All Time Geography Interview Questions
1. What is the hottest place on earth?
The hottest air temperature ever recorded on earth:
In 2005, the Lut Desert in Iran at 70.7° Celsius, which is 159.26° Fahrenheit.
Previous to this on Sept. 13, 1922 El Azizia in Libya 57.8 °C (136°F)
Previous to that: Death Valley, California, USA, where it got up to 57.8°C (134°F) on July 10, 1913.
It is very likely that temperatures have reached higher than this in places on the earth, however, the lack of meteorological equipment and people to read said equipment in the hottest areas of the earth means that it has gone unrecorded.
2. What are decomposers in a temperate deciduous forest?
In the Deciduous Forest, some decomposers that are living there include fungi, bacteria, and yes, even worms.
3. What is a floodplain?
If a river tends to flood, the most practical solution may be to designate a more or less flat area along the river as the “floodplain”. This
Area is allowed to flood and thus save other, more valuable areas from flooding. Obviously, no buildings should be erected on the floodplain and it is usually unsuitable for farming, too.
4. What is relative location?
Relative location is the location of something in relation of another place.
5. Where is Norge?
Norge is the Norwegian name for Norway.
6. What is a Green resort?
A ‘Green’ resort, like a ‘Green’ business is an entity that is environment friendly. They might have low-volume-flush toilets, automatic light switches that turn off when no one is in the room, etc., anything that will reduce emissions and reduce pollution and waste.
7. Why is the population density different in various parts of the world?
Population density is the amount of people living in an area per square mile (miles, for ex.). The number of people living in any one area is determined by the desirability of the area.
8. For the intermediate directions, why is north and south listed first?
As arbitrary as it may be, it is up and down, side to side. The x and y-axis’ it is the way maps were first drawn and have always been. A compass points north. The sign of the cross starts N S E W.
9. What is the closest capital to the equator?
Quito, Ecuador. It’s closest to the equator (0º14’S / 78º30’W) closely followed by Kampala, Uganda (0º19’N / 32º35’E), Sao Tome (0º20’N / 6º44’E) and Libreville, Gabon (0º30’N / 9º25’E)
10. What is the easiest way to remember compass directions?
The earth rotates, so the sun is shown to appear rising on the east part of the world as we see it. No matter which way you are facing other than up or down, east are the morning sun, and west are get ready for nighttime. On the other hand, assume looking at the globe being on a clock with it being sown as a normal world instead of upside down or other abnormal configuration. 3 are east, 12 is north, 6 is south, and 9 is west.
11. How is a rural community different from an urban community?
Rural communities are places outside of the cities. For example, if you live in Chicago, IL you live in an urban area. If you live Mendota, IL then you live in a rural area.
12. Where in the world is Bonnee?
If you mean Bonn, then it is Germany.
13. Describe the features of Moai?
Moai are monolithic human figures on Easter Island.
Moai Seamount is a submarine volcano in the Pacific Ocean west of Easter Island.
14. Where is the longest bar in the world?
The longest bar in the world is in Put-in-Bay, OH, a village located on South Bass Island on Lake Erie.
15. Where are bogs found?
Bogs are most abundant in the Northern Hemisphere, especially in a broad belt including the northern part of the deciduous forest zone and the central and southern parts of the boreal forest zone.
Farther south, and in drier climates farther inland, they become sporadic and restricted to specialized habitats. To the north, peat lands controlled by mineral soil water (aapa mires) replace them as the dominant wetlands.
Bogs are much less extensive in the Southern Hemisphere because there is little land in cold temperate latitudes. In these Southern Hemisphere peat lands, Sphagnum is much less important, and Epacridaceae and Restionaceae replace the Ericaceae and Cyperaceous of the Northern Hemisphere.
16. What is the general locations world wide for the humid tropical climate?
They are found in the latitude range of 10 degrees south and 25 degrees north.
17. What is a Map Locator?
A locator map is a map that shows a certain area’s specific place.
18. Which is the sugar bowl of the world?
Brazil
19. What are some things you could use to help us locate places on the map?
An atlas or map comes with an index use it to pinpoint the place you are looking for.
20. What is the lowest spot on earth that you can visit?
The Dead Sea at 1,378 ft below sea level is the lowest place on earth.
