoughts using geographical terms and concepts, to record the course of one's own reasoning when solving both educational and problems arising in the surrounding reality is one of the important subject competencies. Excessive enthusiasm for test tasks with a choice of answers when testing knowledge inevitably leads to the fact that students are simply deprived of the opportunity to formulate detailed answers on their own. It is necessary to teach students this already from the geography course of the 6th grade.
For the USE, like any other exam, students need to be prepared, but this preparation should not be reduced to “coaching” for the thoughtless performance of various tasks. An important task of the teacher is to provide qualified assistance to students in choosing a manual for preparing for the exam. You can recommend to students the manuals included in the "List of publications approved by the Federal Institute of Pedagogical Education for use in the educational process in educational institutions", posted on the FIPI website (http://www.fipi.ru ).
The 2010-2011 academic year is under discussion and, in the long term, the adoption of the Federal State Educational Standard (FSES), which will ensure the development of the education system in a rapidly changing educational environment.
Reflecting the change in the value orientations of education -from the development of subjects to the development of personality, the goals of education are determined through a system of value orientations, while the upbringing of the child's personality is prescribed as its most important component and personal result.
One of the main differences between the new standard and the previous one can be called the allocation subject, oversubject (metasubject) and personal requirements for learning outcomes. Among the results of the development of these programs, subject and meta-subject results checked at the final certification, and personal results, a generalized assessment of which is carried out in the course of various monitoring studies, should be singled out.
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Basic requirements for the preparation of students (subject skills)
Explain the meaning of the main concepts of the topic,
give examplesthe influence of various natural and socio-economic factors on the number, reproduction, resettlement and distribution of the population;
give reasoned evidencethe influence of the ethnic or religious composition of the population on the characteristics of the socio-economic life of the country;
compare different countries in terms of the level and quality of life of the population;
use datathematic maps as a source of arguments in favor of a particular judgment;
characterizebased on cartographic data;
read and analyzecontent of thematic maps.
Meta-Skills:
Search and selection of necessary sources of information
Possession of skills of analysis and synthesis of information. Classification of information according to given criteria
Identification of the main essential features, determination of criteria for analysis and comparison
Comparison of objects, facts, phenomena according to specified criteria
Identification of causal relationships between geographical objects, phenomena, events, facts
Presentation of information in different forms
Improving analytical skills to work with statistics, maps, maps, thematic maps
Working with the text of the textbook, presenting texts in different forms - conclusions, theses, summaries
Studying the distinctive features of different types of global problems based on working with various sources of information
Identification of interrelations between various global problems
The study of cartographic and statistical data to determine the geography of environmental problems
Working with periodicals (selection and analysis)
Expressing your own reasoned opinions on topical issues of the studied educational material
Be able to work with various sources of information, analyze, draw conclusions
Improve communication skills, i.e. ability to translate cartographic, statistical, graphic information into text and vice versa
Show on the map and explain the geography of phenomena and processes, identify cause-and-effect relationships based on a comparison of maps, draw analytical conclusions.
udk 910.1 V. A. Shalnev
progress and problems of modern
geography at the turn of the century
Successes and challenges of modern
geography at the turn of the century
The article considers the main stages in the history of the development of geographical ideas, reflecting integration approaches in the theory of geography, and the complexity of building a theory of general geography.
Key words: unified geography, zonal-complex concept, anthropogeography, chorological concept, theoretical geography, geoecology, general geography, geoversum.
The article describes the main stages of the history of geographical ideas, reflecting integration approaches in the theory of geography, and the complexity of constructing a theory of general geography.
Keywords: single geography, zonal-integrated concept anthropogeography, chorological concept, theoretical geography, geoecology, general geography, geoversum.
Any science as a form of social consciousness goes through a difficult path of development from the descriptive stage to the stage of theoretical and methodological understanding. The history of any science is not only its achievements and successes, but, first of all, the people who created this history. Their thoughts, feelings, experiences, doubts, searches. This is the aura of that era in which they lived and worked, which they managed to “absorb” and convey in a concentrated manner in their deeds and heritage. V. I. Vernadsky wrote that “each generation of scientific researchers seeks and finds in the history of science a reflection of the scientific currents of its time.”
Geography is an “omnivorous” science, and over several thousand years it has accumulated a huge amount of scientific and non-scientific facts that it could not comprehend and, as B. Akhmadulina wrote, “sculpt a heavy tangible object out of the moonlight”. It is impossible to recall in one work all the "sowers" and "seekers of truth" who worked in the field of "geographical fields". Our task here is more modest: firstly, to consider the main achievements in the field of integration approaches of theoretical and methodological understanding and the heritage of geography as a science;
secondly, to recall once again those great geographers on whose shoulders the modern building of geography rests, decrepit in the fluidity of time and requiring major repairs in the area of its foundation - general geography, the integral ideas of its constituent parts.
There are several main stages and integration trends in the history of geography:
Creation of a unified (undivided) geography that described the surface of the Earth, its individual regions
and countries. The accumulated vast factual material required its generalization, and such a way was found in the creation of cartography and maps with their own language and symbols. It was a great time in the history of geography. Cartographic models-images of the Earth's surface, prototypes of future GIS were created. However, such geography could answer only two questions: what is being described and where is the object of description. The explanatory part (why and how?) was absent from it. The spatial approach was realized only in the ideological understanding of the three-term global space: macrocosm (divine layers), mesocosm (terrestrial nature) and microcosm (spiritual essence of man). The dominant feature in such a space was geographical determinism;
An important event at the end of the 19th century and a great contribution to world geography was the Russian zonal-complex concept, at the origins of which was V.V. Dokuchaev. His ideas were realized in the original Russian landscape-geographical school. This was preceded by the emergence of the concept of a geographical complex, which was introduced by A. N. Krasnov for natural objects, where the key to the essence of geography was the “interaction of components”. Later N. N. Kolosovsky will formulate the concept of the production complex. The foundations of landscape science were laid by L. S. Berg, G. N. Vysotsky, G. F. Morozov and others. L. S. Berg combined the doctrine of landscape with the concept of zoning by publishing Landscape Zones of the USSR. Then the work of N. A. Solntsev and A. G. Isachenko gave a serious impetus to field landscape research and landscape mapping of morphological units. A process direction has also taken shape. B. B. Polynov laid the foundations of geochemistry, and D. L. Armand - the geophysics of landscapes. The works of S. V. Kalesnik played a decisive role in overcoming
gap between general geography and landscape science [Isachenko, 2000]. The strengthening of synthesis in physical geography was facilitated by the teachings on the geosystem of V. B. Sochava and the landscape sphere of F. N. Milkov. The objects of study of physical geography were also clearly defined. The general object is a geographic envelope. Private objects - a set of individual regional TPK (from the geographical zone, the mainland to the landscape), as well as morphological units of the landscape, studied by typological methods;
