60 questions. Try each one, then open the answer to check yourself and read the explanation.
Use the map of TONSO DISTRICT to answer the question. The bearing of Oda from Tonso is about
Answer: C (090°)
Oda lies due east of Tonso along the river and road, and due east is a bearing of 090°.
The planet with the longest orbit around the sun is
Answer: C (Pluto)
Pluto is the farthest from the sun of these, so its orbit is the longest.
What is the local time of a place on longitude 64°E when the GMT is 10.00a.m?
Answer: C (2.16p.m)
64 × 4 min = 256 min = 4 h 16 min ahead (east): 10.00 a.m. + 4 h 16 min = 2.16 p.m.
The liquid portion of the earth may be referred to as the
Answer: B (hydrosphere)
The hydrosphere is all the water of the earth: oceans, seas, rivers and lakes.
The innermost part of the earth which is rich in iron and nickel and is usually subjected to great heat and pressure is termed the
Answer: A (barysphere)
The core (barysphere or 'nife') is made largely of nickel and iron.
Which of the following statements is not correct?
Answer: C (When magma solidifies on the surface of the earth, it is called intrusive rock)
Magma that solidifies at the surface forms extrusive (volcanic) rock; intrusive rock forms underground.
When a plateau is enclosed by fold mountains it is called
Answer: C (an intermont plateau)
A plateau ringed by fold mountains (e.g. Tibet) is an intermont plateau.
Mass movement of weathered materials may be gradual or sudden depending on the I. gradient of the slope and gravitational force II. weight of the weathered debris III. supply of lubricating moisture by rainwater coupled with gravitational force IV. type of weathering which has taken place
Answer: A (I, II and III)
Slope steepness, the weight of the debris and water lubrication control how fast material moves downhill.
An intrusion of magma along a bedding plane is called a
Answer: E (sill)
A sill lies along (parallel to) the bedding planes; a dyke cuts across them.
Which of the following is a product of chemical weathering?
Answer: C (Grike)
Grikes are joints in limestone widened by rainwater dissolving the rock (carbonation).
Most warm ocean currents flow
Answer: E (towards the high latitudes)
Warm currents move water from the tropics towards higher latitudes.
Salinity is mainly dependent on I. evaporation, II. the amount of fresh water added III. ocean currents IV. winds
Answer: B (I, II and III only)
Evaporation raises salinity, fresh water lowers it, and currents mix waters of different salinity.
The monthly range of temperature is the
Answer: C (differences between the highest and lowest daily temperature for the month)
A range is always a difference: highest minus lowest temperature recorded in the month.
Which of the following is not important in defining soil?
Answer: B (Capillary water)
Colour, texture, permeability and porosity are properties used to describe soil; capillary water is just water held in it.
The isoberlina tree is characteristic of the
Answer: E (guinea savanna)
Isoberlina woodland is typical of the (northern) Guinea savanna.
The environmental lapse rate is best described as
Answer: D (a decrease of air temperature by 6.5°C per 1000m of ascent in the troposphere)
Temperature falls about 6.5°C for every 1,000 m you rise in the troposphere.
Water pollution is caused by all the following except
Answer: B (sand filling)
Sand filling reclaims land; silt, sewage, effluent and mine waste dirty water.
Which of the following factors least affects distribution of vegetation?
Answer: C (Wind)
Rainfall, temperature, soil and human activity largely decide where vegetation types occur; wind has only a local effect.
Which of the following environmental hazards has been paired with the wrong factor?
Answer: C (Floods and human factor only)
Floods are caused mainly by natural factors such as heavy rain, not by human factors only.
Which of the following does not intervene in the natural environment?
Answer: C (Harmattan)
Harmattan is a natural wind; the others are human interference.
The most critical element in an ecosystem is the
Answer: B (energy flow within the system)
All life in an ecosystem depends on the flow of energy from the sun through food chains.
Which of the following does not encourage desertification?
Answer: A (Large-scale irrigation schemes)
Irrigation supplies water and helps plants grow, working against desertification.
