Ec Culture Exam Revision 1 PDF

***This attachment presents the survey that was distributed in class on Monday, plus the results. The mean (average) relevancy score appears beside each item. The items in bold may be tested; thus, for example, there may get questions involving 1-5, but not 6.*** ***Non-negotiable items (These may...

***This attachment presents the survey that was distributed in class on Monday, plus the results. The mean (average) relevancy score appears beside each item. The items in bold may be tested; thus, for example, there may get questions involving 1-5, but not 6.*** ***Non-negotiable items (These may appear...)*** ***Populations/Symbols***: yes, know the population figures for Britain and the U.S. Britain (2022) 67.6 million The United States (December 2024 Census Bureau estimate): 340.1 million England 57.1 million Scotland 5.5 million Britons find security and pride in the National Health Service (NHS), created after World War II. In this respect, they are unlike Americans, most of whom are wary (cautious) of the government running or paying for such services. The British, unlike the US, have a public broadcaster, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The American public broadcaster, National Public Radio, is funded by private donations. **U.K. Overview** What, officially, is the full name of the country that we call "Britain" or "the United Kingdom"? Why do some people object to the name "British Isles" for this island group? In what country may many people feel that they, not the UK, are the rightful holder of (a) Gibraltar and (b) the Falkland Islands? Which of the two has there been, fairly recently, a war over? ***U.K. Government:*** What person (i.e., the title) actually is the head of the British government (King Charles is the head of state, but what's the title of the head of government?)? What are the two Houses of Parliament? Which of these two is elected, and holds effective power to make laws? What do a group of politicians need to do, if they hope to form a government in Britain? ***U.S. Geography:*** The geographical regions of North America presented in class include (1) the Eastern Coastal Plain; (2) Appalachia; (3) the Interior, including (a) the Interior Lowlands, (b) the Great Plains and (c) the Wilderness; and (4) the "Cordillera". Have a map, showing these regions, with you as you attempt the following questions: Which region... (a) is good for cattle (it was once full of buffalo, UK bison), but rather too dry for farming? \(b) includes the region once known for cotton and slaves (there is less cotton now, and no slaves)? \(c) covered with hard rock and very little soil, has forests and mines but not much farming? \(d) contains the continent's highest mountains? \(e) was settled by Scots-Irish whose music was the "ancestor" of today's country music? \(f) contains the "Corn Belt", the best farmland in North America? What part of the US is mean, exactly, by the terms "New England", "the mid-West" and "the South"? **Ranked Questions: Rank each of the following as follows.** **5 \-- obviously relevant.4 \-- suitable for this course. 3 \-- of interest but not essential.** **2 \-- not of much interest or relevance. 1 \-- No! Don't make us revise this!** **1. \_3.3 The flowers that represent the four countries of the UK -- England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales -- are, respectively, the rose, the thistle, the shamrock and the daffodil.** **2. \_3.3 The patron saints of the four countries of the UK -- England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales -- are, respectively: George, Andrew, Patrick and David.** **3. \_4.4 The U.K. flag is called, informally, the "Union Jack"** **4. 4.3\_ King Charles is also the king (head of state) of Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Jamaica.** **5. \_3.4 In each of the four overseas countries where Charles is king, he is represented by a governor-general.** 6\. \_2.6\_\_ The Gulf Stream warms Ireland and Britain (and Europe generally), giving it a milder climate than most areas this far north. **7. \_3.1\_ The central (low-lying) mountain range that divides England is the Pennines.** 8\. \_2.8\_ Britain's highest mountains are in Scotland ("the Highlands"), including the Grampian Range. They include Ben Nevis, the highest peak in the U.K. **9. \_3.5\_ Scotland is distinguished by deep lakes (geographically, they are inland fjords). The best-known is Loch Ness, where tourists hope to spot an alleged deep-see creature ("the Loch Ness Monster", or "Nessie").** 10\. \_2.6\_ The Hebrides are the islands to the west of Scotland. 11\. \_2.7\_ "The Channel Islands" is an unofficial name for several self-governing British islands off the northwestern coast of France. **12. \_3.1\_ The U.K.'s longest river is the Severn, originating in Wales and flowing eventually to the southwestern port city of Bristol.