Practice Exam

Exam Content and Format

The AP World History: Modern Exam is 3 hours and 15 minutes long. There are
two sections:
• Section I is 1 hour, 35 minutes and consists of 55 multiple-choice questions,
accounting for 40 percent of the final score, and four short-answer questions,
accounting for 20 percent of the final score. Two short-answer questions
are mandatory and students can choose which of the remaining two short-
answer questions they respond to.

• Section II is 1 hour, 40 minutes and consists of one document-based question

and three long essay questions, accounting for 40 percent of the final score.
Students can choose which of the three long essay questions they respond to.

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Students are given a 15-minute reading period and recommended time of
45 minutes of writing time for the document-based question and 40 minutes
for the long essay question, but students are not forced to move from the
document-based question to the long essay question.

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Administering the Practice Exam
This section contains instructions for administering the AP World History:
Modern Practice Exam. You may wish to use these instructions to create an
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exam situation that resembles an actual administration. If so, read the indented,
boldface directions to the students; all other instructions are for administering
the exam and need not be read aloud. Before beginning testing, have all exam
materials ready for distribution. These include test booklets and answer sheets.
(Reminder: Final instructions for every AP Exam are published in the AP Exam
Instructions book.)
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SECTION I, Part A: Multiple Choice

When you are ready to begin Section I, Part A, say:

Section I, Part A is the multiple-choice portion of the exam. Mark all

of your responses on your answer sheet, one response per question. If
you need to erase, do so carefully and completely. Your score on the
multiple-choice section will be based solely on the number of questions
answered correctly.

You have 55 minutes for this part. Open your Section I booklet and
begin.

Note Start Time here ________. Note Stop Time here ________.

AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 1

 After 55 minutes, say:

Stop working. I will now collect your multiple-choice answer sheet.

SECTION I, Part B: Short Answer

When you are ready to begin Section I, Part B, say:

Section I, Part B is the short-answer portion of the exam. Write your

answers in the corresponding boxes on the lined pages designated for
short-answer responses. Answer Question 1 and Question 2 and either
Question 3 or Question 4. Use a pen with black or dark blue ink.

You have 40 minutes for this part. Begin.

Note Start Time here ________. Note Stop Time here________.

After 40 minutes, say:

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Stop working. I will now collect your Section I booklet and your short-
answer responses.

There is a 10-minute break between Sections I and II.

SECTION II: Free Response

After the break, say:

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Section II is the free-response portion of the exam. Answer Question 1,
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the Document-Based Question, and your choice of either Long Essay
Question 2, Question 3, or Question 4.

You have 1 hour and 40 minutes to complete Section II. Section II

begins with a 15-minute reading period. The reading period is designed
to provide you with time to develop your responses. During the reading
period you are advised to read Question 1 (the Document-Based
Question) and plan your answer. If you have time, you may also read
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Long Essay Questions 2, 3, and 4. You may begin writing your responses
before the reading period is over. You may use any blank space of the
pages the questions or documents are printed on to organize your
answers and for scratch work, but you must write your answers on the
lined pages provided for the free-response questions. Make sure that
you circle the number of the question you are answering on each page.

The suggested writing time for Question 1 is 45 minutes. After

45 minutes, you will be advised to go on to the next question. Questions
2, 3, and 4 are weighted equally; you will not get extra credit for
answering the question that may seem more difficult. Choose the
question for which you are best prepared.

2 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

 Name:

AP® World History: Modern

Answer Sheet
for Multiple-Choice Section

No. Answer No. Answer

1 29
2 30
3 31
4 32
5 33

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6 34
7 35
8 36
9 37
10
11
12
13
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39
40
41
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14 42
15 43
16 44
17 45
18 46
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19 47
20 48
21 49
22 50
23 51
24 52
25 53
26 54
27 55
28

AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 3

 AP World History: Modern Exam
®

SECTION I, Part A: Multiple Choice

DO NOT OPEN THIS BOOKLET UNTIL YOU ARE TOLD TO DO SO.

Instructions
At a Glance
Section I, Part A of this exam contains 55 multiple-choice questions.
Time
55 minutes Indicate all of your answers to the multiple-choice questions on the multiple-choice answer
Number of Questions sheet. No credit will be given for anything written in this exam booklet, but you may use
55 the booklet for notes or scratch work.
Percent of Total Score
40% Use your time effectively, working as quickly as you can without losing accuracy. Do not
Writing Instrument spend too much time on any one question. Go on to other questions and come back to

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Pencil required the ones you have not answered if you have time. It is not expected that everyone will
know the answers to all of the multiple-choice questions.
Your total score on the multiple-choice section is based only on the number of questions
answered correctly. Points are not deducted for incorrect answers or unanswered
questions.

