GCSE Geography Exam Notes

Ordnance Survey Maps
Ordnance Survey is referred to as OS.
State Direction start at the point 'from' and follow the direction to the point 'to'. Grid north is at the top of the map.
Four-figure Grid Reference given for the bottom left hand (south-west) corner of a grid square. First two figures represent vertical lines and second two figures represent the horizontal lines.
Gradient steepness of a slope. To find out the gradient of a slope, find the difference in height in metres between the bottom and top of the slope.
OS Map representation
Physical Features

recognised by symbols or contour patterns. Contours are lines joining together places of the same height.

Steepness of slope is judged by intervals between contours. The steeper the slope, the closer together the contours.
Economic Activities names on maps, e.g. farm names, factory, mine or symbols. Recreation may be identified features like a golf course or a hotel.
Settlement refers to a building, village, town or an urban area. The pattern is its distribution in the named ares: dense, sparse, scattered, dispersed, nucleated, built-up.
Site land on which a settlement stands, e.g. valley, slope.
Situation location related to places, hills, rivers, towns, communications.
Layout pattern of buildings and roads.
Communications roads, rail, airport, docks, ferries. There are four aspects: direction, links, routes, and associated features, e.g. stations.

Landform Processes
Erosion wearing away of the earth's surface.
Weathering break-up of rocks where they stand, prepares the surface for this erosion.
Transportation movement of eroded material, the load.
Deposition

when transportation ceases.
Weathering
Mechanical Mineral grains in rocks expand when warmed in the day. Cooling at night causes contraction. This weakens rock and it begins to disintegrate.
Freeze-thaw water penetrates into the rock and into cracks. When water freezes, it expands, causing pressure, and the rock begins to shatter.
Chemical causes rocks to decompose.
Solution occurs when rain water or acids in the water dissolve elements of the rock, e.g. rock salt (sodium chloride), limestone.
Oxidation occurs when oxygen in the atmosphere reacts with rock minerals, especially iron and aluminium.
Carbonation result of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere combining with minerals.
Erosion
Hydraulic Action force of the moving water, especially sea waves, prises rocks away.
Corrosion impact of particles carried by water wear away the surface they pass over.
Attrition wearing down of particles in the water makes them smoother and rounder.
Abrasion plucked material rubs against the surface causing erosion.
Transportation
Creep very slow movement of weathered material caused by gravity on gentle slopes.
Solifluction when material is saturated due to poor drainage or heavy rainfall, it moves downslope a few cm per day.
Earth or Mudflows like solifluction but faster, occur on steeper slopes
Slumping sliding away of part of a slope, e.g. when the slop becomes too steep to support the material
Landslides rapid movement of unstable material caused by very heavy rainfall or rapid snowmelt
Avalanches like landslides but consist mainly of snow. Material travels up to 150 km per hour and destroys everything in its path.
Saltation larger particles being bounced along the bed
Solution when material dissolves in the water
Suspension when material is carried along in the water
Traction when material is dragged along the bed.
Bedload carried along underneath the ice
Suspended load carried on the surface and sides of the ice

Rivers
River Basin the area drained by streams and rivers that all flow into one major river.
Watershed boundary between rivers flowing into different river systems.
Radial when river flows outwards from a central area
Trellised where tributaries join at right-angles.
Energy a river gains energy from the volume and force of the water and loses it by friction with the land surface.

Coasts
Features of Erosion
Headlands bands of resistant rock jutting into the sea, separated by less resistant rocks that are eroded to form bays.
Cliffs result from wave action cutting a notch at the base of the land. The overhang breaks off to leave a sharp face. The slope of the cliff face is related to the angle of the rock layers.
Wave-cut Platforms level areas of rock exposed at low tide, which remain as the cliff face retreats.
Caves form when the sea attacks weaknesses in the cliffs, e.g. joints, faults and cracks, and widens them.
Blow holes created when the pressure of air compressed in caves by waves, weakens the roof.
Sea Arches formed when two caves from each side of a headland meet.
Sea Stacks left when spans of sea arches collapse.
Sea Stumps are eroded sea stacks
Features of Deposition
Beaches vary from tiny beaches in inlets, to pebbly beaches, to long sweeps of sand exposed at low tide.
Storm Beaches ridges of boulders and pebbles at the landward end of a beach, piled up by heavy seas at the high tide mark.
Spits strips of sand or pebbles extending from one side of a bay, deposited where tides meet with the calmer waters of the bay or inlet.
Bars spits extending across a bay and closing it off, to form a lagoon.
Tombolo ridge of deposited material joining an island to the mainland.
Economic uses of Coasts
Tourism coasts are popular locations for holidays
Ports developed in favoured coastal locations with deep water and protection from the elements

