Cameroon GCE O-Level Geography flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Contour interval

The vertical distance between successive contour lines on a map, showing how much height each line represents and helping to judge steepness and relief.

Grid reference

A map coordinate given as easting first, then northing; six-figure references locate a point precisely within a grid square on a topographical map.

Representative fraction scale

A map scale written as a ratio, such as 1:50,000, meaning one unit on the map represents 50,000 of the same units on the ground.

Cross-section

A profile drawn by transferring heights from contour lines onto graph paper along a chosen line, showing the shape of the land as if sliced vertically.

Drainage basin

The whole area drained by a river and its tributaries, bounded by a watershed or divide, within which all water flows to a single outlet.

Longitude and latitude

Latitude measures distance north or south of the Equator in degrees; longitude measures distance east or west of the Prime Meridian.

Mount Cameroon

An active volcano on the Cameroon Volcanic Line, about 4,040 m high, the highest peak in West Africa, with fertile volcanic soils on its slopes.

Adamawa Plateau

A highland region in central Cameroon separating the humid forested south from the drier northern plains, used for cattle rearing and farming.

ITCZ

The Intertropical Convergence Zone, a belt of converging winds that shifts north and south, bringing Cameroon's wet seasons and its north–south rainfall contrast.

Harmattan

A dry, dusty north-easterly wind from the Sahara that brings low humidity and reduced visibility to northern Cameroon during the dry season.

River regime

The pattern of a river's discharge through the year, reflecting rainfall seasons; equatorial rivers are even, northern rivers flood seasonally.

Mangrove swamp

Salt-tolerant forest growing in muddy coastal waters, such as the Wouri estuary, sheltering fish nurseries and buffering the coast against erosion.

Leaching

The removal of soluble nutrients from soil by heavy rainfall percolating through it, producing leached ferralitic soils in humid southern Cameroon.

Population density

The average number of people per square kilometre, calculated by dividing total population by area, used to compare how crowded places are.

Push and pull factors

Conditions that drive people away from a place, such as unemployment, and conditions that attract them elsewhere, such as jobs and services.

Shifting cultivation

A farming system in which land is cleared and cropped for a few years, then abandoned to recover fertility while the farmer moves on.

Transhumance

The seasonal movement of livestock between wet-season and dry-season pastures, practised by Fulani herders in the Adamawa and northern Cameroon.

Cash crop

A crop grown mainly for sale and export rather than local consumption, such as cocoa, coffee, cotton, rubber or palm oil in Cameroon.

Edéa aluminium smelter

An aluminium plant located to use cheap hydro-electricity from the Sanaga River, illustrating power-oriented industrial location in Cameroon.

Douala

Cameroon's largest city and main port, at the Wouri estuary, functioning as an industrial, commercial and transport centre for the country and landlocked neighbours.

Pie chart construction

A graph showing proportions of a whole, drawn by converting each value to degrees using the formula (value ÷ total) × 360°.

Dependency ratio

A measure comparing the non-working population, both young and old, with the working-age population, indicating pressure on services and resources.

Rural–urban migration

Movement of people from countryside to towns and cities, driven by rural unemployment and land shortage and attracted by jobs and services.

Transect

A line drawn across an area along which land use, slope or vegetation is recorded at intervals, often presented as a strip map or graph.

Discharge

The volume of water flowing past a point in a river per unit time, calculated as cross-sectional area multiplied by mean velocity.

Land-use conflict

Disagreement over how land should be used, such as between logging, farming, conservation and urban expansion in Cameroon's forests.

Command words

Instruction words in exam questions, such as describe, explain, compare and evaluate, each requiring a different type and depth of answer.

Marks per point

The exam convention that one mark usually corresponds to one developed point, so answer length and number of points should match the marks offered.

Lake Nyos disaster

A 1986 release of carbon dioxide from a crater lake in Cameroon that suffocated people and livestock, prompting degassing pipes and monitoring.

Korup National Park

A protected rainforest area in south-west Cameroon conserving high biodiversity, while restricting local hunting and farming and creating management conflicts.

Deforestation chain

The linked effects of forest clearance: reduced interception, increased surface runoff, soil erosion, and siltation of rivers and reservoirs.

Case study requirement

The need to support answers with named, located examples and specific facts, since questions asking for examples award marks only for real places.