** **13. \_3.1\_\_ The unofficial name for someone from Liverpool is a "Scouser".** **14. \_2.7\_\_ A Manchester native may be called a Mancurian.** **15. \_2.8\_\_ A Glaswegian is someone from Glasgow (Scotland's largest city).** **16. \_3.0\_\_"The City" refers to London's financial district.** 17\. \_2.5\_ "Cockney" refers to the accent/speech, and a person who has it, of working-class Londoners. 18\. \_2.8\_ "The borders" refers to the hilly country straddling England and Scotland. ***U.K. Government*** **19. \_3.4 \_\_The House of Lords is now mostly appointed.** **20. \_3.3\_\_ The House of Lords has limited power: it debates and makes suggested changes to bills (proposed laws), but cannot delay a law for more than a year.** **21. \_3.3\_\_ Real power to pass laws and budgets lies with 650 members of the House of Commons.** 22\. \_2.8\_\_ Every member of the House of Commons (member of Parliament) is the sole representative of a geographical district or constituency, each with a little over 100,000 people. **23. \_3.5\_\_ To become a Member of Parliament, you need to get more votes than other candidates in a constituency (district).** **24. \_3.1\_\_ Prime Minister Keir Starmer is from the Labour Party.** **25. \_3.2\_\_ The official opposition is called "His Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition". (They may oppose what their rivals are doing, but they are loyal to their King and country.)** **26. \_3.3\_\_ The present leader of the opposition is (the Right Honourable) Kemi Badenoch.** **27. \_3.4\_\_ Typically, members of the Cabinet have seats in the elected House of Commons, and are members of the same party as the prime minister. A few Cabinet members are from the unelected House of Lords.** 28\. \_2.5\_\_ The "shadow cabinet" consists of Opposition members of Parliament, each of whom focus on the work of a cabinet minister. 29\. \_2.4\_\_ In "Question Period", members of Parliament ask questions of the prime minister and cabinet ministers. 30\. \_2.7\_\_ The Conservative Party has traditionally been more "right-wing" than others: more attached to traditional institutions, and representative of wealthier people. **31. 3.6\_\_\_ Since 1945, the most influential and famous Conservative leader has been Margaret Thatcher (prime minister from 1979 -1990). She wanted to weaken labour unions, lower taxes and give private businesses more freedom.** **32. \_3.3\_\_ The Labour party claims to be the party of the working class (labour), and is generally more "left-wing" than others.** 33\. \_2.9\_\_ In elections in 2024, Britons rejected the Conservative party that had governed since 2010. **34. \_3.2\_\_ In the 2024 elections, many former Conservative voters supported the Reform Party of Nigel Farage, who in 2016 led the "Brexit" movement to leave the European Union.** 35\. \_2.6\_\_ The Liberal Democrats, now the third most-numerous in Parliament, are centrists. Most were opposed to "Brexit". 36\. \_2.5\_\_ A few MPs are "Unionists" from Northern Ireland: mostly representing Protestants there who want their corner of Ireland to remain part of Britain. **37. \_3.1\_\_ The Scottish National Party (SNP) seeks an independent Scotland. Scots rejected this option (55% - 45%) in a 2014 referendum.** ***History and the Monarchy*** **38. \_3.0\_\_ Many people in Britain and the U.S. trace popular government to the "Magna Carta", which King John signed in 1214. He agreed not to rule alone, but with the consent and involvement of other nobles.** **39. \_3.4\_\_ King Henry VIII broke with Rome in 1634. He became head of the Church of England. The monarch still has that role.** 40\. \_2.8\_\_ After a civil war in the 1640s, Oliver Cromwell's forces executed King Charles I. Cromwell later became England's "Lord Protector". 41\. \_2.4\_\_ After Cromwell ("Lord Protector") died, Charles' son Charles II became king again ("the restoration", 1660). **42. \_3.2\_\_ The term "Victorian" refers traditionally to Britain's greatness starting from the mid-19^th^ century, when Queen Victoria reigned, as well as to public morality and the family.** 43\. \_2.9\_\_ In 1936, King Edward VIII abdicated (voluntarily left) the British throne to marry an unpopular American divorcee, Wallis Simpson. (As head of the Church of England, the king could not, at the time, marry a divorced woman.) This shocked people throughout the empire. (If that seems strange, imagine a pope abdicating to get married.) **\ ** **Review Questions on the US** ***\'America\': Some Basic Facts and Symbols*** **44. \_3.3\_\_ The District of Columbia is the city of Washington, where the United States government is centred.** **45. \_3.2\_\_ Puerto Rico is a self-governing U.S. territory.