Investigation (Edexcel A Level Geography): Exam Questions

Table 1 below shows the area of the northern hemisphere covered by either snow or ice in January and July for selected years between 1970 and 2020.

Table 1

Complete Table 1 by calculating the value of d² for the year 2005 and then calculating the value of Σd².

Using the formula below, calculate R~s~. Give your answer to two decimal places. You must show your working.

R~s~ = 1 − $\left[\frac{6\Sigma d^2}{n^3-n}\right]$

Explain the differences between colonial and neo-colonial mechanisms of maintaining power.

Table 1 below shows data for the level of development of the 38 members of the United Nations that are landlocked countries. A Chi-squared test was used to establish if there is an association between being landlocked and the level of development.

Two hypotheses were set up:

Null hypothesis: There is no significant association between the level of development and being landlocked.

Alternative hypothesis: There is a significant association between the level of development and being landlocked.

Using the formula and the data in Table 1 below, calculate the value of χ². Show your working.

χ² = $\sum _{}\frac{{\left(O-E\right)}^2}{E}$

Table 1

Explain how one theory of development can help an understanding of global patterns of power.

The table below shows data for the 12 richest countries (measured using GDP per capita). The formula for Spearman's rank correlation coefficient is given below.

R = 1 − $\frac{6\sum d^2}{n^3-n}$

Complete the table below and calculate the value of R to two decimal places, where n = 12. Show your working.

Table 1: Military spending as a % of GDP for the 12 richest countries, as measured by their GDP per capita

Explain one reason why many national governments have been keen to join free trade blocs.

Table 1 below shows data for the 10 countries of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) in 2013.

Complete the table below and calculate the GDP per capita (per person) for the ASEAN free trade bloc. Show your working.

Table 1: Economic and population data for the 10 ASEAN countries

A Spearman's rank correlation test gave a value of R for the relationship between income per capita (2014) and tropical rainforest cover loss (1990–2005) for 10 countries.

Explain why the value for R you have calculated may be unreliable.

A Spearman's rank correlation test used a sample of the 12 richest countries (by GDP per capita) to test the relationship between GDP per capita and military spending as a percentage of GDP.

Explain why this sample of 12 countries may be an unreliable measure of that relationship.

A Chi-squared test on the association between being landlocked and a country's level of development gave a value of χ² = 7.26.

To test the significance of this value, the table below was used to determine which hypothesis should be accepted.

State the result of this test of significance.

Explain why the data used in the snow and ice coverage analysis (northern hemisphere area covered by snow or ice, 1970–2020) might not be a reliable guide to the impact of global warming on snow and ice coverage.

A Chi-squared test on the 38 landlocked member states of the United Nations found the association between being landlocked and the level of development to be significant only at the 90% level.

Explain why this result may not be a reliable guide to the relationship between a country being landlocked and its level of development.

Explain why the GDP per capita for the ASEAN free trade bloc may be a misleading statistic.

Explain why tropical rainforests are a globally important physical system.

The table below shows data on income per capita and tropical rainforest cover loss for 10 countries. The formula for Spearman's rank correlation coefficient R is given below.

$R=1-\frac{6\sum d^2}{n^3-n}$

Complete the table below and calculate the value of R for the data given. Show your working.

Explain why transnational corporations (TNCs) benefit from globalisation.

Table 1 shows 2019 data for GDP per capita and the Environmental Vulnerability Index (EVI) for Haiti and 11 of its closest neighbouring countries. A higher EVI score means the country is more vulnerable.

Table 1 — GDP per capita and Environmental Vulnerability Index (EVI) for Haiti and 11 neighbouring countries, 2019. A higher EVI score means greater vulnerability.

Complete Table 1 by calculating the value of d² for the United States.

Then, using the formula below, calculate the value of r_s.

r_s = 1 − (6Σd²) ÷ (n³ − n), where n = 12.

Show your working. Give your answer to one decimal place.

The Spearman result (r_s ≈ −0.0) suggests the null hypothesis — that there is no significant relationship between GDP per capita and the EVI for these 12 countries — should be accepted at the 99% confidence level.

The result suggests that the null hypothesis should be accepted at the 99% confidence level.

Explain why this result may not be reliable.

Explain the differences between hazards and disasters.

Calculate the total for (O−E)² / E for the 'At risk' category for Other States (Column 6).

Answer to one decimal place. You must show your working.

Calculate the value of χ², using the formula below.

Answer to one decimal place. You must show your working.

The result shows that the null hypothesis should be rejected and the alternative hypothesis (shown below) accepted at the 99% confidence level.

Explain how this result might be used to guide further research into the environmental vulnerability of SIDS.

Explain one reason why global demand for energy is likely to rise.

Calculate the mean percentage (%) of people who agreed that climate change is a major threat to their country. Give your answer to one decimal place. You must show your working.

Calculate the interquartile range of the % of people who agreed that climate change is a major threat to their country. You must show your working.

Explain why the data on Table 1 may not be a reliable guide to global opinions about the threat of climate change.