An attempt to be realized in anthropogeography, where with the help of biological determinism and possibilism
the role of the natural factor in the life of a person (mankind) was considered. This was most clearly reflected in LN Gumilyov's theory of ethnogenesis, when the landscape forms the ethnos as the substance of the biosphere. Here, the natural-ecological and natural-social feature of culture (K. Ritter's line), ethnic cultural genesis is also manifested. This explained the mechanism of arrangement of natural space by man within the framework of the concept of geographical determinism. In the future, with the development of trends in the globalization of society, the socio-regulatory part of culture, its spiritual, mental and intellectual components become the leading one. A new paradigm about the natural and social object of geography begins to take shape, called the cultural landscape (K. Sauer, O. Schluter, Yu. A. Vedenin), the mechanism for understanding which is the processes of cultural genesis of an industrial society and the position of anthropocentrism with the leading role of the laws of development of society . However, on the whole, these ideas led to a consolidation in geography only in the form of biogeography (the doctrine of the biosphere and the natural landscape based on the ideas of vitalism) and the doctrine of the sociosphere;
There was a change in methodological positions in geography associated with the rejection of geographical and biological determinisms. This led to the other extreme - indeterminism, when the free will of man became dominant. In social philosophy and, as a result, in geography, the ideas of anthropocentrism began to assert themselves. Man entered the arena of history as a force competing with the forces of nature. In the middle of the 20th century, the concept of "technological optimism" appeared, at the origins of which was the slogan of transforming
childbirth. In geography, the chorological concept (A. Gettner, R. Hartshorne) is becoming popular, associated with the description of a multitude of individual filled spaces and localities. At the end of the 20th century, it was transformed into a post-chorological concept (D.N. Zamyatin, E.L. Feibusovich, B.B. Rodoman, A.N. Lastochkin, M.M. Golubchik) with an application in the form of theoretical geography. It was based on geotopological determinism, where the knowledge of a complex object is reduced to an extremely simplified model (geotopological reductionism). The chorological anthropocentrism of R. Hartshorne also affected the views of Soviet (Russian) representatives of social geography, who, hypertrophying the role of human activity and scientific and technological progress, considered social patterns in the “nature-society” system to be decisive, therefore, all of their geography turns into a humanitarian science ;
the development of domestic socio-economic geography in the second half of the twentieth century was greatly influenced by the ideas of the Anglo-American school, which reflected "revolutionary events": a quantitative revolution (quantification), a theoretical revolution (avant-garde geomodernism), the creation of radical geography, etc. This contributed to the use systems approach, mathematical methods, modeling methods in geographical research and attempts to create theoretical geography. However, an unambiguous approach to the foundations of theoretical geography has not developed. Two approaches have been identified: first, in a broad sense, when the general theory of geography is understood as the totality of all theories, teachings, and concepts of modern geography. This approach is summarized in the work of V.P. Maksakovskii (1998). Secondly, in a narrow sense, when theoretical geography is understood as a general theory of geographic spatial systems. This direction was realized by the efforts of V. Bunge, P. Hagget, V. M. Gokhman, B. L. Gurevich and others in the block of social and geographical sciences, in particular, the theory of location and the spatial aspect of human activity. Yu. G. Saushkin wrote about theoretical geography as a new science that explores spatial systems at the most abstract level (1976). According to B. B. Rodoman, this geography constructs landscape networks, their interweaving at the level of civilizations and the biosphere (1999). He associates it with metageogra-
fiey. However, the consolidation of geographical ideas did not happen, since there was no place for physical geography in it. R. Johnston noted this with regret, saying that there are fewer and fewer points of contact between sociogeography and physical geography (1988);
The emergence of unifying trends in geography with the identification of an ecological approach that gained popularity in the second half of the 20th century. The appearance of geoecology was preceded by a lively discussion with a large number of participants. However, unfortunately, not professional geographers played on this field. In addition, without the presence of a theory of general geography, it was impossible to create a qualitative theoretical foundation for geoecology. Therefore, social ecology has become a “flux” in foreign geography. Russian geoecologists made an attempt to adapt geoecological ideas to the general geography heritage. The regional concept of the territorial organization of society did not help either, since the geoecological paradigm had not yet been implemented in its fundamental provisions, such as the doctrine of the geographical environment;
a historical review of the achievements of individual scientists in the development of the theory and methodology of geography led to a surprising conclusion that the most interesting ideas and new conceptual provisions in geography were most often formulated by scientists who did not have a basic geographical education (I. Kant, V.V. Dokuchaev, L. S. Berg, A. A. Grigoriev, V. I. Vernadsky, V. B. Sochava, N. N. Baransky, N. N. Kolosovsky and others). Apparently, the education system that developed in the universities of the world and Russia (USSR) in the 20th century with in-depth immersion in highly specialized areas with large amounts of information to remember does not justify itself. “A mediocre student of a special class of the lyceum,” wrote A. de Saint-Exupery, “knows more about nature and its laws than Descartes and Pascal. However, is such a student capable of thinking like them? Modern curricula in the specialty "Geography" provide extensive knowledge about the branch sciences and integral disciplines of certain groups of sciences (general geography, biogeography, general socio-economic geography), but do not provide integral knowledge about the general object and subject of geography. The final course "Theory and Methodology" does not solve these problems either.
geographic science” [Golubchik et al., 2005[. The theoretical foundations of geography outlined in it did not compete with the biospheric concept, which is widespread in the world community, since they do not reveal the fundamental foundations of the geographical approach;
One cannot but be alarmed by the trends in the loss of the culture of scientific discussions in the geographical community, their openness and uncompromisingness, the growth of corporate approaches and the decrease in professional demands on the quality of scientific research. V. S. Preobrazhensky wrote about this at the end of the 20th century: “Science, after all, will not survive by avoiding professional exactingness in assessments ... in an atmosphere of complacency (excellently reflected in the reviews of opponents and parent organizations) ... You cannot escape decay ... Dullness not only a genetic, but also a social phenomenon ... And the genetic code of social memory is formed not by someone, but by us with our tolerance for poor quality of work (if only “there are more numbers ...”)” .
General geography can become the core of new integral approaches [Isachenko, 2000; Shalnev, 2000, 2013; Lastochkin, 2008; Trofimov and Sharygin, 2008; Rozanov, 2010] with its global and regional aspects. Its qualitative content should answer the complex questions of the fundamental provisions of the theory of the system of geographical sciences:
1. What is geographical reality or geographical world? What are the main stages of cognition of this reality?
2. How were the worldview positions of philosophy reflected in the theory of geographical sciences when changing social formations from the standpoint of the categories of interaction, the whole and the part, as well as the general, singular and special?
3. Is it possible to form in the scientific community an idea of an idealized limiting object (image) and its particular objects of study in geography from the positions of the evolutionary approach in complicating their structure?
4. What are the features of the subject of study of geography, taking into account evolutionary changes in the structure of the ultimate object of general geography and the characteristics of the interaction of man (mankind) and nature?
5. What is the role of activity approaches and processes of cultural genesis of society in the formation of a complex modern global geospace and its structures of different hierarchies?
6. What general scientific and geographical theoretical and methodological foundations are important in the creation of general geography?