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SECTION I, Part B: Short Answer

Instructions
At a Glance
For Section I, Part B of this exam, answer Question 1 and Question 2 and either
Time Question 3 or Question 4. Write your responses in the corresponding boxes on the
40 minutes short-answer response sheets. You must write your response to each question on
Number of Questions the lined page designated for that response. Each response is expected to fit within
3
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its designated page. Fill in the circle on the Section I, Part B: Short-Answer
Percent of Total Score Response page indicating whether you answered Question 3 or Question 4.
20%
Writing Instrument
Pen with black or dark
blue ink
Questions 1 and 2
Mandatory
Question 3 or 4
Choose One Question

4 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

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The inclusion of source material in this exam is not intended
as an endorsement by the College Board or ETS of the content,
ideas, or values expressed in the material. The material has been
selected by the World history faculty who serve on the AP

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World History Development Committee. In their judgment,
the material printed here reflects various aspects of the course of
study on which this exam is based and is therefore appropriate to
use to measure the skills and knowledge of this course.
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 5

 WORLD HISTORY: MODERN
SECTION I, Part A
Time—55 minutes
55 Questions

Directions: Each of the questions or incomplete statements is followed by four suggested answers or completions.
Select the one that is best in each case and then enter the letter in the corresponding space on the answer sheet.
Source materials have been edited for the purpose of this exercise.

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6 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

Questions 1 - 4 refer to the images below.

Image 1

WOOD PRINTING PLATE CONTAINING A PAPER MONEY NOTE WRITTEN IN MONGOL AND
CHINESE, PRODUCED IN CHINA, CIRCA 1287

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Pictures from History/Bridgeman Images

The smaller Chinese characters on the lower half of the note say, “This note can be circulated in various
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provinces without expiration dates. Counterfeiters will be put to death.”

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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 7

 Image 2

“MONEYLENDING AT INTEREST IN A BANKING HOUSE,” THE TREATISE ON THE SEVEN SINS,

MANUSCRIPT PRODUCED IN GENOA, NORTHERN ITALY, EARLY FOURTEENTH CENTURY

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Heritage Image Partnership Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo

The Latin text in the upper left-hand corner warns against greed.

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8 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

1. The commercial practices shown in the images
emerged in order to
(A) facilitate the development of regional trade
networks by creating uniform currencies
and systems of credit.
(B) finance imperial conquests by supplying
credit and currency for purchasing
weapons.
(C) facilitate a growing trade in luxury goods
by providing greater access to credit and
currency.
(D) finance transnational Chinese artisan
businesses across Eurasia by diversifying
sources of credit and currency.
2. Image 1 could best be used as evidence of the
ways in which
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(A) the introduction of new commercial
practices fostered urban expansion.
(B) new commercial technologies helped
expand literacy.
(C) imperial states attempted to expand
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commercial activity.
(D) commerce fostered cultural unity in some
politically fragmented regions.
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3. The author’s portrayal of the activities shown in
Image 2 was most directly informed by
(A) aristocratic resentment of peasants
(B) Christian religious ideals
(C) royal concern about the growing wealth of
merchants
(D) aristocratic ideals of chivalry and valor
4. All of the following statements about the use of
the currency shown in Image 1 in China under
the Yuan dynasty are factually accurate. Which
best explains why the currency often led to
hyperinflation?
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(A) The Yuan government forced private
citizens to surrender their gold and silver
and accept paper currency in its place.
(B) Excessive amounts of currency were
printed in order to fund military
expeditions and reward local elites.
(C) The Mongol Ilkhanate in Persia also
briefly modeled its monetary policy on
the paper currency printed in Yuan China.
(D) Travelers to Yuan China noted that only
paper currency was accepted for business
transactions.
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 9
 Questions 5 - 8 refer to the two passages below.

Source 1

“People who follow Judaism should pass their lives among Christians quietly, practicing their own religion
and not speaking ill of Christianity. Moreover, a Jewish person should not attempt to convert any Christian.
Whoever violates this law shall be put to death and lose his property.

Jewish people may maintain their synagogues, but they cannot build new synagogues without our permission.
Christians may not deface synagogues or steal anything from them. Jewish people shall not be forced to
attend court by Christian officials on Saturdays [the Jewish Sabbath]. All legal claims between Christians and
the Jewish community shall be decided by our royal judges and a Christian is forbidden from arresting or
harming Jewish people or seizing their property.

Christians may not use force to convert a Jewish person to Christianity, though Christians should use the
Holy Scriptures and kind words. Jewish people, however, should not attempt to interfere with a member of

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their community converting to Christianity of their own will. Any Christian, however, who converts to
Judaism shall be put to death as a heretic.”

