This test was developed by Eleanor Joyce.Images from U.S. Department of Education. Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/geography/
World Geography - SOL Practice Test 1
In which area of the world can one expect to find the most active earthquakes and volcanoes?
Mediterranean Sea
Mid Atlantic Ocean
Caribbean Sea
The Pacific Rim
The intensity of this earthquake would be measured in terms of
isotherms
the Richter scale
the Celsius scale
barometric pressure
The dotted line running across the map represents
major highway
river
fault line
contour line
The varying widths of the lines on the map most probably indicate the
strength of ocean currents
type of trade
volume of trade
type of transportation used
What important international product is represented on this map?
diamonds
wheat
oil
textiles
The largest quantities of the product represented in the map is exported from which region of the world?
Southwest Asia
South Asia
Sub-Saharan Africa
East Asia
What contributes to the greenhouse effect?
Soil erosion
Burning fuels such as oil, coal, and gas
Water erosion
Destroying the forest by the slash and burn technique
What percentage of the TOTAL population of Country 1 is age 70 or over?
1.0%
1.2%
2.2%
3.0%
Country 1 represents the population distribution of
a developed country
a developing country
a country in North America
a country in Europe
Country 2 represents the population distribution of
a developed country
a developing country
a country in Asia
a country in Africa
Country 2 represents a country whose population is
staying the same
doubling in 20 years
shrinking
growing
Major oil-producing nations joined together to form the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as a means of
increasing their control of markets and prices for their product
limiting access of other nations to solar power
promoting the production of high-quality fossil fuels
improving communication and transportation among developing nations
Florida is an example of
an isthmus
an island
a penninsula
a plateau
Quebec, Canada can be considered a cultural region because of its
landforms
climate
language
economy
What religion is practiced by most people in India?
Confucianism
Buddhism
Christianity
Hinduism
The "Corn Belt" is a region in the United States defined on the basis of
population
economic activity
transportation networks
political organization
The world's largest ocean is the
Atlantic
Arctic
Indian
Pacific
The region described in this table is
South America
Africa
North America
Australia
The number 1 on the map shows
Lake Erie
Lake Huron
Lake Superior
Lake Michigan
The number 2 on the map shows
the Missouri River
the Mississippi River
the Colorado River
the Columbia River
The number 3 on the map shows
the Corn Belt
the Wheat Belt
the Sun Belt
the Rust Belt
The number 4 on the map shows
the Colorado river
the Columbia River
the St. Lawrence River
the Rio Grande River
Which of the four oceans would have the least amont of sea traffic?
Atlantic
Arctic
Indian
Pacific
On a map, the smaller the scale of miles the
longer the distance between two points
shorter the distance between two points
more detail will be shown on the map
less detail will be shown on the map
Most of the people in the world are members of which religion?
Islam
Hinduism
Judaism
Christianity
Which of the following is a nation of people without a country?
Kurdistan
Iran
Turkmenistan
Iraq
Which two nations are most likely to have a conflict over natural resources?
Nation A and Nation B
Nation B and Nation C
Nation A and Nation D
Nation C and Nation D
Which nation is most likely to have a desert?
Nation A
Nation B
Nation C
Nation D
Which nation is most likely to herd animals?
Nation A
Nation B
Nation C
Nation D
Which nations are most likely to be landlocked?
Nation A and Nation B
Nation B and Nation C
Nation C and Nation D
Nation D and Nation A
Which nation is most likely to have a shipping port?
Nation A
Nation B
Nation C
Nation D
What direction is the grassland from the coalfield?
Northeast
Southeast
Northwest
Southwest
What is the approximate distance between the mouth of the Red River and the mouth of the Charles River?
100 miles
200 miles
300 miles
400 miles
The source of the Red River and the Charles River can be found in the
oil fields
grassland
desert
mountains
Europe experiences a mild climate for its latitude belt because
it is located in the tropics
the North Atlantic Drift brings warm water to the region
the Equinox determines the weather for 12 months
it is located at sea level
What is an important reason that countries join international organizations like the United Nations?
Countries who do not join usually lose their independence and sovereignty.
Many of the world's problems involve more than one country.
Citizens want their countries to join as many international organizations as possible.
Such organizations force countries to join.
In order to grow food in the desert, farmers would need to
cut down trees
herd animals
build new houses
irrigate the land
Switzerland is located in the middle of which mountain range?
Alps
Andes
Urals
Pyrenees
According to the graph, the largest oil reserves in 1986 were in the
Persian Gulf region
Caribbean region
Northern Siberia
Gulf of Guinea
Which is the main reason that many early peoples settled in river valleys?
River valleys tended to be cooler than highland regions.
River valleys were virtually free of danger from wild animals.
River valleys were easier to defend from attack than were highland regions.
River valleys were fertile because floodwaters left rich soil on the banks.
What would a scientist probably study to predict where acid rain would fall?
the atomic structures of sulfur, nitrogen, and oxygen
mass-transit systems that serve major cities
wind patterns that prevail over major manufacturing areas
the location of sewage-treatment plants
Which of the following people would probably have the greatest choice of places to live?
cattle rancher
nurse
miner
oil refinery technician
What is an important reason that skyscrapers were built in American cities?
Construction companies liked the really high buildings.
Skyscrapers allowed tenants to create a closer community.
Skyscrapers allowed people to use small amounts of land more efficiently.
Citizens wanted to be safe from street crimes.
The island shown on the map has four cities: A, B, C, and D. Based only on the geographical features shown on the map, which city probably has the largest population?
City A
City B
City C
City D
This map would be most useful to a
pilot flying from Europe to South America
pilot flying from Canada to Scandinavia
person sailing to Antarctica
person sailing in tropical seas
Latitude on this map is represented by
circles
shaded areas
straight lines
convergent lines
This map is a
Mercator projection
Robinson projection
interrupted projection
polar projection
Under which of the following circumstances would you be most likely to find snow in equatorial regions?
in areas below sea level
in areas at high latitudes
in areas at high elevations
in winter
Traditional agriculture or subsistence farming depends on
fertilizers
human labor
machinery
pesticides
People in developed countries generally
have poor medical care
are traditional farmers
have shortages of food
are technologically advanced
The population distribution of the world shows that
the continents are evenly populated
the continents are not evenly populated
the world's population is decreasing
the world's population has leveled off
The population pattern or map that shows where most of the people in the world live is
population diffusion
economic disparity
population distribution
economic distribution
The latitude belt on the map that is in region B is the
middle belt
high belt
low belt
The region of the world where the most people live is
1
4
5
6
The region of the world that is the poorest is
2
3
6
5
The region of the world that has the most oil is
2
1
6
5
The regions of the world that are the most developed are regions
3, 4, 6, 7
1, 2, 5, 6
2, 5, 6, 7
1, 4, 7, 9
The region of the world that has the largest coniferous forest is