There will be two types of questions. Half of the questions will be based on figures from the text and lectures. Your exam packet will include a handout with selected figures. You can prepare for these questions by reading the textbook and attending lectures. The lectures emphasize graphs and figures to help you better understand the material they convey. A typical question of this type is:

Refer to Figure 6.3 in your textbook. It shows that:

• a. the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by over 40 percent since 1960.
• b. the seasonal variability in fossil fuel use causes the carbon dioxide to rise and fall.
  
• c. the biosphere removes large quantities of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere during the growing season and returns it to the atmosphere during the dormant season.
  
• d. carbon dioxide is now about one percent of all the gas molecules in the atmosphere
  

The second type of question is a standard multiple choice question that refers to more general information. You can preview these questions on the computer, and take practice quizzes to test your understanding of the course. See the next section of the Introduction for further details. A typical question drawn from the computer files is:

The length of one degree of longitude is approximately ________ at the equator and ________ at the poles.

• a. 0 km/ 111 km (0 mi/ 69 mi)
  
• b. 10 km/ 100 km (6mi/ 62 mi)
  
• c. 100 km/ 10 km (62 mi/ 6mi)
  
• d. 111 km/ 0 km (69 mi/ 0 mi)
  
• e. The distance of one degree of longitude is approximately 111 km (69 mi) everywhere on the earth’s surface.
  

Taking Practice Quizzes/Exams
You can take practice quizzes for each major theme or section in the course using the Internet. The questions you will see are chosen from the databases of questions that the instructor uses to develop the exams. Therefore, by taking practice quizzes, you test your own understanding of the material and get a preview of the questions that will appear on the exams. Remember, however, that only 20 questions are selected for each exam, and there are hundreds of questions in the databases. Therefore, it will help you to take quizzes on a regular basis throughout the semester.

There are five databases of questions. Each database has questions for one major section of the course. These sections are shown on the class schedule as THEME 1 - SETTING THE STAGE, THEME 2 - EARTH’S MANY CLIMATES, etc. The table below shows the units of the textbook that relate to each theme and to each test.

Practice Test	Theme	Units in Textbook	Exam
1	Setting The Stage	1 - 4	1, 3
2	Earth's Many Climates	5 - 21	1, 3
3	Earth's Tectonic Activities	29 - 36	1, 3
4	Earth/Atmosphere Interface	22 - 28; 37 - 48	2, 3
5	Landscapes Integrate Env. Processes	49 - 51	2, 3

Here is how to use the practice quizzes.
1. Go to Internet using Netscape, Microsoft Internet Explorer that comes with Windows 95, or other Internet software.

2. Type in the address for the practice quizzes: http://www.lib.siu.edu/projects/test/geog303i
You will go to a home page with the heading "Geography 3031 Practice Exams".

3. Type your ID number next to the practice quiz (or test) that you want to take. The insructor has entered your ID numbers, but there may be some mistakes. If you get athe message: "Your request was not evaluated because the ID number is incorrect", re-enter the number to make sure you typed it correctly the first time. If you get the message a second time, report this to the instructor or TA. You can do this by using the email address shown in the next section.

4. Click on the correct answer for each question.

5. You can return to the test by clicking on the Back button on the menu bar, compare your answer with the correct answer, and change your answer, if necessary. You can go back and forth between the test questions and the answer page as often as you want. The correct answer is shown, but the reason for its being correct is not. Go to the appropriate unit of the text and read the material again in order to understand the material thoroughly.

6. Remember, you get a sample of ten questions with each quiz. Take several quizzes. Also, remember that each database includes questions from all the units in a particular Theme. If you have not read all the units in the Theme, there will be questions that you do not recognize; they're "off the wall." Just ignore them. We will get to that material.

Getting in Touch With us by E-Mail
You can communicate with the instructor and the graduate assistants via e-mail.
The e-mail addesss for Geog 303i is: geog303c@siu.edu (The "c" in geog303c refers to "campus.")

We will read our GEOG303i e-mail daily and respond. The purpose is to make it easier for you to ask questions or make comments about the course. If you ask a question about the course which other students are concerned about , we may add the question and our response to the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section of the homepage (discussed in the next section).

The GEOG303i Homepage
We are developing a homepage so that you can do some of the work in GEOG 303i on a computer. Visit the homepage on the Internet. Its current address is: http://thunder.lib.siu.edu/dbrowne/geog/

The menu on the homepage will give you access to many materials for the course, including FAQ.