The active human population is determined by its
Answer: C (age distribution)
The working (active) population is the people of working age, so it depends on the age structure.
Which of the following may not solve the problem of over-population?
Answer: D (Reduction of agricultural land)
Reducing farmland means less food, making over-population worse.
Settlements can be classified according to all the following except
Answer: B (age)
Settlements are classified by shape (pattern), function, size/density and site; age is not a usual basis.
A conurbation can best be described as
Answer: C (two or more towns joined together but each remaining distinct)
In a conurbation towns grow into one built-up area but keep their own names and identities.
Through which of the following sea routes is Nigerian crude oil transported to European sets? The
Answer: D (South Atlantic route)
The South Atlantic route links West Africa with Europe.
One major relative advantage of road transportation over rail is that it
Answer: B (provides door-to-door service)
Road vehicles can pick up and deliver right at the door.
All the following are products of the chemical industry except
Answer: E (alumina)
Alumina is refined from bauxite as a stage in aluminium making (metallurgy).
The longitudinal extent of Nigeria is
Answer: C (12°)
Nigeria stretches from about 3°E to 15°E, i.e. 12°.
All the following highlands in Nigeria are composed of basement complex rocks except the
Answer: C (Udi-Nsukka plateau)
The Udi-Nsukka plateau is made of sedimentary sandstone.
Which of the following regions in Nigeria is not sparsely populated? The
Answer: D (Eastern scarpland)
The eastern scarplands (Igboland) are among Nigeria's most densely populated areas.
Transportation helps economic development through all the following except the
Answer: E (distribution of population)
Spreading population is not itself a way transport develops the economy.
In 1985, Anambra State with a land area of about 17,700km² had a population of about 6,175,000. What was the approximate population density per km²?
Answer: D (349)
6,175,000 ÷ 17,700 ≈ 349 people per km².
Thermal electricity is produced in all the following areas except
Answer: C (Kainji)
Kainji is a hydro-electric station.
The major problem facing livestock farming in East Africa is the
Answer: A (competition for land with arable farmers)
Expanding farms take over grazing land.
The most important cash crop in the irrigated Nile Basin is
Answer: B (cotton)
Long-staple cotton is the main cash crop of Egypt and the Gezira.
Which of the following towns is most important for the mining of gold in Africa?
Answer: B (Johannesburg)
Johannesburg is the centre of the Witwatersrand gold field.
Which of the following is not one of the aims and objectives of the ECOWAS? To
Answer: C (encourage emigration of people in all member states)
ECOWAS promotes free movement among member states, not people leaving them.
(a) Explain two physical and two human factors which may favour a rapid growth of population
(b) Outline five problems that may arise from the rapid growth of population
(a) Physical: favourable climate (adequate rain, moderate temperatures); fertile soils (deltas, volcanic soils); availability of water; mineral resources; level relief
Human: improved medical care lowering death rates; high birth rates from early marriage and desire for large families; better food supply from improved farming; peace and stability; industrial and commercial opportunities attracting migrants
(b) Food shortage; unemployment; housing shortage and slums; pressure on schools, hospitals, water and power; congestion and crime; environmental degradation; low income per head
Population grows when people live longer and many children are born.
(a) Identify three types of rural settlements and describe the main characteristics of each
(b) In what four ways are rural and urban settlements interdependent?
(a) Isolated/dispersed farmstead – one or a few houses standing alone among farms; hamlet – a small cluster of houses with no services; village – many houses with a few shops, school, church/mosque, mainly farmers (also nucleated, linear and dispersed patterns)
(b) Rural areas supply food, raw materials and labour to towns; towns supply manufactured goods and services; towns are markets for rural produce; towns provide jobs, education, health care and administration; migrants send remittances back to villages
Describe each type by size and services.
In what ways can transportation contribute to the economic development of any one country?
