3rd Benchmark Study Guide
1. What led to the formation of the African Union? The belief in PanAfricanism and the organization of 32 African states into the
Organization of African Unity
2. Why did the European countries decide to colonize Africa? To exploit its
raw materials
3. What laws separated the blacks and whites in South Africa? Apartheid
Laws
4. Why has Sudan been unable to use its natural resources in an efficient
manner? Political instability and civil war
5. Why has their continued to be conflict within countries of Africa after the
independence movement? Political boundaries were made without regard
for ethnic groups in the country and government leaders had little
experience governing
6. Why is the Nile River so important to Egyptians? It provides 85% of the
country’s water
7. What has caused Egyptians to be able to plant three crops per year? The
Aswan High Dam allows them to control the flooding of the Nile and
irrigate crops
8. What is the largest desert in the world and where is it located? The Sahara
desert in Northern Africa
9. Who are the Tuareg? The nomads who live in the Sahara
10. What attracted British settlers to South Africa? Gold and diamonds
11. What has caused such a large number of refugees to form in Africa? Civil
war and genocide have caused millions of people to flee their homelands
in search of safety.
12. Which president ended the separation of races in South Africa? F. W. de
Klerk
13. Describe the governments of Kenya and South Africa. Both are called
republics. Kenya is ruled by the president who is head of the Kenyan
African National Union political party. South Africa is a parliamentary
democracy. The President is elected by the National Assembly.
14. What is the oldest religion in India? Hinduism
15. What geographic features allow the people of India to sustain their
livelihood? The Ganges River
16. What is an archipelago? Give an example of one in East Asia. An island
chain; Indonesia
17. What has caused political instability since African independence? Europeans
had divided the countries without regard to local tribes and ethnic
groups, forcing warring groups to live in the same area
18. What ethnic group supported the separation of races in South Africa?
19. What is pan-africanism? Belief that all African should consider themselves
Africans and work together for unity and equality.
20. What allowed Nelson Mandela to become the first black president of South
Africa? F. W. de Klerk released him from prison and they worked
together to end apartheid
21. What caused the Atlantic Slave Trade to happen? European colonies needed
slaves to work their plantations to they traded guns and money for
slaves from African tribes.
22. What is a command economy? Economy controlled by the government
23. What is a tariff? Tax on imports
24. Where are the Himalayan Mountains? In Southeast Asia on the border
between India and China
25. What is a democracy? Government where the people hold the power
26. What is civil war? When different groups within a nation battle for
control of the government and resources
27. What are capital goods? Machines, factories and tools used by people to
make money
28. What are brown clouds? A haze of pollution found in India that is caused
by pollution from automobile emissions, carbon monoxide, and soot
29. What is the underlying cause of deforestation, Brown Clouds, and shortages
of resources? Overpopulation
30. What religions are practiced in Asia? Hinduism, Buddhism, Shintoism,
Islam
31. What was Mohandas Gandhi’s plan of civil disobedience? People should not
obey laws that seem unfair to them
32. What is the largest dam in the world and where is it located? Three Gorges
Dam
33. What is the Cold War? The name given to the disagreements between the
U.S. and the Soviet Union at the end of World War II
34. What were the “Great Leap Forward” and the “Cultural Revolution” meant to
accomplish? Improve the economy
35. How do the physical features of Africa and Asia affect the climate, where
people live and how they work?
 Deserts – few people live there because of the harsh climate. Those
that do are called nomads and travel from place to place looking for an
oasis.
 Rivers & coasts – most people settle along rivers or the coast. The
waters are used for drinking, food, transportation, and irrigation.
 Mountains – Few people live in the mountains. In Asia, the mountains
block moisture from the Indian Ocean from getting into China. They
have protected India from invaders from the north.
 The monsoons in Southern Asia help crops grow and people live their
lives around the monsoon rains.