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LEARNING INTENTIONS:
By the end of this chapter I will be able to:
• analyse and interpret data contained in graphs;
• create a graph from given data;
• apply graph skills in the presentation of data in a geographical investigation;
• understand that care and accuracy are important to ensure maximum marks are
earned;
• ensure all graphs are constructed on graph paper.
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Graph Skills
Many areas of geographical studies involve the collection and analysis of data.
To make this data accessible involves its presentation in a more accessible form.
Graphs are used to present data in visual form, making it easier to interpret.

KEYWORDS
bar chart pie chart triangle graphs
x-axis trend graph choropleth maps
y-axis climograph
stacked bar chart scatter graph
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Graphs can illustrate many different types of data, show trends over time and allow data
comparisons to be made.

Types of Graph:
• Bar chart
• Stacked bar chart When you’re drawing a graph, remember to add SALT:
• Trend (line) graph S Is the scale suitable?
• Climograph A Are the axis intervals equal?
• Scatter graph
L Are both axes labelled?
• Triangle graph
T Have you titled the graph?
• Choropleth maps
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Types of Graph
Bar chart
A bar chart displays data in separate columns.
It is the most frequently used method for
answering examination questions requiring
students to draw graphs to display data.
Guidelines for drawing a bar chart:
 they must be drawn on graph paper;
 always use a ruler to ensure straight
lines;
 draw and label the x and y axes;
 plot the data, making sure that columns
are straight and of equal width;
 columns can be coloured/shaded;
 give the chart a title based on the
information it contains. Bar chart of the top five
European cities by population.
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Stacked bar chart

A stacked bar chart is used to
display a variety of data, for
example, energy consumption by
sector, waste disposal by method or
agricultural exports by type.

These graphs allow comparisons to

be made between the different data
parts.

Too many categories, however, can

make it difficult to identify patterns.
Stacked bar chart showing data related to European waste disposal.
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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING
Examine the bar chart in Figure 15.2 in your textbook, which shows the methods used
for the disposal of waste by a number of European countries, and answer the following
questions.

1. Which country sent 60% of its waste to landfill?

Finland

2. Which country recycled the largest percentage of its waste? (Name the country and
the percentage).
Austria recycled approx. 64% of its waste.

3. Which country incinerated the largest percentage of its waste? (Name the country
and the percentage).
Luxembourg incinerated 60% of its waste.
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Pie chart

Pie charts are circular charts whose sectors show the proportions of a data set, for
example, primary, secondary and tertiary economic activities.
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How to construct a pie chart:

Construction of pie charts involves
calculating the number of degrees
that are needed to represent the
different data categories.

1. If the data is not already in

percentage format, calculate the
percentages.

2. Convert percentages into degrees

by multiplying by 3.6.

3. For example, if one segment of the

chart was worth 90% of the total,
the sum would be: 90 × 3.6 = 324°.
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3. Use a compass to draw a suitably-sized circle, and then use a protractor

to mark out the degree segments for each category. Remember to shift
the protractor to zero again after each segment!

4. Label each segment with the percentage data.

5. Colour or shade the separate segments as appropriate.

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Pie chart (continued)
Example
The table below shows the proportions of energy
consumed by different sectors in Ireland.

To display the data in a pie chart format, the percentages

must first be converted to degrees.
You multiply the value for each sector by 3.6 to give the
number of degrees it will need on the pie chart.
Using a protractor the different values/sectors can then be Fig. 15.4 Sample pie chart.
plotted onto a circle to create a pie chart.
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Pie charts showing percentage share of total passengers for Irish airports 2005 and 2013.
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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING
Examine the pie charts in Figure 15.5 in your textbook showing the percentage share of total
passengers by airport in Ireland in 2005 and 2013, and answer each of the following questions.

1. Which airport had the largest percentage share of total passengers in 2013?
Dublin airport had 81.7% of total passenger numbers in 2013.

2. Which airport had the second largest percentage share of total passengers in 2005?
At 12.9% Shannon had the second largest percentage of passengers.

3. Calculate the decrease in Shannon Airport’s percentage share of total passengers between
2005 and 2013.
Shannon’s passenger share fell from 12.9% in 2005 to 5.3% in 2013 a fall of 7.6%.

4. Explain briefly one economic effect of a decrease in passenger numbers at Shannon Airport
on the Shannon Region.
A decrease in passenger numbers means less visitors to the region served by Shannon. This results in
reduced revenue from tourism leading to job losses in this sector.
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SKILLS
ACTIVITY
Construct a pie chart to illustrate the data in this table.
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Overseas visitors to Ireland 2016

6%

17%
42%

35%

Great Britain Mainland Europe North America Rest of World

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Trend (line) graph

Trend – or line – graphs show patterns
or trends in data over time.