7. What are the difficulties in constructing the theory of general geography, its categorical apparatus and laws.
The central position in this list of problems is occupied by the concept of the general object of geography. There have been many attempts to designate such an object of study in geography. V. I. Vernadsky proposed the noosphere for these purposes, E. Reclus, L. I. Mechnikov, N. A. Gvozdetsky, N. K. Mukitanov - the geographical environment, G. P. Vysotsky - the geosociosphere, V. M. Kotlyakov and V. S. Preobrazhensky called the geographical shell. In our opinion, such an object can be the geoverseum, or the geographical shell of human history. Such an object of general geography is the geographical reality of the planet Earth, a complex global geosystem:
Emerged and developing in the spatio-temporal parameters of the solar system and planet Earth, but limited from them by the environment of its geospace, its system of circulation of energy, matter and information;
Having its own vertical (set of geospheres) and horizontal (set of territorial geosystems) structure;
It has unique properties due to the presence of living matter and the culture of human society, which change its natural essence and create a modern geographical picture of the world (Shalnev, 2000, 2013).
From the standpoint of philosophical and mythological understanding
geoversum - this is the space of the Earth, where nature has created an earthly paradise, and humanity has created purgatory and hell.
And yet, summing up the discussion about the trends of integration processes in geography, I would like to think about geography with optimism and recall the words of V. S. Preobrazhensky: “The romance of difficult and distant roads, the romance of a field fire, has not disappeared in geography. New things are added - the joy of the elegance of the formula, the romance of reflection, the theoretical search. The era of great theoretical discoveries in geography is ahead” (1988).
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Theory and methodology of geographical science. M.: Publishing house Vlados, 2005.
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4. Maksakovskiy V. P. Geographical culture. M.: Publishing house Vlados, 1998.
5. Preobrazhensky V. S. Being a geographer // Newspaper geography, 1998. No. 23.
6. Preobrazhensky VV I am a geographer. M.: Izd-vo GEOS, 2001.
7. Rodoman B. B. Theoretical areas and networks. Essays on theoretical geography. Smolensk: Oikumene Publishing House, 1999.
8. Rozanov L. L. General geography. Moscow: Drofa Publishing House, 2010.
9. Saushkin Yu. G. History and methodology of geographical science: a course of lectures. M.: Publishing House of Moscow State University, 1976.
10. Trofimov A. M., Sharygin M. D. General geography (questions of theory and methodology). Perm, 2008.
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Federal University", Doctor of Geography, Professor of the Department of Physical Geography and Landscape Science, tel.: 8-962-44705-24, e-mail: [email protected]
Shalnev Viktor Alexandrovich, North Caucasus Federal University, doctor of geographical sciences, professor in the Department of physical geography and landscape
Supporters of unified geography rightly attach great importance to the study of territorial complexes and call different branches of geography the sciences of territorial complexes. Recognizing that the complexes studied by physical and economic geography are qualitatively different and that their boundaries do not coincide, these authors hope to somehow combine them and obtain "general geographic" territorial complexes.
Thus, it is not possible to find a subject of study common to all geographical sciences. Attempts to establish general geographical laws led to the same results.
Attempts are being made to find a general method. V.A. Anuchin came to the conclusion that “the chorological approach is the methodological basis of any particular geographical science” [Anuchin, 1972]. This means the same as the proposal to accept the territory as a general geographical subject. If we agree with this view, we will have to exclude from geography many sections and entire disciplines that do not focus on location, and on the other hand, geography will swell and spread again in all directions due to the location sections of other sciences. The territorial approach does not belong only to geography. It is applicable to the study of any material systems, it is used by biologists, linguists, criminologists, etc. The method cannot serve as a criterion for the unity of any science at all, since each science usually uses many methods, has its own system of methods.
Some geographers believe that geography is united by an interest in man or the problems of the interaction of man and nature. According to the definition of Yu.G.Saushkin, "geography is the science of the laws of development of material objects in the form of territorial systems that are formed on the earth's surface in the process of interaction between nature and society, and the management of these systems" [Saushkin, 1976] The main idea of Yu.G. Saushkin is that none of the territorial systems studied by the geographical sciences can be investigated outside the process of interaction between nature and society, that the geographical nature of the study of any natural object is to study it in connection with human activity.
For geography, the concept of the interaction of nature and society is of exceptional importance. The problem of "man and nature" is so grandiose and all-encompassing that geography alone cannot claim the right to solve it. On the other hand, the interests of the geographical sciences cannot be limited to questions of interaction between society and nature. For geography, this is just one of many problems.
In the concept of unified geography, an important role is assigned to regional studies as the most important section of general geography, the main form of general geographical synthesis and almost the ultimate goal of all geography. Regional studies are essential, but this importance should not be exaggerated. This is an official discipline, and its main functions are scientific and popularizing. Regional studies is not a theoretical science and therefore cannot serve as the personification of the “highest geographical synthesis”. It combines facts, but is not a theoretical generalization. It is impossible to consider it as a synthesis of physical and economic geography, because country-specific descriptions are usually drawn up according to political or administrative units and cut through integral natural regions that are not subject to political and administrative boundaries. The fact of coexistence, coexistence in the same territory of different objects does not mean at all that they are internally genetically related to each other, interdependent, that they can be synthesized.
VA Anuchin considers it possible to build a unified theory of geography common to all geographical sciences. The main part of this theory is country studies. It has one more section - geography, the task of which is to study the division of the world into continents and major orographic regions, as well as features in the global division of labor, in the geography of the world's population, in territorial combinations of world markets, the most important world transport arteries, etc. therefore, geography, according to V.A. Anuchin, is a mechanical combination of elements of geography in its modern understanding and the geography of the world economy. Of course, they can be published under one cover, but no synthesis will result from this, since there are no such general laws according to which both the largest orographic regions and world markets would develop.
Humanization and sociologization in geography
Humanism is a historically changing system of views that recognizes the value of a person as a person, his right to life, freedom, development and manifestation of his abilities, considering the good of a person as a criterion for evaluating social institutions, and the principles of equality, justice, humanity as the desired norm of relations between people.
humanization in geography, as in all science, is associated with a turn to man and all spheres and cycles of his life. In fact, this is a whole new worldview that affirms the values of the universal, common cultural heritage and considers, first of all, the life of people and their social relations. According to Ya.G. Mashbits, modern geography is a science “for a person”, “from a person” and in many respects “through a person”. The linkages “man-nature”, “man-economy”, “man-territory”, “man-environment” come to the fore in it.
In the period of the Middle Ages and in the period of early modern times, i.e. in the Renaissance, the ideology of humanism also dominated, the basis of which was also a new attitude towards man. Probably, there are some similarities between that era and the modern one. Nevertheless, it is impossible not to see that on a global scale, the actualization of the humanistic direction is largely associated with the aggravation of the global problems of mankind, which in essence are problems of the survival of the human race. At the regional level, in particular in Russia, it is also associated with many "human" problems that have become more acute in the context of a long crisis.
