Understanding Geography Notes

Understanding Geography 1. What is the unifying method of geography? a. spatial analysis 2. In the scientific method, what is a tentative explanation for a phenomena? a. hypothesis 3. What type of feedback acts to stabilize a system? a. negative 4. Which term provides the most detailed geometric description of the Earth's shape? a. oblate ellipsoid 5. Which statement describes latitude? a. Latitude lines are parallel to one another. 6. What term describes modern official time that is based on average times from atomic clocks around the world? a. Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) 7. Which of the following is an example of an active remote sensor? a. LIDAR 8. Which of the following describes geographic analysis by a GIS? a. Geographers use layers of spatial data to understand patterns and relationships. 9. Which of the following is true of the Global Positioning System (GPS)? a. GPS receivers triangulate distance from satellites to determine location. 10. The diameter of Earth is largest when measured around the a. equator. 11. Which of the following is not true of meridians? a. They are lines that run in an east-west direction. 12. The part of geography that embodies map making is known as cartography. 13. A scale of 1 inch = 8 miles is an example of a a. written scale. b. Citizen science 14. The term "geography" (geo graphein) literally means a. to write (about) Earth. 15. The main methodology governing geographic inquiry a. involves spatial analysis. 16. The word "spatial" refers to a. the nature and character of physical space and the distribution of things within it. 17. Relative to the five themes of geographic science, latitude and longitude refer to a. location. 18. Relative to the five themes of geographic science, characteristics of a location refers to a. place. 19. The scientific method is described by which of the following? a. Organized processes and procedures for analyzing phenomena and acquiring new knowledge. 20. A hypothesis is best describe as a. a tentative explanation for an observed phenomenon. 21. The name given to the most recent geological epoch to reflect the human influence on climate and ecosystems is the a. Anthropocene. 22. Sustainable development seeks to a. advance the condition of human society while maintaining functioning Earth systems. 23. A system is best described as a. any set of ordered, interrelated components working as a unified whole. 24. Which of the following is an example of a closed system? a. the Earth (in terms of matter) 25. With respect to air, water, and material resources, which of the following is true? a. A forest is an open system. 26. What type of feedback maintains stability in a system; i.e., what type of feedback keeps a system functioning properly? a. negative 27. Which of the following is true of models? a. They are simplified, idealized representations of the real world. The three inorganic Earth "spheres" around which Geosystems is 28. Systems are made up of interconnected parts, meaning that individual parts are not necessarily systems. These interconnected parts facilitate the flow of inputs and outputs to, from, and within that system. a. a functional desktop computer eating an apple a moving river 29. Which of the following is true regarding the prime meridian? a. The prime meridian passes through the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England. 30. The actual distance on the ground spanned by a degree of longitude is greatest at the a. equator. 31. A parallel of latitude a. is used to measure distances north or south of the equator. 32. An angular distance measured north or south of the equator from the center of Earth is termed a. latitude. 33. Isaac Newton reasoned that Earth was not perfectly spherical because of a. centrifugal force created by Earth's more rapid rotation at the equator. 34. The science that specifically attempts to determine Earth's shape and size by surveys and mathematical means is called a. geodesy. 35. Standard time zones a. are 15° wide because Earth rotates through that distance in one hour. 36. The basis for our global time system is a. Earth rotates 15° of longitude per hour. 37. The letters P.M. stand for a. post meridiem. 38. The letters A.M. stand for a. ante meridiem. 39. Which map projection preserves the property of true shape? a. conformal 40. Which of the following describes the property of equal area on a map? a. equivalence 41. Remote sensing is a. the monitoring of a distant object without physical contact. 42. Which two key properties of Earth's spatial relationships are considered when creating a map projection? a. size and shape 43. Of Earth's spatial relationships, which characteristic is preserved in an equivalent map projection? a. size 44. Which of the following statements best characterizes a map projection that maintains angular relations on a map? a. When circles are projected onto such a map, their shape will be maintained but they will vary in size. 45. Which of the following scenarios is most likely to occur in an equivalent projection? a. A landmass will be the same size on the map as on the globe, but its shape will be distorted. 