They can include a variety of

categories: for example, population
data: birth rates, death rates, life
expectancy rates.

Trend graph showing unemployment rates in the European Union.

 CHECK YOUR
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LEARNING
Examine the trend graph in Figure 15.6 in your textbook and answer each of the following
questions.
1. Which country had the highest percentage unemployment between 2008 and 2012 and which
country had the lowest percentage unemployment between 2008 and 2012?
Spain had the highest percentage unemployment in that period.
The Netherlands had the lowest percentage unemployment in that period.

2. Which country had the most significant increase in percentage unemployment between 2010
and 2012?
Greece.

3. Name two countries where the percentage unemployment decreased between 2006 and 2007.
The Netherlands and Greece.

4. Calculate the increase in the percentage unemployment in the EU (27) between 2009 and 2012
and state one reason for this increase.
Unemployment increased by 1.5%.
The main reason for the decline was the recession caused by problems in the international banking system.
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Climograph
A climograph is a graph that
combines precipitation and
temperature data of a selected
station for an extended period of
time.

Precipitation is represented by a bar

chart, while a line graph is used to
represent temperature data.

Temperature range: The difference

Climograph for Paris, 2015.
between the highest and lowest recorded
temperatures in a given data set.
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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING
Examine the climograph in Figure 15.7 in your textbook and answer each of the
following questions.
1. Which month recorded the lowest average temperature? (Name the month and
state the temperature).
January (01) recorded the lowest temperature.

2. Which month recorded the highest average temperature? (Name the month and
state the temperature).
July recorded a temperature of approx. 190 C.

3. What was the total annual rainfall amount for Paris for 2015?

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Total = 637 mms
54 46 50 44 58 56 53 51 56 57 58 54
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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING

4. What was the annual temperature range for 2015?

Jan 3.5 0 C to July 19.2 0 C
19.2 – 3.5 = 15.7 0 C

5. Which months recorded average temperatures above 15°C?

May, June, July, August and September all recorded temperatures above 15°C.
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Scatter graph
A scatter graph is used to show the
relationship (correlation) between two
data sets.
A positive correlation sees both factors
moving in the same direction, as in this
diagram.
In the diagram, as the GDP (gross domestic
product) per capita increases, so too does
the life expectancy rate, suggesting a
positive correlation.
A negative correlation would see the values
Scatter graph showing
on the y-axis decrease as those on the x- the relationship between GDP and life expectancy.
axis increase.
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Triangle graph
A triangle graph is used to show the
relationship between three different
components.
It consists of three axes, divided into 100
intervals representing percentage values,
forming an equilateral triangle.
Lines are drawn at angles of 60° from each
axis.
This type of graph is usually used to show soil
composition data, but they have other
applications including population analysis.
To read triangle graphs: start with the left
axis, find the value and then moving in an
anticlockwise direction, find the values along
the other two axes.
This diagram, shows the respective
Triangle graph showing soil composition components.
compositions of two soil samples, A and B.
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% CLAY
% SILT

% SAND
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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING
Study Figure 15.9 in your textbook and calculate the composition of soils C and D.
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55% 20%

35% 40%

10% 40%
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Choropleth maps
Choropleth maps use shading or
colour to show variations in data.

A legend or key provides

information relating to the data.

These maps are widely used in

demographic studies where they
show components of population
change

Fig 15.10 Choropleth map showing net migration by county 2011–

2016 (CSO).
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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING
Examine the map in Figure 15.10 in your textbook and answer each of the following
questions.

1. Name any two counties that experienced net out-migration greater than 3,000
persons.
Co. Mayo and Co. Galway.

2. Name any two counties that experienced net in-migration.

Fingal County and Co. Laois.
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EXAMINATION
ORDINARY LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i) Nepal had the highest percentage of primary economic activities 81%. 2 marks

(ii) 23% +24% = 47% 2 marks

(iii) Ireland has the most developed economy. 2 marks

(iv) Teaching is an example of tertiary economic activity. 2 marks.