The current stage of development of education is characterized by a humanistic orientation, which leads to increased attention to the development of the student's personality, its individuality. The humanization of education is based on the idea of educating "humanity" in a person. Humanism reflects the main values of civilization, but at the same time emphasizes the importance of each person in the fullness of his being. The main task of the humanization of education is to strengthen the moral foundations associated with the development of the worldview and value orientations of students.
The humanization of school education is a universal process that has a personality-activity character (E.V. Bondarevskaya, A.N. Leontiev, S.L. Rubinshtein, A.P. Tryapitsina, G.I. Shchukina, etc.). In the context of geographical education, humanization means the dominance of a person and his ways of life (N.N. Baransky, Yu.N. Gladky, V.P. Maksakovskiy, Ya.G. Mashbits, X. Haubrich). Teaching geography as a systematic science of nature and society plays a special role in solving this problem. More K.D. Ushinsky noted that geography is the science of human life on Earth. Consequently, the humanistic essence is expressed here in "the geography of everyday life and the life of the whole world." Thus, we can say that geography as a science has an obvious humanistic potential and affects all aspects of human life, human existence.
sociologization, also representing the general direction of all science and social practice, closely related to humanization and consisting in increasing attention to the social aspects of development. N.N. Baransky wrote about the need for the sociologization of geography back in the 1930s, when the development of anthropogeography was interrupted in the USSR and all “non-natural” geography was actually reduced to the study of the economic sphere of society. Thus, a production interpretation of the essence of economic geography was formed, in which the population was considered primarily as a labor resource and a certain mass consuming industrial products and food.
Unfortunately, this sociologization crisis turned out to be very protracted, which was explained mainly by the industrial development of the economy and the scientific dogmas of that time. the rejection of previous stereotypes and the beginning of the sociologization of Russian geography and related sciences occur in the 80s of the twentieth century (ethnogeography, social geography, social ecology, social infrastructure, etc.), but even today the achieved level of sociologization cannot yet be considered sufficient.
4. Development of interdisciplinary research at the intersection of geographical and non-geographical sciences
Geography is not a closed system; there are numerous transitions and overlaps between it and other sciences. Through its diverse branches, geography has close ties with all natural sciences. Almost all geography consists of such overlaps; most of the geographical sciences belong simultaneously to two systems of sciences, i.e. they are simultaneously part of geography and some other system. Scientific knowledge is one, the boundaries between the sciences are largely conventional and overlaps between them are inevitable and even necessary. Each science uses the property of other branches of knowledge, relies on the laws established by them, uses research methods developed in related sciences.
For example, the economic-geographical sciences are based on political economy and other social sciences. The external links of economic geography (with the social sciences) turn out to be stronger than the "internal" ones (with physical geography). Apparently, no one doubts that economic geography belongs to the economic sciences, while its geography is the subject of endless disputes.
The question of belonging to geography also arises in relation to a number of other disciplines that have appeared on the verges and overlaps between different systems of sciences. I will name the main ones.
Geocryology is the science of frozen soils and rocks, their origin, development, structure, specific processes associated with them. This science arose within the framework of geography, but now it is acquiring a strong engineering and geological bias.
Geophysics is a complex of Earth sciences that studies the internal structure, physical properties and processes occurring in the geospheres. Then, landscape geophysics branched off from it, a scientific direction that studies physical processes in the natural environment, and above all, the processes of transformation and transfer of energy. Academicians A.A. Grigoriev, M.I. Budyko, D.L. Armand.
Geochemistry, a science that studies the chemical composition of the Earth, the patterns of distribution of chemical elements in various geospheres and the laws of their behavior, combinations and migrations, arose at the junction of chemistry and Earth sciences at the beginning of the 20th century. Then, thanks to the works of V.I.
Hydrogeology is the science of groundwater. According to the object of study, it should be attributed to hydrology, but practically relies on the data and methods of geology.
Political geography arose at the intersection of geography and political science. According to Ya.G. Mashbits, political geography explores the territorial alignment of class and political forces in connection with the socio-economic, historical, political, ethno-cultural and natural features of the development of regions and countries, their regions, cities and rural areas.
Military geography deals with the study of the influence of physical-geographical and socio-economic conditions on the preparation and conduct of military operations. This discipline is based on data from various branches of geography, but should be classified under the military sciences. Its emergence is quite natural, since military operations take place on a certain territory and the success of any military operation largely depends on how its features are taken into account.
Toponymy is a branch of knowledge that studies the origin, semantic content and distribution of geographical names. Toponymy uses different research methods and makes a certain contribution to different sciences: history, ethnography, linguistics. Toponymy can be called a "triune" science, born at the intersection of linguistics, history and geography. But a toponymist should not be just a linguist, or a historian, or a geographer, but must be a toponymist.
At the junction of geography and cultural studies, the geography of culture is formed. According to modern ideas, the geography of culture studies the territorial differentiation of culture and its individual components - the way of life and traditions of the population, elements of material and spiritual culture, to some extent joining with ethnography. As for the placement of cultural objects, this issue is usually attributed to the geography of the service sector. Although, in general, it is also "close" to cultural geography.
Historical geography has practically developed as an auxiliary historical discipline and is developed mainly by historians. Its task is to clarify the natural, economic and political conditions of the past as a background for the study of historical events.
Phenology is usually regarded as a special biological discipline dealing with seasonal phenomena in nature. But lately there has been a certain geography of phenology. Academician S.V. Kolesnik defined modern phenomenology as the doctrine of the seasonal dynamics of the landscape.
Medical geography is one of the rather "old" sciences, the content of which is now undergoing changes. The traditional task of medical geography - the study of the spread of disease - did not make it a geographical science. The real geography of medical geography began when, as the influence of the natural environment on health was clarified, it began to rely more and more on the study of landscapes and focus on specific diseases that can be considered as a "function" of the landscape or a kind of its "product". Now medical geography is defined as the science of natural territorial complexes, considered from the point of view of their significance for the health of a socially organized person. [Ignatiev, 1964] Medical geography studies natural and socio-economic factors and conditions of the geographic environment, manifesting itself in a positive and negative impact on the health of the population, and also explores the patterns of the spread of human diseases. According to the medical line, it is closest to pathology, epidemiology, hygiene, geographically - to biogeography, geochemistry of the landscape.
Veterinary geography studies natural territorial complexes that determine the prerequisites, the nature of the distribution and the characteristics of the course of animal diseases in specific territories.
Thus, in a number of related sciences, we observe a certain tendency towards convergence and integration with geography. This is expressed in the formation of a number of new frontier disciplines with a pronounced geographical character. In addition to those that have already been named, landscape geochemistry and applied areas of landscape science, formed at the contact of physical geography with technical sciences, should be included here.
5. K.K. Markov on the "geography" of modern science
The geography of science will begin to intensify primarily due to the fact that the methods of studying nature and society are improving. And this will expand the possibility of contacts between individual sciences (including between the social and natural), and not only contacts, but also deep interpenetration of individual sciences, which clearly indicates the unity of the entire process of scientific knowledge. Consolidation between the sciences is intensifying, the general front of the process of cognition is leveling off.
