Deck 9: The Russian Domain

Question 1

What are the primary characteristics of a high-latitude continental climate, as illustrated by the Russian Domain?

A)slight variation in seasonal temperature, medium growing season
B)uniformly cold temperatures, extremely short growing season
C)seasonal temperature extremes and short growing season
D)uniformly warm temperature, and long growing season
E)unpredictable temperatures and growing season that is too short for farming

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Where has the Russian Domain dumped its nuclear wastes?

A)at an unregulated dump outside the city of Chernobyl
B)in Siberia
C)in the Arctic Sea
D)off the northern island of Novaya Zemlya, in the Barents Sea
E)in the Sea of Okhotsk

Answer 2

D

Question 3

During the Soviet era, the Soviet Union nuclear weapons program conducted many tests and produced much radioactive waste. Where did Russia dump the waste?

A)Crimea
B)Sakhalin Island
C)Novaya Zemlya
D)Chernobyl
E)Moscow

Answer 3

C

Question 4

What is the one element that helps us to understand geographies of climate, vegetation, and agriculture in the Russian Domain?

A)the northern latitudinal position of the Russian Domain
B)the legacy of the Soviet era
C)globalization and its influence on the Russian Domain
D)the Cold War
E)climate change

Question 5

What natural feature marks the divide between European Russia and Asian Russia?

A)Lake Baikal
B)Ural Mountains
C)Black Sea
D)Caucasus Mountains
E)Volga River

Question 6

In which region of the Russian Domain is permafrost a problem?

A)Siberia
B)Caucasus Mountains
C)Ukraine
D)Southern Russia
E)European Russia

Question 7

What makes Russia distinctive?

A)It has the largest land area of any country on Earth.
B)It has the largest quantity of oil reserves of any country on Earth.
C)It has the largest population of any country on Earth.
D)It has the lowest altitude of any country on Earth.
E)It has the strongest economy on Earth.

Question 8

Why do the authors of your text use the word "domain" when talking about "the Russian Domain"?

A)"Russian Domain" is an official name, reflecting the continuing federal relationship between the countries in the region.
B)The term suggests persisting Russian influence within the region.
C)The term is the name of the free trade zone now evolving in the region.
D)Domain refers to a kingdom.
E)Domain refers to a federal subdivision.

Question 9

Why is the city of Chernobyl well-known?

A)It is the capital of Russia.
B)It is the northernmost city in the world.
C)It is the site of the world's worst-ever nuclear accident.
D)It is Russia's major industrial city.
E)It lies at the heart of Russia's oil industry.

Question 10

Most of Russia is dominated by which type of climate?

A)mild midlatitude such as humid subtropical
B)dry climates such as midlatitude Steppe
C)tropical
D)polar such as tundra
E)continental midlatitude

Question 11

What is the dominant climate type in the Russian Domain?

A)dry
B)mild midlatitude
C)polar
D)continental
E)Mediterranean

Question 12

Which body of water in the Russian Domain is the world's largest reserve of freshwater?

A)the Caspian Sea
B)Lake Balqash
C)the Aral Sea
D)Lake Ladoga
E)Lake Baikal

Question 13

Which geographic area of the Russian Domain dominates the region?

A)Armenia
B)the Ukraine
C)Slavic Russia
D)Belarus
E)Georgia

Question 14

Which of the following countries is NOT considered to be within the Russian Domain?

A)Armenia
B)Azerbaijan
C)Belarus
D)Georgia
E)Ukraine

Question 15

Which of the following is NOT an agricultural product that thrives in the podzol soil region of the Russian Domain?

A)sugarcane
B)grain
C)potatoes
D)swine and meat
E)dairying

Question 16

What is NOT an environmental issue in the Russian Domain?

A)Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe
B)nuclear waste dumping
C)concentrated industrialization in Norilsk
D)immense deforestation
E)desertification

Question 17

Which of the following was NOT a former Soviet Republic?

A)Kazakhstan
B)Uzbekistan
C)Kyrgyzstan
D)Afghanistan
E)Azerbaijan

Question 18

The Caucasus Mountains are located between which two bodies of water?

A)the Aral Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk
B)the Sea of Japan and the Barents Sea
C)the Black and Caspian Seas
D)the Sea of Okhotsk and the Caspian Sea
E)the Caspian Sea and the Sea of Japan

Question 19

What body of water lies to the north of the Russian Domain?

A)the Black Sea
B)the Barents Sea
C)the Sea of Okhotsk
D)the Caspian Sea
E)the Sea of Japan

Question 20

What was the distinctive skill for which Cossacks were well-known?

A)fencing
B)art
C)music
D)horsemanship
E)business

Question 21

What has been the pattern of population growth in the Russian Domain since the demise of the USSR?

A)persistently declining population
B)rapid population growth
C)slow population growth
D)steady population levels
E)rapid population decline, followed by steady growth

Question 22

Which of the following is NOT an effect Russia might see from climate change?

