Geography 220 - Exam #1

Suppose that a country has a birth rate of 31 per 1000, and a death rate of 4 per 1000. This country's rate of natural increase is:

A) 12 percent. B) 27 percent. C) 7.75 percent. D) 2.7 percent. D.

The U.S.-Canadian border is approximately _____ miles long.

A) 1500 B) 3200 C) 4200 D) 5500 C.

Today, Native American reservations cover about _____ percent of land in the United States and _____ percent of land in Canada.

A) 5; 10 B) 2; 20 C) 0; 40 D) 25; 10 B.

What process resulted in the formation of the North American central lowland that lies in between the two major mountain ranges of the continent?

A) A colossal volcanic eruption split North America in half, and the central lowland, once an intercontinental sea, was filled in by glacial activity. B) Earthquakes opened and flattened what was once a mountainous area. C) Material that erodes from the Rocky Mountains has been deposited by wind, rain, and rivers. D) Early European settlers cleared and flattened a hilly landscape so that they could more easily farm the area. C.

Developing nations are usually characterized by _________ economies, while developed nations are usually characterized by the presence of __________ industries.

A) Agricultural; Service B) Industrial; Service C) Service; Agricultural D) Industrial: Knowledge-based A.

Which mountain chain is the oldest in North America, and hence the most eroded?

A) American Rockies B) Canadian Rockies C) Appalachians D) Sierra Madres C.

In nearly all societies, families prefer boys over girls. Reasons for which this phenomenon is true do NOT include that boys:

A) Are easier to raise and considered more easy-going. B) Will have greater earning capacity as adults. C) Will perpetuate the family name. D Will have more social power as adults. A.

A city that is NOT home to the new middle class of educated urban residents is:

A) Cape Town, South Africa. B) Mumbai, India. C) Shanghai, China. D) Mexico City, Mexico. D.

Which statement is TRUE regarding the Cold War and its effects?

A) During the Cold War, the United States and the USSR both promoted capitalism. B) The Cold War had little effect on the internal and external policies of countries other than the United States and the USSR. C) The Cold War became a race to attract the loyalties of unallied countries and to arm them. D) Post-Cold War geopolitics allowed many southeastern European countries to resolve their political conflicts peacefully, embracing the diversity in their countries. C.

Which premise BEST supports the theory of plate tectonics?

A) Earth's surface is made up of large plates that float on molten rock. B) Large plates formed when meteors struck Earth 65 million years ago. C) Present-day plates resulted from the erosion of the supercontinent Pangaea. D) The land surface of Earth is rooted on large oceanic plates. A.

Which factor is NOT a result of fair trade policies?

A) Elimination of Profits for Intermediaries/middlemen B) Improved Working Conditions for Laborers C) Increased Investor Profits D) Living Wage for Workers C.

The mission of the World Trade Organization is to:

A) Establish ground rules for international trade and lower trade barriers. B) Work with the United Nations to bring trade to developing nations. C) Increase import quotas while lowering tariffs. D) Develop a trading bloc to rival the European Union. A.

According to the text, which factor represents an asymmetry between the United States and Canada?

A) Ethnic diversity B) Size of economy C) Size of territory D) Political traditions B.

The United Nations is composed of:

A) Five free-trade blocs B) Seven continents C) 193 member countries D) All the nations of North America, South America, and Europe C.

The DeSoto expeditions began in the area now known as:

A) Florida. B) Louisiana. C) Virginia. D) Massachusetts. A.

The leading cause of death among girls between the ages of 15 and 19 worldwide is:

A) Food poisoning. B) Lack of drinking water. C) Pregnancy. D) Heart disease. C.

Which statement does NOT accurately describe GISc?

A) GISc is so highly specialized it's often criticized for having limited applicability to other disciplines. B) GISc has been adopted as a tool by both corporations and government entities. C) GISc refers to the body of science that supports spatial analysis technologies and tools such as GIS (geographic information systems). D) GISc raises serious ethical questions about the rights, storage, analysis, and distribution of data. A.

_____ refers to the biological category of male or female, while _____ refers to the differences between the sexes as defined by a particular social group.

A) Gender; sex B) Sex; gender C) Sex; discrimination D) Gender; sex roles B.

Which factor is NOT used to measure the livability of a city?

A) Good public transportation B) Well-maintained parks C) Quality schools D) Restaurants per capita D.

The globe is divided into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres at the:

A) International Date Line. B) Equator. C) Tropic of Cancer. D) Tropic of Capricorn. B.

A problem with the concept of culture is that:

A) It is not a term commonly used by geographers. B) The United Nations has questioned its validity. C) It is applied to large groups that share only the most general of characteristics. D) It is considered racially divisive and old-fashioned in an era of increased tolerance. C.

Which geographic phenomenon is MOST responsible for the constant threat of earthquakes along the Pacific coast?

A) Magma underneath Earth's surface is pressing up on the crust with increasing pressure. B) The Pacific Plate and the North American Plate are presently rubbing up against each other. Correct C) Pressure from increased ocean mass caused by global warming is creating structural instability underneath the continent. D) Great quantities of industrial chemicals have leached into Earth's crust, causing a breakdown in its composition. B.