21. An imaginary line from which other meridians are measured the degree is 0 of the line?
The equator
22. Is there more land mass above or below the equator?
There is more land above/north of the equator. The only continent completely south of the equator is Oceania. This fact is clearly illustrated in the movie “an inconvenient truth”.
23. What is the definition of a peninsula?
It is a long strip of land that juts out into the sea.
The best examples are southern Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia or Spain.
24. What are the four types of vegetation?
The four types of vegetation are Forest, Grassland, Desert, and Tundra.
25. How far is the ocean horizon line from the shore eye view?
About 17 miles but this distance greatly varies on the weather conditions and the height of the eye above sea level.
26. What are the places named after the Virgin Mary?
Mariefred, Sweden
27. What is the difference between a natural boundary and a political boundary?
A natural boundary might be something like a river, mountain range or an ocean. These are generally considered obstructions, which prevent crossing without additional equipment or assistance, such as a boat or horses to carry what you need to cross a mountain range.
A political boundary would be a real or imagined line in the sand that defines the boundary of a nation or state.
For example, Australia’s boundary is an ocean and Switzerland’s boundary is defined by mountains, these are both physical and natural boundaries. The boundaries of Colorado are all just surveying lines and there really is not much of a physical boundary involved.
28. What are different types of map projections?
Some people argue that we should change to Peters Projection because it is fairer. With the Mercator projection, Polar Regions look bigger than they should, in comparison to equatorial regions. Of course, all projections change the shapes of places; but the Peters Projection does not change their relative areas.
29. Are all places along the equator warm why?
Most places along the equator are warm because that is where the sun’s light and heat hits the Earth most directly. However, if the land is very high, like the Andes Mountains in Ecuador, there it can be cold and covered with snow.
30. What is nationalism?
A devotion to the interests and culture of one’s nation
31. What is Elsie?
Elsie is the name of a town in Michigan and Nebraska it is also a cow, and a Quebec Politician.
32. Why are the oceans salty?
As water flows in rivers, it picks up small amounts of mineral salts from the rocks and soil of the riverbeds. This very-slightly salty water flows into the oceans and seas. The water in the oceans only leaves by evaporating (and the freezing of polar ice), but the salt remains dissolved in the ocean – it does not evaporate. So the remaining water gets saltier and saltier as time passes.
33. Is there a country that is dark all day?
There are parts of northern Alaska where the sun goes down in late August and does not rise again until the following April (and then does not go down again until August).
34. How do social scientists define a country?
To be considered a country, a place must have four characteristics…
1) Territory
2) population
3) government
4) sovereignty
35. What is the name of the line that separates the Earth into east and west?
Line that Separates Earth into East and West Greenwich Meridian: Prime Meridian of the World
36. Who invented the latitudes and longitudes and the grid system?
Hipparchus (190-120 B.C.) was perhaps the greatest of the Greek astronomers who devised a method of locating geographical positions by means of latitudes and longitudes. In addition, Ptolemy (2nd century A.D.) was a Greek astronomer and mathematician who lived and worked in Egypt. He wrote the book Geographic that charts all the places of the world as known to them at that time.
His works, which employed a system of latitudes and longitudes, influenced mapmakers for hundreds of years. He was a cartographer and he evolved the science of map-making.
37. What is the meaning of cultural hearth?
A cultural hearth is a site of innovation from which basic ideas, materials, and technology diffuse to many cultures.
38. What is the definition of urbanization?
Urbanization can be defined as the rapid and massive growth of, and migration to, large cities. Positive and negative consequences resulted. In US urbanization, some of these issues were employment, sanitation, housing, sewage, water, fire, social welfare, role of government, political machines, etc…
39. What is the optimum angle of declination?
Zero degrees! If the angle of declination is 0°, then magnetic north is the same as true north, making it much easier to navigate.
However, really, there is not any “optimum” angle. One angle is just as good as another is as long as you know how to correct for it in the right way.
40. What is the height of Powerscourt Falls in hectometers?
It is 350 feet, or 1.0668 hectometers high.
41. What is the name of Earths driest desert?
The Atacama Desert is one of the driest places on Earth, and is virtually sterile because it is blocked from moisture on both sides by the Andes Mountain and by coastal mountains.
The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica is Earth’s driest desert.
42. What is Geography?
Though many think that geography is limited to the names of countries and their cities, geography is the study of the earth’s surface includes people’s responses to topography and climate and soil and vegetation. It is the study of the aerial differentiation of the earth surface in relation to environment
43. What instrument is used to find Earths length?
Earth does not have a ‘length.’ It has a circumference, a mass, a volume, even a length of time or age, but it does not have a length.