Geographicization finds its expression in the development of so-called regional sections in areas of human knowledge that, as quite recently seemed to be very far removed from geography. Many examples can be cited to confirm what has been said, this is especially noticeable in biology, where many studies and even general scientific concepts (about the biosphere) have acquired a pronounced geographical character. I would like to note that geography is also developing in the social sciences. Modern sociology, taking into account territorial differences in the conditions of social life, acquires a clearly geographical coloring. In the field of economic science, regional economics is developing, a scientific discipline adjacent to economic geography, but with a distinct difference from the latter in the object under study. The book of N.N. Nekrasov "Regional Economics" (1975) K.K. Markov recommends it as evidence of the geography of economic science. Its significance for geography also lies in the fact that it will help economic geographers to more clearly distinguish between their tasks and those that economists have to solve.
But the geography of science cannot proceed by itself. It will require significant efforts from scientists. A very important role must be played in this process by geographers, especially geographers-synthetics. And hence there is an increase in the relevance of general geographical theoretical concepts, an understanding of the generality of the object studied by geography as a whole. In 1951, in the work "Paleogeography" K.K. Markov pointed out the need to establish a greater connection between the individual geographical sciences. At present, the study of these connections is important not only for geography. At the same time, as K.K. Markov notes, in establishing such kind of connections, the subject unity of geography as a science of the geographic shell of the Earth, which has become almost completely the environment of social development, is of the greatest importance. Hence, “the great significance of the concept of “geographical environment” lies in the fact that it emphasizes the connection between the two main branches of geography - physical and economic” [Markov, 1951]
The ecological situation, about which so many books and articles are written today, has developed largely due to a lack of understanding of the connection between social and natural phenomena occurring in the geographical environment. Foreseeing all the consequences of the interference of industrial activity in natural processes, including, and above all, negative ones for society, could and should have been provided by geography on the basis of general geographic research. But geography, the differentiation of which took place without simultaneous and equal in degree of integration, turned out to be unprepared to solve the problems that had arisen and were vitally important for all mankind, geographical in nature. Until now, the solution of problems associated with the use of the geographical environment by social production - global, regional and local - occurs without the proper participation of geographers. Priority belongs here to representatives of other sciences, although all these problems are primarily of a geographical nature.
The lag of geography in this case is largely due to the extremely slow use of materialistic dialectics in the development of the theory of geographical science. This, as indicated, led to the denial of its objective unity and prevented a correct approach to the geographical envelope as a unity of diversity. Therefore, it is extremely important to direct efforts towards implementation in specific, primarily natural ones. science of methods, as if penetrating related sciences and linking them methodologically. These methods of K.K. Markov called end-to-end methods, and physical geography based on their use - end-to-end geography. Examples of such methods are given in the work of K.K. Markov "Introduction to physical geography" (1973), although their list cannot be considered complete. These methods are: comparative descriptive, geophysical, geochemical, paleogeographic, cartographic, mathematical. In addition to the logic of the stated considerations about the methods of physical geography, there are also data supporting the truth of the stated considerations. These data primarily refer to sciences that are developing "on the verge" and penetrating ever deeper into related sciences and thereby strengthening its common front. Cross-cutting directions - the way of geography of sciences. This is the path from plurality to unity.
Having an objective commonality in the geographic environment of the Earth, geography should set as its main goal the study of its components not in themselves, but in connection with each other, as well as between the phenomena of social life - in social sectors and sections of geography. The task of general geography is to study the connections within the geographical environment between the complex of natural phenomena and between the complex of social phenomena.
Of course, in studying the connections between phenomena, geography must to some extent investigate the beginning and end - the input and output of these connections, i.e., the connected components themselves, but the latter only to the extent that they are necessary for understanding the connections themselves. Links are the main object to be investigated.
Communication (between phenomena, objects, components of nature) is (carried out through) the exchange of energy and matter between the components of nature. For example, the connection between Antarctica and the Southern Ocean is energetic and material. The energy ties between Antarctica and the Southern Ocean are inseparable, and they proceed as a result of the transfer of thermal (radiation) and gravitational energy (transfer of the cold of Antarctica to the Southern Ocean by katabatic winds blowing from Antarctica), i.e. as a result of the movement of cold air, the transfer of heat, moisture and air from the Southern Ocean to Antarctica by high-altitude cyclones.
To study the connections between Antarctica and the Southern Ocean, geographers, of course, need to know both Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Otherwise, the connections of “what with what” we are studying will remain incomprehensible.
Geography explores connections about space-time. Geography (physical) explores the connections between the components of the nature of the earth's surface. Now it's time to add: variously arranged in space and time.
The nature of the earth's surface- geographical envelope– biosphere. The concept of "geographical shell" has a more specific content than the concept of "surface of the Earth" . But the influence of the Earth does not extend beyond the geographic envelope - into geographic space.
As you know, any form of matter exists in space and time simultaneously. Unfortunately, geographers, remembering space, often forget about time.
K.K. Markov speaks with regret about the carefree attitude of geographers to the main method of their science, and the method is the way to the goal. And then K.K. Markov insists on the method of geography of science. This method of K.K. Markov calls the through method.
Through method:
universal;
unites the multitude in unity (private natural shells into a complex geographical shell and any areas of the surface of the land and ocean at the stage of zoning of any order);
the end-to-end methodology is based on the widespread introduction of modern achievements in the exact and natural sciences into geography [Markov, 1978]
The following particular end-to-end methods have been identified: comparative-descriptive, geophysical, geochemical, paleogeographic, cartographic and mathematical.
The general level of geographical science is such that geographers mainly use the general method of research by the comparative-descriptive method, and the level of geographical science is largely determined by the application of this method. But it is worth noting that the exact methods of research are gradually becoming increasingly important in geography.
If earlier it was indicated that through directions are needed to study the connections between individual natural shells, i.e. vertically, now attention is drawn to horizontal connections between areas of the earth's surface.
Thus, the widespread use of end-to-end methods in geography makes it possible to successfully solve its direct task - to study the connections between the components of the nature of the earth's surface at the modern scientific level.
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It is no coincidence that we raised the question of the place of geography in the genetic classification of sciences, since the appeal to other types of classification of sciences does not solve these issues.
geographic reality. The question of geographical reality is not so simple. If there is a geographical reality, then what are its essence, content, causes of occurrence and the basis of existence? How is geographic reality related to other kinds of reality? Is it only geography (and which one - physical or socio-economic) that studies this reality, and do other sciences conduct similar studies?
Usually, reality is understood as a set of interrelated and mutually conditioning objects and processes. Of course, science does not immediately come to a deep understanding of reality. The objects of the latter are first divided according to various properties and only then according to the laws of structure and functioning, and, finally, according to the causes of occurrence and modes of existence. From an objective, material understanding of the content of objective reality, science, on the basis of developing practice and its changing needs, comes to a systemic vision of reality. The main type of such systems are dialectical self-developing systems in which the main material content of the world is created.
