Knowledge, Geography of

The geography of knowledge deals with spatial disparities in the generation, diffusion, and application of various categories of knowledge and skills. Spatial disparities in literacy, educational attainment, professional skills, creativity, and technology can be traced back to early human history. Some of their primary causes are spatial concentrations of power and knowledge created by the spatial division of labor, the hierarchical structure and complexity of organizations, the asymmetry and spatial range of power relations, and the ways in which social systems and networks are coordinated and governed in space. Communication technologies—from the creation of the first scripts to the invention of paper and from the construction of the first printing machine to the introduction of digital information systems—changed spatial disparities pertaining to the production, dissemination, ...