JC-Learn Geography Higher Level 2014 Exam Answers 1
Section 1 1. (i) False (ii) True (iii) True 2. (i) Epicentre (ii) Richter (iii) Tsunami 3. Terracettes 4. 1, 4, 5 5. (i) Increase (ii) Labrador Current (iii) Cold 6. X Y A 4 B 3 C 1 D 2 7. (i) Scree (ii) Mechanical (iii) Gravity 8A. (i) Brown Earths (ii) Podzols (iii) Humus OR 8B. (i) V-shaped valley (ii) Upper (iii) Erosion 9A. Residential OR 9B. Global warming 2
10A. (i) Solar (ii) HEP (iii) Wave/Biomass/Geothermal/Tidal OR 10B. Calves, Slurry, Wheat 11. Industrial Inertia 12. (i) Polder (ii) The Netherlands (iii) Planned 13. Dentist, tour guide, taxi driver, teacher 14. 1, 2, 4 15. Bars drawn, French 10000, Dutch, 4000, Hungarian, 8000 16. (i) True (ii) False (iii) False 17. Linear/Ribbon 18. X Y A 3 B 1 C 4 D 2 19. Third Class Road 20. An Oblique Photograph 3
Section 2 Question 1 A. (i) B (ii) Giant s Causeway in the Antrim-Derry Plateau (iii) Basalt is a fine to medium-grained igneous rock. It ranges in colour from black to dark grey. It formed when lava cooled on the earth s surface. There are tiny crystals in this rock, because the lava cooled very quickly. It is found in the Antrim-Derry Plateau, which includes the Giant s Causeway (picture below). Here, the lava cooled, contracted and eventually cracked to form six-sided columns. B. (i) Oil and gas exploitation provides employment and jobs, on the oil/gas rigs offshore, for the people of Ireland. This helps the Irish economy as unemployment is decreased. The exploitation of gas and oil also generates income by selling these energy resources abroad to foreign countries. This income boosts the Irish economy in many ways (extra income could go towards long-term expenditure or to decrease debts). (ii) The exploitation of oil and gas could annoy the local community of the area due to it being noisy and an eyesore. The exploitation could also destroy the natural beauty of an area, and this is a huge problem. 4
C. Freeze-thaw action Weathering by frost is freeze-thaw action. It is most evident in areas that experience frequent temperature changes and a plentiful supply of water. How freeze-thaw action weathers rock: 1. By day, water seeps into cracks in rocks of a mountainous area. 2. By night, when temperature drops below 0 degrees Celsius, the water freezes and expands in volume. This puts pressure on the surrounding rock. 3. After some time, the continual temperature changes exert pressure on the rock surface. Eventually the rock crumbles and breaks down. The shattered rock is known as scree, and this falls to the base of the mountain. 5
Question 2 A. (i) Boreal climate (ii) Temperature - Boreal regions have long nights in winter and long days in summer. Average temperature in winter is -15 C (below freezing for six months of the year). Summers are warm with an average temperature of 15 C. Rainfall - Total yearly precipitation is from 300-500 mm. Although the cold winters have some heavy snowfall, most of the precipitation comes as rain during the warm, humid summer months. (iii) Trees have adapted to life in the harsh and frozen taiga - their leaves are needle-shaped to reduce moisture loss. This is one way of how natural vegetation has adapted to life in this cold climate. B. (i) A = Campbell-Stokes sunshine recorder B = Anemometer C = Rain gauge D = Wind vane (ii) A wind vane measures wind direction. It has a horizontal arm with an arrow at one end and a tail at the other. The wind blows the tail round and the arrow points to the direction from which the wind is coming. An anemometer measures wind speed or force. It is made up of three cups, which pivot and rotate according to the force of the wind acting upon them. 6
C. (i) The Sahel region is an area, which lies to the south of the Sahara desert. It suffers from drought. Global warming has led to a rise in temperature and so there is less condensation and therefore less rainfall. Evaporating groundwater is not replaced. This has led to droughts (periods when there is no water), during which vegetation has died. (ii) There are many impacts of drought on human activity. Drought essentially is a factor for the introduction of desertification to an area. This is the spread of deserts. Grassland is changed to desert. Soil is no longer fertile. The lack of water on the land means farmers have a difficult time to produce stable crops on a regular basis. Food production is reduced and famine occurs. People are forced to leave their barren land and live elsewhere (migration). 7
Question 3 A. i) Pyramid A: Pyramid A represents a developing counry. In a developing country the birth rate is high. A high birth rate means that Pyramid A will have a wide base with 16% of the population in the 0-4 age group. In a developing country a poor healthcare system means that the death rate is also high. A high death rate means that Pyramid A will have a narrow top as very few people survive to old age. Pyramid B: In contrast Pyramid B represents a developed country. In a developed country the status of women is usually higher and people choose to have fewer children. As a result Pyramid B has a narrow base with less than 8% of the population in the 0-4 age group. In a developed country a good healthcare system means that the death rate is low. A low death rate means that many people will survive to old age and Pyramid B will have a wider top with approximately 3% of the population surviving to 80 years or older. (ii) Reasons: Life expectancy is the number of years a person can expect to live. Life expectancy is higher in developed countries such as Ireland than it is in developing countries such as Mali. This is because excellent medical facilities in developed countries mean that people live longer. In Ireland infant mortality is low because children are vaccinated against diseases. In developing countries such as Mali medical facilities are poor; infant mortality is high because children are not vaccinated. Children die from curable diseases. A second reason why people live longer in developed countries such as Ireland is because there is a plentiful food supply and people eat a balanced diet, which helps to keep them healthy. In Mali, food is scarce and 8
