Deck 2: The Evolution of World Politics

Question 1

The rise of Greek city-states was the first time that political identity and political organization centered around

A) territory.
B) a ruler.
C) a culture.
D) a tribe.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

A bipolar system was created in the wake of

A) World War I.
B) colonialism.
C) League of Nations.
D) World War II.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was an attempt

A) to peacefully engage the Soviet Union.
B) to contain the Soviet Union.
C) to restore European dominance.
D) to end the cold war.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which country was not a prominent member in the multipolar system of the 1700s and 1800s?

A) France
B) the United States
C) Great Britain
D) Germany/Prussia

Question 5

The multipolar system

A) had its peak between 1700-1800.
B) emerged after World War I.
C) emerged after World War II.
D) describes the current state of the world.

Question 6

After World War II,the threat of Soviet power changed U.S.foreign policy to one of

A) isolationism.
B) imperialism.
C) containment.
D) détente.

Question 7

The decline in the feudal system was caused by which of the following?

A) advances in military technology
B) improved trade
C) mass production
D) all of the above

Question 8

The Treaty of Westphalia was signed in

A) 1548.
B) 1648.
C) 1748.
D) 1848.

Question 9

The "Third World" refers to

A) the Soviet bloc, caught between capitalist West and Communist East.
B) developing countries, not aligned with the United States or Soviet Union
C) new members of the Warsaw Pact.
D) the seemingly endless war in Vietnam, which came to represent a world in itself for exhausted U.S. servicemen.

Question 10

Shifting alliances designed to preserve the balance of power was a distinctive characteristic of

A) the 1700-1800s.
B) a multipolar system.
C) post-Westphalia Europe.
D) all of the above.

Question 11

A state that does not recognize a higher authority is said to possess

A) democracy.
B) anarchy.
C) sovereignty.
D) modernity.

Question 12

The concept of an international system assumes that the

A) world's actions are random.
B) world is only a sum of its parts.
C) world is more than just a sum of its parts.
D) world has no general global patterns.

Question 13

During the Cold War,the U.S.pursued a policy of

A) glasnost.
B) rivalry.
C) containment.
D) nuclear nonproliferation.

Question 14

Which of the following is true of the anarchical international system?

A) It is unchecked chaos.
B) There is no hierarchy of any kind.
C) The system is unreasonable in its operation.
D) There is no central authority to maintain order.

Question 15

What philosopher first developed the idea of sovereignty in his epic work Politics?

A) Plato
B) Homer
C) Aristotle
D) Luther

Question 16

The term for the post-World War II confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States is (the)

A) détente.
B) cold war.
C) Warsaw Pact.
D) containment doctrine.

Question 17

All of the following undermined universalistic authority and solidified the position of the sovereign state in international affairs except the

A) Protestant Reformation.
B) Renaissance.
C) French Revolution.
D) Treaty of Westphalia.

Question 18

The birth of the modern international system dominated by states dates back to the

A) French Revolution.
B) American Revolution.
C) Treaty of Westphalia.
D) Treaty of Versailles

Question 19

The U.S.and the USSR were

A) the only states affected by bipolarity.
B) the leaders of coalitions of states.
C) allies in restoring order after World War II.
D) dividing the world along a East-West axis.

Question 20

How did changes in military technology and economic expansion affect feudalism?

A) Changing military technology strengthened feudal fiefdoms as a defensive unit while changes in manufacturing and commerce strengthened the feudal economic system, thereby delaying feudalism's collapse for a few hundred years.
B) Changing military technology strengthened feudal fiefdoms as a defensive unit while changes in manufacturing and commerce weakened the feudal economic system, thereby causing no impact on feudal Europe.
C) Changing military technology weakened feudal fiefdoms as a defensive unit while changes in manufacturing and commerce strengthened the feudal economic system, thereby causing no impact on feudal Europe.
D) Changing military technology weakened feudal fiefdoms as a defensive unit while changes in manufacturing and commerce weakened the feudal economic system, thereby demonstrating their obsolescence as political and economic units.

Question 21

The last leader of the Soviet Union was

A) Yeltsin.
B) Gorbachev.
C) Putin.
D) Medvedev.

Question 22

Which of the following is not likely to be a feature of a modified multipolar system?

A) interdependence
B) international law
C) alliances
D) hegemony

Question 23

All of the following are disadvantages to national security based on self-reliance except

A) cost.
B) civilian casualties.
C) protection of national interests.
D) the threat of nuclear war.

