Geography Test 3

Asia

What is the nature of the tectonic movement that created both the Zagros and the Alborz Mountains?

Arabian Plate Movement

What natural hazard risk does the ongoing tectonic movement create in both ranges?

earthquakes and landslides

What makes the Asir mountains unique within Saudi Arabia?

8,000 ft above sea level (not very high). Erosion has taken over and smoothed it out because its older. Most humid region in Saudi Arabia. Air causes precipitation which causes more rainfall. So there are much cooler temperatures

Why do a number of wealthy Saudis have summer homes here in the Asir Mountains?

Because of cooler temp

What does the word “Mesopotamia” mean?

The land between 2 rivers

What physical characteristics of river floodplains made these areas ideal for the development of early agriculture?

1. provide constant source of freshwater

2. Extremely fertile soil

How did Mesopotamia act as a culture hearth?

rise to agriculture

What was the first civilization to arise here in Mesopotamia?

Sumerians

Where is most of the oil and natural gas in Southwest Asia located relative to the Plateau of Saudi Arabia?

East of the Plateau of Saudi Arabia

What are the resources we group together as fossil fuels (I list three)?

1. oil

2. natural gas

3. Coal

What ancient organisms left the remains that were transformed into most of our fossil fuel reserves?

single cell microorganisms

What is necessary to transform the remains of ancient organisms into fossil fuels?

Sediment rock, heat, and pressure

Why does it make sense that there is little oil or gas on the Plateau of Saudi Arabia?

It was never under water

Are the deserts (Kavir and Lut) found in the high ranges or in the low-lying basins?

Low lying basins

Where do most of Iran’s people live in relation to the Iranian Plateau?  Why?

Where do most of Iran’s people live in relation to the Iranian Plateau?  Why?

What happened to the Ottoman Empire after World War I?

Joined the losing side, costed their empire

Who was the man who is considered the father of modern Turkey?

Mustafa Kamel

What is a secular country, and how did that apply to Atatürk’s vision for Turkey after the War for Independence?

Does not have an official religion which was a big change that came out of the War for Independence

Who are the Kurds, and what is their issue with Turkey?

Stateless nation but were promised a state of their own and ever since then they have been an issue and Turkey makes sure the Kurds don’t gain too much power so they treat them bad

Why are Iranians not considered to be Arabs?

They do not speak in arabic- different language (persian or farsi)

Why was the last Shah so unpopular among Iranians?

He established savak (secret police network) which were his eyes and ears around town and would take you and imprison you if you say anything bad about him/critiques of the shah. Brutality of secret police force, and he liked western culture so he westernized iranian culture and society (music, tv, movies, clothes from europe and US) which went against their religion

What denomination of Islam is, by far, the dominant one in Iran?

Sumi Islam world: 85% Iran; 10%. 

Shia Islam world: 15% Iran: 90%

Who led the Islamic Revolution of 1979 in Iran?

They believed that the shahs westernisation was destroying purity and culture. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned to lead the revolution

Generally speaking, how did the Islamic republic type of government differ from the monarchy in Iran?

Religion and government are almost one in the same

Why did Iraq invade Iran in 1980?

Pure resource grab (oil and gas)/ Wanted to secure and expand Shatt Al-Arab and resulted in a lot of damage but no territory change

• Why did Iraq invade Kuwait in August 1990?

 Boundary dispute over resources that straddle the boundaries which was oil

What was the allocational boundary dispute between Iraq and Kuwait?

Rumaila oil field and Iraq accused Kuwait of violating boundary

• How was Saddam Hussein ultimately removed from power in Iraq?

US led invasion of Iraq (2003) and put on trial for brutality…he was executed in 2006

Where does Saudi Arabia rank worldwide in proven oil reserves?

2nd largest 

How does the absolute monarchy of Saudi Arabia differ from, say, the constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom?

All power goes to king but it should be limited by law

What are the five Pillars of Islam (no need for a list of all five here; just conceptually, what are they)?  What is the Hajj?

framework for muslim life and worship. Hajj is where muslims are supposed to make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in your lifetime

Where does Qatar rank among countries in terms of proven natural gas reserves?