46. Which of the following projections is used for generalpurpose world maps because it communicates a balanced representation of the world? a. compromise projection 47. Which of the following statements about map projections is true? a. Maps of the world and continents are impacted by distortion more than maps of local areas. 48. Which of the following map projection qualities would be most appropriate for mapping the global distribution of air temperature? a. general-purpose with a balanced view of oceans and landmasses, and uninterrupted perspective 49. How many satellites does it take for GPS to register an accurate location? a. It takes four satellites to register an accurate location. 50. What is Galileo? a. Galileo is the European Space Agency's satellite navigation system that is currently under construction. 51. Why was GPS originally designed? a. GPS was designed and first used for military application. 52. Why will Galileo be superior to GPS when it is completed and running? a. Galileo will be superior to GPS primarily because of the precision of its clock technology. Understanding Geography 2 1. When did our Solar System begin to form? a. 5 billion years ago 2. How did our Solar System begin to form? a. A large cloud of dust and gas began to contract under the force of gravity. 3. What is a nebula? a. a large, diffuse cloud of dust and gas in space 4. Where did the energy of the Sun come from originally? a. thermal energy that was converted from the gravitational energy of the original nebula collapse 5. Which of the following characteristics of Earth's relationship to the Sun explains the existence of Earth's seasons? a. Earth's axis always points in the same direction relative to the stars. Earth spins on its axis, completing one rotation each day. Earth orbits around the Sun, completing one orbit each year. Earth's axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane. 6. How does the inclination of Earth's axis (relative to the plane of its orbit) change over the course of a year? a. The inclination of Earth's axis does not change. 7. Which of the following statements about Earth's solstices is correct? a. The December solstice is the time of year when Earth's geographic South Pole is leaning most directly toward the Sun. 8. When are the Sun's rays perpendicular to Earth's surface at the equator? a. during the March equinox and September equinox 9. Where does the length of day remain the same throughout the year? a. at the equator 10. When do all locations on Earth experience equal lengths of day and night? a. March equinox 11. Light travels at a speed of approximately..? a. 300,000 kilometers per second (186,333 miles per second). 12. Most of the processes in our biosphere are fueled by a. radiant energy from the Sun. 13. Which control of temperature accounts for the fact that higher latitudes experience such a wide variation in average temperatures? a. axial tilt 14. Which of the following is characterized by the longest wavelengths a. radio waves 15. A surface disturbance on the Sun's surface caused by magnetic storms is called a(n) a. sunspot. 16. Earth's magnetosphere is generated by a. dynamo-like motions in Earth's interior. 17. The dominant wavelength emitted by Earth is a. infrared. 18. Which of the following is true relative to insolation at the thermopause relative to latitude? a. Annually, lower latitudes receive more insolation than the high latitudes. 19. Which of the following statements regarding the seasons is correct? a. The five factors that give rise to the seasons are revolution, rotation, tilt, axial parallelism, and sphericity. 20. The term "net radiation" refers to the a. difference in the amount of incoming and outgoing radiation. 21. Which of the following characterizes Earth's revolution? a. It determines the timing of seasons and length of the year. 22. The planetesimal hypothesis pertains to the formation of the a. planets. 23. Earth and the Sun formed specifically from a. a nebula of dust and gases. 24. The electromagnetic spectrum encompasses a. all possible wavelengths of electromagnetic energy. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. The sun emits radiant energy composed of a. mainly visible light and infrared energy. The subsolar point occurs a. only at lower latitudes between the Tropics (23.5° N/S). At all times during the year, the circle of illumination a. divides between day and night. The plane of Earth's orbit about the Sun is called a. the plane of the ecliptic. Axial parallelism refers to a. the alignment of Earth's axis relative to the plane of ecliptic, Polaris, and other stars. The Tropic of Cancer refers to a. the parallel that is the farthest northern location of the subsolar point during the year. The Tropic of Capricorn refers to a. the parallel that occurs at 23.5° South. Which is true of the December solstice? a. The Antarctic Circle is completely within the circle of illumination.