Question 24

The Soviet Union collapsed in

A) 1945.
B) 1815.
C) 1962.
D) 1991.

Question 25

Which statement about the Vietnam War is not true

A) The war was an outgrowth of the Containment doctrine.
B) The war unified the American public.
C) The war failed to stop Communist expansion.
D) The war changed American attitudes about foreign policy.

Question 26

Since World War II more than 100 countries have gained independence.The majority of these countries are located in

A) Europe.
B) North America.
C) South America.
D) Africa and Asia.

Question 27

The terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11,2001,were an example of

A) globalism.
B) asymmetrical warfare.
C) hegemonic power.
D) arms control

Question 28

Mikhail Gorbachev of the Soviet Union sought to improve East-West relations in an effort to

A) allow for decreased military spending, freeing funds for domestic programs.
B) make it easier for Soviets to invest in Western markets.
C) make joint U.S.-Soviet efforts more likely to succeed.
D) increase the ability of the Soviet Union to export its agricultural and petroleum products.

Question 29

Most of the non-Western countries that have gained independence over the past few decades

A) share the value systems of the West.
B) are ethnically similar to the West.
C) are EDCs.
D) have a history of Euro-American domination.

Question 30

The number of UN peacekeeping missions has

A) declined, as a result of the end of the cold war.
B) declined, resulting in demands for regional organizations to intervene in conflicts.
C) increased, as a result of détente.
D) increased, but still have limited utility.

Question 31

The Warsaw Pact was a direct reaction of the Soviet Union to

A) World War II.
B) League of Nations.
C) NATO.
D) United Nations.

Question 32

The United States came to the aid of Kuwait when that country was attacked by Iraq primarily because

A) Iraq threatened democracy in Kuwait.
B) the U.S. was required to do so under the norms of the new international system.
C) the national interest of the United States was threatened by the seizure of Kuwait's oil fields.
D) the United States was following a policy of containment.

Question 33

According to the authors,Barber's interpretation of jihad might be better described as

A) uncertainty
B) globalization
C) integration
D) tribalsim

Question 34

The Nixon policy of détente was partly in response to

A) the Cuban missile crisis.
B) the establishment of the Warsaw Pact.
C) tensions between China and the USSR.
D) Soviet perestroika.

Question 35

According to the text,the new international system is most likely to be

A) dominated by the United States.
B) some form of a multipolar system.
C) some form of a bipolar system.
D) dominated by the United Nations.

Question 36

Which of the following is an example of McWorld?

A) the dissolution of the Soviet Union
B) the Yugoslavian conflict
C) the emergence of the World Trade Organization
D) the emergence of the Slovak Republic

Question 37

Which of the following is a McWorld force that challenges the importance and authority of states?

A) ethnic rivalries
B) separatist movements
C) rapid travel and communication
D) refugees

Question 38

Benjamin Barber's Jihad vs.McWorld describes which of the following trends?

A) an emphasis on human rights and environmentalism
B) the new morality propagated by the Third World
C) renewed religious fervor
D) the simultaneous falling apart and coming together of the international community

Question 39

Barber's use of the term "McWorld" to describe international political,economic,and social integration might also be characterized as

A) tribalism.
B) globalism.
C) asymmetrical warfare.
D) sustainable development.

Question 40

In a modified unipolar system

A) there is no dominate power.
B) the dominant power is completely free to act.
C) the dominant power is interconnected with other members of the system.
D) the dominant power is isolated from the rest of the system.

Question 41

The North should help LDCs achieve sustainable development for all of the following reasons except

A) the North is much wealthier than the South.
B) the cost of sustainable development exceeds the resources of the LDCs.
C) the North emits the majority of pollutants into the air.
D) a recent treaty obligates the North is to help the South.

Question 42

Environmental degradation may pose a threat to national security because it

A) reduces our ability to build a missile defense program.
B) increases international competition over scarce water supplies.
C) decreases the amount of money spent on military operations.
D) increases the debate over whether or not the hole in the ozone layer will ultimately harm humans.

Question 43

Purchasing power parity (PPP)is a measure that

A) adjusts currencies to compare government spending.
B) compares expenses of corporations.
C) adjusts for the cost of living in different countries.
D) is the same as GDP.

Question 44

Human rights issues in the 21st century will

A) remain a peripheral affair.
B) be tied with the rights of the wealthy.
C) no longer remain a peripheral affair.
D) be secondary to economic rights.

Question 45

LDCs account for 85% of the world's population but how much CO₂ do they emit,compared to EDCs?

