Economic, Geographical, and Geological Terms

Question 1

agriculture

Answer 1

The purposeful tending of crops and livestock in order to produce food.

Question 2

aquifer

Answer 2

An underground reservoir of water contained within a porous, water-bearing rock layer.

Question 3

arable

Answer 3

Literally, “cultivable.” Land fit for cultivation by one farming method or another.

Question 4

cartography

Answer 4

The art and science of making maps.

Question 5

contiguous

Answer 5

The word of some importance to geographers that means to be in contact with, adjoining, or adjacent.

Question 6

continental drift

Answer 6

The slow movement of continents governed by the process associated with plate tectonics.

Question 7

delta alluvial

Answer 7

Lowland at the mouth of a river, formed when the river deposits its alluvial load upon reaching the sea. Often triangular in shape.

Question 8

desert

Answer 8

An arid area supporting very sparse vegetation, receiving less than 10 inches (25 cm) of precipitation per year. Usually exhibits extremes of heat and cold because the moderating influence of moisture is absent.

Question 9

equator

Answer 9

Zero degrees latitude, equidistant from the North and South Poles. Equatorial climates are among the warmest on earth.

Question 10

erosion

Answer 10

A combination of gradational forces that shape the earth’s surface landforms. Running water, wind action, and the force of moving ice combine to wear away soil and rock. Human activities often speed erosional processes, such as through the destruction of natural vegetation, careless farming practices, and overgrazing by livestock.

Question 11

fjord

Answer 11

Narrow, steep-sided, elongated, and inundated costal valley deepened by glacier ice that has since melted away, leaving the sea to penetrate.

Question 12

gross national product (GNP)

Answer 12

The total value of all goods and services produced by a country during a given year.

Question 13

gulf

Answer 13

Body of water surrounded by land on three sides.

Question 14

high seas

Answer 14

Areas of the oceans away from land, beyond national jurisdiction, open and free for all to use.

Question 15

infrastructure

Answer 15

The foundations of a society: urban centers; communications; farms; factories; mines; and such facilities as schools, hospitals, postal services, and police, and armed forces.

Question 16

irrigation

Answer 16

The artificial watering of croplands.

Question 17

isthmus

Answer 17

A comparatively narrow link between larger bodies of land (e.g., Panama).

Question 18

latitude

Answer 18

Lines of latitude are parallels that are aligned east-west across the globe, from 0 degrees latitude at the equator to 90 degrees north and south latitude at the poles.

Question 19

longitude

Answer 19

Angular distance (0 degrees to 180 degrees) east or west as measured from the Prime Meridian (0 degrees) that passes through the Greenwich Observatory in suburban London, England.

Question 20

megalopolis

Answer 20

Term used to designate large, coalescing supercities that are forming in diverse parts of the world (e.g., the eastern seaboard of the United States between Washington, D. C., and Boston).

Question 21

meridian

Answer 21

Line of longitude, aligned north-south across the globe. Together with parallels of latitude, they form the global grid system.

Question 22

parallel

Answer 22

An east-west line of latitude that is intersected at right angles by meridians of longitude.

Question 23

region

Answer 23

A commonly used term and a geographic concept of central importance. An area on the surface of the earth, marked by certain properties.

Question 24

strait

Answer 24

A comparatively narrow link between larger bodies of water (e.g., Straits of Gibraltar).

Question 25

tectonic plates

Answer 25

Bonded portions of the earth’s mantle and crust. Where they meet, one slides under the other, crumpling the surface crust and producing significant volcanic and earthquake activity. The shifting of these plates plays an important role in the formation of mountains and other geological events.

Question 26

Tropic of Cancer

Answer 26

23.5 degrees north of the equator.

Question 27

Topic of Capricorn

Answer 27

23.5 degrees south of the equator.