OxfordAQA IGCSE Geography: Living with the Physical Environment — Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs — examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers available free from your board.

Related: Living with the Physical Environment revision notes

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Section A

1. Explain the difference between primary and secondary effects of an earthquake, giving one example of each. [4]

2. Explain the difference between immediate and long-term responses to a hazard. [2]

Section B

3. Explain why people continue to live in areas at risk from volcanic eruptions, giving four reasons. [8]

4. Explain three ways in which the effects of an earthquake can be reduced. [6]

5. Describe the formation of a tropical storm and explain why they form only between roughly 5° and 30° latitude. [8]

6. For a named river, explain the formation of a waterfall and of a meander. [8]

7. Explain three ways in which the tropical rainforest is adapted to its climate. [6]

8. Explain three ways in which plants or animals of the hot desert are adapted to its climate. [6]

9. Compare hard engineering and soft engineering as approaches to managing a coastline, giving one example and one limitation of each. [6]

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Answers

1. Primary effects are the immediate, direct results of the ground shaking, e.g. buildings collapsing and people killed by falling masonry [1] [1]. Secondary effects are those that follow on afterwards, e.g. fires from ruptured gas mains, tsunamis, disease from contaminated water, or homelessness [1] [1].

2. Immediate responses occur in the hours and days afterwards — search and rescue, emergency aid, treating the injured [1]. Long-term responses take months or years — rebuilding, repairing infrastructure, improving building codes and planning [1].

3. Any four, 2 marks each: volcanic soils are extremely fertile, because weathered lava releases minerals, giving high crop yields that support dense populations [1] [1]. Geothermal energy can be harnessed, as in Iceland, providing cheap power and heating [1] [1]. Tourism brings employment and income, as at Mount Etna or Yellowstone [1] [1]. Mineral extraction — sulfur, copper and other ores are found in volcanic areas [1] [1]. People’s homes, families and livelihoods are there, and many are too poor to move or have lived there for generations [1] [1]. Monitoring and prediction have improved, so people believe they will be warned in time [1] [1].

4. Any three, 2 marks each: Prediction and monitoring — seismometers and GPS detect stress in the crust; although the timing cannot be predicted reliably, hazard mapping identifies the highest-risk zones so building can be restricted [1] [1]. Building design — cross-bracing, deep foundations, rubber shock absorbers and automatic gas shut-off valves allow structures to sway rather than collapse [1] [1]. Planning and preparation — earthquake drills, emergency supplies and trained rescue services reduce casualties, as Japan’s regular drills demonstrate [1] [1]. Land-use zoning keeps critical facilities off unstable ground prone to liquefaction [1] [1].

5. Warm ocean water above about 27 °C provides heat and moisture [1]; the warm moist air rises rapidly, creating an area of intense low pressure [1]. As it rises it cools and condenses, releasing latent heat which powers further uplift [1] [1]. Air is drawn in at the surface and spirals inwards as a result of the Coriolis effect [1], while air descends in the centre, forming the calm eye [1]. They form only between about 5° and 30° because sea temperatures below 27 °C outside the tropics cannot supply enough energy [1], and within 5° of the equator the Coriolis effect is too weak to produce the necessary rotation [1].

6. Waterfall — the river flows over a band of hard rock lying above softer rock [1]; the softer rock is eroded more rapidly by hydraulic action and abrasion, undercutting the hard rock [1]; the overhang of hard rock eventually collapses into the plunge pool [1], and repetition of the process causes the waterfall to retreat upstream, leaving a gorge [1]. Meander — in the deeper, faster water on the outside of a bend, erosion by hydraulic action and abrasion undercuts the bank to form a river cliff [1] [1]; on the inside of the bend the water is shallower and slower, so deposition forms a slip-off slope [1]. Continued erosion and deposition cause the meander to migrate laterally across the floodplain [1].

7. Any three, 2 marks each: buttress roots spread widely to support tall trees in thin, nutrient-poor soil [1] [1]; drip-tip leaves shed heavy rainfall quickly, preventing damage and the growth of algae and fungi [1] [1]; lianas and epiphytes grow up or on other trees to reach the light without investing in their own trunk [1] [1]; the dense canopy captures most of the light, and emergent trees grow very tall to rise above it [1] [1]; rapid nutrient cycling — decomposition is fast in the hot wet conditions and nutrients are reabsorbed almost immediately, since the soil itself holds few [1] [1].

8. Any three, 2 marks each: deep or wide-spreading roots reach water far below the surface or collect it quickly over a large area after rare rainfall [1] [1]; water storage in stems, as in a cactus, allows the plant to survive long dry periods between rainfall events [1] [1]; waxy or spiny leaves reduce the surface area for transpiration and cut water loss, spines also deterring animals from eating the plant for its stored water [1] [1]; nocturnal behaviour in animals avoids the extreme daytime heat and reduces water loss through evaporation and panting [1] [1].

9. Hard engineering uses built structures such as sea walls or groynes [1]; it is highly effective at the specific location but is costly and visually intrusive, and can increase erosion further along the coast by starving it of sediment [1] [1]. Soft engineering works with natural processes, such as beach nourishment or managed retreat [1]; it is cheaper and more sustainable than hard engineering, but is slower to take effect and less certain in its outcome, since it does not offer the same guaranteed protection at a specific point [1] [1].

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Where marks are usually lost

• Classifying a tsunami as a primary effect.
• Saying people live near volcanoes only because they are poor.
• Omitting the Coriolis effect in tropical storm formation.
• Describing a meander without both erosion and deposition.
• Giving only rainforest adaptations when desert adaptations are asked for, or vice versa.
• Describing hard or soft engineering without a linked limitation.