A)More of the land in its northern regions may become suitable for agriculture.
B)Boreal forests may expand into what are now tundra regions.
C)Navigation may extend throughout the year in Russia's northern waterways.
D)Thawing of Siberian permafrost may cause mud flows and erosion.
E)making Southern Russia more agriculturally productive by thawing its frozen ice

Question 23

The highest population densities in the Russian Domain are found in which part of the region?

A)the southeastern part of the region
B)the eastern-most part of the region
C)Siberia
D)the western-most part of the region
E)the coastal areas around the Sea of Okhotsk

Question 24

During the Soviet era, which place served as a repository for political dissidents and troublemakers?

A)Ukraine
B)Siberia
C)Gulag Archipelago
D)prisons in the Gobi Desert
E)Crimea

Question 25

Eastward movement of Russians into Siberia

A)was typically discouraged by tsars.
B)was reversed by the policy of Russification.
C)was welcomed by the original inhabitants of Siberia.
D)continues today.
E)was encouraged by Russian leaders, including the Tsars and the authoritarian leaders under the Soviet Union.

Question 26

What is the primary reason why European Russia has a higher population than Asian Russia?

A)Asian Russia lost much of its population in World War II.
B)European Russia is better suited for agriculture.
C)Communist government policies forced millions to move to European Russia from Asian Russia.
D)Devastating diseases killed off much of the population of Asian Russia.
E)European Russia has historically had an extremely low death rate.

Question 27

When was the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM)Railroad completed in the Russian Domain?

A)1904
B)1934
C)1954
D)1964
E)1984

Question 28

Why is development in Siberia limited?

A)The mountainous terrain of the region makes it virtually impossible to create a transportation infrastructure there.
B)Most of the area is a barren, dry desert leaving little available water to support human life.
C)In order to protect the fragile environment of this region, the Russian government has limited the number of settlers into the region.
D)Indigenous groups of Siberian peoples will not allow development in their sacred ancestral burial grounds.
E)Unstable ground resulting from permafrost makes it extremely difficult to place permanent structures on the land surface.

Question 29

Which city is NOT in the European Russian domain?

A)Minsk
B)Moscow
C)Kiev
D)Odessa
E)Vladivostok

Question 30

Why is the Russian government constructing a concrete and steel arch around the destroyed nuclear reactor in Chernobyl?

A)because the Ukraine government wants to hide the object of so much destruction and death
B)in hope of controlling the further spread of radioactive dust
C)people want to return to the abandoned cities and towns closed by the initial reactor meltdown
D)to stop curious tourists from wandering into the radioactive site
E)to house a new museum dedicated to the disaster

Question 31

Which country is no longer part of the Russian Domain?

A)Belarus
B)Armenia
C)Ukraine
D)Kazakhstan
E)Moldova

Question 32

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, which of the following groups of people would be least likely to emigrate from the Russian Domain?

A)young, well-educated people
B)Russian-born Finns
C)Jews
D)upwardly mobile Russians
E)older, less educated Russians.

Question 33

What is one of the sources of the nuclear threat in the Russian Domain?

A)The Soviet Union had aggressive nuclear weapons and energy programs.
B)the West's testing of nuclear weapons
C)the lack of funds to export nuclear weapons
D)the political vacuum created with the fall of the Soviet Union
E)the lack of political control by the Russian President

Question 34

Which of the following is the primary source of pollution damaging Russia's Lake Baikal?

A)pollution from pulp and paper factories
B)clearcutting of the forest surrounding the lake
C)nuclear waste dumped in the lake
D)acid rain
E)the development of the shipping yards on its shores

Question 35

Which part of the Russian Domain has historically provided the most productive agricultural areas of the region?

A)Ukraine
B)Belarus
C)Latvia
D)Moldova
E)Siberia

Question 36

In which region of the Russian Domain would you find reindeer, Siberian tigers, and leopards?

A)the Ural Mountains
B)the Russian Far East
C)the European West
D)the Caucasus
E)Transcaucasia

Question 37

Urbanization in the Russian region

A)is far below that of Western Europe.
B)was often planned in detail during the Soviet period.
C)did not really increase significantly until the 1960s.
D)was helped by laws allowing unrestricted internal migration during the Soviet period.
E)was discouraged throughout the history of the Russian Domain.

Question 38

What are mikrorayons?

A)synthetic fabrics manufactured in Russia
B)authoritarian leaders who dominated politics during the pre-1917 Russian Empire
C)a cold-climate condition of unstable, seasonally frozen ground that limits the growth of vegetation
D)large housing projects built in the 1970s and 1980s in Russia
E)political units in Russia, equivalent to counties in the United States

Question 39

What is the approximate population of the Russian Domain?

A)100 million
B)150 million
C)200 million
D)250 million
E)500 million

Question 40

What does the term "Russification" mean?

