Deck 31: Economic, Social, and Cultural Change in the Late 20th Century

Question 1

Since 1970, arguably the most successful examples of unionization have been in the field of

A) light industry.
B) agriculture.
C) sports.
D) finance.
E) retail.

Answer 1

sports.

Question 2

One characteristic of Hollywood in the 1990s was

A) its willingness to experiment with new ideas.
B) its increasingly close involvement with the television industry.
C) its rejection of the new technologies.
D) its reduction in the cost of theater tickets.
E) it emphasis on foreign films.

Answer 2

its increasingly close involvement with the television industry.

Question 3

A household deficit represents

A) a decrease in real wages.
B) the unimportance of inflation.
C) a limited use of credit.
D) an interest by economists in the finances of everyday Americans.
E) all of these choices

Answer 3

an interest by economists in the finances of everyday Americans.

Question 4

By the early 21st century, Wal-Mart employed one out of every ____ U.S.workers.

A) 3,200
B) 1,400
C) 600
D) 340
E) 120

Question 5

The main purpose of downsizing is

A) to increase the price of your product.
B) to increase the wages of those still employed.
C) to increase profits and decrease expenditures.
D) to facilitate horizontal integration.
E) to facilitate vertical integration.

Question 6

During the 1970s and 1980s, the fastest growing region in the United States was the

A) "Sun Belt."
B) Northeast.
C) "Rustbelt."
D) Midwest.
E) Northwest.

Question 7

The sports industry

A) focused solely on baseball.
B) moved away from being a business.
C) exploded.
D) drew less attention.
E) focused solely on professionals.

Question 8

At the end of the 20th century ____ percent of Americans lived in large metropolitan areas.

A) 50
B) 60
C) 70
D) 80
E) 90

Question 9

The purpose of the Sundance Film Festival was to

A) influence Academy Award nominations.
B) encourage independent filmmakers.
C) show European films to an American audience.
D) experiment with special effects.
E) fight censorship.

Question 10

The new immigration most likely affected which state most?

A) Texas
B) New York
C) California
D) Florida
E) Arizona

Question 11

Population rates slowed to ____ percent a year.

A) 1
B) 2
C) 5
D) 10
E) 20

Question 12

Population growth in the Sunbelt was partly the result of

A) strong labor unions that attracted workers.
B) the emergence of high-tech weapons and aerospace industries in the South and the West.
C) the availability of cheap land in California and Texas.
D) a decrease in immigration.
E) all of these choices

Question 13

The majority of Spanish-speaking Americans in the United States are from

A) Mexico.
B) Puerto Rico.
C) Honduras.
D) El Salvador.
E) Spain.

Question 14

During the 1970s and 1980s, most immigrants to the United States came from

A) Eastern Europe.
B) Canada.
C) Western Europe.
D) Africa.
E) Latin America, especially Mexico.

Question 15

The space program launched by President Kennedy with the goal of sending a manned mission to the moon was the

A) Saturn program.
B) Sputnik program.
C) Mercury program.
D) Apollo program.
E) Moon shot.

Question 16

The religious landscape of the United States

A) became almost nonexistent as most Americans do not believe in a higher power.
B) lacked diversity.
C) saw a swing back toward conservative Christianity.
D) became increasingly streamlined.
E) was more diverse than it had ever been before.

Question 17

In the early 21st century, 13 percent of the U.S.workforce was unionized; in the 1950s this figure was

A) 80 percent.
B) 64 percent.
C) 43 percent.
D) 30 percent.
E) 18 percent.

Question 18

All of the following statements regarding immigration are true except

A) in 2000, the percentage of Americans born outside the United States was an all-time high.
B) since 1965, immigration to the United States has become more diverse.
C) ninety percent of all Mexican Americans settle in the Southwest.
D) in 2000, 3 million Puerto Ricans lived in the United States and 4 million lived in Puerto Rico.
E) in the early 21st century, only four Latin nations had more Spanish-speaking people than the U.S..

Question 19

In the Immigration Act of 1990,

A) quotas based on national origins determined the number of immigrants admitted each year.
B) no immigrants from Central and South America were allowed into the United States.
C) immigrants with family ties in the United States or with special skills were given priority.
D) only those fleeing persecution by Communist governments were admitted.
E) only the wealthy were admitted.

Question 20

The ability of humans to manipulate genes has been controversial in the field of

A) regeneration of human tissue.
B) genetically modified foods.
C) reproductive processes.
D) fetal stem cell research.
E) all of these choices

Question 21

The diversification of religious beliefs in the United States was increased by all of the following except

A) the Black Power movement of the 1960s
B) the Immigration Act of 1965
C) the Cold War
D) the counterculture of the 1960s
E) alternative faiths.

Question 22

In the early 21st century American manufacturing accounted for ____ of corporate profits.