3rd largest natural gas reserves of natural gas on earth

Is the North Field mostly associated or non-associated natural gas?

non-associated natural gas means all we are finding is gas and NOTHING ELSE

• How is Qatar shipping its natural gas to buyers like Japan?

Convert it to liquified natural gas (LNG) and put it on specialized tankers and shipping to Japan 

How many emirates comprise the United Arab Emirates?

7

Which emirate is the capital of the UAE?

Abu Dahbi

When countries like the UAE undertake projects like the Burj Khalifa, what is the more symbolic meaning of these grand projects beyond just being “the world’s tallest building”?

shows that they are growing rapidly

What territory gives Oman control of the navigable channel of the Strait of Hormuz?

Musandam Peninsula

What is so critical about Oman’s control of the navigable channel of the Strait of Hormuz?

20% of the world's oil supply passes through that body of water

The current civil war in Yemen is a proxy conflict between which two major Southwest Asian powers?

proxy conflict- 2 opposing forces, at least one of them has backing from an outside power. Saudi Arabia and Iran

Who, tragically, have made up a significant number of the famine victims in Yemen due to the civil war?

children

Where did most of the world’s Jewish population end up living after the Jewish Diaspora?

90% lived in Europe

How did the Dreyfus Affair influence the rise of modern Zionism as a political movement?

Alfred Dreyfus was executed bc he was Jewish so Thedor Herzl stood up against it and so he wanted to create a jewish state

What did the Balfour Declaration say regarding the creation of a Jewish state?

British would establish a homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine if they win against the ottoman empire

• Who received the League of Nations Mandate over Palestine after the end of World War I?

British after wwi… it was supposed to be an area to dispute disagreements peacefully but failed

• What were the basics of the United Nations Partition Plan regarding Palestine after World War II?

Make Jerusalem an international free city

• Why was Jerusalem supposed to be a free or international city under UN control in the United Nations Partition Plan?

Because of religion

• How substantial was the Israeli victory in the 1948-49 Arab-Israeli War (essentially, how much of the Palestine mandate territory did they control after the war)?

72% of mandate belongs to Israel

• Who ended up with control over the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip after the 1948-49 Arab-Israeli War?

Israel

• What three territories make up the Occupied Territories that involve the Palestinians?  What is the current status of the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights?

West Bank, East Jerusalem, Gaza Strip

• Why does it make geographic sense that the largest number of Palestinian refugees settled in Jordan?

geographical proximity, historical ties, and the country's later annexation of the West Bank, which is geographically contiguous to Jordan and historically considered part of Palestine

• Why does Jordan support the right of return of Palestinian refugees?  

Jordan has the highest rate of Palestinian refugees

• Why is Israel opposed to the right of return?

The demographics would be in favor to the Palestinians

• How did the Arab Spring lead to the Syrian Civil War?

Protests against dictators and Syria had been under dictatorship on assad family

• Where did Bashar al-Assad flee to after being ousted from office in December 2024?

Moscow 

• What was Beirut’s nickname before the Lebanese Civil War broke out in 1975?

Paris of the Middle East

• What is Hezbollah?

Support Hamas?

ROOTS TO WARS GO BACK TO IMPERIALISM

• What tectonic movement created the Pamir Knot and its associated mountain ranges?

indian plate movement

• What is the scientific term for mountain-building or mountain creation?

orogenesis

• Why is the terrain of the Hindu Kush so well-suited for guerrilla warfare tactics?

rugged terrain and caves to hide in

• How have the Hindu Kush contributed to Afghanistan being nicknamed the “graveyard of empires”?

Time and time again outside forces fail to secure area

• What does the tian shan name of the mountains mean in English?

tian shan-mountains of heaven bc they were so high the people thought they reached all the way to the heavens

• What is notable about the Turpan Depression and Ayding Lake?

below sea level

• Why is the Tibetan Plateau (highest and longest plateau) often referred to as “the roof of the world”?

