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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following maps can you derive the most accurate estimates of distances from?
(a) A map of the world.
(b) A map of a city.
(c) A map of a city block.
(d) A map of the United States.

2. Why is a compass rose more useful in the United States than in Europe?
(a) The United States is oriented north to south.
(b) Europeans do not learn how to use a compass rose in school.
(c) American cities were laid out with the compass rose in mind.
(d) European countries use the metric system.

3. What continent will decline in population by 2050, according to the United Nations?
(a) Europe.
(b) North America.
(c) Africa.
(d) Asia.

4. Why has the United States been so slow to convert maps to the metric system?
(a) The Ordinance of 1785 required land to be laid out in township squares measured in feet.
(b) U.S. geographers are not accustomed to the metric system and prefer not to use it.
(c) Geographers prefer not to use the metric system in maps until it is used for other things too.
(d) The metric system is not as efficient for mapmaking as the English system of measurement.

5. About what percentage of American students have studied geography in school?
(a) Less than five percent.
(b) Less than 30 percent.
(c) Less than 50 percent.
(d) Less than 10 percent.

6. What approach to foreign affairs is fostered by the decision not to teach geography in public schools?
(a) Callous disregard for the welfare of other societies.
(b) Paternalism toward developing countries.
(c) Isolationism and parochialism.
(d) An international outlook.

7. How did colonial powers in Europe divide up the territory in Africa?
(a) They bought the land from indigenous groups.
(b) They fought wars.
(c) They used economic embargoes to force Africans to agree.
(d) They negotiated peacefully.

8. What two inventions have done the most to increase life expectancy?
(a) The stethoscope and the hypodermic needle.
(b) Effective soap and the flushing toilet.
(c) The electrocardiogram and the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine.
(d) Electricity and electric lights.

9. What had to happen before Earth's land masses could form?
(a) The Moon had to begin orbiting Earth.
(b) The oceans had to form.
(c) Earth's crust had to begin to cool into rock.
(d) Life had to begin to evolve.

10. Which of the following revolutions occurred during the time period in which the nation-state was becoming popular?
(a) The Russian Revolution.
(b) The Industrial Revolution.
(c) The Technological Revolution.
(d) The Cultural Revolution.

11. When did the nation-state emerge in Europe?
(a) Between 1650 and 1850.
(b) Between 1450 and 1550.
(c) Between 1250 and 1450.
(d) Between 1850 and 1950.

12. How do scientists measure the movement of North America each year?
(a) In yards.
(b) In miles.
(c) In feet.
(d) In inches.

13. How many countries are there in the world?
(a) Nearly 200.
(b) Nearly 300.
(c) Nearly 100.
(d) Nearly 400.

14. What cultural group eventually introduced the bubonic plague to Europe?
(a) Indonesians fleeing volcanic eruptions.
(b) African slaves being sold in European markets.
(c) Mongol caravans traveling west.
(d) European merchants traveling to China.

15. What event caused Earth's most recent mass extinction?
(a) A collision with a comet or asteroid.
(b) Mass flooding caused by global warming.
(c) The formation of the Moon.
(d) A temporary lowering in the temperature of the Sun.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does de Blij mean when he refers to a mental map?

2. How did Dr. John Snow use maps to save lives in London during the 19th century?

3. Why was 1816 called "the year without a summer"?

4. What did Georgetown University decide to do in response to the geographic illiteracy of incoming students?

5. Who does de Blij describe as a modern proponent of environmental determinism?

(see the answer keys)

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