Ch 11: The Americas

Why did people in the early Americas not use the wheel?

• They failed to invent the wheel.

• Anything circular was viewed as an omen of bad luck.

• Boats were preferred for transportation.

• There were no large animals to pull wagons.

Khipu, a method for recording information, was made out of what?

• Obsidian

• Strings

• Animal bones

• Stone

The process of nixtamalization, boiling the maize with lime, did what?

• Hardened maize for use in tools and cookware

• Rendered maize kernels digestible

• Provided a medicine for common ailments

• Increased the nutritional value of maize

What was the central food crop in the high altitude of the Andes?

• Maize

• Squash

• Potatoes

• Beans

Which pack animal was used to bring in crops in the Andes?

• Horses & wagon

• Oxen & wagon

• Humans/People

• Alpacas/Llama

What evidence in this illustration reflects the belief of many historians that the Aztecs practiced ritual sacrifice as a means of honoring or nourishing the gods?

• The number of onlookers at the base of the steps suggests its importance as a religious ritual.

• The person's heart who was sacrificed is drifting up toward the heavens.

• Based upon their physical appearance, the victims may have been prisoners of war.

• The victim near the bottom of the steps is being dragged away, possibly to be dismembered.

The Moche flourished along Peru's northern coast by

• mining gold.

• serving as guides through the Andes.

• developing a complex irrigation system.

• creating a warrior culture.

Changes in the ocean current patterns brought by El Niños

• brought winds that enabled trade with the Pacific islands.

• were necessary for farming in the Andes.

• devastated whole civilizations.

• brought cyclical floods that regenerated the land.

What did Incan emperors force conquered peoples to do in order to unify their empire?

• To accept Inca, the royal name

• To use Quechua, the Incan language

• To wear an Incan clothing style

• To send their children to be raised in the capital

How did the Inca link their empire together?

• They had an advanced system of roads that held the empire together.

• All villages sent representatives to the capital to engage in sporting activities.

• There was a common ethnicity among the population.

• Scholars translated local texts into Quechua, making all people feel like part of the empire.