Lesson 3.2.3.9

3.2.3.9 Urban environments: case studies Quiz: AQA Geography, Unit 2

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 3.2.3.9, Urban environments: case studies: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA Geography (7037), Unit 2: Human geography, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. A case study of two contrasting urban areas is most useful for analysing which aspect of urban change?

    • Historical battles fought within each city boundary
    • Only the architectural style of landmark buildings
    • Patterns of economic and social well-being alongside physical environmental conditions
    • The number of tourists visiting each city in one year

  2. When comparing two contrasting urban case studies, which factor should be considered in relation to environmental sustainability?

    • The number of football stadiums in each city
    • The distance of each city from the nearest international airport only
    • Only the colour of the buildings in the central district
    • The implications of the environmental conditions and processes for sustainability in each area

  3. Which combination best describes what a strong urban case study should include?

    • A list of local festivals with no environmental data
    • Maps of underground railways and nothing else
    • Only economic data from the national government
    • Patterns of well-being, physical environmental conditions, and the experiences and attitudes of residents

  4. Which measure would best show patterns of economic well-being in an urban case study area?

    • Median household income and rates of unemployment compared across neighbourhoods
    • The average annual rainfall for the nearest rural station
    • The number of bus stops in the city centre
    • The number of museums per square kilometre

  5. A case study finds that a city's poorest districts have the highest air pollution. What type of analysis does this represent?

    • Linking environmental conditions to social patterns of well-being
    • Measuring the carbon cycle in a forest
    • Analysing river discharge only
    • Mapping coastal erosion rates

  6. In an urban case study, which technique would most effectively show how land values and housing quality vary across a city?

    • Counting the number of trees in the nearest national park
    • Choropleth mapping of census or survey data by district
    • Calculating the average depth of the city's sewers only
    • Analysing a single photograph of the city centre

  7. Which feature of an urban case study would best address the experience and attitudes of its population?

    • Satellite imagery of the city's road network, which shows the layout of streets and junctions but records nothing about people's views
    • Monthly rainfall totals for the city, recorded at a single gauge in the centre, which describes weather but nothing about residents
    • Questionnaire or interview data from residents about their views on local conditions
    • Records of building heights only, counted from planning files, which describe the structures but not how people feel about them

  8. Two contrasting urban areas are compared. One has high economic inequality and the other has high levels of investment. What is the best basis for comparison?

    • The colour schemes of public signage in each area, photographed and compared to show how each district presents itself to visitors
    • Measures of income distribution, investment and housing quality for both areas
    • The average height of trees in the central parks of each area, measured with clinometers and compared across the two districts
    • The total number of historic monuments in each area, counted from heritage registers to show how old the built environment is

  9. Which argument best explains why a case study should consider both physical and human factors in an urban area?

    • Physical conditions such as topography and climate interact with human decisions to shape urban outcomes
    • Physical and human factors operate completely independently of each other, so each can be studied in isolation from the other
    • Only human factors determine urban outcomes, so physical data are irrelevant, because policy and investment decide every urban result
    • Only physical factors determine urban outcomes, so human data are unnecessary, since topography and climate set every result in cities

  10. In an urban case study, a researcher finds that a river is heavily polluted downstream of an industrial estate. Which conclusion is best supported by this evidence?

    • Pollution in the river is caused only by rainfall, since storm water is the sole source of contamination in any urban river system
    • Industrial discharge is likely affecting water quality and may create environmental and health risks for residents
    • The river is naturally very clean and unaffected by the estate, so the pollution must have arrived from upstream sources instead
    • Industrial estates have no effect on river water quality, because factories are required by law to discharge only clean water into rivers

  11. Which combination of data would best support an evaluation of urban sustainability in a case study?

    • The number of football clubs in the city, counted from league tables and compared with the number of clubs in other cities
    • The age of the city's oldest bridge, measured from engineering records and compared with the age of each of its newer crossings
    • Energy use, transport patterns, air quality and housing density for the area
    • The number of local festivals and parades held each year, counted from event listings and compared with attendance at each event

  12. A case study of a city concludes that its sustainability strategies have improved liveability but worsened equity. What type of evaluation does this represent?

    • A complete rejection of any change in urban policy, since every intervention is judged to have failed regardless of its measured outcomes
    • A one-sided assessment that ignores social outcomes, focusing only on environmental gains and treating economic costs as irrelevant
    • A purely descriptive list of city landmarks, with each building and street named in order and no evaluation of any policy effects
    • A balanced evaluation recognising trade-offs between dimensions of sustainability

  13. Which step is most important when designing an urban case study comparison?

    • Choosing cities with the same name regardless of location, so that the comparison draws on whichever places share the same label
    • Choosing areas that contrast on the key themes, such as economic development or population density
    • Choosing areas with no data available at all, so that the analysis depends entirely on the researcher's impressions of each place
    • Choosing two cities that are identical in every respect, so that any differences found in the study can be attributed to a single factor

  14. A city's population density is 6,000 people per square kilometre in one area and 1,500 per square kilometre in another. How many times greater is the density of the first area?

    • 7.5 times
    • 4 times
    • 6 times
    • 1.5 times

  15. Which factor is most important in analysing how the experience of residents varies in an urban case study?

    • The total length of the city's rivers, measured from maps and compared with the length of each street that runs alongside them
    • The number of trees planted in each district in a single year, counted from the council's planting records for that twelve-month period
    • Differences in income, age, tenure and location within the city
    • The number of traffic lights per square kilometre alone, counted at every junction and compared with the number of bus stops nearby

  16. A fieldwork-based urban study records litter, noise and street condition at sites across a city. What is the main purpose of this type of data?

    • To identify the oldest buildings in each district, recording construction dates from maps and comparing them across neighbourhoods
    • To determine the value of the city's currency against other currencies, using exchange rates recorded at the same time each day
    • To measure environmental quality and its variation between neighbourhoods
    • To count the number of residents in each house, recorded door by door and compared with the number of rooms in each dwelling

  17. Which argument best evaluates the strength of a single urban case study for general conclusions?

    • It always provides conclusions that apply to all cities in the world, because each place reflects the same pattern of urban change
    • It is useless because it is based on a single place, so no evidence from one city can ever inform understanding of any other
    • It provides detailed evidence for that place but its findings may not apply to other cities without caution
    • It only works if the study is carried out by a national government, since local researchers lack the authority to collect urban data

  18. In an urban case study, which pattern would indicate that environmental quality and social deprivation are closely linked?

    • Areas with high deprivation consistently showing poorer air and noise environments
    • No consistent relationship between deprivation and environmental quality, since poor and wealthy districts show similar noise levels
    • Deprived areas having more parks per resident than wealthy areas, which means poorer districts enjoy more green space for each person
    • Areas with high deprivation showing the cleanest air and quietest streets, because wealthier districts host busier roads and factories

  19. A case study finds that sustainable drainage schemes were introduced only in wealthy districts. Which evaluation is most justified?

    • The schemes have reduced poverty across all districts, because better drainage raises property values and lifts incomes in every area
    • The schemes have no relevance to social inequality, since drainage works affect every district in the same way regardless of income
    • The schemes may widen inequality in environmental quality between districts
    • The schemes have improved flood protection equally across the whole city, so every district benefits from the same level of protection

  20. Which combination best describes the purpose of an urban case study in the specification?

    • To predict the population of each city in the year 3000, using current growth rates to project numbers far into the distant future
    • To illustrate and analyse key urban themes using real evidence from contrasting areas
    • To list the architectural history of a single building, tracing each design change from its construction to its present condition
    • To memorise the names of all major cities in the world, using maps and lists to recall each city's location and population size

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