#3 MCQ Practice Exam AP Human Geo

This practice exam consists of 25 multiple-choice questions designed to test your knowledge of key concepts in AP Human Geography. Select the best answer for each question.

Question 1

Multiple choice

What concept in political geography best explains the irregular shape of the congressional district shown?

The map above shows the boundaries of Maryland’s 3rd Congressional District, often cited as one of the most gerrymandered districts in the United States. The district winds through disconnected suburban and urban areas and has been criticized for its irregular and fragmented shape.

  • Devolution

  • Federalism

  • Gerrymandering

  • Reapportionment

Question 2

Multiple choice

What is the most likely political purpose behind drawing a district in this shape?

  • To ensure equitable ethnic representation

  • To promote balanced competition between parties

  • To dilute the voting strength of opposition voters across districts

  • To follow the boundaries of local physical geography

Question 3

Multiple choice

Which of the following is a potential consequence of the practice illustrated in the map?

  • Higher voter turnout across all districts

  • A more geographically compact and fair map

  • Unequal representation and enhanced partisan advantage

  • Increased rural influence in urban areas

Question 4

Multiple choice

Which of the following terms best describes the strategy of concentrating opposition voters into a single district to reduce their influence in other districts?

  • Cracking

  • Majority-minority districting

  • Redlining

  • Packing

Question 5

Multiple choice

In the context of the map, which national political process directly enables the drawing of congressional district boundaries?

  • Electoral College allocation

  • Reapportionment following the U.S. Census

  • Federal judicial review

  • Ratification of constitutional amendments

Question 6

Multiple choice

The pattern of deforestation shown in the image is most likely associated with which type of agricultural practice?

This satellite image shows deforestation in Rondônia, Brazil—a region within the Amazon rainforest. Lighter-colored, grid-like patches represent cleared forest land, largely converted for agriculture (such as cattle ranching and soybean farming). The remaining dark green areas are intact forest. Satellite imagery like this helps geographers and policymakers track land use change and its environmental impacts.

  • Shifting cultivation practiced by small-scale farmers

  • Sustainable forest management for timber exports

  • Commercial agriculture involving large-scale land clearing

  • Intensive wet rice cultivation in tropical lowlands

Question 7

Multiple choice

Which of the following sustainability concerns is most directly linked to the land use change shown in the image?

  • Desertification due to overgrazing

  • Salinization from irrigation canals

  • Loss of biodiversity and carbon sequestration

  • Water pollution from pesticide runoff into oceans

Question 8

Multiple choice

Which political or economic factor likely contributed to the pattern of land use change visible in this satellite image?

  • National policies promoting agricultural exports

  • Urban-to-rural migration in core countries

  • World Bank restrictions on tropical agriculture

  • Expansion of urban manufacturing centers

Question 9

Multiple choice

The spatial pattern of deforestation visible in the satellite image most strongly reflects which geographic process?

  • Urban decentralization driven by suburban expansion

  • The diffusion of global agricultural practices through economic globalization

  • Local environmental determinism impacting rural land use

  • Centripetal forces reinforcing cultural landscape preservation

Question 10

Multiple choice

Which of the following would be the most effective sustainability strategy to reduce the negative impacts seen in the image, while balancing economic development needs?

  • Implementing a complete ban on agricultural exports from tropical regions

  • Encouraging rural-urban migration to reduce pressure on forest land

  • Expanding intensive monoculture to boost productivity per acre

  • Supporting agroforestry and certification programs for sustainable production

Question 11

Multiple choice

Which of the following strategies has most successfully preserved minority languages in Europe?

  • Replacing dominant languages in media and schools

  • Official government recognition and regional education policies

  • Prohibiting the use of national languages in minority regions

  • Promoting only oral transmission to avoid standardization

Question 12

Multiple choice

The formation of the African Union and the European Union reflects which political trend in the modern world?