A) 10 percent
B) 20 percent
C) 30 percent
D) 40 percent
E) 50 percent

Question 23

In 1996, what rival 24 hour news channel - with opinions that leaned toward the New Right - debuted, challenging the first 24/7 news network CNN?

A) MSNBC
B) FNC
C) CNBC
D) HLN
E) Bloomberg News

Question 24

In recent years political power has shifted as

A) Southern states lost congressional seats.
B) the West lost electoral votes.
C) Northeastern states lost congressional seats.
D) Northeastern states gained electoral votes.
E) voter registration has been reduced.

Question 25

All of the following movies were box office successes except

A) Titanic.
B) Eyes Wide Shut.
C) Speed.
D) Star Wars.
E) The Blair Witch Project.

Question 26

Which cable network debuted in 1981?

A) Cable News Network (CNN)
B) Home Shopping Network (HSN)
C) Fox News Channel (FNS)
D) Black Entertainment Television (BET)
E) Fox Television Network

Question 27

Unlike cultural critics of the 1950s, analysts of the 1990s viewed mass culture as

A) inferior to the classical culture of Western civilization.
B) trivial and unworthy of serious study.
C) symbolic of the ignorance and laziness of modern Americans.
D) worthy of academic analysis and study.
E) too heavily influenced by Europe.

Question 28

Most people who migrated from Puerto Rico moved to which of the following?

A) Florida
B) New York
C) Texas
D) California
E) Oregon

Question 29

The labor movement in the 1990s

A) successfully organized office, restaurant, and hotel workers under the leadership of the AFL-CIO.
B) suffered because of the high unemployment rate.
C) lost political power as union membership declined to less than 15 percent.
D) failed to organize government employees and health-care workers.
E) excluded women.

Question 30

By the late twentieth century, most Americans were likely to

A) remain in the same occupation for their entire life.
B) switch occupations once.
C) switch occupations several times before retiring.
D) take a long time to settle on a career.
E) be unable to find jobs.

Question 31

People from which of the following were most likely to win the right to immigrate to the United States during the 1980s?

A) Cuba
B) El Salvador
C) Guatemala
D) Haiti
E) Ecuador

Question 32

Since 1990, the percentage of African Americans has

A) increased in rural areas.
B) decreased in suburbs and increased in urban centers.
C) decreased in both suburbs and urban centers.
D) increased in both suburbs and urban centers.
E) increased in suburbs and declined in urban centers.

Question 33

During the 1980s, television changed as

A) the percentage of viewers watching network programming hit its peak.
B) hundreds of new independent stations first went on the air.
C) most independent stations were bought by various giant media corporations.
D) networks poured more money into their news divisions.
E) reality programming began to dominate the ratings.

Question 34

The television show "The Simpsons"

A) was initially introduced by NBC.
B) was the first big success for the independent Fox network.
C) was a movie prior to being introduced to television.
D) failed to attract a significant viewing audience in its first years.
E) was a reality show featuring a real family.

Question 35

After 1970, the fastest growing states included all of the following except

A) California.
B) Florida.
C) Colorado.
D) Arizona.
E) Nevada.

Question 36

The television industry of the 1990s and early 2000s

A) saw the three major networks (ABC, NBC, and CBS) attract 80 percent of the viewers.
B) increased the number of programs designed to appeal to older, rural viewers.
C) avoided controversial and sexually explicit programming.
D) lost much of its audience to newspapers and news magazines.
E) was characterized by competition between the networks, independents, and cable companies.

Question 37

The immigration of Hmong to the United States grew following

A) the Vietnam War.
B) persecution by the Chinese government.
C) normalization of relations with China.
D) devastating typhoons in Cambodia.
E) all of these choices

Question 38

All of the following religious figures faced charges of corruption or immorality except

A) Jesse Jackson.
B) Jim Bakker.
C) Jimmy Swaggart.
D) Billy Graham.
E) Pat Robertson.

Question 39

All of the following statements regarding MTV are true except

A) many of its music videos sexually objectified women.
B) in its early history, critics complained it excluded people of color.
C) it quickly abandoned its all-music video format.
D) the "MTV aesthetic" emphasized a fast-paced visual style.
E) it debuted in 1981.

Question 40

Since 1970 the population of the United States has grown

A) more slowly and become older.
B) more rapidly and become older.
C) very little.
D) more rapidly in the North and more slowly in the South.
E) younger in the South and older in the North.

Question 41

In the 1980s, the largest portion of the American population belonged to the age range of

A) 0-15 years old.
B) 16-24 years old.
C) 25-44 years old.
D) 45-59 years old.
E) 60-up years old.

Question 42

In the 21st century, the video screen is the preeminent symbol of American culture.

Question 43

Because of its controversy, the Human Genome Project was ended in 1999.

