The Cold War and the 1950s Test Bank
Of the following participants in the Korean War, which fought on the side of the Communists?
A. China
B. South Korea
C. the United States
D. the United Nations
General Douglas MacArthur argued that the Korean War
A. was not a vital American interest.
B. should be limited to Korea.
C. should be extended into a war against China.
D. should be extended into a war against the Soviet Union.
The main goal of the ___ was to stop the spread of communism.
A. Truman Doctrine
B. Marshall Plan
C. iron curtain
D. Warsaw Pact
The Soviet Union set up the ___ in response to efforts from the West to reunify Germany.
A. iron curtain
B. Berlin airlift
C. Berlin blockade
D. German Democratic Republic
___ is best known for investigating communism in the film industry.
A. The CIA
B. The UN
C. HUAC
D. NATO
The ___ were defeated in the civil war in China despite 2 billion dollars in aid sent to them from
the United States.
A. Nationalists
B. Communists
C. Soviets
D. peasants
___ was the leader of the Communists in China.
A. Chiang Kai-shek
B. Mao Zedong
C. Syngman Rhee
D. Kim Il Sung
General Douglas MacArthur commanded U.S. forces in ___.
A. Guatemala
B. Hungary
C. the Middle East
D. Korea
The ___ appeared to be winning the Korean War until China actively entered the conflict.
A. Communists
B. Nationalists
C. South Koreans
D. North Koreans
The United States responded to fear of Soviet military action in the Middle East by issuing the
___.
A. Marshall Plan
B. Truman Doctrine
C. Warsaw Pact
D. Eisenhower Doctrine
When the Soviet Union exploded an atomic bomb, the United States responded by intensifying
efforts to develop ___.
A. NATO
B. an atomic bomb
C. a space satellite
D. a hydrogen bomb
In a capitalist system,
A. the state controls economic activity.
B. private citizens control economic activity.
C. elected officials control economic activity.
D. the dictator controls economic activity.
The main goal of the Truman Doctrine was to
A. promote free elections in Europe.
B. restrict the spread of communism.
C. force Germany to pay war reparations.
D. maintain international peace through the UN.
The Soviet blockade of West Berlin was a response to
A. the Marshall Plan.
B. the formation of NATO.
C. efforts by Western nations to divide Germany.
D. efforts by Western nations to reunify Germany.
The Soviet Union did not vote to defend South Korea at the UN Security Council because
A. the Soviets were boycotting the UN over the presence of Taiwan.
B. the Soviets were boycotting the UN over the presence of Chinese Communists.
C. the Soviets had already sent military aid to South Korea.
D. the Soviets had wanted to remain neutral at the time.
When an armistice was signed ending the Korean War,
A. North and South Korea were still divided along the 38th parallel.
B. a communist government was established in South Korea.
C. communist fears in the United States were lifted.
D. China gained control of the entire peninsula.
After the U-2 incident, all of the following events occurred except
A. the Soviet Union rejected Eisenhower's "open skies" proposal at Geneva.
B. Khrushchev called off a summit conference on the arms race.
C. Khrushchev withdrew his invitation for Eisenhower to visit the Soviet Union.
D. Francis Gary Powers was released from prison after 18 months.
Accusations that communism was widely present in the U.S. government and military were
made by
A. Douglas MacArthur.
B. Joseph McCarthy.
C. John Foster Dulles.
D. Alger Hiss.
American interest in developing a hydrogen bomb intensified when
A. the policy of containment failed in China.
B. the Soviet Union launched a space satellite.
C. the Soviet Union exploded an atomic bomb.
D. the Soviet Union exploded a hydrogen bomb.
If the statement is true, write "true" on the line. If it is false, change the underlined word or words to make
it true.
______Dwight D. Eisenhower abruptly became president after the death of Franklin D.
Roosevelt.
______The Dixiecrats were Southern Democrats who opposed civil rights and claimed to be
concerned about protecting "the Southern way of life."
______Eisenhower's Fair Deal for the American people included proposals for a nationwide
system of health insurance and farm aid.
______In response to labor strikes that threatened to cripple the nation, Harry S. Truman
threatened to draft business owners into the military.
Read each statement. If it is true, write "true" on the line. If it is false, write "false." (4 points each)
______The Dixiecrats were strong supporters of Truman's civil rights policies.
______The population baby boom began in the late 1940s.
______Dr. Jonas Salk developed a vaccine for typhoid fever.
______Planned obsolescence is a marketing strategy designed to encourage consumers to
buy more goods.
______In the early days of rock 'n' roll, the audience was mainly African American and the
musicians were mainly white.
______The beat movement was centered in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York
City's Greenwich Village.
______The braceros were Mexican workers who came to the United States during World
War II to harvest crops.
One of the benefits that the GI Bill of Rights offered to returning veterans was ___.
A. counseling
B. low-interest loans
C. free homes
D. government jobs
The Dixiecrats nominated ___ to run for president in 1948.
A. Harry S. Truman
B. Thomas E. Dewey
C. J. Strom Thurmond
D. Henry A. Wallace
During the 1950s, ___ jobs declined.
A. manufacturing
B. advertising
C. communications
D. service
The vast majority of new homes in the 1950s were built in the ___ .
A. big cities
B. suburbs
C. small cities
D. rural areas
With more money to spend and an increased number of products to buy, ___ became an
American way of life.
A. consumerism
B. social conformity
C. planned obsolescence
D. a 40-hour work week
Most Americans in the 1960s relied on ___ as their primary source of entertainment and
information.
A. radio
B. movies
C. telephones
D. television
The expression of nonconformity by ___ developed into the beat movement.
A. college students
B. artists and poets
C. teenagers
D. rock 'n' roll performers
All of the following contributed to the economic recovery after the war except
A. consumer demand.
B. labor strikes.
C. the Cold War.
D. the Marshall Plan.
The factor that most contributed to the upset win of Truman in the 1948 election was
A. his relentless campaign against a "do-nothing" Congress.
B. the healthy state of the nation's economy.
C. his position on civil rights.
D. support from labor unions.
The first politician to skillfully use the new medium of television was
A. Harry S. Truman.
B. Dwight D. Eisenhower.
C. Richard M. Nixon.
D. Adlai Stevenson.
One disadvantage of standardization in American business was that it
A. led to a lower standard of living.
B. discouraged individuality.
C. lowered profits.
D. was less efficient.
The group that benefited most from the economy and culture of the 1950s was
A. African-American women.
B. African-American men.
C. white women.
D. white men.
The dramatic increase in car ownership in the 1950s contributed to all of the following except
A. noise pollution.
B. the Interstate Highway Act.
C. decreased usage of national parks.
D. the widening gap between the middle class and the poor.
Criticism of television in the 1950s was based on
A. its portrayal of an idealized society.
B. weak transmitters.
C. the size of the screen.
D. its black-and-white images.
In the 1950s, both the beat movement and rock 'n' roll were viewed as forms of
A. harmless entertainment.
B. rebellion.
C. African-American culture.
D. mainstream American values.