AP World History : Science and Technology 1900 to Present

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP World History

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Example Questions

Example Question #352 : Ap World History

What was the Manhattan Project?

Possible Answers:

A 1940s plan to completely remake the electric infrastructure of New York City

A series of experiments among scientists that lead to proof of the existence of the neutron

A secret project that led to the invention of radar

A secret military project in the United States during World War II that created the first atomic bomb

The name for a series of experiments conducted by Albert Einstein that led to his formulation of the Theory of Relativity

Correct answer:

A secret military project in the United States during World War II that created the first atomic bomb

Explanation:

The Manhattan Project was a secret American military project that led to the creation of the first atomic bomb in 1945. It was led on the civilian side by physicist Robert Oppenheimer, and on the military side by General Leslie Groves. The Manhattan Project created the two atomic bombs that were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II in 1945.

Example Question #1 : Science And Technology 1900 To Present

What major discovery was published by scientists James D. Watson and Francis Crick in 1953?

Possible Answers:

The existence of subatomic particles smaller than protons

The double helix structure of DNA

The ability to mass produce solar power

The silicon computer chip

The ability to clone cells in a laboratory

Correct answer:

The double helix structure of DNA

Explanation:

James Watson and Francis Crick used X-ray images created by Rosalind Franklin to discover that the structure of DNA was a double helix. This discovery showed how DNA replicated itself and furthered our understanding for how genetic traits were passed from one generation to the other.

Example Question #2 : Science And Technology 1900 To Present

Technological innovations in warfare during World War One included all of the following except __________.

Possible Answers:

replaceable parts

poison gas

trench warfare

tanks

submarine warfare

Correct answer:

replaceable parts

Explanation:

World War One was a period of great innovation in weaponry and warfare. Tanks, poison gas, trench warfare, and submarine warfare were all used for the first time during World War One. However, replaceable parts were invented more than a century earlier and were used for the first time in the Napoleonic Wars of the early nineteenth century.

Example Question #3 : Science And Technology 1900 To Present

Who invented penicillin?

Possible Answers:

Humphry Davy

Robert Fulton

Alexander Fleming

Nikola Tesla

Thomas Edison

Correct answer:

Alexander Fleming

Explanation:

Penicillin was invented by Alexander Fleming in 1928. It is an antibiotic that fights against bacterial infections. The invention of penicillin, and other antibiotics, dramatically improved mankind’s ability to resist and fight back against deadly diseases.

Example Question #4 : Science And Technology 1900 To Present

The invention of __________ dramatically reduced the number of battlefield deaths resulting from sickness; when comparing World War I and World War II.

Possible Answers:

laughing gas

penicillin

nitric acid

ibuprofen

chlorine gas

Correct answer:

penicillin

Explanation:

The invention of penicillin, by Alexander Fleming in 1928, allowed humans to fight back against bacterial infections with potency for the first time in human history. Penicillin, and other antibiotics, fight diseases that have historically devastated human populations, especially during times of war. The use of penicillin in World War Two dramatically reduced the number of casualties from diseases like influenza.

Example Question #4 : Science And Technology 1900 To Present

What is the estimated global population of internet users?

Possible Answers:

One-hundred million

One billion

Two billion

Five-hundred million

Three billion

Correct answer:

Three billion

Explanation:

It is estimated that the global population of internet users is approximately three billion. Approximately forty percent of the global population has regular access to the internet.

Example Question #5 : Science And Technology 1900 To Present

Which of the following people is widely credited with the discovery of the antibiotic properties of penicillin?

Possible Answers:

Aristotle

Dmitri Mendeleev

Leonardo DaVinci

Marie Curie

Alexander Fleming

Correct answer:

Alexander Fleming

Explanation:

Alexander Fleming is widely credited with the discovery, and his work earned him the Nobel Prize. Marie Curie was also a scientist, however she is most famous for her experiments with radiation. Mendeleev was a chemist himself, however he is most famous for developing the periodic law, which led to the periodic table. Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher and naturalist, however he lived far before the discovery of penicillin. Lastly DaVinci, while also a famous inventor and thinker, was similarly dead long before the discovery in question.

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