Geography Revision - Resources and Soil

Vocabulary terms and definitions based on Geography revision notes covering resources, sustainable development, and soil characteristics.

Resource

Anything that can be used to satisfy a need.

Utility or Usability

What makes an object or substance a resource.

Time and Technology

Two important factors related to the needs of people that can change substances into resources.

Human-made resource

Resources created by humans using natural resources to make things such as buildings, bridges, and machinery.

Human Resource

Refers to human beings, considered the most important resource because their knowledge, skills, and inventions lead to the creation of more resources.

Resource Conservation

Using resources carefully and giving them time to get renewed.

Sustainable Development

Balancing the need to use resources and also conserving them for the future; it ensures present needs are met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Human Resource Development

Improving the quality of people's skills so that they are able to create more resources.

Soil Fertility

Achieved through the right mix of minerals and organic matter.

Shelter Belts

Rows of trees planted in coastal and dry regions to check wind movement and protect soil from erosion.

Weathering

The breaking down and decay of exposed rocks on the earth's surface by temperature fluctuations, frost, plants, animals, and human activity.

Humus

The dark, organic material in soil formed by the decomposition of plant and animal matter.

Climatic factors for soil formation

The two main factors responsible for soil formation are temperature and rainfall.

Land Use

The utilization of land resource for different purposes like agriculture, forestry, mining, building houses, roads, and setting up industries.

Biosphere

The narrow zone of contact between the lithosphere (land), hydrosphere (water), and atmosphere (air) where life exists.

Natural Resources

Resources that are drawn from nature and used without much modification.