UEE Geography cheat sheet

Endogenic processes (tectonics, volcanism) build relief; exogenic processes (weathering, erosion, deposition) wear it down - landscapes reflect the balance between them.

Rock cycle: igneous (cooling magma), sedimentary (compaction/cementation of deposits), metamorphic (heat/pressure); each can transform into the others.

Weathering types: physical (freeze-thaw, exfoliation), chemical (hydrolysis, carbonation, oxidation), biological; weathering breaks rock in place, erosion transports it.

River long profile grades from steep erosion (V-shaped valleys, waterfalls) to gentle deposition (floodplains, deltas); base level controls where erosion stops.

Glacial features: cirques, arêtes, horns and U-shaped valleys in uplands; moraines, drumlins and erratics in lowlands; till is unsorted, outwash is sorted.

Coastal landforms: cliffs and wave-cut platforms from erosion; beaches, spits and bars from deposition; longshore drift moves sediment along the coast.

Köppen climate groups: A tropical, B dry, C temperate, D continental, E polar; classified by temperature and precipitation thresholds.

Hydrological cycle fluxes: precipitation, evaporation, transpiration, infiltration, runoff, groundwater flow; a catchment is the area draining to one outlet.

Biome distribution is driven mainly by temperature and precipitation; latitude, altitude and continentality control the climate that determines biome type.

Demographic transition model stages: high stationary, early expanding, late expanding, low stationary, declining - driven by falling death rates then birth rates.

Population pyramids: broad base = high birth rate/young population; narrow base with wide top = ageing population; dependency ratio = (young + old) / working-age × 100.

Push factors (poverty, conflict, unemployment) drive migration out; pull factors (jobs, safety, services) attract; intervening obstacles can block movement.

Settlement hierarchy: few large high-order centres, many small low-order centres; higher-order settlements have larger thresholds and ranges.

Burgess concentric zones, Hoyt sector model and Harris-Ullman multiple nuclei describe urban land-use patterns in different city types.

Economic sectors: primary (extraction), secondary (manufacturing), tertiary (services), quaternary (knowledge); sector shift accompanies development.

Weber's least-cost location: industry locates to minimise transport and labour costs; raw-material orientation vs market orientation depends on material index.

Cultural diffusion types: relocation, expansion (contagious, hierarchical, stimulus); language and religion spread as spatial patterns of culture.

Scale matters: a pattern visible at national scale (e.g., core-periphery) may disappear or reverse at local scale; always state the scale of analysis.

Core-periphery: cores concentrate capital, labour and infrastructure; peripheries supply resources and labour and may experience out-migration.

Regional inequality indicators: GDP per capita, HDI, Gini coefficient, employment structure, infrastructure access - compare regions with consistent indicators.

Physical regions are defined by climate, relief or drainage divides; formal regions share a measurable trait, functional regions are organised around a node.

Local regional analysis: link relief, drainage, climate and soils to land use, settlement and economic activity of the area.

Scale = map distance / ground distance; representative fraction (1:50,000) is unit-independent; large scale = small area, more detail.

Map scale conversions: 1:50,000 means 1 cm = 0.5 km; multiply map distance by the denominator to get ground distance.

Latitude lines run east-west and measure north-south position (0–90°); longitude lines run north-south and measure east-west position (0–180°).

Grid references: four-figure gives a square, six-figure gives position within the square; read eastings before northings.

Contour lines join equal elevation; closely spaced contours = steep slope; V-shapes pointing uphill mark valleys, U-shapes mark spurs.

Map projections distort shape, area, distance or direction; Mercator preserves direction, equal-area projections preserve area.

GIS layers: raster (grid cells, continuous data) vs vector (points, lines, polygons); overlay analysis combines layers to find suitable sites.

Remote sensing: satellite imagery resolution (spatial, temporal, spectral) determines what features can be detected and monitored.

Hazard risk = hazard magnitude/frequency × exposure × vulnerability; risk can be reduced by mitigation and adaptation, not only by controlling the hazard.

Resource classification: renewable vs non-renewable; reserves are known and economically extractable, resources include undiscovered or uneconomic stocks.

Land-use conflict arises where competing uses (agriculture, housing, industry, conservation) demand the same finite space.

Desertification is driven by overgrazing, deforestation, over-irrigation and drought; salinisation results from rising water tables and evaporation.

Environmental impact assessment predicts effects of a project on air, water, soil, ecology and communities before approval.

Carrying capacity is the maximum population an environment can support sustainably; exceeding it causes resource degradation.

Integrated catchment management balances water supply, flood control, pollution and ecosystem needs across the whole drainage basin.

Sampling: random (unbiased), systematic (regular interval along a transect), stratified (by subgroup); sample size affects reliability.

Fieldwork sequence: define hypothesis → choose sampling method → collect data → present → analyse → evaluate limitations.

Measures of central tendency (mean, median, mode) and dispersion (range, interquartile range, standard deviation) summarise field data.

Spearman rank correlation tests association between two ranked variables; chi-square tests difference between observed and expected frequencies.

Graph choice: bar for categories, line for time series, scatter for correlation, pie for proportions, choropleth for density per area.

Choropleth maps require data normalised by area or population; absolute totals mislead when areas differ in size.

Field measurement tools: quadrat for vegetation cover, flow meter for discharge, clinometer for slope angle, pH meter for water quality.

Malthus predicted population growth outrunning food supply; Boserup argued population pressure drives agricultural innovation.

Von Thünen's model: land use rings around a market reflect transport cost and land rent; intensive uses near market, extensive far away.

Ravenstein's migration laws: most migrants move short distances, long-distance migrants favour cities, migration is mostly economic.

Christaller's central place theory: settlements form hexagonal hierarchies based on range and threshold of goods and services.

Positive and negative feedback: positive amplifies change (ice-albedo feedback), negative stabilises a system (cloud cover increasing albedo).

Cause-effect chains: distinguish immediate causes, underlying causes and consequences; evaluate by evidence strength, scale and time frame.

Models are simplifications: assess their assumptions, applicability and limitations when applying them to real regions.

Enhanced greenhouse effect: rising CO2, CH4 and N2O from fossil fuels, agriculture and land-use change trap outgoing longwave radiation.

Climate change impacts: sea-level rise from thermal expansion and ice melt, shifting precipitation belts, more frequent extreme events.

Mitigation reduces causes (renewables, efficiency, carbon pricing); adaptation reduces vulnerability (flood defences, drought-resistant crops).

Sustainable development balances economic growth, social equity and environmental protection; indicators include the SDGs and ecological footprint.

Urbanisation: more than half the world's population is urban; rapid urban growth in low-income regions strains housing, water and transport.

Globalisation links economies through trade, investment, migration and information; it creates winners and losers across regions and sectors.

Urban heat island, air pollution and waste management are key urban environmental challenges; green infrastructure and compact cities are responses.

Resource transition: shifting from fossil fuels to renewables changes trade flows, employment and geopolitics of energy.