美国社会与文化课后练习题.doc

“美国社会与文化”课后练习题
I. 单选
1. Which of the following statement is CORRECT about the geographic location of the United States of America?
A. South of North America, southern temperate zone;
B. South of North America, northern temperate zone;
C. North of North America, northern temperate zone;
D. North of South America, southern temperate zone.

2. The boundary line between America and Mexico, starts from the mouth of the Rio Grande River and finally ends at the ___________ seashore.
A. Atlantic B. Pacific
C. Indian D. Oceanic

3. _________, known as the Eastern Coastal Plain, is a wide strip between the Atlantic and the Appalachians.

A. Mexico seacoast B. Caribbean seacoast
C. Bering seacoast D. Atlantic seacoast

4. Rocky Mountains stretch all the way from ________ to _________.
A. Mexico, the Arctic B. Mexico, the Atlantic
C. Alaska, the Atlantic D. Alaska, Mexico

5．The Yellow Stone National Park is located in __________.
A. the Grand Canyon B. the Rocky Mountains
C. the Death Valley D. the Willamette Valley

6. According to functionalist perspective, which one is not mentioned as the function of education?
A. Providing custodial care
B. Promoting national unity
C. Reducing unemployment
D. Teaching knowledge and skills

7. “Head Start” movement was conducted to __________.
A. Give every child equal opportunity to receive education.
B. Bring those who were at disadvantage to have equal opportunity to receive education.
C. Initiate an optional course in school.
D. Improve the academic performance of students.

8. Regarding the education reforms, _________.
A. New paradigm supporters are confident in markets.
B. Systemic reformers believe in consumers.
C. The new paradigm and the old one are totally different.
D. Both the reforms reached good result.

9. Which of the following is related closely to religion?
A. public schools
B. Private schools
C. Community schools
D. Parochial schools

10. For the schools at local level, _____________.
A. the central government assigns the president.
B. Voted governing board is responsible for the governance of the local school.
C. The education quality is not very high-standard.
D. Teachers are less-paid than the state-run schools.

11. The sources of American Folk Music are _________.
A. the British Isles and Africa
B. the British Isles and Asia
C. European countries
D. All of the above

12. American Folk Music represents ________.
A. the American Indians
B. the tribal music of primitive peoples
C. American culture
D. The western American lives

13. The foremost form of Anglo-Celtic folk music is ________.
A. church music
B. Balladry
C. Tribal music
D. Harmonic music

14. Bob Dylan is ____________.
A. American folk singer
B. US folksinger, banjo player
C. American singer and composer
D. American folksinger and song writer

15. A disc jockey is supposed to ___________.
A. Design the programs for radio stations.
B. Mix different kinds of music together
C. Organize the dancing tune
D. Blend only certain types of music together to create new ones.

16. Donkey stands for________.
A. Democratic Party B. Republican Party
C. Labor Party D. Federalist Party

17. The president of the United States must be at least ________.
A. 40 years old B. 35 years old
C. 45 years old D. 37 years old

18. Which of the following is not considered as the cornerstone of traditional American belief?
A. Individual Freedom B. Equality of Opportunity
C. Material Wealth D. Racial Diversity

19. _____ is responsible for the relation of the United States with foreign countries.
A. congress B. president
C. ambassador D. chief judge

20. The president can veto any bills passed by congress, unless ______ in each house vote to override the veto.
A. 2/3 B. 3/4
C. 4/5 D. 1/2

21. Juvenile Crime, in law, term denoting various offenses committed by children or youths under the age of _______.
A. 16 B. 14
C. 18 D. 20

22. Which country remains the only Western democracy that imposed the death penalty on some of those convicted of murder?_______
A. Canada B. the United States
C. England D. Germany

23. The largest and best organized association standing for firearm users in America states, “ Guns don’t kill people, people kill people”, which is _________.
A. NRA B. Gun Club
C. WHO D. ARA

24. Series of studies clearly show that ______ and violence are interrelated.
A. Race B. Sex
C. Age D. Drugs

25. The unlawful killing of a human being by a person who had an intent to kill is the definition of the crime of ______.
A. Murder B. Manslaughter
C. Assault D. Battery

26. What is the scientific definition of family given by sociologists?
A. We are born into a family, mature in a family, form new families, and leave them at our death. Family life is a universal human experience.
B. The family is a fundamental God given institution built into the very nature of the universe.
C. The family is an arbitrary cultural structure. It is a group of people held together by bonds of love and affection.
D. The family is a group of people who are related to one another by bonds of blood, marriage, or adoption and who live together, form an economic unit, and bear and raise children.

