AP Human Geography Quiz

B: The ecological fallacy is a failure in reasoning that occurs when an observation at one scale is applied to another scale. An example would be assuming that the food preferences of a classroom of students are the same food preferences held by the entire school, or by the surrounding town. (B) is correct. The remaining answer choices, (A), (C), (D), and (E), are all factually incorrect, but they are not examples of the ecological fallacy. (Also, note that the ecological part of the term does not mean it is related to ecology.)

B: Islam’s spread via trade networks is an example of relocation and contagious diffusion, as Muslim traders traveled to new locations and spread their religion person-to- person; (B) is correct. Their religion mainly spread by word of mouth, not by the popular appeal of merchants or by any other form of hierarchical diffusion; thus, (A) and (C) are incorrect. Islam as a religion was not majorly changed by those who adopted it in East Africa and Southeast Asia, so it would be inaccurate to label it stimulus diffusion; thus, (D) and (E) are incorrect.

C: Proruptions are extended landmasses that project outward from a country’s mainland. Namibia’s prorupted strip in the Northeast provides it with access to the Zambezi River, facilitating the country’s access to natural resources and trade. Proruptions in other countries typically serve similar purposes. (C) is correct. Because proruptions are extensions of land, countries with such shapes are less compact, which tends to make transportation within the country more challenging. Thus, (A) and (E) are incorrect. The prorupted shape in Namibia’s case is not about controlling its citizens; (B) is incorrect. Namibia is an independent state, not a colony, so (D) is also incorrect.

D: By double- or triple-cropping, farmers can double or triple their profits by replanting the same type of crop multiple times within a single growing season. How- ever, more importantly, the increased production from growing two or three crops per year can support more people. Because of this practice, the world will see less famine. Thus, (D) is correct. Subsistence farmers grow only enough food to feed themselves and their family, leaving little surplus for trade to others; (A) is incorrect. Double- and triple-cropping merely grows more of the same crop type. So, consumers would simply have more of one type of food; (B) is incorrect. Crop rotation involves different types of crops being cycled through a single field, not more of the same type of crop; (C) is incorrect. While double- and triple-cropping can help commercial farmers meet business demands, it is also practiced by family farmers without investors; (E) is incorrect.

B: Traditional European cities were built long before the invention of the automobile, resulting in streets that are difficult for modern driving; (B) is correct. European cities often intermix zones, while structures in the United States are often zoned for a single use, eliminating (A). (C) is incorrect since European cities have a dendritic street pattern, while U.S. cities usually have a grid street pattern. Islamic cities, not European cities, are built to reflect religious beliefs, making (D) incorrect. U.S. cities have skyscrapers that are located in the central business district; (E) is incorrect.