A) 50% more than EDCs.
B) slightly more than EDCs
C) slightly less than EDCs
D) 50% less than EDCs.

Question 46

The terms North and South denote

A) the world's major trading blocs.
B) two disparate economic spheres.
C) the two poles of a bipolar system.
D) the just division of the world.

Question 47

International tribunals handle cases dealing with

A) war crimes
B) environmental policy
C) trade disputes
D) all of the above

Question 48

Balancing the need to develop economically while simultaneously protecting the environment is known as

A) biosphere politics.
B) sustainable development.
C) ecological coercion.
D) global interdependence.

Question 49

Most economically developed countries lie in the

A) Western Hemisphere.
B) Eastern Hemisphere.
C) Northern Hemisphere.
D) Southern Hemisphere.

Question 50

Average life expectancy is lowest in

A) economically developed countries.
B) less developed countries.
C) newly industrialized countries.
D) sustainable countries.

Question 51

Because of Uganda's status as an LDC,its citizens can expect to live

A) relatively long lives.
B) relatively short lives.
C) about the same length of time as individuals who live in EDCs.
D) about the same length of time as individuals who live in NICs.

Question 52

Over the past few years the number of human rights treaties has

A) decreased as international actors have become more concerned with economic interdependence.
B) decreased as international actors have become more concerned with international security.
C) increased as international actors have recognized the need to protect individuals suffering under oppressive regimes.
D) increased as international actors have sought to secure their own interests.

Question 53

When a country is characterized by low per capita GNP the life expectancy is usually

A) relatively high.
B) relatively low.
C) similar to countries characterized by high per capita GNP.
D) not impacted.

Question 54

One potential negative outcome of the growth of economic interdependence is

A) the exponential growth in the number of international organizations specifically focused on economic interdependence.
B) corporate escape from regulation, leading to the deterioration of workers' rights.
C) a decrease in the amount of international trade.
D) a decrease in the importance of the United States in international affairs.

Question 55

What is the term used to depict countries whose standards of living have raised sharply over the years due to industrialization?

A) less developed countries
B) economically developed countries
C) newly industrializing countries
D) sustainable countries

Question 56

Which of the following is not one of the three major global economic organizations?

A) Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
B) World Trade Organization (WTO)
C) Southern Common Market (Mercosur)
D) None of the above

Question 57

LDCs believe that their continued poverty is primarily the result of

A) past colonial suppression.
B) government instability.
C) ethnic rivalry.
D) economic reliance on EDCs.

Question 58

All of the following are concerns associated with the growth of international economic interdependence except

A) the potential decrease in state sovereignty.
B) protection of workers' rights.
C) the increasing flow of trade.
D) lack of effective corporate regulation.

Question 59

In 2006,international trading of goods and services exceeded

A) $9 million.
B) $9 billion.
C) $9 trillion.
D) $14 trillion.

Question 60

The ratio of GNP-PPP for the North and the South is

A) 1:1
B) 3:1
C) 6:1
D) 50:1

Question 61

The cold war is a classic example of multipolarity.

Question 62

The per capita gross national product is roughly comparable between the North and the South.

Question 63

Human rights conferences are now considered an important part of international relations.

Question 64

Collectively,developing and underdeveloped countries are also known as the Third World.

Question 65

Briefly describe two forces that led to the decline of the feudal system.

Question 66

Following World War II the United States attempted to halt the expansion of the Soviet Union through a policy of "containment."

Question 67

How was feudalism different from forms of political organization that preceded and followed it?

Question 68

Some scholars claim that immediately following the cold war the international system was unipolar with the United States having attained a position of hegemony.

Question 69

Anarchy was not a central component to the post-Westphalia international system.

Question 70

A limited unipolar system is characterized by one state that dominates the system without restraints.

Question 71

The economic expansion of industrialized countries promoted colonialism.

Question 72

In the new multipolar world,rigid alliance systems will continue to determine who is allied with whom.

Question 73

Military security in today's world is primarily provided by international organizations such as the UN.

Question 74

What were the major features of the post-World War II bipolar system?

Question 75

The founding of the modern state system can be traced to the Treaty of Versailles.

Question 76

People in the global South mostly blame themselves for their predicament.

Question 77

The international system evolved rapidly for several centuries,then shifted relatively slowly during the last century.

Question 78

What is the significance of the Treaty of Westphalia?

Question 79

The need for United Nations peacekeeping forces has declined in recent years.

Question 80

What are the major characteristics of an anarchical political system?