44. What is the difference between a sea and an ocean?
A sea is part of an ocean that is partially surrounded by land. If it is surrounded, then it has called an inland sea. An ocean is a body of salt water with no boundaries and limitless volume. It is limitless because with no boundaries, definitive quantity cannot be deduced.
45. What is it Latitude and Longitude at Beijing?
It is 39 degrees north n 116 degrees east
46. What flat topped rock or hill formation with steep sides?
Small plateaus with steep walls on all sides are called tables, tablelands or mesas. See the related link for more information.
47. What is the formula for calculating population density?
Population Density is calculated by taking the population (human or otherwise) and dividing it by the total area where that population occurs
48. Which meridian did the International Date Line follows?
It is the 180 degrees; but there are kinks in the line to avoid its running through inhabited territory.
49. What make ice melt at the end of an ice age?
Well, once the sun is no longer blocked, the sun will appear and melt the ice. In addition, ice melt a little and evaporated, it will not be hot enough for it to rain, and slowly the ice will disperse into the air.
In addition, if an underwater volcano were to erupt, it would melt the ice causing global warming
50. What is the longitude and latitude of the Amazon Rain forest?
It is 15 degrees to 25 degrees north and south of the equator. Approximately, it is 46 degrees west.
51. Are there underground cities in the US?
An underground city is a network of tunnels that connect buildings, usually in the downtown area of a city. These may include office blocks, shopping malls, train and metro stations, theatres, and other attractions.
52. At what longitude does the prime meridian lie?
The Prime Meridian of the world lies at 0° longitude. What are the factors that effect and influence climate?
Altitude influences climate
53. What is the use of geographical coordinates?
Geographical coordinates allow locations or devices with the geographical locations to be tracked and located. In essence, if a phone has geographical positioning built inside the phone can be tracked by satellite and located. An example of this is people call 911 and they are not sure where they are. Operators are still able to locate where they are and send help.
54. What does physical geography mean?
This article concerns the development of conceptual understanding of a physical phenomenon with computational representations. It examines how students make sense of and interpret computational representations, and how their understanding of the represented physical phenomenon develops in this process. Eight studies were conducted, in which pairs of students were engaged in an exploratory activity of natural harmonic oscillation.
They first explored physical oscillators (e.g., springs, pendulums) and then interacted with dynamic and interactive computational representations that represent aspects of natural harmonic oscillation. The analysis focuses on selected episodes demonstrating critical steps in the development of the students’ understanding. It offers a detailed description of these steps and closely examines students’ interaction with various features of the representations in order to identify the relations between use of representations and students’ developing understanding.
A theory of conceptual change, coordination class theory (diSessa & Sherin, 1998), is used to track the development process of students’ understanding with representations. The detailed analysis aims to construct a model describing mechanisms of developing understanding through the mediation of computational representations. The significance of this study is in its close look at the detailed process of learning and conceptual change in computational environments.
55. What countries are in Equatorial Africa?
1) Sao Tome and Principe
2) Gabon
3) Republic of the Congo
4) Democratic Republic of Congo
5) Uganda
6) Kenya
7) Somalia
56. What is the prime meridian?
The prime meridian is the zero (0) line of longitude. The zero line of latitude is a given in the form of the equator, but for longitude the line was agreed on at an international conference at Washington DC in 1884. (The conference chose a line that had widely accepted internationally). The matter was of particular interest to the U.S. where the present time zones had no official standing and about 2,000 (yes, two thousand) local times were in use.
The zero longitude line runs through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich in southeast London. It is marked on the ground in brass for about 200 yards.
57. What is the imaginary line that runs through South America called?
There are infinite numbers of imaginary lines that are used to divide and identify the entire surface of the earth. Some are called lines of latitude, or parallels as these lines run parallel to each other and the equator in an East and West direction. The others are called lines of longitude, or meridians, and they run north and south, converging at the poles. The two “primary” lines (or starting points, if you will) are called the Prime Meridian and the Equator. The Prime Meridian bisects the earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
It runs north and south through Greenwich, England at zero degrees of longitude and through the Pacific Ocean at 180 degrees of longitude. The Equator at zero degrees latitude bisects the earth into the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere and runs around the middle of the earth. The Equator runs through South America and passes about 15 miles from the center of Quito, Ecuador.