  • Territorial fragmentation

  • Increased local autonomy

  • Global supranational cooperation

  • Rejection of international institutions

Question 13

Multiple choice

A geographer is studying a city where the median age has increased, fertility rates have declined, and the elderly population now makes up more than 20% of the population. Which of the following outcomes is most likely to occur in this city?

  • Increased demand for schools and childcare centers

  • A reduction in dependency ratio

  • Labor shortages in key service sectors

  • Higher rates of immigration from older age groups

Question 14

Multiple choice

According to Rostow’s Stages of Economic Growth, which of the following best characterizes the “Takeoff” stage?

  • A reliance on traditional agricultural practices

  • Government policies supporting infrastructure and manufacturing

  • High consumer demand for luxury goods and services

  • Global investment shifting into primary-sector development

Question 15

Multiple choice

Which of the following best reflects Wallerstein’s World Systems Theory?

  • Core countries extract raw materials from periphery countries and export finished goods

  • Semi-periphery countries have the highest levels of GNI and HDI

  • Periphery countries dominate in high-tech innovation and capital investment

  • Core countries are characterized by subsistence farming and minimal infrastructure

Question 16

Multiple choice

What is a primary advantage of using an isoline map rather than a choropleth map?

  • It compares multiple categories across a wide geographic scale

  • It shows absolute population values rather than averages

  • It uses color gradients to display thematic data by region

  • It reveals gradual changes in phenomena such as elevation or temperature

Question 17

Multiple choice

In this cartogram, countries such as Canada and Australia appear significantly smaller than in most conventional world maps. What best explains this visual change?

The map shown is a population cartogram, in which each country is resized to reflect its total population rather than its physical land area.

  • These countries have very low population densities.

  • These countries have small populations relative to their land area.

  • These countries have experienced rapid population decline.

  • These countries are geographically isolated.

Question 18

Multiple choice

Nigeria appears significantly enlarged in the cartogram. Which of the following best explains this?

  • Nigeria has a high population density due to its small size.

  • Nigeria has implemented strict pro-natalist policies.

  • Nigeria has one of the world’s highest total fertility rates.

  • Nigeria has recently expanded its national borders.

Question 19

Multiple choice

China and India are visually dominant in the population cartogram. What geographic concept best explains this?

  • Demographic momentum

  • Population density

  • Urbanization

  • Doubling time

Question 20

Multiple choice

Which of the following best identifies the primary goal of Country A’s policy?

  • Increase the birth rate to reach replacement-level fertility

  • Reduce population growth through government-mandated fertility limits

  • Encourage immigration to balance the age structure

  • Improve gender equality through family planning

Question 21

Multiple choice

Country C is most likely to experience which of the following demographic trends?

  • Shrinking labor force and declining economic productivity

  • Rapid population growth and high youth dependency

  • Aging population and increased demand for elder care

  • Stable population size due to migration inflows

Question 22

Multiple choice

Despite policy efforts, Country D continues to experience population decline. What does this suggest about the challenges of pro-natalist policies?

  • They typically lead to uncontrolled population growth

  • They are only effective in countries with high fertility to begin with

  • Cultural and economic factors may limit their effectiveness

  • Government support guarantees a return to replacement-level fertility

Question 23

Multiple choice

Based on the zoning patterns visible on the map, which urban model does the city of Chicago most closely resemble?

  • Concentric Zone Model

  • Galactic City Model

  • Latin American City Model

  • Sub-Saharan African City Model

Question 24

Multiple choice

The dense concentration of mixed zoning (commercial, industrial, and residential) near downtown Chicago most likely reflects which geographic process?

  • Decentralization of services to suburban areas

  • Edge city development

  • Urban land use intensification near the CBD

  • Environmental zoning protections

Question 25

Multiple choice

The map shows more uniform land use patterns (mostly residential) in the outlying areas of the city. What factor most likely contributes to this pattern?

  • The spread of informal settlements

  • The dominance of tertiary sector jobs

  • Suburbanization and the rise of single-family zoning

  • The presence of brownfield redevelopment

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