Which statement is TRUE regarding political freedoms post Arab spring

A) Massive public demonstrations did little in regard to turning over power in the region. B) Responses to the Arab spring included both political reforms and extreme repression. C) Demonstrations in Egypt resulted in the peaceful democratic election of a reform party, and it has been peaceful ever since. D) Demonstrations in Syria resulted in the peaceful democratic election of a reform party, and it has been peaceful ever since. B.

Possible results of global warming do NOT include:

A) Multinational corporations abruptly pulling out of developing nations. B) The disappearance of animal and plant species. C) More chaotic and severe weather. D) Human populations displaced from coastal areas and low-lying islands. A.

The Prime Meridian runs from the North Pole to the South Pole through:

A) New York City, US B) Berlin, Germany C) London, England D) Greenwich, England D.

The group of 17 NGOs that is the world leader in emergency relief famine is:

A) Oxfam. B) Rotary International C) Red Crescent D) Doctors without Borders A.

The Rocky Mountains were created by the collision of the North American Plate with the:

A) Pacific Plate. B) Oceanic Plate. C) Rocky Plate. D) Atlantic Plate.

Which reason explains how the plantation system was detrimental to the economic development of the South?

A) Plantations generated a large number of spin-off enterprises that failed due to increased competition and few customers. B) Elite plantation owners invested more of their money in Europe and the northern colonies than they did in their own local economy. C) The merging of plantations into huge multi-owner projects put many of the less successful plantations out of business, which led to increased poverty and unemployment. D) The British government took most of the profits from plantation owners, leaving little for local investment and development. B.

Experts agree that certain factors must be present for democratization to flourish. These factors do NOT include:

A) Political Dynasties and Inherited Wealth. B) Broad-based Prosperity C) An Educated Population D) The Presence of Social Institutions that Encourage a Sense of Unity and Purpose A.

Ethnic cleansing is sometimes a euphemism for:

A) Religious dissent. B) Gender discrimination. C) Genocide. D) Racial conflict. C.

Between 1945 and 2015, Earth's population:

A) Roughly doubled. B) Roughly tripled. C. Remained mostly constant. D) Decreased dramatically. B.

Which factor does NOT impact a place's vulnerability to climate change?

A) Size B) Resilience C) Sensitivity D) Exposure A.

Which environmental disaster occurred in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010?

A) The Deepwater Horizon spill. B) Hurricane Katrina. C) The Love Canal. D) The Exxon Valdez. A.

Which statement is NOT true of money and politics in North America?

A) The United States accrues national debt by issuing treasury securities to cover the expenses it has that exceed its income from taxes and other revenues. B) Republicans believe that the debt is dangerous and needs to be reduced by cutting government spending. C) Democrats believe that some government spending, especially health care and education, should be reduced. Correct D) A major reason for low voter turnout in the United States is the frustration created by the role of money in politics. C.

Which factor is the BEST explanation for Boston's attractiveness to high-technology industries?

A) The city's free trade status that allows companies to avoid tariffs on exports. B) The city's proximity to sources of raw materials. C The concentration of universities in the city. D) The abundance of low-cost labor created during de-industrialization C.

The main source of moisture east of the Rockies is:

A) The jet stream. B) Canadian precipitation. C) evaporation from the Great Lakes. D) The Gulf of Mexico. D.

Which description of the so-called Quiet Revolution in Québec is accurate?

A) The maneuverings by Quebecois to pass the 1996 referendum on independence for Québec B) The gradual acquisition of power by Anglo-Canadians of Québec's leading city of Montreal C) The exploitation of Québec's natural resources by the Canadian federal government, contrary to provincial policies D) The challenge between well-educated and trained Quebecois and English speakers for higher-paying jobs and power. D.

The term deposition can refer to which process?

A) The settling out of soil particles as wind or water action slows. B) The breakup of rocks into smaller pieces. C) The movement of loose rock and soil by the force of wind and moving water. D) The movement of loose rock and soil down a slope due to gravity Feedback. A.

Which statement is NOT true of cities?

A) They are centers of innovation, culture, and jobs. B) Growth of jobs in cities cannot keep up with the in-migration of rural residents. C) Many slum areas are plagued by poor housing, out-of-date infrastructure, and inadequate access to food, water, and education. D) Good urban planning worldwide has resulted in little unplanned growth in cities. D.

Which organization is a regional trade bloc?

A) United Nations (UN) B) North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) C) International Monetary Fund (IMF) D) Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) D.

Which statement BEST describes the grandmother hypothesis?

A) Women who give birth at a young age make better grandmothers than women who give birth later in life. B) Women who have grandmothers in the home are more successful at childrearing. C) Children raised by their grandmother are more likely to receive higher levels of education. D) Midlife menopause provides an evolutionary advantage by giving women no longer able to bear children the time and energy to help succeeding generations thrive. D.

An unintended effect of a society's preference for boys over girls can be:

A) fewer artists in the society. B) A loss of family traditions. C) A weakened educational system. D) A shortage of marriageable women. D.

Which factor is NOT a direct or indirect component of the calculation of virtual water?