For a named country (e.g. Nigeria): moves raw materials to factories and goods to markets; allows regional specialisation; links farms to towns and ports for export; opens up remote areas and resources (e.g. mining, plantations); creates jobs (drivers, port workers); encourages trade and commerce; supports growth of towns; promotes tourism; aids national unity and defence; diffusion of ideas and technology
Use examples from the country you name.
Write explanatory notes on any three of the following: (a) Government's influence on the location of industries in Tropical Africa (b) Nearness to market as a factor of industrial location in Tropical Africa (c) The concentration of manufacturing industries in urban centres of developing countries (d) The predominance of consumer oriented industries in developing countries
Any three:
(a) Government sets up industries or industrial estates in chosen places, gives tax holidays, loans, power and roads, protects with tariffs, and spreads industries for balanced development (e.g. Ajaokuta steel, refineries)
(b) Bulky, perishable or fragile products (bread, soft drinks, cement, beer) are made near markets; large towns like Lagos attract industries to cut transport costs
(c) Towns have power, water, transport, labour, banks, markets and services; external economies; ports for imported raw materials
(d) Consumer industries (food, drinks, textiles, soap) need less capital and simpler skills, have a ready local market, use local raw materials and give quick returns; heavy industries need huge capital and technology
Write short notes, each with an example.
What five factors determine the volume of trade between Nigeria and Ghana?
Similar products (cocoa, timber, palm produce) reduce trade; different currencies and exchange problems; transport links (coastal road through Benin and Togo, shipping); tariffs, border controls and smuggling; political relations (e.g. expulsions of aliens, border closures); ECOWAS agreements; purchasing power and demand; language and colonial ties
Give factors that raise and lower trade.
(a) On a sketch map of Nigeria locate and name any four vegetation belts
(b) Highlight four ways in which the forest vegetation contributes to the economy of the country
(c) Outline any four problems associated with the exploitation of the forest vegetation.
(a) Sketch with key: mangrove/swamp forest, rain forest, Guinea savanna, Sudan savanna, Sahel savanna (any four)
(b) Timber for building, furniture and export; raw material for plywood, paper and match industries; tree crops (cocoa, oil palm, rubber, kola); fuel wood and charcoal; food, medicine and game; employment and revenue
(c) Valuable species scattered; thick undergrowth and swampy terrain; poor roads; heavy rainfall; deforestation and erosion; lack of regeneration; high cost of equipment
Show the belts in the right order from south to north.
(a) What is meant by the term hinterland?
(b) Highlight with specific examples, the importance of sea ports in the economy of Nigeria
(c) State any four problems of port development in Nigeria
(a) The area served by a port, from which it gets its exports and to which it sends its imports
(b) Handle exports (crude oil from Bonny/Escravos, cocoa and rubber through Lagos/Apapa, Warri, Port Harcourt) and imports of machinery and goods; earn revenue and foreign exchange; employment; attract industries (e.g. around Apapa, Port Harcourt); growth of towns; link Nigeria with world trade
(c) Silting and sandbars needing dredging; congestion and delays; mangrove swamps and creeks making land access hard; inadequate equipment; poor management and corruption; few deep-water sites
Name real ports and what they handle.
Contrast the Sokoto Plains with the Eastern highlands under the following headings (a) relief and drainage: (b) resources and human activities (c) problems of development
(a) Sokoto Plains: low, flat to gently undulating sedimentary plains (250-350 m), drained by the Sokoto-Rima system to the Niger, seasonal rivers and fadama. Eastern highlands: high rugged basement-complex mountains and plateaus (Mambilla, Obudu, Adamawa, over 1,500 m), steep slopes, sources of fast rivers (Katsina Ala, Donga, Cross tributaries)
(b) Sokoto: grazing of cattle, sheep and goats; millet, sorghum, groundnut, cotton, onions, irrigated rice (Bakolori); limestone (cement at Sokoto), leather work. Highlands: cooler climate, tea (Mambilla), cattle ranching (Obudu), vegetables, tourism, timber
(c) Sokoto: low erratic rainfall, drought, desert encroachment, poor soils, distance from ports. Highlands: rugged terrain, poor roads and isolation, soil erosion, sparse population, cost of providing services
Under each heading contrast the two regions point by point.
