AP World History : Science and Technology 600 CE to 1450

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP World History

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Example Questions

Example Question #281 : Ap World History

What is a dhow?

Possible Answers:

A military formation used by the Seljuk Turks

An incendiary weapon that predates the invention of gunpowder

A caravan used to transport goods across land.

A defensive fortification used by the Persians

A sailing ship that uses lateen sails

Correct answer:

A sailing ship that uses lateen sails

Explanation:

A dhow is a traditional sailing vessel which employs lanteen sails. Dhows were (and are) common trading vessels used by Arab and Indian traders in the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean.

Example Question #282 : Ap World History

In what century was gunpowder first introduced to Europe?

Possible Answers:

Sixteenth

Fifteenth

Fourteenth

Seventeenth

Thirteenth

Correct answer:

Thirteenth

Explanation:

Gunpowder was invented in China in the ninth or tenth centuries, during the Song Dynasty, and was first introduced to Europe by the thirteenth century. Most historians believe that gunpowder was introduced to the Europeans by the forces of the Mongol empire at some point in the mid-thirteenth century. Gunpowder, and the introduction of firearm technology, would transform European society.

Example Question #283 : Ap World History

Muhammad al-Khwarizmi is most notable for __________.

Possible Answers:

his contributions to the development of algebra

his contributions to chemistry and alchemy

leading the Moor conquest of the Iberian peninsula

his extensive travels around the Islamic world

developing the silk industry in the Middle East

Correct answer:

his contributions to the development of algebra

Explanation:

Muhammad al-Khwarizmi is most notable for his contributions to the development of algebra. He lived in the eighth and ninth centuries, during the Islamic Golden Age of the Abbasid Caliphate. Along with the ancient Greek, Diophantus, he is often credited as “the founder of algebra.”

Example Question #291 : Cultural History

Ibn Sina is most notable for __________.

Possible Answers:

conquering the Mamluk Sultanate on behalf of the Ottoman Empire

establishing the Islamic territory of Al-Andalus in Spain

his contributions to medicine and philosophy

his contributions to political theory

his contributions to algebra and engineering

Correct answer:

his contributions to medicine and philosophy

Explanation:

Ibn Sina, sometimes also called Avicenna, lived during the Islamic Golden Age of the tenth and eleventh centuries. He is most notable for his contributions to medicine and philosophy, particularly for authoring The Book of Healing and The Canon of Medicine, which were widely influential in Arab and European society for several centuries.

Example Question #292 : Cultural History

When did universities first appear in European society?

Possible Answers:

during the High Middle Ages

during the Scientific Revolution

during the Renaissance

during the Early Middle Ages

during the Industrial Revolution

Correct answer:

during the High Middle Ages

Explanation:

The first universities appeared in European society in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, during the High Middle Ages. The universities of Bologna, Paris, and Oxford are three of the earliest known universities in European history.

Example Question #293 : Cultural History

What are madrasas?

Possible Answers:

prisons

stadiums and amphitheaters

barracks and armories

harbors and dockyards

universities and colleges

Correct answer:

universities and colleges

Explanation:

A Madrasa is a university, college, or other educational institution in the Islamic world. Often times Madrasas might involve solely religious education, other times they might involve a varied and secular curriculum. Madrasas were established throughout the Middle East and North Africa during the height of Islamic power and cultural influence in the ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries.

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