Geography 301-501
United States and neighbors
Dr. Erik Prout, Fall 2005
Texas A&M University
Atlas Exercises
The Atlas Exercise is a learning experience that introduces students
to maps and the assigned Atlas. It also serves as a survey of cartographic
ideas and different types and uses of maps. The exercise is worth 100 points
(or 10% of the final course grade). The skills you learn from this exercise
are important and useful as studying for exams.
Atlas Exercise is Due Monday, September 19th at class or in my office.
Use the Atlas of World Geography, 2005 edition (2003
should be ok). Rand McNally.
Answer with the most correct possible response; Record onto
a large gray scantron.
[Questions 1-8 are examples of how I write test questions]
Matching:
match the following map types with a corresponding word/phrase:
1. General-purpose map
2. Choropleth map
3. Isopleth map
4. Topographic map
[A] AAA road map
[B] USGS
[C] lines of equal
value
[D] census results
Multiple Choice:
5. The definition of a map (presented during lecture) is:
[A] graphical
representation of reality
[B] presentation of
the Earth
[C] graphical
terrestrial imagery
[D] satellite imagery
6. Which of the following is not one of the three
components to map reading?
[A] Inhibition [B] Spatial [C] Symbolism [D] Textual
7. Cartography is usually thought of as …
[A] atlas critiquing
[B] card writing
[C] map making
[D] Erdkunde
8. Identify the
correct statement concerning relative location.
[A] Austin is South of the 30º N latitude.
[B] Bryan is East of the 95º W longitude.
[C] College Station is Northwest of Houston.
[D] Dallas is closer to campus than Waco.
In the index pages (pp. 163-176), look up the Colorado River that flows into the Gulf of Mexico.
9. What page number does it refer you to in the Atlas?
[A] 76
[B] 86
[C] 95
[D] 106
Turn to that page.
10. Sierra
Madre Oriental is the major
mountain chain along the eastern side of Mexico; the labeling of Sierra
Madre Oriental on the map
appears in which border state?
[A] Coahuila
[B] Durango
[C] Louisiana
[D] Tamaulipas
11. Houston as the 4th largest U.S. city rates an "Inset Map" (lower right corner)
What is the scale difference between the main and inset
maps? The inset is .....
[A] 2 times larger
[B] 4 times larger
[C] 6 times larger
[D] the exact same
scale
12. What is the Mexican name of the river that serves as an
international boundary?
[A] Rio Grande River
[B] Rio Nueces
[C] Pecos River del Nuevo Mexico
[D] Rio Bravo del Norte
Turn to pages 52-53 and 54-55; despite their titles, both
are "general purpose" maps.
13. What two physical features in the southeastern United States are labeled on the "political map" on pages
52-53?
[A] Appalachian Mountains; Mississippi
River
[B] Mississippi River; Red
River
[C] Sierra Nevada Mountains; Houston
[D] Red River; Appalachian
Mountains
14. What two kinds of cultural-political information is on
the "physical map" (pp 54-55)?
[A] cities and
mountains
[B] oceans and cities
[C] cities and
countries
[D] mountains and
rivers
15. Which of these two world maps has a larger scale? (hint:
compare the bar scales)
[A]
political (52-53) [B] physical (54-55) [C]
exactly the same
The standard
"General Purpose" maps
in this atlas look like pages 138-139.
Match these places to the cardinal directions (which is
located furthest .....); consult index.
16. North
[A]
Delhi
17. South
[B]
Kabul
18. East
[C]
Karachi
19. West
[D]
Tashkent
[E]
Tehran
Turn to page 96,
which is another standard "General Purpose" map in this atlas
20. What is the scale of this map?
[A]
1:4,000,000
[B]
1:10,000,000
[C]
1:12,000,000
[D]
1:16,000,000
21. Identify the incorrect
statement using the coordinates just on this page.
[A] Mexico City is South of the 20º N parallel.
[B] Mexico City is North of the 15º N parallel.
[C] Mexico City is East of the 95º W meridian.
[D] Mexico City is West of the 90º W meridian.
22. Using the population
index (p. 24-25), how many people officially live in the greater metropolitan
area of Mexico
City?
[A] 8,489,007 [B] 14,530,000 [C] 20,150,000 [D] 31,915,000
23. The Panama Canal connects what two Oceans?
[A] Atlantic
& Arctic
[B] Atlantic
& Indian
[C] Pacific
& Panamanian [D] Atlantic & Pacific
Pages 116-117 are also “G.P.”
maps; use this map as well as other sources in atlas.