Law code issued by Alfonso X, king of the Christian Spanish kingdom of

Castile, circa 1265

Source 2 ie
“King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, by the grace of God, King and Queen of Spain, greetings.
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We learned that some wicked Christians in our kingdom adopted Jewish religious practices and cultural
customs and apostatized from our holy Catholic faith because these Christians interacted with Jewish people.
Therefore, we, with the counsel and advice of the clergy, noblemen, and other persons of learning and
wisdom in our kingdom, order the Jewish community to depart and never to return. And we forbid any person
or persons in our kingdom to receive, protect, or defend any Jewish person under pain of losing all their
possessions, vassals, fortified places, and whatever financial grants they hold from us.”
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Royal decree issued by King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella of Spain, 1492

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10 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

5. The two passages best illustrate which of the
following continuities in world history?
(A) While some states sought to impose
religious uniformity on their populations,
others embraced religious syncretism.
(B) While some states used religion to
legitimize their power, others used
military or bureaucratic means.
(C) While some states were willing to tolerate
diversity within their territories, others
suppressed diversity.
(D) While some states allowed for numerous
official religions, others recognized only
7. The attitude toward religious practice expressed
in Source 2 was most directly apparent in which
of the following Spanish policies in the
Americas in the period circa 1500–1750 ?
(A) The establishment of the casta system
(B) The state sponsorship of Jesuit missions to
native populations
(C) The use of the encomienda system
(D) The development of syncretic religions
among African slave populations
8. Which of the following states in the period
1450–1750 adopted a religious policy that was

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one official religion.
6. The policy toward minority religious groups
described in Source 1 is most consistent with the
policy toward minority religious groups in
most different from the religious policy
expressed in Source 2 ?
(A) The Mughal Empire under Akbar
(B) The Safavid Empire under Shah Ismail I

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Islamic states in the period before 1450 because

(A) required certain minority religious groups

to pay a poll tax
(B) was often not strictly enforced by local
(C) The Ottoman Empire
(D) The Tokugawa Shogunate
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officials
(C) granted limited personal freedom and
protection
(D) allowed minority religious groups to use
their traditional legal systems
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 11

 Questions 9 - 11 refer to the image below.

ILLUSTRATION IN A CHRONICLE DEPICTING A MASS BURIAL IN THE CITY OF TOURNAI,

LOCATED IN MODERN BELGIUM, CIRCA 1349

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Photo 12 / Contributor Getty Images

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12 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

 9. The burial depicted in the image most likely 11. The mortality depicted in the image most
resulted from the spread of which of the directly contributed to which of the following
following? changes in Europe in the late fourteenth and
fifteenth centuries?
(A) Spanish influenza
(A) The end of feudalism
(B) Malaria
(B) The decline of serfdom
(C) Smallpox
(C) The collapse of the Byzantine Empire
(D) Bubonic plague
(D) The Protestant Reformation
10. Which of the following best explains why, in the
mid fourteenth century, events of the type
depicted in the image were more common in
urban areas of Afro-Eurasia than in rural or
mountainous regions?

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(A) The disease principally spread along trade
routes, and most commerce occurred in
urban areas.
(B) People in rural and mountainous regions

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had greater access to natural medicines
that could fight the disease.
(C) People in rural and mountainous regions
were better able to flee to the safety of
their lords’ castles.
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(D) The disease principally spread among
religious missionaries, and most
missionaries traveled to cities.
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 13

 Questions 12 - 15 refer to the passage below.

“[D]espite his ferocity, his military genius and his shrewd adaptation of tribal politics to his imperial purpose,
Tamerlane’s* system fell apart at his death. As he himself may have grasped intuitively, it was no longer
possible to. . . build a Eurasian empire on [nomadic] foundations. . . . The Ottomans, the Mamluk state in
Egypt and Syria, the Muslim sultanate in northern India, and above all China were too resilient to be swept
away by his lightning campaigns.

Indeed Tamerlane’s death marked in several ways the end of a long phase in global history. His empire was
the last real attempt to challenge the partition of Eurasia between the states of the Far West, Islamic Middle
Eurasia and Confucian East Asia. Secondly, his political experiments and ultimate failure revealed that power
had begun to shift back decisively from the nomad empires to the settled states. . . . Lastly, his passing
coincided with the first signs of a change in the existing pattern of long-distance trade, the [overland Silk
Road route] that he had fought to control. Within a few decades after his death, the idea of a world empire
ruled from Samarkand [Tamerlane’s Central Asian capital] had become [a fantasy].”

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*a Turko-Mongolic ruler who conquered much of Central Asia and the Middle East in the late 1300s and
early 1400s.

John Darwin, British historian, After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of
Global Empires, 1400–2000, published in 2008

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12. Which of the following developments in the late
fifteenth century could best be used as evidence
to support Darwin’s argument in the second
13. Which of the following most strongly
contributed to the shift of power from nomadic
empires to settled states that Darwin identifies in
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paragraph regarding a change in patterns of the second paragraph?
long-distance trade?
(A) The development and spread of gunpowder
(A) The growing naval power of the Ottoman weapons across Eurasia
Empire in the Mediterranean
(B) The development of new shipbuilding and
(B) The discovery of maritime routes that navigational techniques
linked Europe and Asia through the
(C) The spread of epidemic diseases across
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Indian Ocean
Eurasia, such as the Black Death
(C) The naval expeditions of the Ming admiral
(D) The increased recruitment of nomadic
Zheng He
soldiers by large agricultural states
(D) The development of the Atlantic system
that linked Europe to the Americas and
Africa

