Metallurgy begins in the Early Bronze Age. Neolithic Age translates to the "New Stone" Age.

The advent of agriculture allowed more permanent settlements, as migratory patterns in search of food were no longer necessary.The domestication of animals and inventions of cursive script and pottery were all made possible by sedentary lifestyles.

Han Dynasty 206 B.C.E. to 220 C.E.

Tang Dynasty 618 C.E. to 907 C.E.

Ming Dynasty 1368 C.E to 1644 C.E. 

Qing Dynasty 1644 C.E. to 1911 C.E. 

The Spring and Autumn Period was not the era immediately preceding the Qin dynasty, so that would not be the best answer. The Communist Revolution was a period of civil instability, however it was many centuries after the Qin dynasty, so that would not be a good answer. The War of the Roses was a civil war, but it was in 15th century England, so that would not be the best answer choice. The Ming dynasty was not a period of civil strife and it was many centuries after the Qin dynasty, so that would not be a good choice. Lastly, the Warring States Period was a time of civil strife and directly preceded the Qin dynasty, so that would be the best choice.

Laozi was the founder of Taoism and did not focus on social order, so he would not be the best choice. Yu the Engineer was an arguably fictional sage-emperor and was not a philosopher, so he would not be the best choice. Mao Zedong was the leader of the Communist Revolution and lived in the 20th century, so he too would not be the best answer. Finally, Confucius was a Chinese historian and philosopher concerned with both of the aspects in question, so he would be the best choice.

Mao Zedong was the leader of the Communist Revolution in the 20th century, so he would not be a good answer to this question. Genghis Khan was a Mongol and the creator of the Mongol Empire, so he too is not a good choice. Kublai Khan was the grandson of Genghis and lived in the 13th century, so he would not be a good answer to this question. Ivan the Great was the Prince of Moscow and founder of Rus - the predecessor state of Russia - so he would not be the best choice. Lastly Yu the Great was allegedly able to devise a series of dams and flood control measures that mitigated serious agricultural problems in central China.

Direct democracy is the answer because the Athenians, under the rule of Pericles, allowed every Athenian male citizen over the age of 18 to have one vote, whenever a political decision needed to be made. In a direct democracy, every citizen who is eligible to vote is able to vote directly on any law. The other choices involved scenarios in which the citizens collectively vote on a representative who can vote on the law, but the individual citizen cannot vote directly on a law.  

All of the other choices are part of the cycle of the Mandate of Heaven. Once a dynasty loses the Mandate of Heaven they cannot regain it. Instead, a new dynasty arises which overthrows the corrupt dynasty which the gods had forsaken.

Due to Rome's over-expansion, increasing power of the Catholic Church, and the emergence of the feudal system, Western Europe 500 years after Rome's collapse was very different. While there were major changes in the 500 years following the Han dynasty in China, much of the institutions and government systems established by the Han remained largely intact.

The cultural collapse of the Mycenaean Kingdoms, Hittite Empire, and the Egyptian New Kingdom led to political instability and large-scale war. Most of the major cities in the Near East were destroyed, never to be re-settled. This allowed a new generation of civilizations to rise to power and create the Iron Age.