Social Studies MSL Practice

Britain lost some of its oldest colonies after the American Revolutionary war. After this loss, British leaders were interested in expanding their empire after defeating Napoleonic France.
How did England's desire to expand its empire affect the global economy?

• England transformed the international arts by selling many plays and drama about its dreams for an empire.
• England achieved its global empire by becoming the leading exporter of finished goods worldwide.
• England exploited its natural resources to win the global competition for land on all continents.
• England colonized various territories and regions around the world. 

How did the opening of the Panama Canal change global trade and interaction?

• It made shipping U.S. goods to new markets more efficient.
• It increased the costs of trading between distant nations.
• It gave the Spanish control of Latin American Trade.
• It led to peace in Central America.

How does raising the price of crude oil in global markets affects national economies?

• National economies must increase funding for alternative fuels.
• National economies must decrease spending on oil-based products.
• National economies must either increase or stabilize prices for oil products through available means.
• National economies must decrease or eliminate government expenditures on essential goods and services.

...reason, which is that law teaches all mankind, who would but consult it, that being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possessions.
 - Second Treatsie on Civil Government by John Locke, 1689
Which concept of the Enlightenment would the above passage most likely support?

• Truth can be discovered through reasoning and logic.
• Humankind can and should improve over time.
• People have a right to equality and freedom.
• What is natural is also reasonable.

UN Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, Article 6, November 7, 1967 2. All appropriate measures shall be taken to ensure the principle of equality of status of the husband and wife, and in particular: (a) Women shall have the same right as men to free choice of a spouse and to enter into marriage only with their free and full consent; (b) Women shall have equal rights with men during marriage and at its dissolution. In all cases the interest of the children shall be paramount; (c) Parents shall have equal rights and duties in matters relating to their children. In all cases the interest of the children shall be paramount.
What does the document promote for women concerning marriage?

• Women must obey their husbands.
• Women will freely decide who they shall marry.
• Women have no rights when it comes to marriage.
• Women will have sole custody of children in the case of divorce.

England, an island nation, is geographically separated from other countries in Europe. This separation led to the construction of the Chunnel, an underwater tunnel between England and France, opened in 1994. Which is a likely result of the building of the Chunnel?

• Conflict between England and other European countries over trade rights .
• Greater trade and travel between England and other European countries.
• European use of the British pound as a standard for trade.
• Decreased value of the European Union's currency.

French Revolution Factors
• unfair taxation
• government fraudulence
• feudal oppression
Chinese Revolution Factors
• government corruption
• unfair treatment of poor
• desire for freedom
Iranian Revolution Factors
• inflation
• government mismanagement
 • large government debt
Which has been a major factor in revolutions, such as that of the French in 1789, the Chinese in 1949, and the Iranians in 1979?

• a growing population
• a new, advanced technology
• a policy of religious toleration
• a weak or corrupt government

Germany, a European nation, has a legal system based on secular (nonreligious) law. Iran, a Middle Eastern country, has a legal system that mixes secular and religious laws. Which statement compares the legal systems of Germany and Iran?

• Religion has a greater influence on Iran’s legal system than on Germany’s legal system.
• Religion has a greater influence on Germany’s legal system than on Iran’s legal system.
• Both Germany’s and Iran’s legal systems are founded on religious principles.
• Both Germany’s and Iran’s legal systems are founded on nonreligious principles.

Can we doubt (remembering that many more individuals are born than can possibly survive) that individuals having any advantage, however slight, over others, would have the best chance of surviving and of [reproducing] their kind? . . . This preservation of favourable variations and the rejection of injurious variations, I call Natural Selection.
- Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species, 1859
Based on the excerpt, how might a social Darwinist explain societal divisions?

• The upper class willingly sacrifices its own well-being to help the lower class.
• The upper and lower classes work together to ensure the success of both groups.
• The social classes are divided equally to ensure equal access to existing economic opportunities.
• The upper class better adapts and thrives within modern societies than the middle and lower classes.

During the Italian Renaissance, artists and thinkers rediscovered classical knowledge and art. As part of that process some artists, particularly Leonardo da Vinci, began to challenge the explanations for the natural world offered by the Church. How did Renaissance art influence modern society?

• Artists lost importance once they began to challenge social norms.
• Intellectuals began to explore scientific explanations for the world.
• Art became the only way through which to question society.
• Monarchs became the only people who could gain access to knowledge.