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14 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

14. Which of the following developments in the
period 1450–1750 could best be used as
evidence to modify Darwin’s argument in the
first paragraph about the establishment of
Eurasian empires on “nomadic foundations”?
(A) The creation of the Ottoman Empire
(B) The Ming overthrow of the Yuan dynasty
in China
(C) The fall of the Mughal Empire
(D) The establishment of the Safavid Empire
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15. All of the following statements about nomadic
empires in the period 1200–1700 are factually
accurate. Which statement most likely explains
why Tamerlane’s empire rapidly declined in the
late fifteenth century?
(A) Nomadic empires contained numerous
ethnic and religious groups within their
territories.
(B) Nomadic empires frequently sought to
control key trade routes in order to secure
access to luxury goods.
(C) Nomadic empires often used the
governmental systems of sedentary
societies to rule agricultural regions.
(D) Nomadic empires typically contained
numerous tribes and confederations that
were difficult to control.
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 15
 Questions 16 - 18 refer to the image below.

WALL PAINTING FROM THE PALACE OF THE RULERS OF THE SOUTHERN INDIAN STATE OF
GOLKONDA, CIRCA 1650

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(c) Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

The painting shows celebrations of the wedding of the Muslim ruler of Golkonda and his Hindu bride.
The newlyweds are surrounded by attendants of both religions.

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16 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

16. Based on the location of the painting, it can be 18. Which of the following most likely describes the
inferred that its primary purpose was to fate of the Golkonda state after 1650 ?
(A) inspire religious devotion among the (A) It expanded to control most of India.
Golkonda rulers’ ordinary subjects
(B) It was conquered by the Portuguese.
(B) serve as a model for Indian court painters
(C) It was conquered by the Mughal Empire.
in training
(D) It was conquered by the Ottoman Empire.
(C) bolster the legitimacy of the Golkonda
dynasty by celebrating its past
(D) impress foreign dignitaries and other
visitors with the might of the Golkonda
military forces

17. The particular event depicted in the painting was

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likely important to Golkonda rulers mostly
because it
(A) could be used as a symbol of the union
between the state’s ruling class and the
majority of its population

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(B) provided a source of pride for Golkonda’s
Muslim population by reminding them of
the Muslim conquests of India
(C) led to the decline of patriarchal social
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structures in the Indian subcontinent
(D) illustrated the extent to which Golkonda
elites relied on various forms of coerced
labor
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 17

 Questions 19 - 22 refer to the image below.

JEAN-BAPTISTE DU HALDE, FRENCH HISTORIAN, ENGRAVING INCLUDED IN THE

DESCRIPTION OF CHINA, PUBLISHED IN PARIS, 1735

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Everett Collection Inc / Alamy Stock Photo

In the top panel, the engraving shows three Jesuit missionaries and scholars who served at the courts of Chinese
emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasty in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. In the bottom panel, the
engraving shows two Chinese Christian converts: Xu Guangxi (left) and his granddaughter, Candida Xu (right).

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18 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

19. In the context of the period 1450–1750, which
of the following most likely explains why the
Qing government employed the scholars shown
in the image?
(A) States sought to recruit foreign experts to
industrialize their economies.
(B) States sought to legitimize their rule by
recruiting foreigners from prestigious
universities.
(C) States sought to centralize their rule by
including foreigners whose positions
were dependent on the state to serve in
the bureaucracy.
21. The spread of new cultural ideas, such as those
illustrated by the religious beliefs of Xu
Guangxi and Candida Xu, most strongly
encouraged some Asian governments in Eurasia
in the period 1450–1750 to
(A) expand educational opportunities for the
lower classes
(B) limit trade and other contacts with
foreigners
(C) advocate for the peaceful settlement of
existing religious conflicts
(D) develop national joint-stock companies

(D) States sought to recruit foreigners who
could help factions within the state
bureaucracies solve their differences.
20. Which of the following developments in Europe
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22. All of the following statements about Du Halde
are factually accurate. Which would most likely
lead historians to question the objectivity of his
portrayal of the scholars shown in the image?

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in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries most
directly helps to explain the presence of the
scholars shown in the image of China?
(A) The Inquisition led to the expulsion of
enemies of the Catholic Church from
(A) He was the confessor to an important
French noble.
(B) He never traveled to China.
(C) He based his observations of China on
unpublished translations of Chinese texts.
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Europe. (D) He was a Jesuit and based his book on
(B) The Protestant Reformation led the Jesuit missionary reports.
Catholic Church to seek new converts
outside of Europe.
(C) The wars of religion led many to question
the role of religion in European society.
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(D) The expansion of the Ottoman Empire in

Europe led many to leave their homes as
refugees.

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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 19

 Questions 23 - 26 refer to the image below.

