GED Practice Quiz

Directions:

Question 1 refers to the following information.

In 1763, King George III of England forbade American colonists to settle west of the Appalachian Mountains. England wanted American colonists to stay in the East to provide a ready market for English goods. George III also forbade the colonists to issue their own currency, and he forced them to pay for England’s debts.

As England tightened its control over the American colonies, the colonists started to resist. In December 1773, a group of colonists led by Sam Adams disguised themselves as Native Americans. They dumped British-owned tea into Boston Harbor to protest British control of the American economy. Resistance to George III grew and, in April 1775, British soldiers exchanged shots with American colonists.

1		Which of the following statements is indicated by the passage?
			A)	American colonists wanted to settle west of the Rockies.
			B)	American colonists wanted to tax the English.
			C)	Relations between England and its colonies would improve if George III were off the throne.
			D)	George III was king of England in 1783.
			E)	Sam Adams opposed England’s policies.

Question 2 refers to the following information.

Three general characteristics of culture stand out in different societies around the world. First, cultural solutions to identical problems show great variation from one society to the next. Second, unless subject to internal strains or externally imposed changes, cultures tend to become consistent and integrated. This tendency is especially apparent in relatively isolated societies. Finally, cultural standards are relative: Judgments concerning morality, beauty, logic, propriety (what is proper), and the like are meaningful only within the culture involved.

2		According to the passage, which one of the following is one of the three general characteristics of culture that appears in different societies around the world?
			A)	inconsistency
			B)	relative cultural standards
			C)	identical solutions to the same problem
			D)	similar architectural standards
			E)	identical public transportation

Questions 3 and 4 refer to the following information.

Listed below are the names and descriptions of five international organizations.

1. UN (United Nations)—organization established as a welfare agency, a police authority, and a forum for international disputes.



2. OAS (Organization of American States)—organization made up of the United States and 24 Latin American Nations.



3. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)—military alliance of the United States, Canada, and Western European nations.



4. SEATO (Southeast Asia Treaty Organization)—organization including the United States and seven other nations committed to stopping the spread of communism in Southeast Asia.



5. OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)—group of oil-producing countries that tries to control oil prices.

3		In 1961 President Kennedy sent additional soldiers to Western Europe when the Soviet Union demanded that troops from the United States, France, and Great Britain leave Berlin. The United States acted as a member of which one of the five international organizations?
			A)	the UN
			B)	OAS
			C)	NATO
			D)	SEATO
			E)	OPEC
4		In 1973 several Arab nations threatened to cut off oil shipments to countries that supported Israel. The Arab nations belonged to which one of the five international organizations?
			A)	UN
			B)	OAS
			C)	NATO
			D)	SEATO
			E)	OPEC

Question 5 refers to the following graph.

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5		Based on the information in the graph, what can be predicted about 2010?
			A)	The death rate in Cuba will drop.
			B)	Cuba will have a lower death rate than Austria.
			C)	The death rate in Austria will rise.
			D)	Austria will have a lower death rate than Cuba.
			E)	Cuba’s death rate will rise sharply.

Question 6 refers to the following information.

Regardless of size or location, all societies must keep social order. Cultures have their own rules and methods for enforcing them. However, the kinds of rules and customs needed to keep social order, who makes them, and how they are enforced vary from one culture to another.

Some cultures use a trial by ordeal to judge whether a person accused of violating a rule is guilty or innocent. The Ainu of Japan have the accused person remove stones from a pot of boiling water. If the stones are removed without injury to the hands of the accused, he or she is considered innocent. If the accused is injured during the trial, he or she is judged guilty.

Ridicule has also been used as a method to maintain social order. Tasmanians might make a person who breaks a rule sit in a tree while other tribe members gather around to tease and ridicule the offender. Colonial Americans also used public humiliation as punishment for certain crimes. Guilty persons were fastened into stocks in the public square while passersby made fun of them.

6		Which one of the following is NOT one of the methods for enforcing cultural rules mentioned in the passage?
			A)	trial by ordeal
			B)	removing stones from a pot of boiling water
			C)	jail sentences
			D)	fastening guilty people into stocks in public squares for passersby to mock them
			E)	putting a guilty person in a tree while people gather around to tease the offender

Questions 7 and 8 refer to the following chart.

7		An official of a European government, concluding from the chart that Europe will gain population at a slower rate than other parts of the world, orders a study to determine the reasons for Europe’s declining birth rate. Why is this a poor decision?
			A)	It is not possible to determine through studies the reasons for a declining birthrate.
			B)	The chart shows that the population of Europe is growing at a faster, not a slower, rate than other parts of the world.
			C)	The decision is correct only if the population projection turns out to be accurate.
			D)	The chart shows nothing about birthrate, but instead reflects the mortality, or death, rate.
			E)	A declining birthrate is only one possible explanation for a slow rate of population growth.
8		Which of the following statements is best supported by the data on the chart?
			A)	By the year 2010, the world’s supply of oil will be exhausted.
			B)	By the year 2010, farmland will be scarce in Europe.
			C)	Sometime after the year 2010, Europe should see an increased rate of population growth.
			D)	Between 1980 and 2010, Asia, Africa, and Oceania will add more people than they did between 1940 and 1980.
			E)	The most likely direction of human migration by the year 2010 will be from Asia, Africa, and Oceania to Europe and America.

Question 9 refers to the following map.

Mapping Nutrition and Malnutrition
Dietary Energy Supply (1994–1996)

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9		How might the map above be used to help solve the problems of hungry countries?
			A)	to determine ways to limit population
			B)	to determine the path of a satellite that could photograph and so help locate natural resources
			C)	to decide which countries must begin to sell more of their food
			D)	to study ways to increase crop production by use of fertilizers
			E)	to show areas where collective farming would be more efficient than farming by individual owners
10		An import quota limits the number of goods that can be imported and sold in a country. Which of the following examples illustrates an import quota?
			A)	Congress cuts by 15 percent the number of German-made autos that may be sold in the United States.
			B)	British automakers flood the United States market with their cars.
			C)	Federal import taxes add $100 to the price of every Japanese-made computer sold in the Untied States.
			D)	American clothing manufacturers lower prices to compete with currently cheaper foreign-made clothing.
			E)	Shoes assembled in Brazil are sold in the United States for less than American-made shoes.