58. What are the areas not countries that are included in the South America continent?
They are South America, Central America, and the Falkland Islands.
59. What are the three main bodies of water that surround Ireland?
The island that is Ireland is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean except to the east, between itself and Great Britain. That body of water, though contiguous with the Atlantic at both the north and south of it, is known as the Irish Sea in the north and the Celtic Sea in the south. Use the link below to see a map, and click on Ireland to zoom in so you can see the annotations.
60. How are Fold Mountains formed?
Fold Mountains are formed from the collision of continental tectonic plates. Since neither plate sub ducts under the other, the colliding plates wrinkle and fold like a rug being pushed into a wall. What is the difference between a compass heading and a compass bearing?
Heading indicates the direction the ship/aircraft/vehicle you are in is moving.
Bearing is normally used to indicate the direction something else is relative to you.
The ship was heading 085 and maintaining a station on the carrier at two miles and a bearing of 200 from the carrier.
This is often the case where a ship or airplane is “pointed” on a bearing across the wind or current and “moving” on a heading that is the natural consequence of the combined forces on the hull.
61. What is an upland forest?
Xeric upland forest occurs mainly in the Shawnee Hills in southern Illinois on sites where the soils are even thinner than those of barrens do. The trees have a stunted, gnarly growth form on these nutrient poor, droughty soils.
Dry upland forests grow on steep ridges, along rocky cliffs, and on bedrock outcrops along the Mississippi River and in the Shawnee Hills. Many of these sites were barrens in the past when natural fires were not extinguished by humans. The soils are thin and excessively drained, but the trees are not as stunted as those of the xeric upland forest are, which have even thinner soils.
1. Barrens means describes a variety of open-canopied forests with under stories of grasses and prairie plants. They are a unique combination of forest (oak) opening and prairie surrounded by dry or mesic upland forests with greater canopy cover. Both barrens and savannas have widely spaced trees and under stories of grasses, but whereas savannas occur on a range of soils from nutrient poor to nutrient rich, barrens are restricted to poor, thin, excessively drained soils.
62. What is the total surface area of Earth?
510,065,600 km of which 148,939,100 km (29.2 %) is land and 361,126,400 km (70.8 %) is water.
63. What would the world be like without forests?
It would be like no paper, no wooden items, no food, no oxygen, lots of carbon dioxide. In short, there is no life, as we know it.
64. What are the major landforms in Barbados?
Volcanic rock
65. During which season are the days shortest?
The shortest day of the year occurs at the end of fall/beginning of winter. Therefore, fall and winter are tied for the shortest average length of day.
66. What is the latitude and longitude of Ontario?
Ontario, California: 34N05, 117W62
Ontario, Oregon: 44N02, 117W02
Ontario, Canada: irregular in shape, but extending from roughly
55N59’38” at its northernmost point (Fort Severn)
42N16 at its southernmost (Windsor)
74W43’02.64″ at its easternmost point (Cornwall)
94W27’56.16″ at its westernmost (Kenora)
67. How does building hotels affect the planet?
Building hotels abroad encourages tourism meaning more aircraft is needed to transport people on holidays, therefore increasing carbon emissions
68. Who is the father of modern geography?
ERASTOSTHENES is often called the ‘Father of Modern Geography’
69. Where is the lowest place in the United States above ground?
In terms of altitude, the lowest elevation in the Western Hemisphere is in Death Valley. The elevation in the lowest point is 86 meters below sea level.
If we include places under water, the lowest place is the bottom of Lake Champlain, between Vermont and New York. Because it is elevation above, see level is just 95 feet, and the deepest part of this lake is 399 feet, this makes that point lower than even Death Valley, which is 282 feet below sea level.
70. What is the river that flows on the border between Devon and Cornwall?
It is the River Tamar.
71. What is the average time zone?
The average time zone is 1 hour.
72. Why the two ways Polar Regions and deserts are alike?
Two ways Polar Regions and deserts are alike is that they both have drought and very little or no life.
73. What crops do they grow in Madagascar?
The main crop is rice. Other important food crops are cassava, sweet potatoes, potatoes, maize, beans, bananas, and peanuts. Leading crops for export are vanilla, coffee, cloves, sugarcane, cotton, sisal, and tropical fruits.