AGOSTINO BRUNIAS, ITALIAN PAINTER, PAINTING SHOWING FREE WOMEN OF MIXED

RACIAL ANCESTRY WITH THEIR CHILDREN AND SERVANTS IN DOMINICA, A BRITISH
COLONY IN THE WEST INDIES, LATE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

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Free Women of Color with Their Children and Servants in a Landscape, 1770-1796 (oil on canvas) , Brunias, Agostino (1728-96) / Brooklyn Museum of Art,
New York, USA / Gift of Mrs. Carll H. de Silver in memory of her husband, by exchange and gift of George S. Hellman, by exchange / Bridgeman Images

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20 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

23. Which of the following best describes the artist’s
likely purpose in painting this particular subject?
(A) To advocate for violent rebellion against
British colonial authorities
(B) To demonstrate the racial oppression
suffered by free people of color in the
West Indies
(C) To argue for the respectability of free
people of color
(D) To call for greater emigration by
Europeans to the West Indies
24. The artist’s perspective on the subject of the
painting was most likely influenced by which of
the following?
(A) The Enlightenment
(B) Nationalism
(C) Social Darwinism
(D) The Haitian Revolution
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25. Which of the following best explains why the
painting was seen as a challenge to social
conventions when it was painted?
(A) Women were rarely the subject of
paintings in European art of the period.
(B) Caribbean society was built on racial
hierarchies that generally reserved elite
status for people of European ancestry.
(C) In most cultures of the period, children
were not considered worthy of being
portrayed in art until they reached
adulthood.
(D) Caribbean society was predominantly
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matriarchal, with men expected to play
strictly domestic roles in the household.
26. Which of the following most directly led to the
arrival of substantial numbers of Africans in the
Americas at the time of the painting?
(A) The collapse of the Inca and Aztec
Empires as a result of Spanish invasion
(B) The growth of industrial production in the
United States
(C) The expansion of the plantation system for
growing sugarcane and other crops
(D) The development of large-scale silver
mining operations in South America
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 21
 Questions 27 - 30 refer to the table below.
POPULATION TABLE FOR SELECTED STATES, 1800–2000
1800 1850 1900 1950 2000
State
Angola 1,567,028 1,949,329 2,995,663 4,548,023 16,440,924
Argentina 534,000 1,100,000 4,693,000 17,150,336 37,057,452
Brazil 3,639,636 7,234,000 17,894,000 53,974,732 175,287,600
Saudi Arabia 2,091,000 N/A N/A 3,121,335 20,764,312
Zimbabwe 1,085,814 1,346,417 1,911,594 2,746,852 12,222,251
Source: Data adapted from Our World in Data,
https://ourworldindata.org/world-population-growth#population-growth-by-country

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27. Which of the following likely contributed the
most to the population changes shown in the
table for Latin American states such as
Argentina and Brazil in the period 1800–1900 ?
29. The population trend shown in the table for
sub-Saharan African states such as Angola and
Zimbabwe in the period 1950–2000 most likely
reflects which of the following?

from slave labor ie

(A) Increased economic production resulting

(B) Large increases in immigration from

Europe
(C) Higher birth rates resulting from the
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development of antibiotics
(D) More equitable land distribution policies
following independence from Spain
28. Which of the following most likely accounts for
the extent of the population changes for
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(A) Increased political stability
(B) Increased wealth from the sale of natural
resources
(C) The greater availability of vaccines
(D) The greater availability of financial
assistance from international institutions
30. During the second half of the twentieth century,
population trends in which of the following
regions most strongly contrasted with the overall
trends illustrated in the table?

Argentina, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia in the

period 1950–2000 ? (A) Southeast Asia
(B) North Africa
(A) The introduction of agricultural techniques
associated with the Green Revolution (C) South Asia
(B) Religious restrictions on the use of birth (D) North America
control
(C) The implementation of socialist economic
policies
(D) The introduction of desalination
technologies from Western states

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22 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

Questions 31 - 34 refer to the passage below.

“The Jiaqing emperor asked the governor Sun Yuting: ’Is Britain wealthy and powerful?’

Sun Yuting responded, ‘Britain is larger than other European countries and is, therefore, powerful. But its
power comes from its wealth, which is derived from China. This country is allowed to trade at the port of
Canton. It exchanges its goods for our tea. It then resells the tea to Europe and to its colonies in the West,
thus becoming wealthy and powerful. Yet, tea is as important to the West as rhubarb is to Russia. If we put an
embargo on tea exports, Britain will fall into poverty and its people into sickness. How powerful, then, could
Britain possibly be compared to China?’”

