Anxieties of the Cold War

Question 1

Nuclear Weapons

Answer 1

A device that uses a nuclear reaction to create an explosion

Question 2

Communist Sympathizers

Answer 2

a person who believes in communist ideology but is not a member of the Communist Party

Question 3

Subversion

Answer 3

a plot or an action intended to overthrow a government

Question 4

Loyalty Oaths

Answer 4

a pledge of loyalty to a group, such as an organization or a nation

Question 5

House Un-American Activities Committee

Answer 5

formed in 1938, a committee of the U.S. House of Representatives that investigated subversive organizations in the United States until 1975

Question 6

Incriminate

Answer 6

o provide evidence that makes someone appear guilty

Question 7

Contempt of Congress

Answer 7

Willful failure to obey the authority of Congress

Question 8

Blacklist

Answer 8

a list of people or groups who are under suspicion for something and are thus excluded from certain opportunities

Question 9

Alger Hiss Case

Answer 9

a court case involving Alger Hiss, a U.S. State Department official accused of passing secrets to the Soviet Union, that contributed to a growing fear of subversion during the early Cold War; in 1950 a federal grand jury convicted Hiss of perjury, but his guilt in regard to espionage was not proven

Question 10

Perjury

Answer 10

willfully lying while under oath to tell the truth

Question 11

Rosenberg Trial

Answer 11

the controversial 1951 trial of two Americans, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, charged with passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union; the two were sentenced to death and executed in 1953, making them the only American civilians to be put to death for spying during the Cold War

Question 12

McCarthyism

Answer 12

the practice of publicly accusing people of subversive activities without evidence to back up the charges; named for Senator Joseph McCarthy, who began such a practice in the early 1950s as part of the search for communists in the United States during the early Cold War

Question 13

Censured

Answer 13

to formally scold someone

Question 14

Atomic Age

Answer 14

the era in which atomic weapons have been used, beginning in 1945 with the first use of the atomic bomb and lasting to the present time

Question 15

Civil Defense

Answer 15

the organization and training of citizens to work with the armed forces and emergency services during a war or natural disaster

Question 16

Federal Civil Defense Administration

Answer 16

a federal agency established by Congress in 1951 to plan for civil defense during the arms race by preparing Americans to survive a nuclear attack