WORLD GEOGRAPHY EXAM GUIDE
QUESTIONS WITH COMPLETE
SOLUTIONS
What is mercantilism? - Answer-Driven by exploration led the way for competition-
driven capitalism and colonialism.
What factors drove the growth of the agricultural sector in Europe? - Answer-Growth
in markets and population created economic opportunities for European farmers.
Land ownership and farming practices changed. Colonial merchants brought crops
from the Americas, which fetched high prices and drew more farmers in the
economy.
What was the Industrial Revolution? Where was its epicenter? - Answer-Industrial
Revolution created industrial transformation of agrarian Europe. British primacy.
What is the difference between a state and a nation? Why are nations being
redefined today? - Answer-State: political entity.
Nation: historically referred to a people with a single language, common history, and
similar ethnic background.
Redefining Nations: defined more by "national spirit" and emotional commitment than
by cultural or ethnic homogeneity.
What are the centripetal (unifying) forces at work in Europe? (Hint: know the terms
complementarity and transferability) - Answer-Centripetal Forces: contribute to social
and political divergence that may break up a state.
Complementarity: one area produces a surplus of a commodity that is required by
another area.
Transferability: ease with which a commodity can be transported by producer to
consumer.
Be familiar with European physiography, especially the Northern European Lowland
- Answer-Physiography: total physical geography. 4 Physiographic Units: Central
Uplands, Alpine Mountains, Western Uplands, Northern European Lowland.
Northern European Lowland=historical migration corridor.
What are Europe's locational advantages? - Answer-Relative location situated at the
crossroads of the land hemisphere, or the half of the globe with the greatest land
surface. Dense networks of navigable rivers and canals, extensive coastlines.
How long are people thought to have inhabited the European continent? - Answer-
Peopled during the Pleistocene. From 2.6 Mya to 10,000 years ago. Evidence of
modern humans in Europe from 45,000BC. Modern humans quickly spread over
Europe and coexisted with Neanderthals.
What were Greece and Rome's major contributions to Europe's modern political
system? - Answer-Greece's Cultural and Political Foundations: influenced by
, advanced civilizations in Mesopotamia and the Nile Valle. Enduring achievements in
political science, philosophy, and the arts. City-States: small territories of cities and
their hinterlands ruled by elected governments. Origins of Western Democracy.
Never unified their domain.
Rome: first metropolitan-scale urban center in Europe. Population exceeded 1
million. Expanded their empire and built a vast infrastructure network.
What is meant by "local functional specialization"? - Answer-People in particular
places concentrate on specific goods and services.
What are the centrifugal (divergent) forces at work in Europe? - Answer-Centrifugal
Forces: contribute to social and political divergence that may break up a state.
Why did Europe unify after WWII? - Answer-Rapid postwar economic recovery.
What is supranationalism? Why is the EU an example of this? - Answer-
Supranationalism: a voluntary association in economic, political, or cultural spheres
of 3 or more independent states willing to yield some measure of sovereignty for
their mutual benefits.
How has unification affected Europe's economic geography? - Answer-Corporations
can produce or sell anywhere within the Union; workers should be able to move
anywhere in the EU and find employment without legal restrictions. Requires
harmonization of member-state laws. Reduces legal barriers and removes internal
borders. Introduction of a single central bank. Symbolizes strengthening unity in
Europe. Counters the global power of the US dollar. Some member-states have
chosen to opt out. Significant reduction in members' freedom to formulate fiscal
policies.
What are the concerns about EU expansion? - Answer-Concerns about subsidizing
new, less affluent member-states. Complications in achieving a common agriculture
policy, given the poor condition of farming in the most post-2003 member countries.
What is the Eurozone crisis? Which countries were bailed out? - Answer-Eruption of
the financial crisis in the US spread around the world, affecting Europe. Led to
plunging growth rates, higher unemployment, skyrocketing government deficits,
polarized politics. Some EU members were unwilling or unable to comply with fiscal
standards. Widespread bailouts have been needed for some weaker EU members.
Fiscal problems in Italy, France, Netherlands.
What is NATO? How is it different from the EU, in terms of its purpose and its
member-states? - Answer-NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Partially
overlaps with the EU, but includes non-EU, US, Canada, and Turkey. Eastward
expansion of members.
What were "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland? Who were the two sides and what
did they want? - Answer-Began with a civil rights march in Londonderry in 1968.
