LC Geography cheat sheet

Plate boundaries: divergent (constructive) plates move apart, magma rises and new crust forms mid-ocean ridges; convergent (destructive) plates collide, giving subduction zones, deep trenches and fold mountains; transform (conservative) plates slide past each other, producing faults and shallow earthquakes but no volcanic eruption.

Rock cycle: igneous rock crystallises from magma (intrusive = coarse-grained, e.g. granite; extrusive = fine-grained, e.g. basalt); sedimentary rock forms by compaction and cementation of deposited sediment; metamorphic rock forms when existing rock is altered by heat and pressure (limestone to marble, shale to slate).

Denudation = weathering + mass movement + erosion. Weathering is in situ breakdown: freeze-thaw (frost shattering) needs repeated freezing in joints; carbonation dissolves limestone in acidic rainwater; hydrolysis alters feldspar in granite to clay.

Karst features require soluble limestone, jointing and a water table: surface = limestone pavement (clints and grykes), swallow holes, dry valleys; underground = caves, stalactites (from ceiling), stalagmites (from floor), pillars where they meet.

River processes: erosion by hydraulic action, abrasion, attrition and solution; transport by traction, saltation, suspension and solution; deposition occurs when velocity or discharge falls, load exceeds competence, or the channel gradient decreases.

Long profile: concave, steeper in the upper course, gentler downstream. Cross-profile: narrow and deep with a larger hydraulic radius in the lower course; V-shaped valleys and interlocking spurs upstream, floodplains, levees and meanders downstream.

Meander formation: helicoidal flow erodes the outer bank (river cliff) by undercutting and deposits on the inner bank (point bar/slip-off slope); oxbow lakes form when a meander neck is breached and abandoned.

Coastal processes: hydraulic action, corrasion (abrasion), attrition, solution; longshore drift moves sediment in the direction of the dominant swash. Landforms include cliffs, wave-cut platforms, headlands and bays, spits, bars and tombolos.

Mass movement classification depends on speed and water content: soil creep (slow, imperceptible), mudflow (fast, water-saturated), landslide/rockfall (rapid, steep slope); a rotational slump leaves a curved scar and back-tilted blocks.

A region is an area defined by one or more unifying characteristics: physical (relief, drainage, climate), human (language, religion, economic activity) or administrative (boundaries). Regions are dynamic and their boundaries are transitional, not sharp lines.

Core-periphery model: a core region concentrates investment, skilled labour, infrastructure and decision-making; peripheral regions supply raw materials and cheap labour and experience out-migration. Cumulative causation widens the gap unless counterweights (grants, decentralisation) intervene.

Ireland's regions: the Greater Dublin Area (GDA) is the demographic and economic core; the Border, Midlands and West (BMW) region is designated transitional/peripheral and qualifies for higher EU structural funding.

EU regional policy instruments: European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) funds infrastructure and innovation; European Social Fund (ESF) funds training and employment; Cohesion Fund targets transport and environment in lower-GDP member states.

Population indicators: natural increase = birth rate minus death rate; net migration = immigration minus emigration; total population change = natural increase plus net migration. Ageing is measured by the dependency ratio (dependants divided by working-age population, x100).

Urban land-use models: Burgess concentric zone model (CBD, zone of transition, working-class housing, commuter zone); Hoyt sector model (growth along transport routes); multiple nuclei model (several independent centres).

Contrasting regions for study: a developed core (e.g. Dublin region) versus a peripheral region (e.g. the west of Ireland) versus a developing region (e.g. sub-Saharan Africa or Brazil's Nordeste) - compare population structure, employment sectors, income and infrastructure.

Regional development responses: industrial parks and IDA grant-aided foreign direct investment, third-level education hubs, tourism based on landscape, and rural transport/broadband schemes to reduce peripherality.

Report structure: title, aim/hypothesis, geographical background theory, location map, methodology (sampling strategy, equipment, recording sheets), results (tables, graphs, maps), analysis and interpretation, conclusion, evaluation of limitations and reliability.

Sampling: random (coordinates or random number tables), systematic (every nth point along a transect), stratified (proportional to sub-groups). Larger sample size increases reliability; a pilot study tests the recording method.

River fieldwork standard measurements: velocity by float/flow meter (m/s), cross-sectional area = width x mean depth (m²), discharge = cross-sectional area x velocity (m³/s, cumecs), load measured by size analysis of bed material.

Beach profile method: stretch a tape perpendicular to the shoreline from low water to the storm ridge; measure vertical change with a metre rule or ranging poles at fixed intervals; record slope angle with a clinometer.

Data presentation choice: bar charts for discrete categories, histograms for continuous grouped data, scatter graphs for correlation between two variables, pie charts for proportions, isoline/choropleth maps for spatial distribution.