Under the dialectical system - the carrier of a special form of the movement of matter - one can understand a self-developing system consisting of a specific type of matter and the conditions for its existence. The type of matter is a material formation that has a specific form of reflection, adequate to the mode of its existence. It is obvious that human consciousness, sensation, irritability and excitability in living nature, as well as specific forms of reaction of the formed minerals and rocks to the conditions of their existence are forms of reflection that are adequate to the mode of existence of each of the named types of matter. The conditions for the existence of a type of matter are a set of elements of the external environment involved in interaction with the type of matter and transformed by it. Thus, the social type of matter, people, in material production from the material of external nature create social things, primarily the means of production. In the biogeocenosis, microorganisms, plants and animals transform the elements of the parent rock into a biological phenomenon - the soil. In geological systems, minerals and rocks are formed from elements of solutions or melts.
Interestingly, at the beginning of the XX century. A.I. Voeikov singled out the Aral Sea as an independent eternal geographical system with a closed heat and moisture exchange. This system is a dialectical unity of the objects of the hydrosphere and troposphere, which mutually generate and determine the existence of each other. Thus, evaporation from the surface of the Aral generates a special air mass with a specific system of clouds and cloud systems that transfer moisture to the spurs of the Pamir and Tien Shan. The emerging snow cover and glaciers then return moisture to the Aral Sea with the help of the Amu-Darya and Syr-Darya rivers. Metachronous development of ice sheet systems in the Northern and Southern hemispheres of the Earth, described by K.K. Markov, also expands our understanding of dialectical self-developing systems based on geographic heat and moisture exchange.
The main criterion for the selection of this type of systems is the presence of a specific type of matter and the conditions of existence characteristic of it, created by it. In modern natural science, each such set of systems of the same quality is considered as a special reality related to a certain level of matter organization. Each of these levels, or realities, acts as the main object of study of a particular science. The question of whether systems consisting of objects of the hydrosphere and troposphere with sculptural forms of relief included in them (all this is created by geographic heat and moisture exchange) belong to the geographical reality does not raise doubts among modern geographers. But is the content of geographic reality exhausted by this type of geographic systems alone? And the systems of landscape science and the systems of socio-economic geography - isn't this a geographical reality, isn't it the world that geography studies?
Answering these questions is not easy. First of all, let us try to imagine a hierarchy of realities or their historical sequence of emergence. With the exception of the group of physical forms of motion (processes), all forms of motion of matter known to us arise and exist not just within the Galaxy, but their entire history unfolds only on planets. At the same time, no matter what connections and relationships are established between these realities in the development of the planet, the main thing is the emergence of its material objects, i.e. those processes or forms of movement that produce and reproduce all its content. Thus, the absence of intelligent life on the planet indicates the absence of social reality there (at least at this stage of development).
Consider the main stages of the development of the Earth. Initially, physical and chemical processes or forms of matter movement arise on the planet, with which the existence of physical and chemical realities is associated. Then a geological reality appears, represented by systems that eventually merge into an integral system - the lithosphere. The presence of the lithosphere is a necessary condition for the emergence of primary geographic systems, consisting of objects of the hydrosphere, troposphere, and sculptural landforms. These systems act as carriers of such geographical phenomena as climate, runoff and topography. These primary geographic systems play an essential role in the life of the planet. Firstly, they do not occur on every planet, moreover, they are the highest stage in the development of inanimate nature in general. Secondly, these geographical conditions are necessary for the emergence of life on the planet, or at least its higher forms. And, thirdly, only in the presence of developed geographical conditions is the transition from biological life to a reasonable civilization possible. The change in the group of physical forms of movement of chemical, geological, geographical, biological and, finally, the social form of movement - such is the historical sequence of the emergence of fundamentally new realities in the development of the Earth as a planet.
However, such a correlation between the form of movement, the type of reality and the object does not always suit science. Let's take geography, for example. The emergence of systems of the primary geographic envelope, consisting of objects of the hydrosphere, troposphere and sculptural landforms, is based on a special geographical process, or heat and moisture exchange between these components, which is both the cause of their occurrence and the basis of their existence and development. These geographic systems, whose content is climate, runoff, and relief, are the main object of general physical geography. But this by no means exhausts the whole content of geographical science. The complexity of this geographical reality already forces us to subdivide general physical geography into particular physical-geographical sciences, the object of study of which are the individual components of the physical-geographical system. Hydrology, oceanology, cryolithology, climatology and geomorphology emerge. It should be noted that the development of these sciences meets the level of the needs of modern social practice. Society still does not have the opportunity to study the geographic system or primary geographic reality as a whole and apply this knowledge for practical purposes.
It can be noted that the primary geographical reality also consists of two types of systems: dialectical and autonomous. The latter, as parts of dialectical systems, arise and exist only within the framework of a given whole. Like an integral system, they exist on the basis of a single geographic heat and moisture exchange. But the laws of the structure and functioning of the dialectical whole cannot be reduced to the sum of the laws of its parts. Therefore, the laws of general physical geography and the laws of particular physical and geographical sciences differ from each other.
Correlation systems in geography. If the objects of primary geographic reality named above have their essence geographic heat and moisture exchange, i.e. arise and exist only on the basis of this geographical process and differ from each other as parts and whole, then this cannot be said about the object of landscape science. But who is to say that landscapes are not a geographical reality? This type of systems has been widely studied in geography for a long time. It is still considered almost the only proper geographical object. The peculiarity of this type of systems lies in the fact that the correlation or adaptation of higher-order components to components of lower organization acts as backbone links in them. Even A. Tansley, defining the ecosystem, noted that in the josistem, the climate forces the soils to adapt to its characteristics, but the reverse effect of soils on the climate is negligible. All this applies to the landscape. We note in this connection that JI.C. Berg understood the natural landscape as a combination of relief, climate and vegetation, and that their combination forms a special "landscape organism". And if we talk about cultural landscapes, then Berg included a person and works of his culture in their content. The city or village was also considered by him as an integral part of the cultural landscape. He understood geography as the science of landscapes.
All this helps to understand that the system-forming factors in the natural landscape are geographic factors - climate, runoff and topography. This allows us to consider landscapes as geographical systems. But landscapes are geographical systems of a special type, which are formed at the junction of the geographical shell and the biosphere, consisting of biogeocenoses. They are fundamentally different from the objects of the hydrosphere and troposphere - the primary geographic reality in their content, backbone links and vertical thickness. They are secondary in origin (they appear only with the advent of life on Earth) and have a different essence, in comparison with the physiographic systems discussed above, which are based on geographic heat and moisture exchange.
Natural landscapes include wildlife systems - soils and living organisms. And cultural landscapes are of a person and the works of his culture. It is not physical geography that deals with the study of landscapes, as F.N. Milkov, and a special science - landscape science, which he considered as a private physical and geographical science, similar to geomorphology, climatology and hydrology. He opposed the identification of the geographic and landscape shells of the Earth. However, given the different system essence of the above objects of physical geography, on the one hand, and landscape, on the other, it can be argued that landscape science is not a private physical and geographical science, such as climatology, hydrology or geomorphology. Landscape science lies at the intersection of physical geography and biology, and in the case of cultural landscapes, at the intersection with some social sciences.