24. What is the capital of Switzerland?
[A] Zurich [B]
Geneva [C] Bern [D]
St. Moritz
25. What are Bern's geographical coordinates? (Latitude and Longitude)
[A] 47º N;
7º E
[B]
47º S; 7º E
[C] 47º N;
7º W
[D]
47º S; 7º W
26 What is the population for Bern?
[A] 132,135
[B] 134,645 [C] 136,338 [D] 138,362
27. When our class starts at 4:10 PM, what time is it in Switzerland? (time zones p. 64)
[A] 9:10 AM
[B] 9:10 PM [C]
11:10 AM
[D] 11:10 PM
Academic
atlases have other forms of data;
turn to page 24.
28. What is the projected World Population for the year 2020?
[A] 6,080,000,000
[B] 6,824,000,000 [C] 7,518,000,000
29. On page 14, they calculated the population density for
world regions; what is it for North
America in 1995? (use
the metric units)
[A] 20
people/km2
[B]
27 people/km2
[C] 41 people/km2
[D]
51 people/km2
Population density for the U.S. and Canada is mapped (isopleth) on page 79;
answer 30-32
from this page.
30. In general, is the eastern or western half of the
continent more densely populated?
[A] East
[B] West
[C] equal
31. Which country has more area (territory) considered
completely uninhabited?
[A] United
States [B] Canada
[C]
equal
32. Which country is more urbanized as a percentage of
population?
[A] United
States [B] Canada
[C] equal
33. The
eight maps on page 80 are choropleth
maps. What geographical level of data is being shown on all of them?
[A] City
[B] County [C]
State [D] Global
34. Which
of the following maps is not using a graduated circle mapping technique?
[A] White
[B] Non-English speaking
households
[C] Hispanic
[D] African American
35. Find the average annual precipitation for College Station on page 78:
Assume College
Station
is located directly under the closest "isoline," what is the average
annual precipitation in centimeters here?
[A] 85
[B] 100
[C] 120 [D] 150
36. Using the language map on page 125; what are the two
"Ethno-linguistic" Groups in South Africa?
[A] Bantu and
Semitic-Hamitic
[B] Bantu and
Indo-European
[C] Malay-Polynesian
and Semitic-Hamitic
[D] Central/Eastern
Sudanese and Indo-European
37. The
International Date Line approximates the _____ . (time zones p. 64)
[A] 0º
Latitude
[B] 0º
Longitude
[C] 180º
Meridian
[D] 180º
Parallel
38. Look up “Kurdistan” in the country and flags (pp 39-50) and in the place-name
index (pp. 163-176).
[A] its only in the
country
[B] its only in the
place
[C] its in both
[D] its in neither
39. Look carefully on page 113; It appears that "Kurdistan" is in (part of) three countries. Which of the
following is not one of the three?
[A] Armenia [B] Iran
[C]
Iraq
[D]
Turkey
40. Look up “Greenland” in the country and flags (pp 39-50) and in the place-name
index (pp. 163-176).
[A] its only in the
country
[B] its only in the
place
[C] its in both
[D] its in neither
41. According to page 70, Greenland is a dependency of what country?
[A] Iceland [B] Norway [C] Denmark [D] British Isles
42.
"Jeopardy Question" What is the "metropolitan area
population" of the capital city located adjacent to the world's longest
river?
[A] 6,300,000
[B] 8,300,000
[C] 13,300,000
[D] 21,300,000
World Wide Web
Follow the sequence of links:
Go to the geography departments website http://geog.tamu.edu
Highlight useful links, choose & Click on [internet
resources]
Click on [Landform Atlas of the United States]
Click on [Texas]
Click on [Satellite Image]
You are looking at a “color composite” image (e.g. red
translates into vegetation)
43. What
part of the Gulf Coast appears to have some cloud cover?
[A] Upper Coast
[B]
Coastal Bend
[C] Rio Grande embayment [D] Key West
Go Back to the geography links page
Click on the [Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection]
**There should be a special section on the recent Tsunami**
[Click on the Banda Aceh pilot map]
44. Banda
Aceh would be exposed to waves arriving from the ______.
[A] Northwest
[B] Northeast
[C] Southwest
[D] Southeast
Go back to the main page
[Click on the USGS Dec. 26 earthquake maps]
Instead of using “minutes” and “seconds” they use fractions
of degrees only
45. What is
the correct epicenter location of the massive earthquake that caused the
tsunami?
[A] 3.307º E 95.947º S [B]
3.307º N 95.947º W
[C] 3.307º N 95.947º E [D]
3.307º W 95.947º S
Go back to the main page and find the [Afghanistan Maps]
Scroll down to [Thematic Maps]
Click on [Ethnolinguistic Groups ‘97]
46. The
language spoken in Kabul (use the star for location) is _____.