Statistical tests: Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (rs) tests the strength and direction of a relationship between two ranked variables; chi-square tests whether an observed frequency distribution differs significantly from expected.

Map skills: use the scale to convert map distance to ground distance (e.g. 1:50,000 means 1 cm = 500 m); six-figure grid references give eastings before northings; cross-sections are drawn using contour values.

Evaluation must state specific limitations (e.g. one-day sampling, small sample, instrument error, seasonal bias) and one concrete improvement for each, plus how reliability and accuracy were maximised.

Sectors of the economy: primary (extraction - farming, fishing, mining, forestry), secondary (manufacturing, construction, processing), tertiary (services - retail, transport, education, tourism), quaternary (knowledge and R&D).

Employment structure shifts with development: the proportion in primary falls and tertiary rises; the Clark-Fisher model plots this shift through pre-industrial, industrial and post-industrial stages.

Location factors for industry: raw materials, energy, labour supply and cost, transport, market, capital, government policy and agglomeration economies (shared services and infrastructure).

Footloose industries are not tied to raw materials or energy and locate where labour, markets or amenities are best; heavy/bulky-goods industries locate near raw materials because transport costs are weight-losing.

Multinational corporations (MNCs) locate branch plants to access cheap labour, new markets, grants and lower taxes; impacts include job creation and technology transfer versus profit repatriation and closure vulnerability.

Agriculture as a system: inputs (land, labour, capital, seed, fertiliser), processes (ploughing, sowing, harvesting), outputs (crops, livestock). Types range from subsistence to commercial, intensive to extensive.

The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) subsidises EU farmers, supports prices and rural development; it has shifted from production-linked payments toward area-based and environmental schemes.

Economic development indicators: GDP/GNP per capita, employment by sector, life expectancy, literacy and the Human Development Index (HDI), which combines income, education and health.

Uneven development causes: colonial legacy, debt, terms of trade, conflict, disease, poor infrastructure and dependence on a narrow range of primary exports vulnerable to price fluctuation.

Population distribution is uneven and controlled by relief, climate, soil, water supply, employment and transport; density = population divided by area (persons per km²).

Demographic Transition Model stages: 1 high birth and death rates (stable, low); 2 death rate falls, birth rate high (rapid growth); 3 birth rate falls (slowing growth); 4 low stable rates; 5 possible decline below replacement.

Population pyramids: broad base and narrow top = high birth rate, youthful population, high dependency; narrow base and wide top = ageing population with rising pension and healthcare costs.

Migration push factors: unemployment, poverty, conflict, persecution, environmental disaster; pull factors: jobs, higher wages, education, healthcare, family links, political stability.

Rural-to-urban migration drives urbanisation in developing regions; consequences include shanty settlements, pressure on water, sanitation and transport, and remittances flowing back to rural areas.

Urban zones: CBD (high land values, tall buildings, peak-hour congestion), inner city (older housing, dereliction, renewal), suburbs (residential growth, commuter belts), rural-urban fringe (out-of-town retail, industry, motorways).

Urban problems and responses: traffic congestion (park-and-ride, bus corridors, congestion charges), housing shortage (social housing, densification), urban decay (regeneration, mixed-use redevelopment).

Land use conflict arises between competing users - housing, industry, recreation, conservation, transport - resolved through zoning, planning permission and public consultation.

Globalisation: increasing interconnection of economies and societies through trade, investment, migration, information technology and transport; measured by trade-to-GDP ratio and FDI flows.

Trading blocs: the EU (single market, free movement of goods, capital, services and labour), NAFTA/USMCA, ASEAN, Mercosur and the African Continental Free Trade Area reduce internal tariffs but may divert trade from outsiders.

Terms of trade = (index of export prices / index of import prices) x 100. A fall means a country must export more to pay for the same imports - a structural problem for primary-commodity exporters.

Fair trade guarantees a minimum price to producers, plus a social premium, long-term contracts and environmental standards; it aims to reduce exploitation by intermediaries.

Aid types: bilateral (government to government), multilateral (via UN, World Bank, IMF), emergency/humanitarian, and development aid; tied aid requires the recipient to buy from the donor.

Debt: structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) imposed by the IMF/World Bank required privatisation and spending cuts; campaigns such as debt relief (HIPC) aimed to free funds for health and education.

Sustainable development: meeting present needs without compromising future generations; the UN Sustainable Development Goals (17 goals, 2015-2030) set targets on poverty, hunger, health, education, energy and climate.

Transnational corporations and global production chains spread economic activity worldwide; outsourcing and offshoring shift jobs, while global supply chains increase vulnerability to disruption.

Global environmental interdependence: greenhouse gas emissions cross borders, so climate agreements (Kyoto Protocol, Paris Agreement) rely on national pledges; ozone depletion was addressed by the Montreal Protocol.