Lasted 30 years. Ended by the Good Friday agreement in 1998. Violent conflict
between the Protestant majority who wanted to remain a part of UK, and the Catholic
QUESTIONS WITH COMPLETE
SOLUTIONS
What is mercantilism? - Answer-Driven by exploration led the way for competition-
driven capitalism and colonialism.
What factors drove the growth of the agricultural sector in Europe? - Answer-Growth
in markets and population created economic opportunities for European farmers.
Land ownership and farming practices changed. Colonial merchants brought crops
from the Americas, which fetched high prices and drew more farmers in the
economy.
What was the Industrial Revolution? Where was its epicenter? - Answer-Industrial
Revolution created industrial transformation of agrarian Europe. British primacy.
What is the difference between a state and a nation? Why are nations being
redefined today? - Answer-State: political entity.
Nation: historically referred to a people with a single language, common history, and
similar ethnic background.
Redefining Nations: defined more by "national spirit" and emotional commitment than
by cultural or ethnic homogeneity.
What are the centripetal (unifying) forces at work in Europe? (Hint: know the terms
complementarity and transferability) - Answer-Centripetal Forces: contribute to social
and political divergence that may break up a state.
Complementarity: one area produces a surplus of a commodity that is required by
another area.
Transferability: ease with which a commodity can be transported by producer to
consumer.
Be familiar with European physiography, especially the Northern European Lowland
- Answer-Physiography: total physical geography. 4 Physiographic Units: Central
Uplands, Alpine Mountains, Western Uplands, Northern European Lowland.
Northern European Lowland=historical migration corridor.
What are Europe's locational advantages? - Answer-Relative location situated at the
crossroads of the land hemisphere, or the half of the globe with the greatest land
surface. Dense networks of navigable rivers and canals, extensive coastlines.
How long are people thought to have inhabited the European continent? - Answer-
Peopled during the Pleistocene. From 2.6 Mya to 10,000 years ago. Evidence of
modern humans in Europe from 45,000BC. Modern humans quickly spread over
Europe and coexisted with Neanderthals.
What were Greece and Rome's major contributions to Europe's modern political
system? - Answer-Greece's Cultural and Political Foundations: influenced by
, advanced civilizations in Mesopotamia and the Nile Valle. Enduring achievements in
political science, philosophy, and the arts. City-States: small territories of cities and
their hinterlands ruled by elected governments. Origins of Western Democracy.
Never unified their domain.
Rome: first metropolitan-scale urban center in Europe. Population exceeded 1
million. Expanded their empire and built a vast infrastructure network.
What is meant by "local functional specialization"? - Answer-People in particular
places concentrate on specific goods and services.
What are the centrifugal (divergent) forces at work in Europe? - Answer-Centrifugal
Forces: contribute to social and political divergence that may break up a state.
Why did Europe unify after WWII? - Answer-Rapid postwar economic recovery.
What is supranationalism? Why is the EU an example of this? - Answer-
Supranationalism: a voluntary association in economic, political, or cultural spheres
of 3 or more independent states willing to yield some measure of sovereignty for
their mutual benefits.
How has unification affected Europe's economic geography? - Answer-Corporations
can produce or sell anywhere within the Union; workers should be able to move
anywhere in the EU and find employment without legal restrictions. Requires
harmonization of member-state laws. Reduces legal barriers and removes internal
borders. Introduction of a single central bank. Symbolizes strengthening unity in
Europe. Counters the global power of the US dollar. Some member-states have
chosen to opt out. Significant reduction in members' freedom to formulate fiscal
policies.
What are the concerns about EU expansion? - Answer-Concerns about subsidizing
new, less affluent member-states. Complications in achieving a common agriculture
policy, given the poor condition of farming in the most post-2003 member countries.
What is the Eurozone crisis? Which countries were bailed out? - Answer-Eruption of
the financial crisis in the US spread around the world, affecting Europe. Led to
plunging growth rates, higher unemployment, skyrocketing government deficits,
polarized politics. Some EU members were unwilling or unable to comply with fiscal
standards. Widespread bailouts have been needed for some weaker EU members.
Fiscal problems in Italy, France, Netherlands.
What is NATO? How is it different from the EU, in terms of its purpose and its
member-states? - Answer-NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Partially
overlaps with the EU, but includes non-EU, US, Canada, and Turkey. Eastward
expansion of members.
What were "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland? Who were the two sides and what
did they want? - Answer-Began with a civil rights march in Londonderry in 1968.
Lasted 30 years. Ended by the Good Friday agreement in 1998. Violent conflict
between the Protestant majority who wanted to remain a part of UK, and the Catholic