Sun Yuting, governor of the southern Chinese province of Guangdong,

autobiographical account of his conversation with the Jiaqing emperor of the
Qing dynasty, early nineteenth century

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31. Sun Yuting’s analysis of the factors that 32. The emperor’s question to Sun Yuting was most
contributed to the relative economic strength of likely intended to assess which of the following?
China and Great Britain best illustrates which of
the following continuities from the period (A) The degree to which religious conflicts in
Europe had weakened Great Britain
1450–1750 ?
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(A) The expansion of empires led to the
collapse of existing trade networks.
(B) The transfer of European navigational
technology expanded global trade
militarily
(B) The relative risks of continuing to pursue a
trade policy that forced foreign states to
acknowledge China’s political superiority
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(C) The possibility for the establishment of
significantly.
Chinese colonies in Asia and the
(C) The global circulation of goods was fueled Americas
by European merchants’ access to Asian
(D) The potential advantages of making an
markets.
alliance with Great Britain to prevent
(D) The establishment of state monopolies in further Japanese expansion in East Asia
certain industries led to higher prices for
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luxury items.

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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 23

 33. Sun Yuting’s analysis of the potential effect of a
trade embargo on Great Britain could best be
characterized as
(A) inaccurate, because Sun Yuting failed to
account for the fact that Great Britain’s
economy had largely industrialized
(B) inaccurate, because Sun Yuting failed to
recognize how new methods of
agriculture had greatly increased the
quality of food available to Great
Britain’s urban poor
(C) accurate, because Sun Yuting recognized
how much the possession of colonies
burdened Great Britain’s economy
34. Which of the following best characterizes the
economic situation of most Asian states such as
China at the end of the nineteenth century?
(A) They had become dependent on imports of
natural resources from Western states.
(B) Although their agricultural exports
declined, their share of global
manufacturing increased.
(C) They became dependent on the maritime
commerce of their joint-stock companies.
(D) Although their overall wealth declined,
they continued to produce finished goods.

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(D) accurate, because Sun Yuting understood
that revolutionary wars had bankrupted
Great Britain

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24 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

Questions 35 - 38 refer to the passage below.

“The essence of education, our traditional national aim, is to promote benevolence, justice, loyalty, filial
piety, and knowledge and skill. But recently, people have been going to extremes by embracing a foreign
civilization whose only values are fact-gathering and technical-skill. These values bring harm to our
customary ways. We try to incorporate the best features of foreigners in order to achieve the lofty goals that
the Meiji emperor desires. We have tried to abandon the undesirable practices of the past and learn from the
outside world. But these policies have had a serious defect. They have reduced benevolence, justice, loyalty,
and filial piety to secondary goals. If we indiscriminately imitate foreign ways, our people will forget the
great principles governing the relations between ruler and subject and the relations between father and son.”

Motoday Nagazane, adviser to the Meiji emperor, treatise written following

a tour of Japanese schools with the emperor, 1879

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35. The ideals of traditional Japanese education that 37. The values of “foreign civilization” that
the author praises in the passage are most Nagazane criticized in the passage were most
closely aligned with the social ideals advocated directly a product of the
by which of the following?
(A) Renaissance
(A) Buddhism
(B) Christianity
(C) Confucianism
(D) Daoism
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(C) Enlightenment
(D) Scientific and Industrial Revolutions
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38. Which of the following states in the nineteenth
36. The Meiji government’s “emulation of foreign century experienced social tensions resulting
ways” was most directly a response to which of from the introduction of foreign cultural
the following nineteenth-century developments? influences in a way most similar to that
described in the passage?
(A) The Qing Empire forcing Japan to accept
tributary relations (A) The Ottoman Empire
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(B) Western states forcing Japan to open itself (B) Russia

to trade
(C) Australia
(C) The Qing Empire requiring Japan to make
(D) The United States
territorial concessions following the
Sino-Japanese War
(D) Western states requiring Japan to accept
Western advisers at the imperial court
following the Opium Wars

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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 25

 Questions 39 - 41 refer to the passage below.

“I read with interest the recent article in your newspaper entitled ‘Should a Woman Demand All the Rights of
a Man?’ In my view, to answer that question correctly, we first need to examine the roles of men and women
in civilization—especially modern civilization—because what may have been true in ancient times no longer
applies in our present situation.

Modern civilization has moved beyond the condition of the past because society is no longer characterized by
roughness and reliance on physical power. Victory no longer goes to him who was the strongest, the best able
to endure hardship, or committed the most atrocities.

By contrast, the basis of our modern civilization is good upbringing and the refinement of morals through the
development of literary knowledge, courtesy, and compassion for the oppressed, all of which women are
better at. So all our doctors and scientists who exalt man’s strong muscles, his wide skull, his long
arm-to-body ratio and the like, miss the point entirely. Those physical facts, while undeniable, no longer
grant man preference over woman in modern civilization.”

