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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why were the Europeans not affected by the infectious diseases that they brought to places like the Americas and Australia?

2. The idea that there is a sharp divide between nomadic hunter-gatherers and sedentary food producers is what?

3. What is one explanation that Diamond gives for why food production didn't begin earlier in some ecologically better areas?

4. Independent food production began in how many places?

5. Which location did not see a mass extinction of large mammals that was as large as other locations?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did the developments happen later in the Americas than in Eurasia?

2. How are seeds dispersed?

3. Why did societies in New Guinea and Australia develop differently?

4. Why did Australia not develop writing or complex societies as early as other groups, according to Diamond?

5. What is one other explanation (different than Diamond's) to explain the uneven distribution of wealth and power.

6. What are the four linguistic families found in China?

7. Why are the societies of Asia and the Pacific important according to Diamond?

8. What are some of the changes that have occurred in plants because of domestication?

9. What is surprising about where food production developed early?

10. Why does Diamond believe that a shift in climate is not the best explanation for the mass extinctions of animals?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why weren't Native Americans, Africans, and Aboriginal Australians the ones who conquered and killed Europeans and Asians? What factors lead to these groups being on the losing end rather than the winning one?

Essay Topic 2

What influences a hunter-gatherer society to become food producers? What is surprising about this transition?

Essay Topic 3

How did food production affect societies? What advantages did societies that had food production gain over societies that didn't?

(see the answer keys)

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