Water
The atmosphere obtains water by evaporation from bodies of water and by transpiration from vegetation.
Evapotranspiration combination of evaporation and transpiration.
Precipitation how water returns to the earth
Evaporation conversion of water from its liquid to its gas state. The amount of water converted depends on the level of heating and the capacity of the air.
Transpiration process by which vapour is given off plants so that they can absorb more moisture from the ground.
Humidity amount of moisture in the air.
Condensation occurs when vapour is converted to a liquid or solid state. Normally, it results from a drop in temperature.
Dew Point temperature at which water vapour condenses.
Dew droplets of water deposited on the ground.
Frost like dew but the water vapour condenses into fragments of ice because of lower temperatures.
Fog occurs when the temperature of the air above the ground falls below dew point and droplets remain suspended in the air.
Mist less dense form of fog.
Clouds water vapour condensed into millions of tiny water droplets and ice particles in the air.
Cirrus High clouds
Stratus low clouds
Cumulonimbus storm clouds
Precipitation rain, drizzle, sleet, snow and hail. The result of air forced to ascend over mountains, or rising and cooling through convection.
Hail hail stones are produced in convection clouds when the air rises and falls very rapidly.
Snow precipitation in its solid state
Sleet mixture of rain and snow.
Groundwater water stored in rocks.
Porous rocks with tiny pores through which water seeps.
Impermeable rocks that water cannot pass through
Permeable rocks in which water can pass through
Water Table level below which rock is saturated, and varies according to the amount of water soaking into the rock.

Climate
Heat earth's surface is heated by short-wave radiation from the sun, and the atmosphere is heated by long-wave radiation from the earth, by convection and by conduction.
Energy Budget transfer of heat
Temperature measure of the heat of a substance, recorded by a thermometer.
Pressure the atmosphere exerts pressure due to the weight of the air. As air is heated it expands and becomes less dense, so exerts less pressure. As it cools, it contracts, becomes more dense and exerts more pressure. Measured by a barometer, recorded in millibars and shown on maps by isobars, lines joining together places equal pressure.
Wind the movement of air from one place to another.
Anemometer measures wind speed and records in knots.
Climate Graphs show average monthly temperatures as points joined with a line and monthly precipitation totals as vertical bars.

Weather Patterns
Depressions an area of low pressure
Front boundary where air masses of tropical and polar origin meet.
Warm Front where advancing warm air rises over cold polar air.
Cold Front where cold air to the rear of the depression undercuts and lifts the warm air off the ground.
Anticyclones areas of high pressure, far larger than depressions. Form from sinking air that warms and dries as it descends.
Trough area of low pressure between two high pressure areas. Air is unstable so showery weather can be expected.
Ridge opposite - elongated area of higher pressure between two low pressure areas.

Pollution
River Pollution many industries are sited by rivers and discharge their waste into them. Lead and mercury are absorbed by fish. Toxic substances kill off river life.
Sea Pollution more waste enters the sea. Apart from chemical waste and raw sewage, oil is discharged from tankers.
Air Pollution many industrial processes result in air pollution.
Smoke produced when fuels are burned.
Vehicle Exhausts produce carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbons. Cause respiratory problems in many people.
Thermal Power Stations emit sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. Once in the atmosphere they dissolve in water droplets and create acid rain.

Hazards
A hazard is a situation that causes damage to people, property and the environment. Combination of the physical event itself and the nature of society affected. Frequently cause expensive damage and loss of life.
Floods occur after very heavy or persistent rain, during rapid snowmelt, when high tides inundate low-lying coastal areas or when river banks collapse.
Tropical Cyclone (or hurricane) an intense low pressure vortex with winds of at least 33 m per second blowing around it.
Tornadoes violent, whirling vortexes of rising air producing a funnel-shaped cloud above.
Drought lack of water, that can result in famine if the harvest fails.
Desertification through over-grazing, vegetation disappears, and desert-like conditions spread.
Magma molten rock.
Convergence plates moving towards each other.
Divergence plates moving away from each other.
Richter Scale measures the intensity of earthquakes.

Distribution of Population
The population of the world is very unevenly distributed. Two-thirds live on only 7 per cent of the land, while the remainder of the world is sparsely inhabited. Population can be measured by total or by calculating its density.
Density refers to the number of people in a given area.
Over-population occurs when the resources of a region cannot support its population.
Under-population have too few people to exploit the resources available. Development is halted by the shortage of labour.

