Geography EoY Flashcard Set

What is a natural hazard?

A natural event that overlaps with human activity and poses a threat to life and property.

What is hazard risk?

The likelihood or probability that a natural hazard will cause harm or damage to a population.

Where are earthquakes and volcanoes globally distributed?

They occur in distinct linear clusters primarily along plate margins, such as the Pacific Ring of Fire.

What is the plate tectonics theory?

The theory that Earth's outer crust is split into large tectonic plates driven by internal convection currents.

How does oceanic crust compare to continental crust?

Oceanic crust is thin and dense, whereas continental crust is older, thicker, and less dense.

What happens at a constructive plate margin?

Tectonic plates pull apart, allowing magma to rise, cool, and form new crust or shield volcanoes.

What happens at a destructive plate margin?

Tectonic plates collide, forcing the denser oceanic plate to subduct, creating violent earthquakes and explosive volcanoes.

What happens at a conservative plate margin?

Tectonic plates slide past each other horizontally, building friction until they slip and cause severe earthquakes without volcanoes.

What is a primary effect of an earthquake?

Direct physical damage caused immediately by ground shaking, such as collapsing buildings and fractured roads.

What is a secondary effect of an earthquake?

Post-event hazards triggered indirectly by the initial shaking, such as tsunamis, landslides, or fires from broken gas lines.

What is an immediate response to a tectonic hazard?

Search-and-rescue operations and the deployment of emergency medical care, food, and water right after a disaster.

What is a long-term response to a tectonic hazard?

Rebuilding resilient, earthquake-proof infrastructure and restoring the economy in the months and years following a disaster.

Why do people choose to live in volcanic risk zones?

Volcanic ash creates fertile soil for farming, and geothermal activity provides cheap, renewable energy.

Why do people choose to live in earthquake risk zones?

Scenic landscapes attract profitable tourism, and many people face poverty and lack the funds to relocate.

What are the 3 Ps of hazard management?

Prediction, protection, and planning.

What human factors increase natural hazard risk?

Urbanisation, which raises population densities, and poverty, which forces people to live in low-quality housing.

How did wealth affect the response to the Chile earthquake?

As a high-income country, Chile enforced strict building codes and swiftly repaired its main highway to restore aid transport lines.

How did wealth affect the response to the Nepal earthquake?

As a low-income country, Nepal suffered massive structural collapses and had to temporarily migrate 300,000 people from its capital due to overwhelmed medical services.

What is urbanisation?

An increase in the proportion of a country's population choosing to live in towns and cities compared to rural areas.

What is the push-pull theory of migration?

Migration driven by negative push factors away from rural areas, like crop failure, and positive pull factors toward cities, like job opportunities.

What is natural increase?

Urban population growth caused by birth rates exceeding death rates, common in younger migrant demographics.

What is a megacity?

A continuously urbanised metropolitan area with a total population of 10 million people or more.

Where is Lagos located?

On the coast of the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria, West Africa.

What is the international importance of Lagos?

It is a major global shipping port connected to international trade routes and a dominant financial hub for West Africa.

What is a social opportunity in Lagos?

Access to a higher density of schools, universities, and healthcare systems than surrounding rural Nigerian provinces.

What is an economic challenge in Lagos?

Extreme income inequality and the rapid growth of massive informal squatter settlements or slums.

How is urban planning improving life for the poor in Lagos?

The Makoko Floating School provides local children with safe access to education while naturally adapting to changing water levels.

Where is London located?

In southeastern England situated along the banks of the River Thames.

What is the national importance of London?

It is the political capital of the UK and its financial heart, generating roughly one-fifth of the total UK GDP.

What is a social opportunity in London?

Exceptional cultural diversity with over 300 languages spoken alongside vast public transport networks.

What is a social challenge in London?

Deep urban deprivation and wealth polarization between wealthy and low-income boroughs.

What is urban regeneration?

Redeveloping run-down, derelict urban brownfield sites by upgrading infrastructure and attracting new investment.

Why did Battersea Power Station need regeneration?

The iconic industrial site had stood completely derelict and abandoned for 40 years, leaving the surrounding land economically depressed.

What are the main features of the Battersea Power Station project?

Transformed into a multi-use destination with shops, offices, restaurants, residential apartments, and an extended London Underground line.

What are the features of sustainable urban living?

Reducing ecological footprints through green energy, waste recycling, urban green spaces, and water conservation methods.

How have transport strategies in London reduced traffic congestion?

By expanding the rail capacity via the high-speed Elizabeth Line, introducing Congestion Charges, and growing bike-sharing schemes.

What is the difference between magma and lava?

Magma is molten rock stored beneath the Earth's surface, while lava is molten rock that has broken through the crust during an eruption.

What is the focus of an earthquake?

The exact point underground where the rock fractures and the earthquake energy is initially released.

What is the epicenter of an earthquake?

The point on the Earth's surface directly vertically above the focus where the shaking is usually strongest.

How does the Richter scale measure earthquakes?

It measures the magnitude of an earthquake based on the scientific energy released using a seismometer.

How does the Mercalli scale measure earthquakes?

It measures the intensity of an earthquake based on observed visual damage and human experiences.

Give an example of a secondary effect from the Chile earthquake.

A series of devastating tsunami waves hit coastal towns, destroying ports and coastal infrastructure.

Give an example of a secondary effect from the Nepal earthquake.

Severe landslides and avalanches triggered in the Himalayas blocked rural mountain access roads, trapping isolated villages.

What are the main features of an earthquake protection strategy?

