AP Human Geography practice questions and exam guide

The First Agricultural Revolution refers to:

1. The mechanization of farming in the 19th century
2. The development of factory farming
3. The Green Revolution of the 1960s
4. The introduction of GMOs
5. The Neolithic domestication of plants and animals (~10,000 years ago), enabling settled agriculture

Answer: E — The Neolithic domestication of plants and animals (~10,000 years ago), enabling settled agriculture

First Agricultural Revolution = Neolithic Revolution: domestication of wheat, barley, rice, livestock allowed sedentary settlements (Fertile Crescent, Indus Valley, etc.). Second was 17th-18th c. enclosure/crop rotation; Third (Green Rev.) was 20th century.

Von Thünen's model of agricultural land use is based primarily on:

1. Climate zones alone
2. Religious preferences
3. Political boundaries
4. Distance to market, balancing land rent (closer = higher) against transportation costs (farther = higher)
5. Population density alone

Answer: D — Distance to market, balancing land rent (closer = higher) against transportation costs (farther = higher)

Von Thünen (1826) modeled concentric rings around an isolated market city: perishable/heavy items grown closer (high land rent, low transport); extensive ranching/grain farther (low rent, transport-friendly). Foundational AP HuG model.

Mesoamerica is significant in agricultural geography as the hearth of:

1. Wheat and barley
2. Rice and soybeans
3. Maize, beans, squash, peppers, tomatoes, cacao, and other crops central to global cuisine
4. Coffee and tea

Answer: C — Maize, beans, squash, peppers, tomatoes, cacao, and other crops central to global cuisine

C) Mesoamerican hearth crops. A) Fertile Crescent. B) East Asia. D) Different hearths (Ethiopian, Chinese).

The Gravity Model in geography predicts that:

1. Migration is random
2. Interaction between two places (migration, trade, communication) is proportional to their sizes and inversely proportional to the distance between them
3. All places have equal interaction
4. Only neighboring places interact
5. Climate determines interaction

Answer: B — Interaction between two places (migration, trade, communication) is proportional to their sizes and inversely proportional to the distance between them

Gravity Model (analogous to Newton's law): larger cities exert more 'pull,' but distance dampens interaction. Used to predict migration flows, retail catchment areas, transport demand.

Christaller's Central Place Theory explains:

1. Rural depopulation alone
2. Migration patterns
3. Industrial location decisions
4. Hierarchical pattern of settlements (cities, towns, villages) based on the range and threshold of goods/services offered
5. Climate zones

Answer: D — Hierarchical pattern of settlements (cities, towns, villages) based on the range and threshold of goods/services offered

Christaller (1933) modeled hexagonal market areas around central places. Larger places offer higher-order goods (with greater range and threshold); smaller places offer everyday goods. Explains why towns are smaller and more frequent than regional cities.

A wide-based, narrow-topped population pyramid suggests a country that is:

1. Aging with very low birth rates
2. Stagnant with no children
3. Experiencing high fertility and rapid growth, with a young population (typical of DTM Stage 2)
4. Composed almost entirely of immigrants

Answer: C — Experiencing high fertility and rapid growth, with a young population (typical of DTM Stage 2)

C) Wide base = many young; narrow top = few elderly = rapid growth, high TFR. A) That's an inverted pyramid. B/D) Don't match the shape.

Which factor most clearly distinguishes ethnicity from race?

1. Ethnicity is biologically determined; race is cultural
2. Race typically refers to perceived physical/ancestral traits; ethnicity to shared cultural heritage (language, religion, customs)
3. They are identical concepts
4. Ethnicity applies only to minorities
5. Race applies only to skin color

Answer: B — Race typically refers to perceived physical/ancestral traits; ethnicity to shared cultural heritage (language, religion, customs)

Ethnicity emphasizes shared cultural traits (language, religion, traditions). Race is socially constructed around perceived physical/ancestral traits. Both are social constructs (not biological), but emphasize different dimensions.

An 'intervening obstacle' in migration theory is:

1. A pull factor at the destination
2. A barrier (physical, political, economic) encountered between origin and destination that hinders the move
3. The reason a migrant leaves home
4. The motive of the receiving government

Answer: B — A barrier (physical, political, economic) encountered between origin and destination that hinders the move

B) Lee's push-pull framework adds intervening obstacles and opportunities. A) Pull. C) Push. D) Unrelated.

A cultural trait is:

1. An entire religious system
2. A whole language family
3. The total culture of a nation
4. A single attribute of a culture — such as a specific food, gesture, garment, or ritual — that can diffuse independently

Answer: D — A single attribute of a culture — such as a specific food, gesture, garment, or ritual — that can diffuse independently

D) Trait = single attribute. A/B/C) Each is a much larger unit (system or complex).

Contagious diffusion is BEST illustrated by:

1. A presidential decree spreading top-down through ministries
2. The widespread, person-to-person spread of a viral social-media trend among nearby contacts
3. A new language adopted only by elites
4. Immigrants bringing customs

Answer: B — The widespread, person-to-person spread of a viral social-media trend among nearby contacts

B) Rapid, nearly-uniform, contact-based spread. A) Hierarchical. C) Hierarchical-elite. D) Relocation.

Step migration is BEST exemplified by:

1. A villager moving first to a regional town, then to a larger city, then to a megacity
2. A worker commuting daily into a capital city
3. A pastoralist moving herds seasonally between pastures
4. A refugee fleeing across an international border in a single move

Answer: A — A villager moving first to a regional town, then to a larger city, then to a megacity

A) Sequence of moves up the urban hierarchy. B) Circulation/commuting. C) Transhumance. D) Single-stage forced migration.

The Mercator projection — widely used in navigation — distorts:

1. Area sizes at high latitudes, making polar regions appear disproportionately large relative to equatorial regions
2. Compass directions
3. Time zones
4. The number of countries shown

Answer: A — Area sizes at high latitudes, making polar regions appear disproportionately large relative to equatorial regions

A) Trade-off of conformal projection. B) Mercator preserves bearing. C/D) Unrelated.

What is the township and range system?

US grid survey (Land Ordinance of 1785) — square parcels in western states.

What is a universalizing religion?

Seeks converts; not tied to one ethnicity (Christianity, Islam, Buddhism).

What is neo-Malthusian theory?

Updates Malthus: includes other resources (water, fuel) and concerns about overpopulation.

What is syncretism?

Blending of cultural traits to form new cultural element (e.g., Tex-Mex food).

What is the range of a service?

Maximum distance people will travel for a service.

What is the doubling time?

Years for population to double. Approx 70 / NIR.