(a) Draw a sketch map of Nigeria and on it, locate and name (i) three major zones of modern manufacturing industries; (ii) two important towns within each zone
(b) Outline any three problems which result from the concentration of manufacturing industries in these zones
(c) Suggest three steps which can be taken to encourage the growth of industries outside these zones.
(a) e.g. Lagos-Ibadan zone (Lagos/Ikeja, Ibadan); Kano-Kaduna zone (Kano, Kaduna); Port Harcourt-Aba-Onitsha zone (Port Harcourt, Aba)
(b) Rural-urban migration and overcrowding; congestion, slums and housing shortage; pollution; pressure on water, power and services; unbalanced regional development and neglect of other areas
(c) Tax holidays and incentives for industries in other areas; build industrial estates with power, water and roads in less developed areas; locate government industries there; provide loans; develop local raw materials
Name two real towns in each zone.
Write explanatory notes on any four of the following (a) Cocoa growing in western Nigeria (b) Oil palm production in the eastern states (c) Rice cultivation in the middle belt (d) Intensive farming in the Kano close-settled zone
(a) Cocoa: rain forest of Ondo, Oyo, Ogun, Osun; rainfall 1,250-2,000 mm, deep well-drained loamy soils, shade; small family farms; seedlings, harvesting of pods, fermenting and drying beans; sold to buying agents and exported through Lagos; problems of pests, diseases and old trees
(b) Oil palm: south-east (Imo, Anambra, Cross River, Rivers); mostly wild groves, some plantations; fruits processed by hand or mills into palm oil and kernels; used for food, soap, margarine and export
(c) Rice: fadama/flood plains of the Niger and Benue (Bida, Makurdi, Lafia); swamp and upland rice; planting with the rains, much hand labour, harvesting in the dry season; food crop and income
(d) Kano close-settled zone: dense population around Kano; permanent cultivation with manure from livestock; mixed cropping of millet, sorghum, groundnut, cowpea; small-scale irrigation (shaduf, fadama) for vegetables; markets in Kano
Give location, method and importance for each.
(a) On an outline map of West Africa, show (i) one area having less than four months of rainfall annually (ii) one area having rainfall all the year round (iii) the position of the high pressure belt in January
(b) Give three reasons for the length of the rainy season in (a)(i) above
(c) Explain three problems that rainfall may pose to agriculture in (a)(ii) above
(a) Map: (i) Sahel – e.g. northern Niger, Mali, Mauritania/far north of Nigeria; (ii) coastal areas – e.g. SE Nigeria (Calabar), Liberia/Sierra Leone coast; (iii) sub-tropical high pressure over the Sahara (about 20-30°N)
(b) Far from the sea, so moist SW winds arrive late and leave early; the ITD reaches it only briefly in July-August; dominated by dry NE trade winds (harmattan) most of the year; high pressure and descending air over the Sahara
(c) Leaching of nutrients and acidic, infertile soils; soil erosion and flooding; waterlogging; difficulty drying and storing crops, rotting; pests and diseases thrive in humid conditions; weeds grow fast; hard to use machines on wet ground
Relate the short rainy season to the movement of the ITD.
(a) On an outline map of West Africa, locate and name (i) two ECOWAS member countries along the coast (ii) two ECOWAS member countries in the interior (iii) the capital of each of the countries
(b) Describe six benefits which any one of the countries shown on your map derives from its membership of the ECOWAS
(a) e.g. coast: Nigeria (Lagos, capital then; now Abuja), Ghana (Accra); interior: Mali (Bamako), Niger (Niamey), Burkina Faso (Ouagadougou)
(b) For Nigeria: larger market for its goods (oil, manufactures); free movement of citizens for work and trade; reduced tariffs and easier trade; joint projects (Trans-West African highway, telecommunications); peace-keeping and regional security (ECOMOG); cultural and educational exchange; ECOWAS Fund for development projects; headquarters/jobs in Abuja
Choose one country and give six real benefits.
