AP Human Geography — Practice Questions flashcards
6 of 50 questions free to study here · 7 topics · the whole deck is built into Willys
Multiple-choice practice questions, one best answer each, on diffusion, demographic transition, migration, culture, political forces, von Thünen, urban models, Rostow and Wallerstein.
Practice deck · part of AP Human Geography · written against: College Board AP Human Geography Course and Exam Description (seven units). Updated 2026-10-10.
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A small river town grew into a regional city after a railroad was built across the river there, linking a large farming region to distant ports. Which concept best explains the town's growth?
A) Its toponym, the name the first settlers gave it
B) Its site, such as its soil, slope and water supply
C) Its absolute location given by latitude and longitude
D) Its situation relative to routes and other placesD) Its situation relative to routes and other placesThinking Geographically
Growth came from the town's connections to other places, which is situation. Site is tempting because a river is involved, but site describes the physical character of the spot itself, not its links to a wider region. -
A new clothing style appears first in a handful of major world cities, then in large regional cities, and only later in small towns, even towns located close to where it began. Which type of diffusion is this?
A) Stimulus diffusion
B) Hierarchical diffusion
C) Relocation diffusion
D) Contagious diffusionB) Hierarchical diffusionCultural Patterns
The trait jumps between important nodes in order of size before trickling down, which is hierarchical diffusion. Contagious diffusion would spread outward to nearby places regardless of their rank, so nearby small towns would not be skipped. -
In a country with high birth rates, new vaccines, clean water systems and better food supplies have recently caused death rates to fall sharply. Birth rates have not yet changed. What does the demographic transition model predict for the near future?
A) Population decline as deaths come to exceed births
B) Slowing growth as births fall toward the death rate
C) Rapid natural increase as births far exceed deaths
D) Stable population with both rates low and balancedC) Rapid natural increase as births far exceed deathsPopulation and Migration
This is stage 2: deaths fall while births stay high, so the gap widens and population grows rapidly. Slowing growth as birth rates fall describes stage 3, which comes later as social change catches up. -
According to the gravity model, which pair of cities would be expected to have the MOST interaction?
A) Two cities of 2 million each, 100 km apart
B) A city of 4 million and one of 1 million, 200 km apart
C) Two cities of 1 million each, 80 km apart
D) A city of 3 million and one of 2 million, 400 km apartA) Two cities of 2 million each, 100 km apartCities and Urban Land Use
Interaction rises with the product of the populations and falls with distance: 2 × 2 = 4 over 100 km beats 4 over 200 km, 1 over 80 km and 6 over 400 km. The same pair wins whether distance or distance squared is used. The 3-million and 2-million pair has the largest product, but the long distance outweighs it. -
On an isolated, uniform plain with one central market and transport costs that rise with distance, how would von Thünen's model arrange farm activities?
A) Dairy and vegetables nearest, ranching farthest
B) Grain nearest, dairy and vegetables farthest
C) Ranching nearest, dairy and vegetables farthest
D) Ranching nearest, forest for fuel farthestA) Dairy and vegetables nearest, ranching farthestAgriculture and Rural Land Use
Perishable, costly-to-ship products such as dairy and vegetables pay best close to the market, while ranching uses the cheapest outer land. Grain sits in a middle ring because it keeps well and is cheaper to haul than milk. -
A mostly agricultural country sees investment climb rapidly in a few manufacturing industries, such as textiles, which begin to drive growth across the economy. Which of Rostow's stages does this describe?
A) Takeoff
B) Traditional society
C) High mass consumption
D) Drive to maturityA) TakeoffIndustrial and Economic Development
In takeoff, a few leading industries grow quickly and pull the rest of the economy forward. The drive to maturity comes later, when industry diversifies widely beyond those first leading sectors.
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About these cards
Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.
Checked against:
- Checked against the United Nations Development Programme's Human Development Report 2025 technical notes (HDI definition), the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Pew Research Center's Global Religious Landscape (2012), and the original works behind several models (von Thünen 1826, Rostow 1960, Omran 1971); reference only, no text copied.
- Unit order and topics follow the AP Human Geography Course and Exam Description (effective fall 2020); reference only.
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