A). Evaporation in growing fields. B). Agricultural and industrial technology. C) Water pollution that occurs in the production process. D) Water used in cooking and other domestic activities. D.

Water scarcity is NOT the result of:

A). Population growth. B) Increased per capita demand for water due to modernization. C). Inequitable allocation of water. D). Sustainable farming initiatives. D.

Reasons for concern regarding the use of GM crops do NOT include that:

A. GM crops could cause catastrophic crop failure. B. GM seeds are much more expensive than traditional seed. C. GM crops could cause unintended environmental degradation. D. GM seeds are widely used in Europe. D.

A map is by definition an unbiased view of the world.

False

A proselytizing religion is one that rarely accepts converts.

False

Brownfields have been attractive to developers because they are easy to convert to high-density housing.

False

Canada's population is about evenly spread throughout the country.

False

Earnings of North American women in the labor force are now, on average, equivalent to men holding the same positions.

False

European colonization prevented the spread of Roman Catholicism.

False

GDP per capita statistics take the informal economy and unpaid labor into account.

False

Gender roles that designate females as second-class citizens are rare in societies outside of North America.

False

IT firms are a much better alternative to traditional extractive industries because they have no negative environmental impacts.

False

In 2015, in the United States, the wealthiest 1 percent of households owned 3.5 percent of the country's total wealth.

False

In the United States, women are better represented in the federal government than in Canada.

False

It has been proven that the presence of immigrants in North America drives down wages for uneducated, low-skilled Americans.

False

It is clear that the impacts of NAFTA include a net gain in thousands of jobs for the United States.

False

It is easy to agree on all of the features of a culture, such as American culture.

False

Married couples in which both spouses have a college education are more likely to divorce.

False

Most world regions are defined by the same set of indicators.

False

North Americans have a long track record of high voter participation.

False

Physical geography is the study of various aspects of human life that create the distinctive landscapes and regions of the world.

False

Regardless of their location, Kurds share a specific way of life.

False

Scientific evidence points to the fact that certain races have particularly high mathematical ability.

False

The Colorado River seems to be an almost limitless source of water for the Southwest and will enable Los Angeles to grow much larger.

False

The birth rates in societies that have experienced a shift from a subsistence-based to cash-based economy tend to rise because couples in the latter economy are able to generate sufficient wealth to support more children.

False

The interior of North America is cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter than the coastal areas.

False

The monsoon is an example of dry arctic air being blown by currents into otherwise moist regions.

False

The processes of plate tectonics are external processes that form landscapes, whereas the processes of weathering and erosion are internal processes that further shape landforms and landscapes.

False

The rate of natural increase measures the growth of a population including in-migration and out-migration figures.

False

The theory of global warming suggests that levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are decreasing and preventing the release of reflected solar heat.

False

The volume of the water that a person directly uses in a year is called virtual water.

False.

Agriculture and the presence of surplus food gave rise to city-like settlements in North America.

True

Currently, the rate of population growth is slowing globally.

True

Data indicate that the twentieth-century was the warmest century in 600 years.

True

Despite lacking biological justifications, race has acquired enormous social and political significance over time.

True

Geographers do not necessarily advocate for democracy as the best system of government.

True

In the 1990s and first decade of the 2000s, increasing numbers of African Americans, attracted by well-paying jobs, lower costs of living, and friendlier neighborhoods, were migrating to the South.

True

In the category of people between the ages of 25 and 34, a higher percentage of women have college degrees than men.

True

In the culture of poverty, impoverished individuals must find coping strategies that may be counterproductive to social advancement, thereby reinforcing poverty.

True

Less than 2 percent of the North American workforce is employed in agriculture.

True

Levees and other flood-control measures in Louisiana are causing the Mississippi delta to sink into the Gulf of Mexico.

True

Most emigrants to North America today come from Asia, Middle America, and South America.

True

Nearly 90% of the Earth's population lives north of the equator.

True

Prior to 2009, the U.S.-Mexico border had about 10 times more border guards than the U.S.-Canada border.

True

Production that occurs in the informal sector does not contribute to the tax revenues of governments.

True

Race is a biologically meaningless concept.

True

Regions with slow population growth tend to be more affluent.

True

Residents of Alaska receive yearly rebates from oil revenues in that state.

True

Southern California's agricultural regions benefit from some of the largest and most expensive water-engineering projects in the world.

True

Suppose a Burger King Whopper costs $4.79 in the United States. If we estimate the cost of a whopper in India as equivalent to $1.83, we have used the concept of purchasing power parity to make the comparison.

True

The American South has the highest concentration of people living below the poverty line in the United States.

True

The Interstate Highway System has largely replaced the national railway network for the long-distance transportation of cargo.

True

The climate of an area in a rain shadow is dry.

True

The moral codes of various world regions, such as Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism, are part of culture.

True

The near-extinction of Native Americans was the result of not only technological advantages in military equipment but also infectious diseases brought from Europe.

True

The normal ratio worldwide is about 95 females born for every 100 males.

True

The population pyramid for a population that is getting younger would be wider at the bottom than at the top.

True

When using the phrase "scale of analysis", geographers are always referring to the relative size of an area.

True