(a) On an outline map of West Africa, show: (i) one area each in a different country, important for diamond, petroleum and gold (ii) one important town in each area (iii) one route from the producing area to the port of export for each mineral
(b) Describe one method of mining any one of the minerals in (a) above
(c) Highlight four problems associated with mining in West Africa
(a) Diamond – Sierra Leone (Kono district, Koidu → Freetown) or Ghana (Akwatia); petroleum – Nigeria (Niger Delta, Port Harcourt/Warri → Bonny, Forcados by pipeline); gold – Ghana (Obuasi/Tarkwa → Takoradi by rail)
(b) e.g. petroleum: seismic survey; drilling with a derrick; oil flows out or is pumped; Christmas-tree valves; pipeline to terminal; (or alluvial diamond mining – digging gravels, washing and sieving; or deep-shaft gold mining – shafts, tunnels, ore crushed and treated)
(c) Lack of capital and technology; poor transport; foreign control and profit repatriation; fluctuating world prices; environmental damage and pollution; illegal mining and smuggling; exhaustion of deposits; labour and community conflicts
Show a route to a real port for each mineral.
(a) On an outline map of Africa, locate and name (i) longitudes 0° and 20°E and latitudes 4°N and 35°S (ii) the rivers Zambezi and Volta (iii) Mount Ruwenzori and the Atlas mountains (iv) Yaounde and Entebbe (v) one man-made lake along the River Nile (vi) the Namib desert
(b) In what four ways are the rivers of Africa important?
(a) Map with lines and features in correct positions: 0° through Ghana/Accra; 20°E through Libya, Chad, Congo, Namibia/South Africa; 4°N near the Nigeria/Cameroun coast; 35°S just south of the Cape; Zambezi (to Mozambique channel), Volta (Ghana); Ruwenzori (Uganda-Zaire border), Atlas (Morocco-Algeria); Yaoundé (Cameroun), Entebbe (Uganda); Lake Nasser (Aswan); Namib desert (Namibia coast)
(b) Hydro-electric power (Akosombo, Kariba, Kainji); irrigation water (Nile, Niger); transport routes (Niger, Zaire); fishing; water supply for homes and industry; fertile flood plains and deltas; boundaries; tourism
Mark every feature clearly with a key.
(a) Of what importance is the Aswan High Dam to the Nile Basin?
(b) Identify four problems resulting from the construction of the dam.
(a) Stores water in Lake Nasser for perennial irrigation, adding much new farmland and allowing 2-3 crops a year; controls floods; hydro-electric power for industries and towns; fishing in Lake Nasser; improves navigation; protects against drought; tourism
(b) Loss of fertile silt downstream, so more fertilisers needed; erosion of the Nile delta coast; salinisation and waterlogging of irrigated land; spread of bilharzia and malaria; flooding of Nubian villages and monuments and resettlement of people; silting of the reservoir; high evaporation loss
Separate benefits from problems.
(a) Distinguish between rotation and revolution of the earth
(b) Highlight any two effects of either rotation or revolution of the earth
(c) With the aid of a suitable diagram describe an eclipse of the sun
(a) Rotation: the earth spinning on its axis from west to east once in 24 hours (a day). Revolution: the earth moving round the sun in its orbit once in 365¼ days (a year)
(b) Rotation: day and night; deflection of winds and ocean currents (Coriolis force); time difference between longitudes; daily tides/sunrise-sunset. (Revolution: seasons; varying length of day and night; changing altitude of the midday sun)
(c) Diagram: sun – moon – earth in a straight line; the moon blocks the sun's rays; umbra (total eclipse) and penumbra (partial eclipse) on the earth; occurs at new moon, lasts only a few minutes
In a solar eclipse the moon is between the sun and the earth.