** 46\. \_2.6\_\_ In the past 60 years, the "centre of population" of the US has moved west, and a little south. There are growing cities especially in the south and west (Austin, Texas; Riverside, California; Phoenix, Arizona). **47. \_3.2\_\_ The western state of Nevada has grown quickly, while the mid-west state of Michigan (Detroit) has lost population.** **48. \_3.7\_\_ About 13% of the American population is Black ("African-American").** **49. \_3.5\_\_ A little over 20% of the American population is Roman Catholic.** **50. \_3.7\_\_ Between one and two per cent of the American population is indigenous ("Indians"/"native Americans").** **51. \_3.8\_\_ Nearly 20% of the American population is Hispanic, i.e., with roots in Spanish-speaking Latin America.** **52. \_3.7\_\_ The U.S. motto is "In God we trust".** 53\. \_2.6\_\_ The motto of the U.S. Great Seal is "E pluribus unum" (Out of many, one) **54. \_3.1\_\_ "The Star-Spangled banner", the U.S. national anthem, refers to the U.S. flag, which flew over a fort that the Americans were defending from the British in 1813.** 55\. \_2.4\_\_ American children typically begin their school day by reciting the "Pledge of Allegiance" to the US flag. 56\. \_1.9\_\_ The following poem, by Emma Lazarus, appears below the Statue of Liberty. It represents Americans' welcome (...to some): *\... Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,/* *The wretched masses of your teeming shore,/Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,* *I lift my lamp beside the golden door! (On a test, you won't be asked to recite the poem, word for word.)* ***57. \_3.8\_\_ "Ground Zero", in New York City, is the site of the former World Trade Centre, destroyed in a terrorist attack in 2001.*** ***58. \_3.9\_\_ On Mt. Rushmore, in South Dakota, are carved the faces of Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.*** *59. \_2.4\_\_ Many Americans are proud to be descended from one of the "Pilgrims" who were on the ship The Mayflower, which landed in present-day Massachusetts in 1620. People remember their voyage and settlement as the beginning of the U.S.A.* ***60. \_3.4\_\_ The term "Yankees" refers especially to northern Americans.*** 61\. \_2.7\_\_ "Dixie" refers to the traditional culture of the U.S. South. Because of this culture's associations with slavery, "Dixie" is now considered politically incorrect. **62. \_3.6\_\_ The highest mountain in the U.S. is Denali, in Alaska.** **63. \_3.2\_\_ The "Super Bowl", an American football championship, takes place on a Sunday in early February.** **U.S. Government** **64. \_2.7\_\_ The U.S. Constitution, agreed to by leaders of the newly-independent states in 1787, was a compromise between those who believed in one strong central government, and those who wanted a federation of independent states.** **65. \_3.2\_\_ Most of the American leaders who agreed on a constitution were not "democrats". They wanted a government which was not easily influenced by "the sighs of the poor", or the changing concerns of common people.** 66\. \_2.5\_\_ Those who designed the new U.S. constitution were concerned that no individual or small group could take control of government: thus the division of powers between courts, elected legislatures, and the executive branch of government. **67. \_3.2\_\_ The first ten changes ("amendments") to the Constitution are called the "Bill of Rights" because they are concerned with the rights that people should have, such as freedom of speech.** **68. \_3.2\_\_ The First Amendment to the U.S. constitution protects freedom of speech, and provides against a state religion.** **69. \_3.3\_\_ The Second Amendment protects citizens' freedoms "to bear arms" (carry weapons).** 70\. \_2.6\_\_ Other amendments to the Constitution protect the rights of citizens who have been arrested or charged with a crime (they may "remain silent", and not face "cruel or unusual punishment"). **71. \_3.0\_\_ The U.S. government is "federal": most powers belong to individual states, which have conferred some powers -- such as international trade and defence -- to the central or federal government (Washington).** **72. \_3.0\_\_ Individual U.S. states have their own laws governing schools, local highways and elections.** **73. \_4.0\_\_ The chief executive of the U.S. government is the President.** **74. \_3.4\_\_ The chief executive of each state's government is the state's Governor.** **75. \_3.4\_\_ The president's advisors, or cabinet members, are called "secretaries" (not "ministers" as in Poland or the UK).** **76. \_3.1\_\_ The United States Congress makes laws and approves budgets.** **77. \_3.0\_\_ Congress consists of an upper house, the Senate (100 members; two per state) and the House of Representatives (435 members, each representing an area with about 800,000 people).