[A] Baloch
[B] Pashtun
[C] Tajik
[D] Uzbek
Go Back to the Perry-Castaneda website
Find the “Mexico” map section
Use the most recent political map
47. Which
of the following Mexican States does not have a common border with Texas?
[A] Chihuahua
[B]
Coahuila
[C] Sonora
[D]
Tamaulipas
Using a web search engine, type in
“bollywood” (not Hollywood), and then try “bollywood” and
“planet” and find the website http://www.planetbollywood.com
48. This website is constantly
changing; it contains a weekly ____________.
[A]
top ten songs (music)
[B] top ten films
(video/dvd)
[C]
both song and film top tens [D]
none of the above
49. What country is Bollywood
associated with?
[A]
Britain
[B]
China
[C]
India
[D]
Vietnam
[E]
none of the above
The following Questions are meant to be an example of how an
atlas can be used to provide context to world affairs:
50. When classes
begin at 8:00AM in Aggieland, what time is it in Afghanistan?
[A] 6:30 AM [B] 6:30 PM [C]
9:30 AM [D] 9:30 PM
51. Which of the following countries does not border Afghanistan?
[A] China
[B] Iran
[C] Kazakhstan
[D] Pakistan
52. With the
perspective of page 196, where would you station an American aircraft carrier
so the flight distance to Afghanistan is as short as possible?
[A] Arabian Sea [B] Bay of Bengal [C] Mediterranean Sea
53. Which of the following mountain ranges is inside Afghanistan?
[A] Asiatic Alps
[B] Hindu Kush
[C] Karakoram
[D] Plateau of Persia
54. The river that
flows through the Khyber Pass eventually becomes part of what larger river?
[A] Amu Darya [B] Ganges [C] Indus [D] Tigris
55. Calculate the
straight line distance between Kabul and Karachi? (use p.202)
[A] 670 km [B] 990 km [C] 1075 km [D] 1150 km
56. What large city would we associate (relative location)
with “Mesopotamia?”
[A] Cairo
[B] Baghdad
[C] Kuwait
[D] Damascus
[E] Mecca
57. Look up “Babylon” in the Index:
As a historic entity, what State (country) is it located in
now?
[A] Iran
[B] Iraq
[C] Saudi
[D] New Jersey
[E] doesn’t say
58. How far back in time was Baghdad the largest city in the world? (p. 24)
[A] 2500 BC
[B] 35 BC
[C] 400 AD
[D] 825 AD
[E] 1500 AD
59. What page of the Atlas would provide the largest scale
(best detail) of Israel?
[A] 121 [B] 129 [C] 139 [D]
142 [E] 145
60. What is the scale of the map in question #59?
[A]
1:4,000,000
[B]
1:10,000,000
[C]
1:12,000,000
[D]
1:16,000,000
The recent Tsunami (questions 61-63)
61. Consult the “Ring of Fire” map on p. 135, locate the
Indonesian island of Sumatra (closest landmass to the Dec. 26 earthquake and tsunami)
what is the alternative spelling?
[A]
Kumasatra
[B]
Sum-aceh
[C]
Sumatera
[D]
Summeria
62. What is the climatic classification (pp 56 & 133)
for Sumatra?
[A] Dry
Steppe
[B] Humid
subtropical
[C] Tropical Rain Forest
[D]
Tropical Savanna
63. According to the Plate Tectonics (pp 12-13), what type
of plate boundary is offshore?
[A]
Convergent
[B]
Divergent
[C]
Transform
[D] none of
the above
Use the following Cartesian coordinates (LL) to answer the
remaining questions:
[A] 1º 18' N, 103º 52' E
[B] 43º 06' N, 131º 47' E
[C] 29º 41' N, 91º 12' E
[D] 18º 08' S, 178º 25' E
[E] 21º 18' N,
157º 50' W
64. Which of the places according to the coordinates is
closest to the Equator?
65. Which of the places according to the coordinates is
closest to the Prime Meridian?
66. Which of the places according to the coordinates is
closest to the International Date Line?
The five sets of coordinates belong to the following places:
Honolulu
Lhasa
Singapore
Suva
Vladivostok
67. Which of these places (using its Longitude &
Latitude) does not have a Pacific port?
68. Which of these places (using its Longitude &
Latitude) is a U.S. state capital?
69. Identify the incorrect
statement.
[A] The contiguous United States is located North of the Tropic of
Cancer.
[B] Alaska and Hawaii are the two non-contiguous U.S. states.
[C] All 50 states in the United States are contiguous.