Physical Geography 1st Exam 1. What is the difference between physical and cultural geography? a. Physical geography primarily involves the study of social science, whereas cultural geography primarily entails the study of natural science. b. Physical geography primarily involves the study of natural science, whereas cultural geography primarily entails the study of social science. c. Physical geography primarily involves the study of biology, whereas cultural geography primarily entails the study of sociology. d. Physical geography primarily involves the study of weather and climate, whereas cultural geography primarily entails the study of social science. 2. In the original Greek "Geography" translates roughly to: a. World-knowledge b. Earth-wonder c. Earth-writing/describing d. Earth-wind-fire 3. One of the main reasons why Eratosthenes is often referred to as the "Father of Geography" is because: a. He accurately measured the circumference of the Earth b. He was the first man to travel the world c. He coined the word "Geography" d. Both A and C 4. Our sun is just one of the hundreds of billions of stars found in the Milky Way Galaxy, and this galaxy is just one of the hundreds of billions of galaxies found in the known universe. 5. What causes seasons? a. Proximity to the sun. During the summertime we are simply closer to the sun. b. Changes in the sun's energy c. Axial tilt d. None of these
6. On June 21 the sun is directly overhead (at a 90 angle) at the a. Tropic of Cancer b. Tropic of Capricorn c. Equator d. Arctic Circle 7. On December 21st, if you are anywhere north of the arctic circle you will receive a. 12 hours of sunlight and 12 hours of darkness b. 24 hours of darkness c. 24 hours of sunlight 8. Lines of latitude run and measure distance. a. north/south, east/west b. north/south, north/south c. east/west, east/west d. east/west, north/south 9. At 34 N, 118 W you will find a. Dallas, TX b. New York, NY c. Los Angeles, CA d. Salvation 10. Most of our atmosphere is made up of a. nitrogen and oxygen b. oxygen c. oxygen and carbon dioxide d. nitrogen and argon 11. Most of the atmospheric mass is close to the Earth's surface. 12. Which of the following is considered a "variable gas" in the atmosphere? a. nitrogen b. oxygen c. argon d. water vapor
13. The atmosphere today is similar to that of the early Earth. 14. Solid particles suspended in the atmosphere are called a. aerosols b. ozone c. smog d. carbon dioxide 15. Although small in quantity, the amount of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) in the atmosphere is increasing. This is dangerous because carbon dioxide traps heat. It is a a. reduction gas b. greenhouse gas c. permanent gas d. stratospheric gas 16. Ozone (O 3 ) is important because it shields us from harmful a. infrared radiation b. gamma radiation c. ultraviolet radiation d. microwave radiation 17. Temperature does not simply decrease the further up you travel, but alternately decreases AND increases through the different thermal layers of the atmosphere. 18. Most of the weather happens within the, the bottommost layer of the atmosphere. a. thermosphere b. stratosphere c. troposphere d. mesosphere
19. Although it may seem weightless to us, the atmosphere certainly carries weight. At sea level it weighs down on us at 14.7 a. pounds per square inch b. tons per square inch c. pounds per square mile d. pounds per acre 20. Which of the following BEST defines the difference between weather and climate? a. weather is unpredictable, climate is predictable b. weather changes, climate does not c. climate is short term, weather is long term d. weather is short term, climate is long term 21. Insolation is a. incoming solar radiation b. incoming sonar navigation c. incoming solar motivation 22. The Sun is the main source of energy for Earth's atmosphere. It drives nearly all of our atmospheric processes. 23. - or emission - is the process by which electromagnetic energy is emitted from an object (i.e. the Sun). a. Absorption b. Radiation c. Reactivation d. Domination 24. The sky appears blue because blue light is most easily through the atmosphere. a. reflected b. absorbed c. scattered d. contained
25. Which of the following will have the highest albedo? a. asphalt b. dirt c. grass d. ice 26. Which of the following are greenhouse gasses? a. water vapor, carbon dioxide, oxygen b. carbon dioxide, nitrogen c. water vapor, carbon dioxide d. carbon dioxide, oxygen 27. In the long run, there is a balance between the total amount of energy received by Earth as insolation and the amount of energy returned to space. 28. plays the biggest role in the uneven heating of the Earth's surface. a. Longitude b. Latitude c. The equator d. The tropic of cancer 29. A will generally experience a cooler summer and warmer winter than a. a. coastal city, city further inland b. city further inland, coastal city 30. Although the sun's intensity is greatest at the equator, the tropics do not heat up as much as the subtropics. What is the reason for this? a. There are more clouds present at the tropics and clouds reflect incoming sunlight back out into space b. The angle of the incoming sunlight is less intense at the tropics. c. There are fewer clouds present at the tropics. d. There is less greenhouse gasses present at the tropics.
31. If you were to fire a rocket directly southward from Boston, it would get deflected to your right. This is caused by a. the axial tilt. b. the redirection effect c. the rebound effect d. the Coriolis effect 32. Winds, and therefore surface ocean currents, tend to move counter-clockwise in the northern hemisphere. 33. As pressure increases, so does temperature. 34. In a high pressure cell air is and in a low pressure cell air is. a. moving eastward, moving westward b. descending, descending c. descending, ascending d. ascending, ascending 35. Air tends to move from an area of to. a. low pressure, low pressure b. high pressure, high pressure c. low pressure, high pressure d. high pressure, low pressure 36. The zone at the equator where air converges and becomes uplifted is called the a. zone of uplifting b. intertropical divergence zone (ITDZ) c. intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ)
37. The cells of air which rise at the equator and sink back down at the subtropics are called a. Hadley cells. b. mixing cells. c. the trade winds. 38. In the northern hemisphere the "trade winds" (which brought trade from Europe to North America) move a. northeast to southwest. b. southwest to northeast. c. north to south d. south to north 39. The zone of high pressure along 30 north and 30 south latitude, where air is sinking, is called the a. polar high. b. desert high. c. subtropical low. d. subtropical high. 40. The monsoon is a. a seasonal variation in wind direction which usually causes immense rainfall. b. a seasonal variation in wind direction which has no major precipitation effects. c. the name of the storm system which moves over a continent. d. a type of burrowing animal. 41. Water molecules tend to "stick" to each other, which is why water has an extremely high surface tension, making it possible for some insects to literally walk on water. This is due to water's a. oxygen bond b. hydrogen bond c. social bond 42. Changing water from a solid to a liquid takes multiple times more energy than changing water from a liquid to a gas.
43. The humidity we see on the weather report is a measure of a. absolute humidity. b. general humidity. c. relative humidity. 44. Yosemite Valley is a lot greener than the Owens Valley because a. of global warming. b. the Owens Valley has been sucked dry of all its water. c. Yosemite is much higher in altitude than the Owens Valley. d. Yosemite is on the upwind side of the Sierra Nevada, where clouds more easily form. 45. Where did your teacher live before moving back to the Los Angeles area? a. The Owens Valley b. Las Vegas c. Dallas d. He's always lived in the Los Angeles area