Population Changes
Birth Rate number of births per 1000 people in a year.
Death Rate umber of deaths per 1000 people in a year.
MEDCs

More Economically Developed Countries.

Birth rate: 11-15 per 1000.
Death rate: 12 per 1000.
LEDCs

Less Economically Developed Countries

Birth rate: about 40 per 1000.
Death rate: over 20 per 1000.
Population Pyramid show the structure of a population.

Migration
Migration movement of people from one region to another. Major cause of population growth or decline in a region.
Rural-urban most common migration. More opportunities in towns and cities than in the country.
Urban-rural or counter-urbanisation is less common. Good transport allows commuting, so people move outside cities but go on working in them.
Intra-urban small scale movement within cities. People move from one city region to another because of redevelopment or because their needs or income have changed.
Inter-urban movement of people from one city to another. Reasons include job promotion, work moves within large companies.

Rural Settlement
Settlement can be divided into three types: rural, urban and suburban.
Dispersed Settlement occurs when farmers occupy houses on their own land, surrounded by fenced or hedged fields.
Nucleated Settlement where farmhouses or homes are clustered in a village.

City Structure
Urban Morphology the pattern of a city's regions.
CBD Central Business District. Commercial centre with the main shops and offices.
Residential Regions low price high density housing often found around the city centres and may include older large dwellings and small terraced properties, with high rise apartments in redeveloped areas. Often called inner city.
Industrial Areas modern and older industrial development is mainly found around the cities, often along main roads where there are large sites and lower land values.
Twilight Zone region of decaying industry and housing, usually close to the city centre.
Concentric Zone the CBD is at the centre, encircled by the other regions.
Sector Model regions occur in wedges extending from the CBD along the major routes out of the city.
Multiple Nuclei Model within a city there are a number of centres and different regions.

Urban Planning
Green Belts little building is permitted and the area is maintained as a 'green' area of farmland, forest and recreational facilities.
Urban Renewal buildings in the decaying or twilight zones are replaced by high-rise buildings for housing and employment.
Decentralization many major shops in the CBD's of towns have been relocated on the town edge in retail parks. There is cheap land for car parks and for a large one storey building.
Traffic Control some cities have constructed or extended underground railway systems, or have provided large, free car parks at out-of-city stations.

Farming
Commercial Farming produces crops for sale, and is most common in the developed world.
Subsistence Farming supplies the needs of the farmer and his family, and occurs in less economically developed regions.
Inputs what the farmer requires to cultivate his land.
Supply the produce that comes from the farm.
Demand for a product, known as its market, comes from the people who want to buy it.

Types of Farming
Extensive Farms large with low yields per hectare.
Intensive Farms small and have higher yields. Often labour intensive.
Monoculture the growing of one crop or the keeping of one type of livestock.
Polyculture the growing of several crops or keeping several types of livestock.
Market Gardening vegetables, salads stuffs, soft or bush fruits.
Orchards apples, pears and plums in cool temperature areas; peaches and citrus fruits in warm temperature area; bananas, pineapples, etc. in tropical regions.
Vine Growing (viticulture) wine, sultanas, currants.
Arable Farming cereals (e.g. wheat, barley, maize); roots (e.g. sugar beet, potatoes); vegetables.
Mixed Farming cereals, root crops, vegetables, cattle, pigs.
Stock Raising beef cattle, fodder crops.
Sheep Farming sheep, hay for fodder.
Mediterranean Agriculture wheat, olives, sheep. Where there is irrigation, fruit, vines, vegetables.
Rice Farming rice, vegetables.
Plantation Agriculture coffee, tea, oil palm rubber, sugar cane.

Industry
Primary Industries farming, forestry, fishing, mining and quarrying. They produce or extract basic materials.
Secondary Industries food processing, metal smelting, oil refining, chemical processing and manufacture. Process the products of primary industry.
Tertiary Industries administration, shops, transport and tourism. They service primary and secondary industries.
Quaternary Industries hi-tech information and finance services.
Raw Materials industry processes materials. The input may be in its raw state, such as iron ore, or semi-processed, such as steel sheets.
Power modern industries require electricity. Some use it as their main source of power, and are sited close to a cheap supply. Oil, natural gas and coal are used as fuels and for power. Whether a factory is closer to the source of power or raw materials depends on the cost of transport.
Land and Water in selecting the site for a plant or a factory, land and water supply are important. Level land is needed for building. Many industries need a large water supply.
Labour an area with cheap and plentiful labour once attracted industries. This now rarely applies in the MEDCs because of national wage rates.
Markets industries producing perishable goods or goods sensitive to fashion change are often located close to or in large towns, as are those where prestige is important, e.g. publishing.
Transport the aim of industrialists is to find a factory location between sources of raw materials and the markets, so that transport costs are at their minimum.