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Letter from an anonymous female reader to the Egyptian journal Al-Hilal,
1894

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39. The disputes over women’s social status alluded
to in the letter best reflect which of the
following late nineteenth-century changes in
Middle Eastern societies?
41. The letter’s reference in the third paragraph to
the claims of “our doctors and scientists” is best
understood in the context of which of the
following late nineteenth-century processes?
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(A) The abolition of the veil following the (A) Physical differences between genders and
collapse of the Ottoman Empire racial groups were used to justify the
denial of rights to women and
(B) The expansion of mass public education
non-Europeans.
for both boys and girls
(B) The achievements of medieval Muslim
(C) The growing popular support for
science became known in the West,
parliamentary forms of governance
stimulating new interest in biology and
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(D) The spread of intellectual and political medicine.

ideals that advocated for natural rights
(C) Bourgeois ideas of cultural and literary
refinement became prevalent in many
40. Which of the following groups in parts of the world.
late-nineteenth-century Egypt would have been
most likely to support the author’s view in the (D) The scientific method stressing
third paragraph about the status of women in experimentation and the collection of
“modern civilization” ? empirical evidence was discovered and
first used.
(A) Muslim religious scholars
(B) Rural peasants
(C) The urban middle class
(D) The landed aristocracy

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26 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

Questions 42 - 45 refer to the passage below.

“In view of the outbreak of war between Great Britain and Turkey, which occurred because of the ill-advised,
unprovoked, and deliberate action of the Ottoman government, His Majesty’s government has made a public
announcement regarding the holy places of Arabia, the holy shrines of Mesopotamia, and the port of Jeddah,*
which is as follows.

His Majesty’s most loyal Muslim subjects should understand that His Majesty’s government is not fighting
this war because of religion. The British navy and its military forces will not attack the holy places of Arabia
or Jeddah unless the Turks interfere with pilgrimages from India to the holy places and shrines in question. In
that case, British military forces will intervene to keep the pilgrimage routes open. At the request of His
Majesty’s government, the governments of France and Russia have given similar assurances.”

*a city located on the western coast of Arabia along the Red Sea

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Pamphlet published by the British Indian War Department, 1915. The
pamphlet was translated and distributed in cities and towns in India.

42. Which of the following best explains why the 43. The Ottoman Empire likely entered into the

pamphlet?
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British government felt the need to distribute the

(A) British authorities were concerned that

going to war against a Muslim country
could fuel anti-imperialist protests among
conflict referred to in the passage because
(A) it shared religious and cultural values with
Germany and Austria-Hungary.
(B) it had undertaken significant political and
economic reforms in the late nineteenth
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India’s large Muslim population.
century.
(B) Many people in Britain regarded the First
(C) it had lost significant territory to other
World War as a religious conflict between
European states in the nineteenth century.
Christian and Islamic states.
(D) its economy significantly lagged behind
(C) Religious tensions between India’s Muslim
those of the other European powers.
and Christian populations significantly
increased before the outbreak of the First
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World War.
(D) British passenger ships and shipping
companies made significant profits by
transporting Muslim pilgrims on the hajj
from India to Mecca and Medina.
44. Which of the following was the most direct
outcome of the conflict between Great Britain
and the Ottoman Empire referred to in the
passage?
(A) India achieved independence from Great
Britain.
(B) The Ottoman Empire collapsed.
(C) The Bolshevik Revolution broke out in
Russia.
(D) Ottoman Turkey allied with Germany
against Great Britain.

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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 27

 45. The treaties that settled the conflict referred to in
the passage most directly changed the
geopolitical structure of the Middle East in
which of the following ways?

(A) Most states that were formerly under

European colonial rule became
independent.
(B) The state of Israel was created, which led
to numerous wars.
(C) Allied powers received territorial mandates
from the League of Nations.
(D) Religious fundamentalism increased,
which led to attacks on Western states.

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28 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

Questions 46 - 49 refer to the map below.
WORLD POLITICAL MAP, 1980
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46. The global balance of power, alluded to on the
map, best reflects which of the following
changes in the mid-twentieth century?
(A) The ability of the United States and the
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Soviet Union to develop economic
policies that protected them from the
worst effects of the Great Depression
(B) The disintegration of imperial states such
as the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian
Empires following the First World War
(C) The military and economic decline of
Western European colonial empires
following the Second World War
(D) The United States and Soviet Union’s
control over international financial
institutions such as the International
Monetary Fund
47. Which of the following likely explains the
political positions of most of the nonaligned
Asian and African states shown on the map?
(A) As former colonial territories, they were
wary of being dominated by another
foreign power.
(B) As former large empires, they admired the
territorial ambitions of the United States
and the Soviet Union.
(C) As states that had populations with deeply
traditional values, they were uninterested
in ideological debates between capitalists
and communists.
(D) As states with extensive natural resources,
they wanted to grant free-trade privileges
to all nations.
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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 29
 48. Which of the following best explains why the 49. All of the following contributed to the end of the
United States and the Soviet Union preferred to political order depicted on the map EXCEPT
engage in the type of conflicts shown on the
map? (A) the expansion of United States military
spending
(A) To maintain control over their former
(B) the unsuccessful Soviet military
colonial states through puppet
intervention in Afghanistan
governments
(C) continued economic weakness in the
(B) To avoid direct military confrontations that
Soviet Union following Gorbachev’s
could lead to nuclear war
reforms
(C) To obtain new military technology before a
(D) armed rebellions in Eastern European
direct confrontation
states against Soviet rule
(D) To acquire natural resources by forcing
states to favor United States or Soviet

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companies

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30 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

Questions 50 - 52 refer to the image below.

