unit 1+2
identify and name the world’s continents and major oceans
continents: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Europe,
North America, South America and Oceania
oceans: Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, Arctic Ocean and Southern Ocean
describe the impacts of ageing populations on
countries
• lower tax revenues
• higher pension spending
• pressure on health care
• pressure to raise retirement age
non-renewable resources:
– fossil fuel (oil, natural gas, coal), nuclear
energy using uranium as a fuel
Impacts of food insecurity limited to:
• regional food scarcity
• nutritional deficiency and malnutrition
• poverty
• forced migration
• conflict
• famine
• death
state the major sources of greenhouse gas
emissions from human activities
• combustion of fossil fuels (carbon dioxide and
water vapour)
• rice fields and livestock (methane)
• landfill sites (methane)
define the term sustainability
as the ability to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
describe and evaluate strategies for managing a
changing population
• improved availability of contraception
• improved education about contraception
• improved education and opportunities for
women
• improved health care
• local, national and global policies: pronatalist and
describe and explain causes of food insecurity
and threats to food security
• population growth
• unsustainable production, increase in
homogeneity in global food supply
• price setting
• land degradation
• agricultural disease
• diverting crops for biofuels
• climate change
• water shortages
• poverty
renewable resources:
– biofuels (biomass including wood,
bioethanol and biogas), geothermal energy,
hydroelectric dams, tidal energy, wave
energy, solar energy, wind energy
define photochemical smog
as a mixture of air pollutants and particulates, including ground
level ozone, that is formed when oxides of
nitrogen and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) react in the presence of sunlight
describe techniques used to collect sample data
quadrats (open frame, grid and point), pitfall
traps, sweep nets, beating trays, kick sampling,
light traps, capture-mark-recapture
water turbidity
questionnaires, interviews
define and calculate dependency ratio
• dependency ratio =
[young population (0 to 14) + old population (65+)] × 100
population aged 15 to 60
explain the impacts of water insecurity
• reduced crop yield and crop failure
• livestock death
• food shortages, malnutrition and famine
• illness caused by contaminated drinking water,
limited to diarrhoea and cholera
Describe the distribution of the Earth’s water
• salt water in oceans
• surface fresh water
– ice sheets, glaciers, lakes, rivers, swamps,
marshes, permafrost
• sub-surface fresh water
– soil moisture, ground water, permafrost
• atmospheric water
Describe strategies for managing air pollution
• reduced use of fossil fuels
• reducing emissions of:
– sulfur dioxide by flue gas desulfurisation and
fuel desulfurisation
– oxides of nitrogen by catalytic converters
– particulates using electrostatic precipitators
– volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
○ safe usage, storage and disposal of
household products
• restricting vehicle use in urban areas
• legislation
– local, national and international legislation
(detailed knowledge of specific legislation
and agreements is not required)
– polluter pays principle
State that there are methods of data collection
that include the use of technology
• geospatial systems
• satellite sensors
• radio tracking
• computer modelling
• crowd sourcing
describe and evaluate strategies for managing
the impacts of human activity on Antarctica
• legislation and international agreement (the
Antarctic Treaty 1959)
• protected areas
• fisheries regulation
• prohibited activities such as mineral extraction
• protection from non-native animals or plants
• waste management
• tourism control and permits for travel
detailed knowledge of international agreements is
not required
describe the impacts of climate change on
human populations
• increased frequency and severity of extreme
weather events leading to flooding and loss of
land, drought and wild fires
• damage to property and loss of life during
extreme weather events
• forced migration
• impacts on crop yields and increased pest
outbreaks
• impacts on food, energy and water security
short-term energy security:
systems that react promptly to sudden
changes in the supply-demand balance
how ozone depletion occurs
• chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) from aerosols and
refrigerants are unreactive compounds and are
not broken down in the troposphere
• CFCs move into the stratosphere and break down
in the presence of ultraviolet light to release a
chlorine atom
• rapid reactions between chlorine atoms and
ozone breaks down ozone (O3) to oxygen (O2),
causing ozone depletion
• chlorine atoms remain in the stratosphere and
can continue to destroy ozone
detailed chemical mechanisms are not required
state the word and chemical equation for aerobic respiration
glucose + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water
• C6H12O6 + 6O2 → 6CO2 + 6H2O
describe and evaluate legislation and protocols as methods of conserving biodiversity
• protection of species
• regulation of sustainable harvesting
• international trade in endangered species (CITES)
• International Whaling Commission (IWC)
• European Union Common Fisheries Policy (EU
CFP)
• International Tropical Timber Organisation
(ITTO)
• International Union for Conservation of Nature
(IUCN) Red List
detailed knowledge of international agreements is
not required
outline the benefits and limitations of the
analysis of big data
• amount and type of data stored
• speed at which new data is generated
• trustworthiness of the data
• ways the data can be used
describe and evaluate strategies for managing
water security
• sustainable water extraction and improved
supply (piped supply, aquifers and artesian wells,
boreholes, gravity-fed schemes, reservoirs and
dams)
• reduction in water usage (improved irrigation
techniques, growing crops less dependent on
high water supply, recycling and rain water
catchment)
• education on sustainable water use
• poverty reduction
• international agreement and water-related aid
(detailed knowledge of international agreements
is not required)
• rationing
outline geo-engineering strategies to counteract
climate change
• solar radiation management (SRM)
– albedo enhancement, space reflectors,
stratospheric aerosols