people are malnourished. As a result of malnourishment their immune systems are low and they are more likely to die from diseases such as TB and malaria. B. The area I have studied is Mali in Africa, and it suffers from the following effects of low population density. Low marriage rates Many young people leave the unproductive, unattractive areas here in search of work, a better standard of living, improved services and a better social life in cities. There is a surplus of females in rural areas and a surplus of males in cities (males migrate). Abandonment of agricultural land Desertification has led to agricultural land becoming infertile. There have been rainfall shortages and a decrease in vegetation cover. Over time, soils turned to sand and deserts spread. Many animals die because of a lack of water, leaving the people hungry. As a result, migration to cities occurs. C. (i) Demographic Transition Model (ii) a. The death rate fluctuates in stage 1 as this new population has poor living standards at this time and it is only introducing vaccines and other medical products, so medical services are poor now. There is a lack of good food at this time, so there is high fluctuation of the death rate. 9
b. Death rate falls in stage 2 due to improved medicine and health care, and a better standard of living. c. There is a natural decrease in stage 5 due to a higher death rate then birth rate. There is a rate of family planning, low infant mortality and high living standards in this stage, so the birth rate is very low. This means the death rate can often go higher than the birth rate, meaning the population may begin to decline in this stage. 10
Question 4 4A. (ii) Cliff A cliff is a steep slope on the coast. They are formed as a result of hydraulic action, compression and abrasion. The hydraulic action of the waves forms a notch in the coast at a line of weakness. With continued erosion and undercutting, the notch gets deeper and bigger. The rocks above the notch are left unsupported, and eventually collapse forming a cliff. As the waves hit the cliff face, air gets trapped in fissures. When the wave moves out, the trapped air escapes and small explosions follow. This leads to shattering of rock, which falls into the sea. Compression has occurred. The sea uses these shattered rock pieces to further erode the cliff using abrasion. The rock surface that is left after cliff has retreated is called the wave-cut platform. The deposited material found below low tide as a result of cliff erosion is known as the wave-built terrace. 11
4B. (i) Bilateral aid is aid given from one government to another government. It can be used to improve health care, education and agriculture. (ii) An advantage of providing aid to countries in the developing world is that it helps communities to improve their water supplies, roads and other infrastructure, housing, education and sanitation. A disadvantage of this is that recipients can become dependent on aid, which means they do not develop the skills to provide for themselves. 4C. (i) Urban renewal is when an urban area is updated, but its function stays the same. An example would a residential area in the inner city being replaced with modern housing. (ii) Tallaght (iii) Tallaght has grown to have a population of 77,000. It is a vibrant urban settlement with its own town centre; a major shopping facility (The Square); civic offices; commercial, financial and community facilities; an Institute of Technology and a hospital. The Luas has aided the development of Tallaght by adding a regular access to the city centre. 4D. The manufacturing industry I have studied is Intel Ireland in Leixlip. The following three factors influence the location of this industry. 12
Raw materials: Production of microprocessors and silicon chips requires geological stability. Leixlip is ideal as it is situated on stable bedrock. Transport facilities: The plant is located off a major motorway, which allows easy access for employees. The plant is also close to Dublin and its port and airport facilities. Labour: The plant employs over 5,500 people, directly and indirectly. The workforce is drawn from Dublin city, greater Dublin area and the expanding Maynooth and Leixlip areas (all of these areas have qualified workforce due to their universities, so the labour also affected the location). 13
Question 5 A. 14
B. Reasons: Dungarvan is a coastal settlement, which suggests that this town originally developed as a small port. Dungarvan developed in a sheltered harbour on the estuary of the Colligan River X 26 93. In historic times people would have used the river and the sea as a source of food and income. During Viking times this town would have developed as an important trading centre. Contour lines in the area suggest that the land is between 20m and 50m high. This fertile land made it ideal for settlement. As a result of its port function the town developed as a route focus. The bridges at X 262 936 and X 262 933 would have encouraged the growth of the town. Dungarvan continued to develop as an important nodal centre as the town became more accessible. Where roads meet, people meet and trade develops. A number of important routeways meet in Dungarvan; these include the N25 National Primary Road from the east, and the R675 Regional Road from the north east. A number of unnamed third class roads also meet in Dungarvan. There is evidence to suggest that in recent times the town of Dungarvan has developed as a services centre. A wide variety of services are present in Dungarvan including educational (schools at X 260 928 and X 258 929) and religious services (churches at X 268 928 and X 282 929). However, map evidence suggests that the tourist service provided by Dungarvan has played an important role in its development. The tourist information centre at X 261 930 provides evidence of the importance of Dungarvan as a tourist destination. As a coastal area Dungarvan has many attractions for tourists including boating actvities at X 265 929. 15
C. Reasons: The first reason why tourists might be attracted to the Dungarvan area is because it is an area of natural scenic beauty. Dungarvan is located in a sheltered harbour at the mouth of the Colligan River. This harbour would attract tourists interested in outdoor activities such as fishing and water sports. The presence of boating activities in the centre middle of the aerial photograph suggests the importance of the harbour as a tourist attraction in the region. The river in the left centre provides further opportunities for boating and fishing. The second reason why Dungarvan and the surrounding area is an important tourist destination is because it has features of historical interest. The priory in the right background of the aerial photograph is an important tourist attraction. There is also evidence of a castle dating from Norman times in the centre middle of the aerial photograph, which would attract tourists interested in the history of Dungarvan. 16