NCEA L1 Geography flashcards

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

Natural environment

The part of the environment made up of naturally occurring features and processes, such as landforms, climate, soils, vegetation, and water systems, without human construction.

Cultural environment

The part of the environment created or modified by people, including settlements, transport networks, land use, industry, and the values and decisions behind them.

Spatial pattern

The arrangement of features across space, described using terms such as clustered, dispersed, linear, uniform, or concentrated, and identified from maps or images.

Spatial association

A relationship where two phenomena occur together in the same places more than expected by chance, such as high rainfall coinciding with dense forest cover.

Choropleth map

A map that uses shading or colour to represent the value of data for each defined area, allowing regional comparisons but hiding variation within each area.

Isoline map

A map joining points of equal value, such as contour lines for height or isobars for pressure, showing gradients and allowing values to be interpolated between lines.

Population pyramid

A paired bar graph showing the number or percentage of males and females in each age group, revealing age structure, dependency ratios, and past events such as migration.

Climate graph

A combined graph with bars for average monthly precipitation and a line for average monthly temperature, used to characterise a location's climate and seasonal pattern.

Geographic inquiry process

A structured sequence of focusing questions, planning, primary and secondary data collection, processing and presentation, then interpretation, conclusion, and evaluation of findings.

Primary data

Data collected firsthand by the researcher for a specific purpose, such as field surveys, counts, photographs, or interviews, giving control but limited coverage.

Secondary data

Data gathered by someone else for another purpose, such as census statistics, maps, or news reports, offering wide coverage but less control over reliability.

Perspectives

The different viewpoints held by groups or individuals about a place or issue, shaped by their values, culture, livelihood, and relationship to the environment.

Māori worldview

A perspective emphasising whakapapa connections between people and the environment, kaitiakitanga (guardianship), and the mauri (life force) of natural features.

Kaitiakitanga

The Māori concept of guardianship and stewardship, involving responsibility to protect and sustain natural resources for present and future generations.

Sustainability

Meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs, assessed across environmental, economic, social, and cultural dimensions.

Interaction

The two-way relationship in which people modify their environment and environmental conditions in turn affect people's choices, activities, and wellbeing.

Change

Alteration in a place or environment over time, which may be gradual or rapid, natural or human-induced, and is shown by comparing data from different dates.

Scale

The relationship between distance on a map and distance on the ground, and also the level of analysis, from local to national to global.

Relief

The variation in height and shape of the land surface, shown on maps by contour lines and described using terms such as steep, gentle, ridge, and valley.

Aspect

The compass direction a slope faces; in New Zealand, north-facing slopes receive more direct sunlight and are generally warmer and drier than south-facing slopes.

Contour interval

The vertical height difference between adjacent contour lines on a map, used to calculate slope steepness and to estimate elevation at any point.

Drainage pattern

The arrangement of streams and rivers in an area, such as dendritic, radial, or trellis, reflecting underlying rock type, structure, and relief.

Catchment

The area of land drained by a river and its tributaries, bounded by ridges, within which all precipitation flows to a single outlet.

Flood hydrograph

A graph of river discharge over time after rainfall, showing lag time and peak discharge, which are affected by catchment shape, land use, and soil.

Land use

The purpose for which land is used, such as farming, forestry, housing, or conservation, shaped by physical conditions and by economic and cultural factors.

Urbanisation

The increasing proportion of a population living in towns and cities, driven by rural-urban migration and natural increase, and producing land-use change.

Migration

The movement of people from one place to another, with push factors at the origin and pull factors at the destination influencing the decision.

Push and pull factors

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

Natural hazard

A natural event or process, such as an earthquake, flood, or volcanic eruption, that threatens people, property, or infrastructure where it intersects human activity.

Resilience

The capacity of a community or environment to absorb disturbance, recover quickly, and adapt, influenced by preparedness, infrastructure, and social connections.

Field sketch

A labelled freehand drawing made at a field site to record key features, annotated with observations that photographs alone may not clearly convey.

Evaluation of evidence

A judgment about the strength of findings, considering sample size, bias, accuracy, representativeness, and whether the data actually supports the conclusion drawn.