Fishing is an example of primary economic activity. 2 marks.
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EXAMINATION
ORDINARY LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i)

B
D
A
C 4 X 2 marks = 8

(ii) Using graphs makes it easier to interpret data as we are able to see trends and make
comparisons.
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EXAMINATION
ORDINARY LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i) 8.6 % of Irelands population is employed in the agri-food and drink sector. 3 marks

(ii) The value of exports in 2015 was €10.8 billion. 3 marks

(iii) 41% is the value of x ( 28% + 31% = 59% 100% - 59% = 41%) 6 marks

(iv) 4.5 million hectares of land is used for agriculture. 3 marks

730,000 hectares of land is used for forestry. 3 marks

(v) One advantage is that we are part of the Single market. 3 marks
This allows our products tariff free access to a market of over 500 million people. 3 marks

(vi) One disadvantage is that while production costs are rising prices paid to farmers are not. 3 marks
This means many farmers have to take on part time work outside farming to make up the loss. 3 marks
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EXAMINATION
ORDINARY LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i) The two most popular destinations were

1. The Guinness Storehouse with 1,157,900 visitors 3 marks
2. 2. Dublin Zoo with 1,026,611 3 marks

(ii) Fota Wildlife Park had the least number. It received 365,396 visitors. 2 x 3 marks

(iii) 550,000 – 435,000 = 115,000 6 marks

(iv) One positive effect of tourism in Ireland is it provides employment in areas where there is little economic
opportunity. 3 marks
Employment in the tourism sector in the Western Region is hugely important and thanks to the Wild Atlantic way
tourism numbers are growing. 3 marks

(v) One negative effect of tourism is its seasonal nature. Most visitors come in the summer months which means
that during the winter some business have to close while others are forced to reduce staff numbers. 2 x 3 marks
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EXAMINATION
HIGHER LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i) The percentage of hydro power consumed was 9% 2 marks

(ii) 10% 2 marks

(iii) 48% (68% - 20 = 48%) 2 marks

(iv) Geothermal energy is created when the heated material (magma) within the earth’s
crust is used to turn water to steam. This steam is used for heating and the generation of
electricity. 2 marks
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EXAMINATION
HIGHER LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i) Six 4 marks

(ii) Border/Midland 4 marks

(iii) Mid East 4 marks

(iv) Dublin 4 marks

(V) As a core economic region Dublin is a major centre of secondary and tertiary economic
activity. Competition for skilled labour leads to higher wage rates, resulting in increased
disposable income. 2 x 2 marks
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EXAMINATION
HIGHER LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i) X 60.3 (%) 4 marks

(ii) 80 (years) or over 2 marks Increased life expectancy due to better
education and better medical facilities will result in more people living beyond 80 years
2 marks

(iii) 0-19 (years) 20 to 64 (years) 2 x 2 marks

(iv) A declining birth rate will result in long term population decline. 2 marks
This will result in labour shortages and impact on government revenue from taxation. 2 marks

The 20–64 age group is the productive sector of any economy and declining numbers in this sector will impact on
the dependency ratio. 2 marks
As the number of dependents increases, the productive sector will have to pay more by way of taxation to
support the dependent sector of the population. 2 marks
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EXAMINATION
HIGHER LEVEL
QUESTIONS
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(i) 17% 4 marks

(ii) Spain and 19%. 2 x 2 marks

(iii) Netherlands and Greece 2 + 2 marks

(iv) Any valid explanation:

CFP funding has been used to develop the aquaculture sector. 2 marks
Investment has been made in start ups, the promotion of harvesting new species and new ways of adding value
to the harvested product. 2 marks

(v) The CFP has resulted in continuous decline in catches in the commercial fishing sector. 2 marks
As a result, declining incomes have forced some fishermen to abandon fishing while many others need part
time employment to supplement declining incomes. 2 marks
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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING
2018 Tourism Data: Where did Ireland’s tourist come from?
(source Tourism Ireland)

Britain 36%
Mainland Europe 37%
North America 20%
Rest of the World 7%

Draw a suitable graph to illustrate the data shown.

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CHECK YOUR
LEARNING
The table below contains precipitation data for Bemullet, Co. Mayo for the months Jan–Jul 2019.
(source Met Éireann)

Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July

92.7 120.2 151.3 84.7 57.5 86.6 101.0

(i) Draw a suitable graph to represent the data shown.

(ii) Which was the wettest month?
(iii) Which was the driest month?
(iv) Calculate the total precipitation for the seven months shown. Refer to page 291 in your texts.

Referring to the table 19.1 on page 291 in your texts answer the following
(1) For the period Jan–Jul which year had the highest precipitation levels?
(2) Which year recorded the highest monthly levels? Name the year, the month and the amount.
(3) Which year recorded the lowest monthly levels? Name the year, the month and the amount.