Question 44

The Refugee Act of 1980

A) provided equal treatment for those fleeing oppression, regardless of the political orientation of their home country.
B) excluded those who were escaping economic oppression.
C) had no significant impact on the immigrant population of the United States.
D) led to an increase in the number of Central Americans coming to the United States.
E) excluded Cubans from the U.S.

Question 45

By 2000, 92 percent of homes in the United States had cable television.

Question 46

All of the following statements regarding labor unions are false except

A) in the 1970s, efforts to organize farm labor in California failed.
B) by the early 21st century, union membership had declined to around 3 percent.
C) between 1950 and 1970 union membership only slightly declined.
D) since 1970, unions have enjoyed their greatest success in the garment industry.
E) in the 1950s union membership was more than 65 percent.

Question 47

In the 1980s and 1990s, the population of the United States grew an average of 1.8 percent a year.

Question 48

The Human Genome Project was a

A) program intended to provide a more effective means of birth control.
B) science fiction movie.
C) project dedicated to gender equality.
D) program without controversy.
E) project that mapped the human genetic code.

Question 49

Between 1991 and 2004, there was a resurgence in the number of Americans who belonged to a union.

Question 50

The largest private sector employer in the United States is

A) Microsoft.
B) Wal-Mart.
C) McDonald's.
D) General Motors.
E) IBM.

Question 51

The information revolution concerns

A) the development of more news networks.
B) the prevalence of current news information in modern music.
C) the advent of the cell phone.
D) the lack of government regulation on news agencies.
E) the speed with which Americans can gain information via computers.

Question 52

Most immigrants from Puerto Rico have settled in Florida.

Question 53

In 2000, urban crime rates were soaring in most large cities.

Question 54

By the early 21st century, San Juan, Puerto Rico was the only city with more Puerto Ricans than New York City.

Question 55

In 2005, Americans spent more money on medical health costs than on food.

Question 56

By the end of the twentieth century, central cities

A) had been transformed into primarily financial, administrative and entertainment centers.
B) served as residential areas primarily for upper- and middle-income people.
C) had solved the problems associated with affordable housing.
D) continued to be the most important centers for retail shopping.
E) had solved the problem of air pollution.

Question 57

Today, Wal-Mart employs 5 percent of all retail workers in the United States.

Question 58

In the late twentieth century business restructuring

A) involved huge mergers that concentrated corporate power.
B) saw the revival and growth of small, independent businesses.
C) meant remarkable growth in the number of U.S.manufacturing jobs.
D) required increased government regulation.
E) meant higher wages for all Americans.

Question 59

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986

A) significantly reduced illegal immigration to the United States.
B) gave preference to immigrants with families living in the United States.
C) was vetoed by President Reagan.
D) gave preference to refugees from economically depressed countries.
E) imposed penalties on employers of illegal immigrants.

Question 60

Federal court decisions in the 1990s imposed greater restrictions on credit card issuers.

Question 61

The computer revolution was a major contributing factor in the population shift to the Sunbelt in the late twentieth century.

Question 62

In 2000, the percentage of Americans born outside the United States was at an all-time high.

Question 63

Chain stores have transformed consumer buying in the United States but have not impacted other countries.

Question 64

A 1996 congressional Commission on Immigration Reform called for ending all controls on the total number of immigration slots.

Question 65

Population growth slowed in the United States during the 1970s and 1980s.

Question 66

Economists warned that the shift to the postindustrial economy was putting people out of work because the jobs for which they were trained no longer existed.

Question 67

The Refugee Act of 1980 made it easier for immigrants who could prove economic hardship to enter the United States.

Question 68

The computer revolution helped the financial industry expand.

Question 69

By 2000, it was estimated that the number of Americans practicing Islam had surpassed the number of Americans practicing Judaism, and even those practicing some Protestant denominations such as Presbyterianism.

Question 70

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 succeeded in reducing the number of undocumented immigrants entering the country.

Question 71

During the 1970s and 1980s, the number of immigrants arriving from Europe exceeded the number arriving from Asia and Latin America.

Question 72

By the end of the 20th century, approximately one-half of Americans believed in a divine being that performed miracles on earth.

Question 73

CBS was the first network to introduce controversial comedy programming during the 1970s.

Question 74

In 1989 a high school student introduced Napster, a technology that facilitated music file sharing, which later was determined to be "pirating" of copyrighted material.

Question 75

Economic restructuring resulted in lower union membership.

Question 76

MTV and CNN began operations in the same year.

Question 77

Movie attendance in 1970 was double the level it was in 1960.

Question 78

The "Challenge of Peace" (1983) was written by scientists concerned about nuclear proliferation.

Question 79

Initially Wal-Mart only went into large urban markets.

Question 80

"Downsizing" was a reduction of women's clothing sizes to follow the national fashion trends of the 1990s.