Industrial Regions
Industrial regions developed where raw materials, power, and other resources were available.
Traditional Industrial Regions based on heavy industry, often located on coal fields and engaged in metal smelting, heavy engineering, chemical manufacture or textile production. Known as smokestack industries.
Industrial Estates planned developments. Sites where there is good communications, especially by road.
Modern Industrial Regions areas of light industry, often found near population centres, producing consumer goods, electrical and electronic products. Called sunrise industries.
Grouping of Industries the presence of raw materials or existing industries in a region attracts other industries. COncentrations develop for a variety of reasons, through links between the different companies. Termed agglomeration and minimises costs.
Location Leaders large firms that attract further industries to serve them or to make use of their products.
Dependent Industries tied to a major industry because they use its products.
Footloose Industries industries not tied to a particular location.

Power
Coal used for heating, smelting and power production. Demand has fallen while the cost of mining coal has continued to rise. Most coal is extracted by shaft mining but opencast methods are becoming more common.
Oil use of oil has increased very rapidly since the Second World War.OIl is now expensive because the oil producing countries set up OPEC (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries) to ensure a high price for the product.
Gas most gas used in the UK is natural gas. Occurs in fields of sedimentary rock. Used in the chemical industry, producing anaesthetics, anti-freeze and acetone used in synthetic fibre production.
Thermal Power generated fro coal or oil.Fuel is burnt to heat water and convert it into steam which is channelled to produce a force that turns turbines. Turbines cause dynamos to rotate and produce electric current, which is carried by transmission lines to the consumers.
HEP Hydroelectric Power

Types of Industry
Geographical Inertia very important element in explaining the present-day distribution of industry. Occurs when an industry continues to exist in an area although the factors that governed the choice of the site are no longer important.

Transport and Trade
Transport

transport distance can be measured in three ways:

Ground: number of kilometres
Time: the length of time taken to travel a route.
Cost: the expense of travelling a route.
Network routes linking places together. Made up of nodes and links.
Nodes or Vertex the meeting point pf two routes, a point of origin, a point of destination or any sizeable town along a route.
Link or Edge every road that joins two nodes.
The Index of Connectivity divide the number of edges by the number of vertices.
The Index of Accessibility add up the number of edges that converge on each vertex. The totals can then be ranked in order of accessibility.
Trade the exports of a country provide the income with which is can purchase its imports. The balance between exports and imports is called the balance of payments.

Tourism
Tourism is an important sector or tertiary employment. Many people are employed in providing accommodation, meals, entertainment and transport. Tourism fosters the growth of retailing, building industries and craft industries making souvenirs.
Tourist Regions most popular holiday region is the coast.
Honeypots places that attract large numbers of tourists.

Development
GNP Gross National Product. The total value of country's home and foreign output.
Population includes the birth rate, the death rate, life expectancy and the growth rate.
Poverty Cycle one of the main results of underdevelopment. It creates a vicious circle which is very hard to break.
Development Gap the great contrasts between MEDCs and LEDCs.
Development and Aid development is assisted by aid programmes from MEDCs. A small percentage of each nation's income is devoted to LEDCs.

Improving Food Supplies
Irrigation varies from small scale, such as lifting water from rivers or digging wells, to schemes creating huge reservoirs.
Soils can be improved by crop rotation and fertilizers. Animal manure is a simple and effective fertilizer, but in many areas, it is dried for fuel. Artificial chemical fertilizers are expensive and usually need to be imported.
Soil Erosion can be reduced by keeping a protective vegetation cover to prevent soil being blown or washed away. Contour ploughing along the lie of the land, or terracing, reduces the amount of soil washed away from sloping land.
The Use of Technology can increase food production but many countries cannot afford to import machinery. Pesticides and insecticides can destroy pests and insects that attack crops, but they are expensive and pollute soils and water. Advanced technology is often unsuitable for LEDCs. Instead, improvements can be made by using intermediate technology. This involves the use of local materials to improve farming methods.
Land Reform needed in many areas of the world. Farming plots are too small and fragmented (divided into tiny strips scattered over a wide area) for farming techniques to be improved. Consolidation of holdings means grouping plots together and making them larger, Land needs to be redistributed so that farmers own the land they cultivate, or land tenure needs to be more secure.