IB Geography — Core Themes flashcards
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IB Geography core: changing population, global climate vulnerability and resilience, and resource consumption and security, plus key terms from the freshwater, oceans, hazards and urban options.
Learn deck · part of IB Geography · written against: IB Diploma Programme IB Geography current subject guide; SL and HL in one deck, HL-only cards under subtopic tags starting HL. Updated 2026-10-10.
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Why is world population distribution so uneven?People concentrate where physical factors (moderate climate, fertile lowland soils, water, coasts) and human factors (jobs, trade routes, a long history of settlement) favour them, leaving deserts, high mountains and polar regions sparsely peopled.Changing Population › Population and Development
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How is the dependency ratio calculated, and what does a high value signal?Dependents (aged 0–14 plus 65 and over) divided by the working-age population (15–64), times 100; a high value means each worker supports more dependents, through families or taxes.Changing Population › Population and Development
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What is a demographic dividend, and what does a country need to benefit from it?The economic boost possible when fertility falls and the working-age share of the population swells; it is realised only if there are enough jobs, education and investment to employ the large cohort.Changing Population › Population and Development
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Why do greenhouse gases trap outgoing heat while letting most incoming sunlight through?Incoming solar energy arrives mostly as shortwave radiation that passes through the atmosphere; Earth re-emits energy as longwave infrared, which molecules such as CO₂, methane and water vapour absorb and re-radiate, some of it back toward the surface.Global Climate Vulnerability and Resilience › Climate System and Change
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What is albedo, and why does it matter for the global energy balance?Albedo is the proportion of incoming solar radiation a surface reflects: fresh snow reflects most of it, while oceans and forests reflect little, so changes in ice cover or land use alter how much energy Earth absorbs.Global Climate Vulnerability and Resilience › Climate System and Change
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Why does water vapour amplify global warming?A warmer atmosphere holds more water vapour, which is itself a greenhouse gas, so an initial warming from CO₂ produces extra warming: the water vapour feedback, one of the strongest positive feedbacks.Global Climate Vulnerability and Resilience › Climate System and Change
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What does it mean when a country's ecological footprint exceeds its biocapacity?It is running an ecological deficit: it uses more productive land and sea than its own territory can regenerate, by importing resources or by depleting stocks and overloading carbon sinks.Global Resource Consumption and Security › Consumption and Sustainability
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How do neo-Malthusian and cornucopian views of resources differ?Neo-Malthusians (e.g. The Limits to Growth, 1972) warn that growth will hit resource limits and collapse; cornucopians (e.g. Julian Simon) argue that human ingenuity, prices and technology will keep finding substitutes.Global Resource Consumption and Security › Consumption and Sustainability
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Describe the drainage basin as an open system.Inputs (precipitation) pass through stores (interception, soil, groundwater, channels) by flows (infiltration, throughflow, overland flow) to outputs (evapotranspiration and river discharge to the sea).Options › Freshwater
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On a storm hydrograph, what is lag time?The time between peak rainfall and peak discharge; a short lag time and high peak mean a 'flashy' river with greater flood risk.Options › Freshwater
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Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.
Checked against:
- IB Diploma Programme Geography guide for first assessment 2019, the current guide as of October 2026 (topic outline only; no text copied).
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