Systems of socio-economic geography. Geographical systems, like landscapes, with correlation system-forming links, are studied by socio-economic geography. Being a social science in its main parameters, it belongs to the totality of geographical sciences, since it studies economic and social processes and phenomena in the territorial, geographical aspect. It is clear that these systems refer to a new reality that is not reducible to either natural, geographical or social reality. These systems lie at the intersection of society and geographical nature. Economic and social geography, relying, on the one hand, on the laws of the development of society, and on the other hand, on the laws of nature, is engaged in the analysis and forecast of territorial interactions in the system "nature - population - economy". This is how modern domestic geographers interpret the object and subject of socio-economic geography. In our opinion, in this definition it is necessary to clarify what is meant by interaction with geographical nature (climate, runoff, relief), and not with any natural phenomena and processes. Are we talking about a rational territorial organization of productive forces, about the spatial structures of the population, nature management and economy, whether territorial production complexes (TPCs) and economic regions, energy and transport systems, settlement systems, industrial centers or agro-industrial complexes are analyzed - by the geographical aspect research is always taking into account the natural and geographical conditions.
However, the complex economic problems that have to be solved in modern society cannot be limited to geographic analysis alone. Social phenomena are simultaneously affected by many different natural and social factors. At the same time, and iii our opinion, a rather complex system is being formed and functions. 11o it is an object of study of social ecology, in which the geographical aspect does not always play a leading role. In this case, geography "works" for social ecology, and no one, except for geographers, can expertly assess the effect of geographical conditions.
Geographical shell of the planet as a set of dialectical systems. The emergence and development of primary geographic systems, the essence of which is heat and moisture exchange between objects in the hydrosphere and troposphere, led to the creation of a special geographic shell of the Earth. Here there is a constant exchange of heat and moisture not only within individual integral systems, but also between these systems themselves on a planetary plane. For example, global cooling of the climate causes the formation of glaciers and ice sheets. And they are formed from moisture evaporated from the surface of the oceans. This leads to a decrease in the level of the World Ocean and, as a result, to a redistribution of land and sea, a change in the shape of the continents, the emergence of new islands, etc., etc. At the same time, the integrity of the geographic shell is fundamentally different from the integrity of the systems that compose it. Therefore, the laws of the structure, functioning and development of the geographical shell are a special subject of geographical science.
The geographical shell as a special material system was identified by A.A. Grigoriev in 1932. Developing the dialectical-materialist doctrine of the forms of matter movement, he proposed a physical-geographical or simply geographical form of the movement of matter, which is a way of existence of a special surface shell. This geographical shell goes through three stages of development: inorganic - organic - and the stage when the geographical shell is influenced by human society. The essence of the first, inorganic, papa of the development of the geographic envelope consists of three interrelated and interdependent processes: climatic, hydrological and geomorphological. It is on the basis of these processes that the pseudo-material content of the geographic envelope arises: seas, oceans, glaciers and glaciers, lakes and rivers, air masses, clouds and cloud systems, as well as sculptural landforms. Grigoriev's reasoning was strongly influenced by the idea of landscapes as an object of geography. It was impossible to imagine geography without the study of wildlife. Therefore, the second stage in the development of the geographical envelope is associated with the emergence of life. There is an inclusion of its processes in interaction with climatic, hydrological and geomorphological processes. The scientist believed that the content of the geographical envelope with the advent of life becomes richer, while maintaining the established opinion about landscapes as the main objects of geography. The third stage in the development of the geographic envelope is characterized by the impact of society on climatic, hydrological, geomorphological, as well as phyto-ecological-geographical and zooecological-geographical processes.
Unfortunately, the problem of the forms of motion of matter was not developed in the philosophical literature of that time. The absence of philosophical methodology had a negative impact on the fate of Grigoriev's fundamental concept. In this regard, they themselves made serious mistakes.
First, the essence of a dialectical system cannot change from stage to stage. The inorganic essence of the geographic envelope must be preserved at all stages of its development. This is his first methodological error. Secondly, Grigoriev, paying tribute to the idea of the content of geographical science, when wildlife is an object of study in landscape science, included a biological form of movement in the composition of the geographical shell, and hence the geographical form of the movement of matter. This is his second methodological error. The biological form of movement, being the highest, cannot be included in the lower, geographical form, since the latter does not create biological objects. Thirdly, the scientists violated their own logic of reasoning. Why is the biological form of the motion of matter included in the geographic shell, being within its limits, but human society, also located inside the geographic shell, is not included in its composition?
All this shows how strong were the ideas about the landscape as an object of geography and how they “interfered” with the introduction of the methodology of the forms of the movement of matter into geography.
The bearers of the geographical form of reflection are the objects of the hydrosphere, which react in a specific way to the state of the troposphere and, due to this, support heat and moisture exchange between them. A.I. Voeikov at the beginning of the 20th century. predicted the existence of a special geographical form of reflection. He spoke about water bodies that react in a special way to the state of the troposphere. Voeikov called "rivers and lakes the mirror of the climate" or "the mirror of climate change". At the same time, these objects, as a geographical type of matter, are genetically and structurally related to the type of matter of the geological form of motion that had previously arisen on the planet. All objects of the hydrosphere consist of a special mineral or rock - water or ice.
The geographical form of movement, and hence the geographical reality, is the highest stage in the development of inorganic nature on the planet and, at the same time, a dead end branch of development on Earth. Therefore, the social form of reflection is preceded not by the geographical form of reflection, but by the biological one, which occurs after the chemical form of reflection.
Moreover, the unstable terminology also made it difficult to solve the problem and led to serious criticisms. Some geographers, not commensurating the content of the landscape shell with the geographical shell according to Grigoriev, accused him of “an idealistic separation of movement from matter”, arguing that, according to his concept, air masses seem to float above landscapes. Consequently, the climatic process is divorced from the landscape.
The approach to the definition of geographical reality with the help of the concept of the geographical form of the motion of matter helps to understand such a difficult and important issue for geography as the relationship between the geographical shell and the landscape sphere.
Landscape sphere of the Earth as a set of correlation systems. Natural landscapes appear on the planet only in the conditions of a geographical envelope and are very difficult to correlate with it. There is no general process in the landscape that would create all its components - objects of geographical and biological reality. The relief, heat and moisture are also part of the geographic shell, and soils, microorganisms, flora and fauna have a biological essence and are objects of the biosphere, consisting of biogeocenoses. However, as an ecosystem in which biological components adapt to geographic ones and correlate with their properties, the landscape is a special system, partly included in the content of the geographic envelope, and partly in the biosphere. But landscapes differ from dialectical systems - and the rulers of the geographical form of the movement of matter also in terms of vertical power. If, for example, the vertical thickness of the air masses of the troposphere reaches 8-16 km, and in general the thickness of the geographic envelope is determined, according to some estimates, at 30-35 km, then the vertical thickness of the landscape sphere does not exceed only 200 m. Such, for example, is the idea of the ratio of the geographical shell and the landscape sphere in the works of F.N. Milkov.