** 78\. \_2.4\_\_ The president nominates federal judges, including Supreme Court justices; the Senate confirms or rejects the nomination. 79\. \_2.8\_\_ The president leads the U.S. armed forces ("commander-in-chief") but Congress has the power to declare war. 80\. \_2.8\_\_ The president can veto laws; if 2/3 of Congress still want a vetoed law, they can over-ride the veto. 81\. \_2.6\_\_ Three years ago, the Supreme Court reversed the "Roe vs. Wade" decision of 1973, which essentially legalized abortion by saying that state governments could not prohibit abortions completely. The newer (i.e., 2020s) Supreme Court ruled that states should have this power. (This is the position of Pres. Trump.) In some states, abortion is now difficult. *Expansion of the United States* 82\. \_1.9\_\_ In the 19th century, many Americans began believing in the notion of "**Manifest Destiny**": events had shown that they were fated or destined to control all of North America. 83\. \_1.8\_\_ A French observer and writer, Alexis de Tocqueville, wrote in *Democracy in America,* in the 1830s, that Americans were egalitarian and "democratic" in ways that Europeans were not. He admired the fact that all Americans (in fact, all white males) could get a basic education and vote, though Americans could never, he said, aspire to the knowledge and the level of culture of the European aristocracy. 84\. \_2.3\_\_ In 1803, the U.S. bought Louisiana territory -- then, stretching from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains -- from France. Following the "Louisiana Purchase", the adventurers **Lewis and Clark** spent years exploring this vast new territory. 85\. \_2.6\_\_ The **Indian Removal Act** led to the expulsion of native peoples -- many of whom had farms and western-style school -- from the American southeast. The **"Trail of Tears"** refers to the journey of these peoples to "Indian territory" in the 1830s (now the state of Oklahoma, north of Texas). 86\. \_2.8\_\_ The **Oregon Treaty** of 1846 averted (prevented) a war between Britain and the U.S. over control of the lands on the Pacific Coast (Oregon Territory) and established the border between the U.S. and present-day Canada at the 45^th^ parallel. **87. \_3.0\_\_ Texas was part of Mexico until settlers there, mostly Americans, rebelled and made it an independent republic in 1835.** 88\. \_2.4\_\_ When the U.S. annexed Texas in 1846, the **Mexican-American War** ensued. American troops eventually occupied Mexico City. In the peace treaty, the U.S. gained the present territories of California, most of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Nevada. **89. \_3.1\_\_ After the U.S. acquired the territory of California from Mexico, gold was discovered there -- bringing thousands of settlers in the 1850s "Gold Rush". California soon had enough people to become a state.** **90. \_3.2\_\_ The first non-indigenous settlers of the territory of Utah were Mormons, evicted from territories further east because of their unconventional practices (common ownership of property; polygamy). Their religion is still prominent in Utah, although in the early twentieth century they gave up polygamy. (Most Mormon men are now among the most faithful of husbands.)** 91\. \_2.8\_\_ The U.S. war against native peoples of the Great Plains consisted of exterminating the buffalo, which they depended on. 92\. \_2.1\_\_ "Custer's Last Stand" refers to indigenous warriors' victory over American soldiers, under General George Custer, in 1876. An alliance of indigenous (native) groups all but wiped out the U.S. soldiers. **93. \_3.3\_\_ The U.S. purchased the territory of Alaska from Russia in 1867.** 94\. \_2.5\_\_ The U.S. encouraged a revolt by the people of Panama against Columbia. Later, they controlled Panama territory, and Americans built the Panama Canal there. In 1979, control of the Canal Zone reverted to Panama. The new U.S. president has suggested that the U.S. should control it again. **Cultural Groups** **95. \_3.2\_\_ In the U.S. and Canada, thousands of indigenous (native) children were taken from their families and forced to live in residential schools. Governments in these countries have only recently recognized that this polich was "cultural genocide".** 96\. \_2.9\_\_ The term "Jim Crow" refers especially to attitudes and laws aimed to denigrate and isolate Black citizens. A policy of segregation meant that their children could not attend "white" schools, and various laws kept them from voting. This began to change in the 1960s. **97. \_4.2\_\_ The "Black Lives Matter" movement has drawn attention, especially, to police violence against African-Americans.\ 98. \_3.5\_\_ Some consider the US a "melting pot" where different cultures meld into a new culture; others prefer the metaphor "salad bowl", where cultures remain distinct even as they live together.**