(a) Describe the characteristics of each of the following rock types (i) Granite (ii) Limestone (iii) Graphite
(b) Explain how each rock type is formed
(a)(i) Granite: igneous, coarse-grained with large crystals (quartz, feldspar, mica); hard and resistant; light coloured; no layers or fossils; jointed
(ii) Limestone: sedimentary; mainly calcium carbonate; in layers (bedded); may contain fossils; jointed and permeable; dissolves in rainwater (carbonation)
(iii) Graphite: metamorphic; soft, greasy, black/grey; good conductor; made of carbon; often foliated
(b) Granite: magma cools slowly deep underground (intrusive) giving large crystals
Limestone: shells and skeletons of sea creatures (corals) accumulate on the sea floor, or calcium carbonate precipitates, and is compacted and cemented
Graphite: carbon-rich rocks (coal/carbonaceous sediments) changed by great heat and pressure (metamorphism)
Say which rock group (igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic) each belongs to.
Write explanatory notes on each of the following (a) Land and sea breezes (b) Temperature inversion (c) Convectional rainfall
(a) Local winds on coasts from unequal heating: by day the land heats faster, air rises (low pressure), cooler air from the sea blows in – sea breeze; at night the land cools faster, high pressure over land, air blows out to sea – land breeze
(b) Temperature increasing with height instead of decreasing; occurs on calm, clear nights when the ground loses heat and cold dense air drains into valleys; warm air lies above; causes fog, frost and trapped smoke/smog; affects valley settlement and crops
(c) Strong heating of the ground warms the air, which rises in convection currents; it cools adiabatically to dew point; cumulonimbus clouds form; heavy afternoon showers with thunder and lightning; common in the equatorial region
Explain the cause and the result for each.
Discuss the important features of Koppen's climatic classification
Empirical scheme based on mean monthly/annual temperature and precipitation, with boundaries chosen to match vegetation
Five main groups (capital letters): A – tropical rainy, coolest month above 18°C; B – dry (evaporation exceeds rainfall), BW desert and BS steppe; C – warm temperate, coldest month between 18°C and −3°C; D – cold snow-forest, coldest month below −3°C, warmest above 10°C; E – polar, warmest month below 10°C (ET tundra, EF ice cap)
Second letters for rainfall season: f – wet all year, m – monsoon, s – dry summer, w – dry winter
Third letters for temperature: a – hot summer, b – warm summer, c – cool short summer, d – very cold winter, h – hot dry, k – cold dry
Allows combinations (e.g. Af, Aw, Csa, BWh); advantages – precise and uses both elements; weaknesses – ignores winds, air masses and altitude
Explain the letter system with examples.
(a) Describe the characteristics of the tropical grassland vegetation
(b) Outline the economic values of this vegetation type to the inhabitants of the region
(a) Tall grasses (1-3 m, e.g. elephant grass) with scattered trees; trees short, umbrella-shaped, deciduous; thick bark and long roots to resist fire and drought (baobab, acacia, shea, locust bean); grass green in the wet season, dry and brown in the dry season; trees fewer and grasses shorter towards the desert; gallery forests along rivers
(b) Grazing for cattle, sheep and goats (Fulani, Masai); grain and cash crops – millet, sorghum, maize, groundnut, cotton; game reserves and tourism (Yankari, Serengeti); shea butter, locust beans, gum arabic; fuel wood and building materials (thatch); hunting
Separate features of the grass from features of the trees.
(a) Name two main types of environmental pollution and describe three causes of any one of them
(b) State three effects of pollution on man
(a) Air pollution and water pollution (also land, noise)
Air pollution causes: gas flaring and industrial smoke; vehicle exhaust; burning of refuse and bush; dust from quarries and harmattan
(Water: sewage and refuse; industrial effluent and chemicals; oil spillage; fertiliser/pesticide run-off)
(b) Diseases – respiratory (asthma, bronchitis), cholera, typhoid, cancers; reduced visibility causing accidents; death of fish and crops so less food and income; acid rain damaging buildings; unpleasant smell and noise causing stress
Keep the three causes to the type you chose.