All this suggests that, firstly, it is impossible to identify the geographical shell and the landscape sphere. These are realities that are different in essence and content. Secondly, the landscape sphere is only partially (for example, sculptural landforms) included in the geographical envelope, being much inferior to it in vertical thickness. Thirdly, if the geographical envelope is an object of physical geography, then the landscape sphere is an object of landscape science as a special geographical science. But landscape science cannot be identified with private physical and geographical sciences, since its object has a completely different essence.
There is a certain connection between natural landscapes. By means of biological and geographical components, they exchange matter and energy, affect each other in a specific way. And since correlations are weaker than interaction (a special case of correlation), the systemic character of the landscape sphere is much weaker than the systemic nature of the geographic shell.
Cultural (socio-natural) sphere of the Earth as a set of correlation systems studied by socio-economic geography. Like landscape science, which studies the landscape sphere, which consists of such correlation systems as landscapes, socio-economic geography studies the world as a set of special correlation systems. In such systems, socio-economic processes and phenomena are adapted or correlated with their physical and geographical components. Moreover, these territorial socio-economic systems influence each other in a certain way and thus form a special shell of the planet. Modern socio-economic geography not only considers it as an integral system, but studies the laws of its internal differentiation, the joint functioning and influence on each other of the systems that compose it. In socio-economic science, it is customary to single out a certain subordination of territorial communities by levels: large regions, individual countries, socio-economic regions, etc. “Such a division must comply with a certain rule: the most general and essential features of a given territorial unit must distinguish it from other units of the same level, but must be manifested in all its constituent territorial units of the next, lower level”1. The most difficult issue here is also the idea of a geographical criterion for distinguishing these systems. Thus, when distinguishing macrosystems, the generally accepted geographical criterion - the division of the world into continents - raises a number of questions and is unacceptable in solving some problems.
The difficulty in determining the geographical criterion is due to the fact that as civilization develops, the significance of many geographical factors noticeably decreases or even reduces to zero. But if this is true in relation to the development of transport and communication technology, then in the field of spiritual and cultural life, the influence of the geographical factor remains significant.
"Socio-economic history of the foreign world. M., 2001. S. 13.
mmm. This is most clearly manifested in the difference in languages, religions, way of life, painting, poetry, music, dance, etc. The entire history of the material and spiritual culture of peoples has always been closely connected with the geographic conditions of life. Any ethnic group is an element of a correlation system in which its material and spiritual culture adapts to natural conditions. The most important factors influencing it are, first of all, physical and geographical factors.
That is why the definition of the concept of culture should include not only a person and the results of his cultural activity, but also those natural factors with which social phenomena are correlated. That is why the sociosphere, as a shell consisting of such dialectical systems as individual countries, itself, in turn, is part of a wider shell, consisting of correlation systems such as society and its geographical environment (here a sociological concept denoting a historically changing set of natural conditions for the existence of society). In socio-economic geography, we are not interested in all of nature that affects society, but only in the role of geographical factors. That is why some authors note: "The definition of a macro-region can be reduced to the following formulation: a macro-region of the world is a historically established complex of neighboring peoples belonging to the same regional civilization and interdependently developing in certain geographical conditions." The shell of the planet, consisting of similar macro- and microsystems, in which socio-economic components adapt to physical and geographical conditions, is the object of study of socio-economic geography.
Thus, the main criterion for distinguishing material geographic systems of various types or the criterion for the geographic scope of the study is their close relationship with such physical and geographical factors as climate, runoff, and topography.
Based on a systematic analysis of objects of geographical disciplines, it can be concluded that geography studies not only the actual geographical reality (climate, runoff and relief), but also such systems that are the result of the impact of this physical and geographical reality on the objects of other sciences.
It is impossible to understand the place of geography among the sciences and its internal structure without a deep and comprehensive study of the geographical reality itself and its connection with the realities that are studied by other sciences. A common shortcoming in the study of modern geography, in our opinion, is that scientists studying certain sections of geography - physical or socio-economic - tend to absolutize their object (and subject of study), present it as a standard of true geographical research. The mention of absolutization is not a reservation, because the objects of both geographies deal with "geographicity", but only to a different extent. However, this does not prevent them from understanding geography as a single science, the components of which are physical and socio-economic geography.
All difficulties begin immediately with the clarification of "geography". However, this is geography's own affliction, and it will cope with it. Abstract theorizing and philosophizing about the unity of geography, divorced from the actual content of geography itself, do more harm to geography.
So, the place of geography in the genetic classification of sciences, built according to the forms of the movement of matter, is determined by the position of the geographical form of the movement of matter among other forms of movement, since the appearance of geographical reality on Earth is connected with it. At the same time, the same relations are gradually developing between the sciences as between the forms of movement. For example, the genetic and structural connection between higher and lower forms of movement is also reflected in the content of the sciences about these forms of movement. Among the forms of movement: the group of physical - chemical - geological - geographical, the latter is the highest stage of the inorganic development of the planet, as if a dead end branch in the evolution of the forms of movement of inanimate nature. But the significance of the geographical form of the motion of matter in the development of the planet is difficult to overestimate. Only the presence of geographical conditions leads to the emergence of life, especially its developed forms, and the emergence of an intelligent civilization. The geological and geographical forms of the motion of matter are a necessary condition for the emergence on the planet of biological and social forms of motion. Only under these conditions, another branch of the forms of movement, going from the group of physical through the chemical form of movement, continues the development of the planet to the biological, and then to the social form of movement.
Thus, if we take into account that a special material reality is associated with each form of the movement of matter, and the data of modern science only confirm the importance of geographical conditions in the development of the planet, then we can conclude that geography is one of the basic sciences. But the structure of geography, due to the special position of its main object as the highest stage in the development of inorganic nature, is quite complex. So, from the side of the essence of the most geographical form of the movement of matter (the unity of climatic, hydrological and geomorphological processes), which acts as a way of existence of geographical reality, geography is a natural science.
Moreover, the correlation of geographical reality with the objects of the biosphere gives rise to natural landscapes, and landscape science also belongs to the natural geographical sciences, with the exception of landscape science, which studies cultural landscapes and belongs to the social sciences. All sections of socio-economic geography that study territorial systems, in which geographic factors (climate, relief flows) are the system-forming components, are among the social geographical sciences. Note that neither landscape science nor socio-economic geography have biological or social laws proper, respectively. They study the laws of objects, consisting of elements of geographical and biological reality - landscape science, and geographical and social reality - socio-economic geography. Geography, like a butterfly, has two wings: geographical natural science (landscape science) and geographical social (socio-economic geography). In both cases, the backbone are physical and geographical conditions. The body of such a butterfly is formed by physical geography, which has its own object - geographical reality (geographical form of the movement of matter). Physical geography is subdivided into private physical and geographical disciplines that study the main components of geographical reality: objects of the hydrosphere, troposphere, and sculptural landforms. Thus, the integrity of geography is conditioned by the geographical reality itself. Any geographical research, any geographical science is necessarily connected with climate, runoff and topography.
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