LATIN AMERICA

The Central American countries form this type of landform.

• an archipelago
• a plateau
• a peninsula
• an isthmus

Select the words that BEST complete the following sentence: In 1982, Argentina lost a war with ____ over the ____ and agreed to allow ____.

• Spain, Falkland Islands, open elections
• Great Britain, Falkland Islands, open elections
• Great Britain, Falkland Islands, military rule
• Spain, Falkland Islands, democratic elections

Why did Brazil create a new capital city, Brasília, in the 1950s?

• The capital at Salvador was destroyed by flooding, and the new capital was moved inland.
• It wanted to ease overcrowding in the country’s two largest cities and expand its vast interior.
• The existing capital in the country’s interior was too remote and difficult to reach.
• It chose Brasília because the people wanted the capital closer to the industrial centers of the country.

Which of the following BEST explains the ongoing conflict in Nicaragua?

• land for farming is unevenly distributed
• the many ethnic groups cannot get along with each other
• the Indians are attempting to reclaim their native lands
• its government sides with poor farmers

Why is most of Brazil’s rural population subsistence farmers, despite the fact that the agricultural industry is extremely profitable?

• Only a handful of wealthy families own the large plantations, and most of the rural population own only small plots of land.
• Most farmers live in favelas in the rural northeast where mining is the primary economic activity.
• Coffee is the major cash crop of Brazil, yet most rural Brazilians are not permitted to grow the beans on their land.
• Only a few of subsistence farmers can afford to own large plantations, the rest work for low wages.

You are in the largest and least explored region of Brazil, and it is raining. Where are you?

• the Brazilian Highlands
• the Amazon River Basin
• the Guiana Highlands
• the Mato Grosso

Which of the following resources accounts for Venezuela’s economic wealth?

• gold
• timber
• petroleum
• bauxite

The three Guianas in South America share all of the following except

• similar ethnic composition.
• tropical wet climate.
• rain forests.
• narrow coastal plain.

If you were to fly over some of the Caribbean Islands, which would you be most likely to see?

• grasslands
• large river basins
• buffalo
• volcanic mountains

In which of the following Central American countries is the majority of people of European descent?

• Guatemala
• Costa Rica
• El Salvador
• Belize