Deck 1: Exploring the City

Question 1

While only 9% of the world's population lived in cities in 1900, approximately what percent will be city dwellers in 2050 if present trends continue?

A) 33%
B) 66%
C) 88%
D) 99%

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The area of study in which urbanists try to understand why cities are located in particular places is called

A) urban geography.
B) urban ecology.
C) social psychology.
D) social demography.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Through emerging social structures, urban living is shaped by

A) transportation and public utilities.
B) wealth and power disparities.
C) individual choice and freedom.
D) racial and ethnic identities.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

What city did Richard Henry Dana allude to in his classic Two Years Before the Mast?

A) New York
B) Pittsburgh
C) Boston
D) San Francisco

Question 5

Although the human species has existed on Earth for at least 200,000 years, cities began to appear how many years ago?

A) 50,000
B) 25,000
C) 10,000
D) 5,000

Question 6

Early sociologists were pessimistic about the study of cities because city life was

A) economic conditions.
B) political unrest.
C) false evidence.
D) hard science.

Question 7

Cities are inextricably connected to the larger societies of which they are a part, and have been the economic, political, and artistic core of various civilizations.

Question 8

Demographers suggest that the growth of exurban regions far beyond the urbancoreresults from

A) the desire of many people to live a simpler life.
B) a disdain for suburban life.
C) a breakdown of the traditional family unit.
D) the exodus of business and industry from central cities.

Question 9

The "anatomy" of modern North American cities has been characterized by declining population growth.Which of the following regions best illustrate this phenomenon?

A) Sunbelt region
B) Midwest
C) New England
D) Northwest

Question 10

Cities are growing the fastest in the developing world. What is one negative consequence of this?

A) Urbanization is becoming less effective.
B) Poverty and disease from urbanization
C) Capitalism's growth within urbanization
D) Urbanization has increased access to health care.

Question 11

According to Macionis and Parrillo, the most important consequence of decliningpopulation growth in central cities for the people who remain is

A) less opportunity to build a sense of community.
B) less choice in consumption as a result of industry flight.
C) more free space.
D) less federal funding and political representation.

Question 12

The Industrial Revolution was seen by the first urban sociologists as an important factor influencing the character of urban life, and contributed to their relatively pessimistic evaluation of cities. Today, however, cities are viewed more neutrally.

Question 13

The area of study in which urbanists try to understand why people disperse within cities the way they do is called

A) urban geography.
B) urban ecology.
C) social psychology.
D) social demography.

Question 14

Aristotle suggested people come to the city for security and remain to pursue "the good life."

Question 15

Cities have been the dominant type of human settlement since 2000 B.C.E.

Question 16

Quality of urban life is indicated, in part, by

A) lack of material wealth.
B) degree of safety and security.
C) presence of cultural capital.
D) access to leisure activities.

Question 17

San Francisco, once known as Yerba Buena "good herbs"), has always been an easygoing city.

Question 18

When did early sociologists begin to turn their attentions to cities?

A) The late 17^th century
B) The mid-18^thcentury
C) The late 19^th century
D) The mid-20^th century

Question 19

Reactions to cities are highly personal and based in various social psychological perspectives.

Question 20

Early scholars of urbanization portrayed the city as

A) a place of unlimited opportunity.
B) a dangerous place where community and family were threatened.
C) a place where both opportunity and danger coexisted.
D) the main cause of industrialization.

Question 21

Strong, community-oriented neighborhoods have weakened in recent decades, and some areas have disappeared altogether.

Question 22

What role, if any, does emergent United States capitalism play in the shaping of the study of urban sociology?

Question 23

Explain why historical and comparative analyses are necessary for understanding cities and contemporary existence.

Question 24

Los Angeles is the largest city in the United States.

Question 25

The economic function of medieval cities is greater than that of contemporary cities.

Question 26

According to anthropological and historical accounts, it took approximately 10,000 years for the dominant type of human settlement to change from nomadic to village to urban. Since the mid-18^th century, however, urbanization has increased much more rapidly. What explanations are currently offered for this phenomenon?

Question 27

Because cities concentrate everything human into a relatively small space, they intensify

Question 28

The relatively recent decline in urban population growth is primarily a result of an aging population desiring more comfortable living arrangements and business and industry flight from central cities.

Question 29

Invasion and succession is a well-documented ecological process by which whole sections of a city change.

Question 30

Why do the authors of the text suggest we must not simply analyze statistics, but must also "go and make our visit" to the city if we are to fully comprehend urban life? Do you agree or disagree with their argument?

Question 31

While the study of the economics of land use within cities was dominated until the 1960s by an ecological model emphasizing internal competition among residents, many urbanists today embrace the critical urban theory perspective, which highlights the influence of external political forces.

Question 32

The world's cities are growing by approximately 360,000 people each year.

Question 33

Although people come to the city hoping to find "the good life," many do not find it.

Question 34

What are the four main analytical fields within contemporary urban sociology, and what does each contribute to our understanding of urban life?

Question 35

All advocates of the critical urban theory perspective are Marxists.

Question 36

An important aspect of a city's social structure is the racial, ethnic, and gender character of its economic and political disparity.

Question 37

While Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East are experiencing higher levels of urbanization, North America, Europe, the former Soviet Union, and Asia are experiencing much lower rates.

Question 38

About 30 cities in the United States have more than 1 million residents.

Question 39

A focus on the potential material benefits of city life alone is justified given that the

Question 40

Explain the primary analytical difference between the older urban ecology and the newer

Question 41

Explain the two main reasons given by demographers for the recent slowing of central city urban growth and the quickening of exurban growth.

Question 42

What is meant by social structure, and why is it an important analytical consideration for some urbanists?