Sample Questions

Question 1

1.	Which of the following was an important virtue in Confucianism?
(A)	Warlike prowess
(B)	Filial piety
(C)	Public charity
(D)	Poverty
(E)	Manual labor

Answer 1

B4

Question 2

2.	Early Christians developed the monastic ideal as a means of counteracting
(A)	government interference
(B)	heresy
(C)	competition from Eastern religions
(D)	worldliness
(E)	persecution

Answer 2

D5

Question 3

3. The Silk Routes were important in ancient times because they
   (A) facilitated the exchange of goods and ideas between China and the Roman Empire
   (B) allowed gold and silver mined in China to be traded for European furs and wool cloth
   (C) provided trade links between the people of Siberia and the people living on islands in the Bering Sea
   (D) provided a conduit for trade in silk, porcelain, and costly gems between China and Japan
   (E) allowed carts and carriages to travel on paved roads across northern Asia as far west as the Caspian Sea

Answer 3

A3

Question 4

4.	The bronze plaque shown above was created in
(A)	Italy
(B)	Central Asia
(C)	Arabia
(D)	West Africa
(E)	China

Answer 4

D4

Question 5

5. Which of the following was characteristic of the physical environments of early river-valley civilizations in the Near East?
   (A) Cool summer temperatures encouraged the production of grain crops.
   (B) Tropical forests along the riverbanks provided the population with most of its food.
   (C) The rivers maintained a steady flow year-round, fed by melting mountain glaciers.
   (D) The rivers flowed through deep mountain valleys, which sheltered early civilizations.
   (E) Rainfall was low, requiring irrigation of crops with river water.

Answer 5

E4

Question 6

6. The ancient Chinese symbol of the universe shown above represented
   (A) the theory that everything consists of opposite but complementary elements
   (B) the Zen concept of unity in artistic expression
   (C) Buddha’s vision of the perfect shape
   (D) a dualism in which everything is in conflict, and nothing can be resolved
   (E) the moral principles of Confucius

Answer 6

A2

Question 7

7.	In the map above, the numbered dots correspond to cities. In the eighth century, which cities were near the east-west limits of the Islamic world?
(A)	1 and 7
(B)	1 and 9
(C)	)   2 and 6
(D)	2 and 8
(E)	5 and 7

Answer 7

B4

Question 8

8.	The encomienda system of colonial Spanish America most closely resembled the European practice of
(A)	absolutism
(B)	primogeniture
(C)	)    patronage
(D)	manorialism
(E)	nepotism

Answer 8

D3

Question 9

9.	In early modern Europe, governments sought to increase national wealth and maintain a favorable balance of trade through government intervention by advocating
(A)	Liberalism
(B)	Capitalism
(C)	Socialism
(D)	Utilitarianism
(E)	Mercantilism

Answer 9

E3

Question 10

10. “Where it is an absolute question of the welfare of our country, we must admit of no considerations of justice or injustice, or mercy or cruelty, or praise or ignominy, but putting all else aside must adopt whatever course will save its existence and preserve its liberty.”
    The statement above expresses the viewpoint of which of the following?
    (A) Niccolò Machiavelli
    (B) Sir Thomas More
    (C) Desiderius Erasmus
    (D) Dante Alighieri
    (E) John Calvin

Answer 10

A4

Question 11

11. Social Darwinists such as Herbert Spencer argued that
    (A) competition allows individuals to develop their talents and meet their needs
    (B) competition and cooperation are equally important in building a productive and compassionate society
    (C) human societies progress through competition, since the strong survive and the weak perish
    (D) human societies progress through cooperation, a natural instinct that should be encouraged
    (E) God predetermines that some members of society are fated to succeed and some members are fated to fail

Answer 11

C2

Question 12

12.	Differences between which two religions contributed to violent conflicts in India during and after the struggle for independence in 1947?
(A)	Hinduism and Buddhism
(B)	Islam and Christianity
(C)	Hinduism and Islam
(D)	Islam and Buddhism
(E)	Hinduism and Jainism

Answer 12

C1

Question 13

13. Most of the noncitizens currently residing in Western European countries originally came to Western Europe to
    (A) consolidate the European Economic Community agreements
    (B) find employment
    (C) do graduate work in the universities
    (D) participate in the democratic political process
    (E) avoid forced military conscription in their native land

Answer 13

B4