The ____ forms a natural barrier between the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of Europe. 

• Ural Mountains

• Alps

• Pyrenees Mountains

• Carpathian Mountains

A large part of the Netherlands was once covered by shallow seas, inland lakes, and swamps. The Dutch turned this wetland into dry land suitable for farming and building by constructing polders. Polders are areas of land that were once submerged under water. They are made by building dikes to hold back the water and using pumps and canals to artificially drain the lowlands.

What problem is MOST likely to arise from the Dutch polder system?

• Other countries trying to claim the new land

• Enemies of the country sabotaging the pumps

• Dutch citizens refusing to pay for maintenance

• Flooding causing environmental damage

Canals facilitate faster distribution of goods to market. Both of these European rivers have been a major source for transportation and irrigation.

• Rhine and Danube Rivers

• Amazon and Nile Rivers

• Mississippi and St. Lawrence Rivers

• Volga and Yellow Rivers

Even though western Europe is so far north of the Equator, it still has a mild, temperate climate. Why is this so?

• the thinning ozone layer has brought cooler temperature to western Europe

• it hardly ever rains in western Europe, so the climate remains warm

• most of Europe falls within 300 miles of a seacoast, keeping temperatures mild

• Alpine winds blow throughout southern Europe, cooling off the continent

What is pictured here, is the highest peak in Europe, and located in the French Alps

• Mount Everest

• Mount McKinley

• Carpathian Mountains

• Mount Blanc

More than half of Europe is covered by a region of rich farmland called the

• North European Plain

• Alpine Mountain System

• Northwestern Highlands

• none of these

Glaciers carved out ____ in Scandinavian Peninsula

• Fjords

• Lakes

• both of these

• neither of these

Acid rain is destroying the Black Forest. This is a major problem for what country?

• Italy

• United Kingdom

• Russia

• Germany

In the early 1990s, the economies of both Russia and Poland —

• thrived after a transition from capitalism to socialism

• struggled because of rising wages for workers

• struggled during the transition from communism to capitalism

• thrived because of increased foreign investment in business

Italy is a modern country with an ancient history. It was the seat of the Roman Empire, the birthplace of the Renaissance, and the center of the Catholic Church. Today, Italy is known for the architecture and art that remain from past centuries.

Based on the description above, what is the BEST characterization of modern Italy?

• agrarian and democratic

• urban and industrial

• traditional and historical

• secular and progressive