Automatic rolling gas shut-off valves, shock-absorbing foundations, and reinforced steel cross-bracing in high-rise buildings.

What is a rural area?

A sparsely populated environment with fewer than 10,000 residents, typically characterized by open countryside.

What is an urban area?

A densely populated environment with more than 10,000 residents, typically categorized as towns or cities.

Why is the urbanisation rate currently slowing down in HICs?

Most of the population already lives in towns and cities, leaving very few rural residents left to migrate.

Why is the urbanisation rate rapidly accelerating in LICs and NEEs?

Rapid industrialisation is creating massive job markets in major cities, attracting large numbers of rural workers.

What is the regional importance of Lagos?

It is the dominant commercial core of Nigeria, containing the highest concentration of industry and corporate headquarters.

What is an economic opportunity in Lagos?

Massive employment opportunities found in both formal business sectors and bustling informal street trade markets.

What is Olusosun dump in Lagos?

A massive open landfill site where thousands of informal workers salvage and recycle electronic and industrial waste daily to earn a living.

What is a major environmental challenge in Lagos?

Severe traffic congestion gridlocks the roads for hours daily, creating toxic air pollution and dense smog.

What is a brownfield site?

An area of land that was previously developed and built upon, but has now become derelict, abandoned, or contaminated.

What is a greenfield site?

An area of undeveloped open land, usually countryside or agricultural fields, that has never been built upon.

What was an economic benefit of the Battersea Power Station regeneration?

It created thousands of long-term construction, retail, and office jobs for the local economy.

What was an environmental benefit of the Nine Elms regeneration?

The creation of the brand new 2.5-acre Nine Elms urban park to bring green space back into the industrial zone.

What is a major social challenge related to London's regeneration?

Rapid gentrification can price lower-income local residents out of their traditional neighborhoods due to rising rent and property values.

What transport strategy in London directly discourages car use?

The London Congestion Charge, which fines drivers a daily fee for operating personal vehicles inside central zones.

How does BedZED conserve energy for sustainable urban living?

Thick thermal insulation and south-facing windows naturally heat properties, cutting residential heating demands by 90 percent.

How does BedZED source its materials sustainably?

Over half of all construction materials used on the site were reclaimed, recycled, or sourced from within a 35-mile radius.

What is an ecosystem?

A community of living organisms interacting with each other and the non-living elements of their environment.

What is a biotic component in an ecosystem?

Any living element of an ecosystem, such as plants, animals, insects, and bacteria.

What is an abiotic component in an ecosystem?

Any non-living element of an ecosystem, such as climate, soil, water, rock, and sunlight.

Where are tropical rainforests globally distributed?

They are located in a distinct band around the Equator, primarily between 10 degrees North and South, in regions like the Amazon Basin.

Why is the rainforest climate hot and wet all year?

Intense equatorial solar radiation causes rapid evaporation and air to rise, creating low pressure and continuous convectional rainfall.

What are the four distinct layers of a tropical rainforest?

The shrub layer, understorey, canopy, and emergent layer.

What are buttress roots and why do plants have them?

Massive, wide roots above the ground that stabilize tall emergent trees in shallow rainforest soils.

What is a drip-tip adaptation?

Smooth, pointed leaves that allow heavy rainfall to run off quickly, preventing mold growth and leaf damage.

Why do rainforest plants have large, broad leaves in the understorey?

To maximize the absorption of the very limited sunlight that filters down through the upper canopy.

What are lianas?

Woody vines that root in the ground and climb up tree trunks to reach sunlight in the high canopy.

What is an adaptation of the sloth to survive in the rainforest?

Camouflaged green algae grows on its fur to hide from predators, and it moves exceptionally slowly to conserve energy.

What is an adaptation of the jaguar to survive in the rainforest?

Spotted fur that provides camouflage in the dappled shade of the understorey, making it an effective hunter.

What is deforestation?

The permanent clearing, cutting down, and removal of trees from a forested area.

What is the largest economic driver of deforestation in the Amazon?

Commercial cattle ranching and vast agribusiness farming for crops like soybeans.

How does deforestation lead to soil erosion?

Removing trees strips away the canopy shield and root networks, exposing the topsoil to being washed away by heavy equatorial rain.

How does deforestation impact global climate change?

Burning or cutting down trees releases stored carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, accelerating the greenhouse effect.

How does deforestation cause a loss of biodiversity?

Destroying the complex, multi-layered forest structure eliminates the unique habitats of millions of plant and animal species.

What is selective logging for sustainable rainforest management?

Fully removing only older or specific highly valued trees, leaving the rest of the forest structure intact to naturally regenerate.

What is debt-for-nature swapping?

An agreement where an HIC cancels a portion of a developing nation's foreign debt in exchange for a guaranteed commitment to protect its rainforests.

What is international hardwood agreement marketing?

Global policies that prevent the illegal trade of precious timber by ensuring all sold hardwood is stamped with a sustainability certificate.

What is ecotourism?

Small-scale tourism that minimizes environmental damage, educates visitors, and provides local communities with incomes that do not rely on deforestation.

What is a local economic benefit of rainforest exploitation?

It creates immediate, profitable industries like mining, logging, and farming that boost employment and national GDP.

What is the role of international cooperation in managing rainforests?

Global agreements allow countries to work together to regulate illegal logging and fund large-scale conservation programs.

Why is the nutrient cycle in a pristine rainforest so rapid?

High temperatures and humidity allow decomposers to break down dead organic matter instantly, which is immediately reabsorbed by dense plant roots.