74. What is the relevance of zoo geographical region in relation to taxonomy?
The location of a zoo that an animal is kept in will have nothing at all to do with its taxonomy. Taxonomy is the technical word for its classification, and that stays the same no matter where the animal is moved. Sometimes classification will have to do with its location, but the animal’s species does not change because it has been moved.
75. What is the distance of the equator?
It is roughly over 24000 miles. It is the circumference of the earth.
76. What is the name of the highest mountain region in Florida?
The highest elevation in Florida is called Britton Hill. It is in Walton County and stands 345 feet above sea level.
77. What is an executive capital city?
South Africa has three capital cities.
1) The legislative capital, Cape Town, is where the parliament is, and is where laws are drawn up.
2) The judicial capital, Bloemfontein, is where the Supreme Court of Appeal sits, and it is where the laws are interpreted.
3) The executive capital, Pretoria, is where the state officials have their headquarters, and it is from Pretoria that the country is run.
This rather unusual arrangement of three capitals is due to the arrangements made when South Africa was put together from four separate and independent countries. The three that were awarded a capital were Transvaal Republic, Orange Free State, Cape Colony and Colony of Natal. Three of the four countries each got a capital. Natal missed out for some reason.
78. What is bauxite?
Bauxite is a rock with minerals in it.
79. What are solutions to deforestation?
Solutions to deforestation are as follows:
1) Farming
2) Forest management
3) Reforestation
4) Forest plantations
80. What are cold and warm currents?
Air flows through an area that is either cold or warm. Where are the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn and Arctic Circle and Antarctic Circle located on a globe?
The Tropic Of cancer is 23.5 degrees north from the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn is 23.5 degrees south of the equator. The artic circle is the top of the globe and the Antarctic Circle is located south of the globe (way at the bottom)81. What island runs between
Alaska and extend toward Asia?
Aleutian Islands
82. Which country in Europe has the lowest population?
Vatican City: population 900
83. What country borders Denmark?
Germany
84. Were there humans during the Cenozoic Era?
We are living in the Cenozoic era right now. Anything after the Cretaceous period is considered Cenozoic. However, modern humans have only been around for a few million years, and human civilizations have only been around for about 10,000 years.
85. Where are the ending points of the prime meridian?
It is the North and South Pole
86. What is the difference between magnetic and geographical North?
The basic difference is that geographical north is static and the magnetic north is in constant motion, the magnetic field extends into the atmosphere and for lack of a better word is kind of like the wind.
87. What treasures did ancient Egyptians keep in the tombs?
They put bowls, food, jewels, clothing statues, sandals, games in their tombs.
88. What is the second largest desert in Africa that is partly in Botswana?
The second largest desert is Africa is the Kalahari Desert.
89. Which country do you pass through when driving from Seattle Washington to anchorage Alaska?
Canada
90. Why do two circles of latitude never touch?
The earth is always moving and lines move with it. If they are moving all at the same pace, they will never touch.
91. Where is the inhabited place with the least amount of rainfall and which country is it in?
Aswan, Egypt is the driest inhabited place in the world, with only 0.02 inches in average annual rainfall.
92. Which New England State does not border the Atlantic Ocean?
Vermont. New Hampshire comes close with only 18 miles of coastline.
93. Why is it warmer in winter near the equator than it is in summer at the North Pole?
Because of the way the earth is tilting when its summer
The “TOP” of the earth is always leaning away from the sun, winter or summer
In addition, the sun’s rays hit the equator at a more direct angle that at the Poles.
94. What are conventional symbols?
Conventional Symbols are symbols that are used on maps to represent different features.
95. What are the fastest growing states in population?
There is an interesting article by demographer Michael Barone that appeared recently in the online version of the Wall Street Journal. He describes in some detail how some cities and states are gaining and losing people.
96. How many hours of daylight exist on the equator?
The equator is unique in that it has 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of night every day of the year.
97. What are names of the dams on river Nile?
The major Nile dams are the Aswan High Dam, the Owen Falls Dam, the Sennar Dam and the Rosires Dam.
98. What was the German immigration route to America?
Ellis Island, Chicago or Milwaukee
99. What is the capital of Paraguay?
Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, usually called Asunción, is the capital of Paraguay
100. Is Ireland part of Great Britain?
Ireland and Great Britain are the two largest islands among a group of islands off the north-west coast of mainland Europe.