Because it is the highest and longest Plateau

• Why is the Tibetan Plateau also referred to as the “Third Pole”?

Largest ice fields outside of north and south pole

• What hazard is a particular danger for mountaineers in the Himalayas?

Avalanches

• Mount Everest is located on the border between which two Himalayan countries?

Nepal and China

• Why is the name “Manchuria” not used by China to refer to this region today?

Don’t want to give last dynasty any credit

• What is alluvium?

Sediment deposited by rivers- Northeast China Plain is covered in alluvium

• What status does the North China Plain hold in East Asia due to being an ancient culture hearth?

major ethnicity originated in this area… originated here

• What is loess?

Wind blown sediements

• Why is Huang He known as a depositing river?

Carries a lot of sediment

• How does its status as a depositing river contribute to flood risk?

Shallowing out?

• Why is wheat, not rice, the major grain crop in the area?

North China Plain does not have right climate for rice, wheat yes

• Where does the Chang Jiang rank among Asia’s rivers in terms of length?

longest river in all of Asia

• What is a hydrophyte?

plant that needs water

• Sericulture is the production of what fiber?

Silk

•  Where does the Three Gorges Dam rank among the world’s hydroelectric facilities in terms of capacity?

The largest on Earth

• How long has there been a continuous agricultural civilization in China?

over 8,000 years

• What was the first dynasty of Imperial China?

Qin Dynasty

• What imperial dynasty was the last one to rule over China?

Manchu (Qing) Dynasty

• Who led the Nationalist overthrow of the last imperial dynasty in Chine the 1911 Revolution?

Dr. Sun Yat-sen- everyone wanted to take control after and it got so messy that he had to leave the country for safety

• How did the Long March ultimately help the Chinese Communist Party achieve victory in the Chinese Civil War?

Long March- tried to wipe out chinese communist… end of long march only 20,000 remaining (80%) but it helped set communist up for victory. Brought political message straight to chinese people (political campaign) and gained support. Leadership of chinese communist started to emerge 

• What happened between the Nationalists and Communists in China during the Japanese invasion of China?

Put aside differences and fought together against japanese (Beginning of wwii)

• What were some of the reasons why the Communists had the advantage in the second Chinese Civil War, leading them to victory on October 1, 1949?

support from chinese, effective leadership, support from soviet union

• What impact has Deng Xiaoping’s “socialism with Asian characteristics” had on China’s economic growth to present?

Moved to capitalism 

• What major port city was returned to China by the United Kingdom in 1997?

Hong Kong

• How did the “one child policy” misalign with Chinese tradition to produce the imbalance in the sex ratio in China’s population today?

aren’t enough ladies. Women were missing in China’s population which led to population decline

• Did the Nationalists declare independence for Taiwan in 1949?  If not, what did they continue to claim until 1996?

No, independence

• Are both China and Taiwan members of the United Nations today?

No

• Why are subduction zones much more likely to generate tsunami?

they involve the forceful, vertical movement of tectonic plates, which abruptly displaces the seafloor and the water above it

• What brought Japan out of its prolonged isolationist period in the mid-1800s?

opened up international trade and broke them out of isolation

• Why did the Japanese think that the British, in particular, might have good guidance for its industrial development?

Britain was the pioneer of industrial revolution- more technology and more advanced 

• What was Japan’s MAIN reason for its imperial expansion in Asia and the Pacific?

need for natural resources

• How has the structure of Japan’s population pyramid changed since the end of World War II?

fewer children and larger population of elders

• What percentage of Japan’s population is ethnically Japanese?

99%

• What is Japan’s concern regarding a more open immigration policy to combat population decline?

Cultural Identity

• Where is the current boundary between North Korea and South Korea in relation to the 38^th parallel?

Cease Fire Agreement?

• Have North Korea and South Korea signed a peace treaty?

No, still in a state of war. Only cease fire agreement

• How has North Korea’s economy fared under communism since the end of the Korean War?

economically stuck