27. What is the basis for traditional family structure?
A. Extended family
B. Nuclear family
C. Kinship
D. Immediate family

28. What are the diverse patterns of contemporary families?
A. Singlehood, Postponing Marriage, Cohabitation, Dual-Earner Marriages, Two-Parent and One-Parent Households, Stepfamilies, Gay and Lesbian Marriages
B. Singlehood, Postponing Marriage, Cohabitation, Dual-Earner Marriages, Two-Parent and One-Parent Households
C. Singlehood, Postponing Marriage, Cohabitation, Dual-Earner Marriages, Stepfamilies, Gay and Lesbian Marriages
D. Singlehood, Postponing Marriage, Cohabitation, Two-Parent and One-Parent Households, Gay and Lesbian Marriages

29. What are the major family problems?
i. Divorce
ii. Remarriage
iii. Violence
iv. Work and Family Inequality
A. (1) (2) (3) B. (1) (3) (4)
C. (1) (2) (4) D. (1) (2) (3) (4)

30. What are the causes for an aging American society?
(1) A continued low fertility rate
(2) Ever-greater life expectancy rate due to advances in medicine
(3) The baby boom generation reaching old age.
(4) Improved social services and more favorable public policies
A. (1) (2) (4) B. (1) (2)(3)
C. (1)(2)(3)(4) D. (2)(3)(4)

31. There occurred three times of immigration waves since 1620. The third wave took place ___________, and the number of immigrants rose to 23,500,000, most of whom came from such South-eastern European countries as Italy and Russia.
A. between 1820 and 1850 B. between 1851 and 1870
C. between 1871 and 1920 D. between 1881 and 1920

32. In 1886, _________ gave the United States the Statue of Liberty as a gesture of friendship, and since then the Statue, which is standing on an island near Ellis Island, has become a symbol of hope, lighting the way for new arrivals.
A. France B. Britain
C. Germany D. Spain

33. In recent decades, some important legislative documents have remapped the order of American immigration policies. Among them, ___________ gave the priority to the applicants for family reunification, and since then the number of Asian immigrants has increased rapidly.
A. the Immigration Act of 1965 B. the Illegal Immigration Act
C. the USA Patriot Act of 2001 D. the Exclusion Act of 1882

34. Americans make active use of their legal system and take great pride in being a litigious people. The underlined part means that ___________.
A. Americans are fully aware of their legal rights
B. Americans are protective towards their legal rights
C. Americans are jealous of others’ legal rights
D. Americans are fond of taking matters to a court of law

35. Like al other judges, ___________ are appointed by the president with the approval and consent of the senate.
A. the district judges B the Attorney General
C. Chief of Justice D. justice of the peace

36. The most important element in US economy against inflation was____________.
A. the federal Reserve Board B. the International Monetary Fund
C. the World Bank D. big corporations

37. The following are the strengths of the US economy except __________.
A. the highest standard of living B. the lowest unemployment rate
C. low rate of savings D. high productivity of US industries

38. Which of the following is not included as essential elements in American economic system?
A. Productivity. B. Income equality.
C. Creativity. D. Stability.

39．Which combination is right?
A. Passing of the Social Security Act---- post-1960
B. President Nixon---- the Great Society
C. President Carter---- the Great Society
D. President Reagan---- the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act

40．Which of the following is not the major role that the US media is playing?
A. Watchdog B. Speech Rectifier
C. Signaler D. Common Carrier

II．名词解释
1）Gold Rush
2) Martin Luther King Jr.
3) The New Deal
4) The Great Depression
5) Laissez-Faire
6) Affirmative Action Program
7) The Baby Boom
8) The Great Society
9) Racism
10) Ku Klux Klan
11) Original Sin (Inherent Sinfulness)
12) Welfare State
13) Westward Expansion
14) WASP
15) Rating Code
16) McCarthyism
17) American Dream
18) the Iron Curtain
19) the Marshall Plan
20) Watergate Scandal
21) extended family
22) nuclear family
23) Hispanic Americans
24) Manifest Destiny
25) Separation of Powers

III. Essay Questions
1) How would you describe the relationship between President and Congress in the United States?
2) Do you think economic affluence will inevitably lead to consumerism and excessive individualism? Why or why not?
3) What are the major American values? What are the changes in the American values? What are the factors that contribute to these changes?
4) What is the origin of the myth of Asian Superiority? Why do you think the myth of Asian Superiority is harmful?
5) What are some of the characteristics of American education? How do Americans view the role of education in American society and in their individual life?
6) America is widely accepted as the engine of the world economy. In what way do you think the American economy has influenced and will influence the world?
7) Immigration takes place with, at least, two forces at work, namely the pull force and the push force. Pick any one ethnic group in the United States as an example and illustrate its experience in the “pull and push” framework.
8) Throughout the U.S. history, the two major parties, the Republican and the Democratic, have been holding powers alternatively in the country. What key functions have they played in American politics? Why is it that minor parties in the U.S. have never been able to challenge the two-party system in the power struggle of American politics?
9) The death penalty and gun control have been issues of bitter controversy in national and state politics of the United States. Discuss the reasons why Americans are so divided over these two issues, and explain how values and principles clash with each other in these two controversial issues.
10) Sports, particularly football, have traditionally played a significant role in American colleges and universities. What are their social, cultural, and economic implications for universities and students?

Basic American values:
Individual freedom --- the freedom of individuals to fulfill their own individual needs and do as they wish
Self-reliance --- being able to take care of themselves and not depend on others for support
Equality of opportunity --- having an equal chance to succeed, regardless of whether sex, race, or age
Competition --- having to compete with others for success, rather than expecting to be given something for free
Material wealth --- viewing possessions as the mark of having status in the society and as the natural reward for hard work
Hard work --- the belief that everyone should work hard, sometimes for very long hours, to be successful