PHOTOGRAPH OF A POSTER ISSUED BY THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT REGARDING ITS

ONE-CHILD POLICY, 1985

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One child only policy poster, Shenyang Province, Liaoning Province, China. (photo) / Photo © Alain Le Garsmeur / Bridgeman Images
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The caption in Chinese says, “Contribute to the Four Modernizations: One Family, One Child.” The
one-child policy was a set of regulations, incentives, and penalties designed to encourage Chinese
couples to have only one child. The policy was first enacted in 1979. The Four Modernizations policy was
an economic strategy adopted in 1977 to improve the fields of agriculture, industry, national defense, and
science and technology.

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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 31

 50. Which of the following most likely expresses 52. The poster could best be used to illustrate which
the poster’s main message regarding the of the following global trends in the
one-child policy? post–Second World War period?

(A) The policy would lead to political reform
of the communist system.
(B) The policy would lead to an improvement
in women’s social status.
(C) The policy would guarantee China’s future
prosperity and progress.
(D) The policy would encourage a return to
Confucian values of filial piety.
(A) The increasing concern about possible
negative social consequences of
technological development
(B) The tendency of governments to take a
strong role in guiding their countries’
economic and social development
(C) The rapid pace of cultural exchange
enabled by improved forms of
communication

51. Which of the following features of communist (D) The rejection of large-scale institutions by

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China in the late twentieth century most likely those favoring the devolution of power to
enabled its government to carry out the policy the local level
shown in the image?

(A) Its rapid urbanization

(C) Its widespread rural poverty

(D) Its totalitarian system
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(B) Its adoption of free-market reforms
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32 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam

Questions 53 - 55 refer to the passage below.

“On May 21, 1987, exactly a week after the elected government of Fiji* had been ousted in a military coup . .
. a huge bused-in crowd of ethnic Fijian men and women sat on the lawn across the Civil Center in the capital
city, clapping and singing, while the Royal Fiji Military Forces band played ‘Onward Christian Soldiers.’
Across the park, another crowd of Indo-Fijian men and women and children watched apprehensive,
bewildered, frightened. . . . The coup-maker, Lt. Col. Sitiveni Rabuka, an ethnic Fijian, appeared on the
balcony. . . . With both fists punching the air, he addressed his supporters, ‘ [Ethnic] Fijians must rule Fiji:
that is God’s wish.’

Ten years later, Prime Minister Rabuka, now a mellowed, greyer, balding man, addressed a multiracial
election rally: ‘You cannot build a nation up by tearing each other down. That is why we focus on the need
for us to be united—the indigenous Fijian people, [as well as] the sons and daughters and grandchildren of
those who came as indentured laborers [from India], or in the following waves of business people are all
inextricable parts of the new Republic of the Fiji Islands.’”

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*the Fijian general elections of 1987 had brought to power a government dominated by political parties
associated with Fiji’s ethnic Indian community. Many ethnic Fijians resented the election results.

Brij Lal, Fijian historian of Indian ethnicity, article published in an academic

journal, 2000

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53. Which of the following nineteenth-century
processes most directly contributed to the
migration of Indian laborers to Fiji as described
54. Which of the following processes most directly
contributed to the tensions in Fiji described in
the first paragraph?
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in the passage?
(A) Migrant groups often created relatively
(A) Indian merchants acted as brokers and isolated ethnic enclaves, while receiving
middlemen for European East India societies responded to them through
companies. ethnic prejudice.
(B) Colonial states in Asia and the Pacific (B) Violence between cultural groups led to
relied on coerced labor to work on acts of genocide perpetrated by
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plantations. authoritarian military governments.

(C) Prior to the abolition of the slave trade,
Indian slaves were exported to the islands
in the Pacific Ocean and the Indian
Ocean.
(D) Indo-Muslim traders spread Islam to the
islands of Southeast Asia.
(C) European colonial settlers destroyed
indigenous populations and their cultures,
replacing them with migrant groups.
(D) Indigenous and migrant elites cooperated
to overthrow European colonialism and
secure independence.

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AP World History: Modern Practice Exam 33

 55. As outlined in the second paragraph, the
changes in Rabuka’s political rhetoric between
1987 and 1997 were most likely a result of
which of the following?

(A) The proliferation of ethnic and religious

conflicts following the collapse of
communism
(B) The spread of democratization and
economic globalization in the modern
world
(C) The discrediting of Social Darwinism and
other racial “scientific” theories
(D) The outsourcing of Western industrial

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production to developing economies in
the Asia-Pacific region

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34 AP World History: Modern Practice Exam