GED Social Studies : Content Areas

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GED Social Studies

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Example Questions

Example Question #261 : Content Areas

Which of these countries has the highest population density?

Possible Answers:

China

Brazil

France

The United States

Bangladesh

Correct answer:

Bangladesh

Explanation:

Population density refers to the number of people living in a certain area of land. A country with a high population density has a large number of people living in a relatively small amount of land. Although the populations of the U.S.A., China, and Brazil are all higher than the population of Bangladesh, the land area of Bangladesh is much smaller, so it has the highest population density.

Example Question #261 : Content Areas

From 1700 to 1800, the population of Europe __________.

Possible Answers:

fell heavily due to widespread famine and frequent plague

almost doubled, providing the necessary labor for the Industrial Revolution

fell slightly due to widespread famine

increased slightly due to agricultural improvements

remained roughly the same before exploding in the Industrial Revolution

Correct answer:

almost doubled, providing the necessary labor for the Industrial Revolution

Explanation:

The eighteenth century was a time of dramatic population growth in Europe, particularly Western Europe. Advances in agriculture and fewer plagues meant a much lower death rate. The population rose from just under 100 million in 1700 to roughly 180 million by 1800. This population growth was vital for providing the conditions necessary for the Industrial Revolution to take off in the nineteenth century.

Example Question #341 : Ged Social Studies

What is the name given to the forced dispersal of a people or a nation from their homeland to live among other societies?

Possible Answers:

Immigration

Hegemony

Assimilation

Emigration

Diaspora

Correct answer:

Diaspora

Explanation:

The term, "diaspora," is used to describe a group of people, or a nation, who have been evicted from their homeland and forced to live among other societies. In recent history this has been used to describe the community of Jewish people who lived in various European societies throughout much of history.  

Example Question #2 : Human Populations And Cultures

The Amazon rainforest, in Brazil, is found on which continent?

Possible Answers:

South America

Europe

Central America

Africa

North America

Correct answer:

South America

Explanation:

The Amazon rainforest, and the Amazon River, are both found in Brazil, which is a country in South America. Central America is not a continent..

Example Question #2 : Human Populations And Cultures

Which of these is not a monotheistic religion?

Possible Answers:

Zoroastrianism.

Islam.

Hinduism.

Judaism.

Christianity.

Correct answer:

Hinduism.

Explanation:

A monotheistic religion is defined by the belief in only one God. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are all monotheistic religions. As is Zoroastrianism, an ancient Iranian monotheistic religion and philosophy. Of these choices only Hinduism is polytheistic, having a large range and variety of Gods.

Example Question #3 : Human Populations And Cultures

Polytheism is best described as __________

Possible Answers:

a government ruled by a small group of individuals with absolute power.

the belief in one God.

the belief that God does not exist.

a government ruled by one autocratic leader.

the belief in more than one God.

Correct answer:

the belief in more than one God.

Explanation:

Polytheism is a religion defined by the belief in more than one God. In the ancient world almost all religions were polytheistic—such as the Greek and Roman religions, Egyptian, Norse and so on; however, since the rise of Judaism, then Christianity and Islam, monotheistic religions (the belief in one God) now largely dominate.

Example Question #2 : Cultural Diversity

The spread of the American fast food chains around the world in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries is an example of __________.

Possible Answers:

hegemony

jingoism

yellow journalism

cultural diffusion

implied powers

Correct answer:

cultural diffusion

Explanation:

Cultural diffusion is a term used to describe the spread of one culture’s language, ideas, or principles to other cultures, where it is then adopted and embraced. In the last century or two the English language has spread rapidly around the world and is now the second language of a large proportion of the global population.

Example Question #4 : Human Populations And Cultures

The Native American population most likely arrived in North America __________.

Possible Answers:

through the Panamanian and Belizean rainforests

from Viking Expeditions to Eastern Canada

across the Strait of Gibraltar from Africa

across the Bering Strait from Asia

via ships and rafts from Hawaii

Correct answer:

across the Bering Strait from Asia

Explanation:

The original Native American population is believed to have crossed into North America via a land bridge in the modern-day Bering Strait. So they would have crossed from what is now Northern Russia into Alaska and then rapidly worked there way (over many generations) down throughout modern North and South America.

Example Question #1 : Immigration And Emigration

A person who has fled some disaster—natural or political—in his or her home country and now lives abroad is called a(n) __________.

Possible Answers:

immigrant

reactionary

departee

refugee

diaspora

Correct answer:

refugee

Explanation:

A refugee is someone who has either been forced to leave or else has fled some disaster—famine, poverty, genocide, religious warfare, etc. A refugee leaves his or her own country and heads for a willing country believed to be safer. Different countries around the world have widely varied practices when it comes to accepting refugees. The diaspora is the name given to a community of displaced people, e.g. the Jewish Diaspora.

Example Question #3 : Human Populations And Cultures

The phrase “God, glory, and gold” is used to describe __________.

Possible Answers:

the westward migration of American settlers in the nineteenth century

the political beliefs and ideologies of certain elements of the contemporary Republican Party

the British desire to conquer the Indian subcontinent

the motivations behind European conquest and settlement of the Americas

the reasons that inspired the Protestant Reformation

Correct answer:

the motivations behind European conquest and settlement of the Americas

Explanation:

The phrase “God, glory, and gold” is often used to describe the motivations behind European conquest and settlement of the Americas. It is most frequently used to describe the first wave of European colonialism under the Spanish. It is a shorthand term to illustrate how the Spanish were motivated to colonize the Americas in order to spread Christianity ("God"), gain personal fame and notoriety ("glory"), and become immensely wealthy by exporting gold and silver back to Europe ("gold").

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