A)a policy of resettling Russians into non-Russian portions of the Soviet Union
B)a movement of people to housing projects called mikrorayons
C)a term describing the rusting of old industrial centers that have been abandoned
D)Soviet art depicting working heroes challenging nature and struggling against capitalism
E)a term much like manifest destiny in the United States in that a railroad will help unite the east and the west sides of the nation

Question 41

What is the shape of the land-use zones in the Russian Domain?

A)square
B)triangular
C)linear
D)circular
E)hexagonal

Question 42

Most average Russians living in the city live in what kind of housing?

A)in a dacha in the country
B)in a single-family home in the suburbs
C)in a high rise apartment
D)in a boarding house
E)in a duplex

Question 43

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, what has become of the policy of Russification within former Soviet republics?

A)Russification has decreased, with fewer Russians settling in these regions.
B)Russification has increased greatly, with greater numbers of Russians settling in these regions.
C)Russification has remained relatively the same.
D)Russification has been reversed, where greater numbers of Russians are encouraged to leave these regions.
E)Russification continued to rise in the 1990s, but has decreased since 2000.

Question 44

What Russian city was known as Leningrad during the Soviet era?

A)Moscow
B)Kiev
C)Minsk
D)Chernobyl
E)St. Petersburg

Question 45

In what region of the Russian Domain was the Soviet Union's Gulag Archipelago located?

A)Siberia
B)Ukraine
C)Belarus
D)Georgia
E)Armenia

Question 46

In what part of Russia are Finno-Ugric speaking peoples primarily located?

A)Eastern
B)Southern
C)Western
D)Northern
E)Central

Question 47

What was socialist realism of the Soviet era in the Russian Domain?

A)a writing style that is similar to today's "reality TV"
B)an acting style in the Soviet domain
C)a musical style that emphasized traditional melodies, combined with classical instrumentation
D)an art style devoted to the realistic depiction of workers challenging nature or struggling against capitalism
E)a holistic approach to the arts in the former Soviet Union

Question 48

Which of the following statements best reflects religion in the post-Soviet era?

A)There has been a religious revival.
B)Religious persecution has worsened.
C)Roman Catholicism has become the dominant religion in the region.
D)There has been a sharp increase in the number of Jewish people living in the region.
E)Russia has become a theocracy.

Question 49

The Russian Empire had its origins as a small principality in the vicinity of which Russian city?

A)Chernobyl
B)Kiev
C)St. Petersburg
D)Volgograd
E)Moscow

Question 50

In which country was Russification the most intense?

A)France
B)Kazakhstan
C)Mongolia
D)Germany
E)Armenia

Question 51

What was the policy of the former Soviet Union (USSR)regarding religion within its borders?

A)The USSR established Russian Orthodox Christianity as the official state religion.
B)The USSR permitted freedom of religion for Christians, but not for Jews or Muslims.
C)The USSR was tolerant of all religious practices.
D)The USSR discouraged all religion and even persecuted religious practice.
E)The USSR had no policy regarding religion.

Question 52

Which Russian port provides Russia with the most rapid access to the Pacific Ocean?

A)St. Petersburg
B)Norlisk
C)Vladivostok
D)Salekhard
E)Moscow

Question 53

What was the purpose of Russification (the Soviet policy of resettling Russians into non-Russian portions of the former USSR)?

A)to drain some of the population from Moscow, which had become a primate city
B)to increase Russian dominance in outlying portions of the former USSR
C)to provide laborers to under-populated regions of the former USSR
D)to bring Russian teachers to under-populated regions of the former USSR
E)to establish military outposts for defensive purposes in the former USSR

Question 54

The architecture of St. Petersburg, Russia, is similar to that of which other part of the world?

A)Japan
B)Western Europe
C)China
D)United States
E)India

Question 55

Which of the following is a characteristic of the demography of Russia today?

A)increased fertility rates
B)increased family size
C)high rates of immigration into the country
D)lower infant mortality rates
E)relatively high mortality rates among middle-aged males

Question 56

What type of work do most Arctic residents undertake?

A)raising cattle
B)farming and agriculture
C)working in the energy and natural resource economy
D)science and research
E)small service businesses such as cafes and retail stores

Question 57

What language group dominates in the Russian Domain?

A)Slavic
B)Altaic
C)Eskimo-Aleut
D)Finno-Ugric
E)Tibetan

Question 58

Who were the Cossacks of the Russian Domain?

A)Slavic-speaking, semi-nomadic Christians
B)descendants of Mongolian horsemen and women
C)Swedish warriors
D)Estonian pastoralists
E)Ukrainian hunters

Question 59

In which Union Republic was Russification most intense?

A)Kazakhstan
B)Belarus
C)Ukraine
D)Georgia
E)Uzbekistan

Question 60

The Trans-Siberian Railroad

A)was completed after the death of Stalin.
B)travels through the far north of Siberia.
C)intentionally bypasses cities.
D)ends at the port city of Vladivostok.
E)was extensively damaged by an earthquake in 2003.

Question 61

Who were the original founders of Russia?

A)northward moving hunters from Ukraine
B)eastward moving pastoralists from Estonia
C)westward moving Mongolians on horseback
D)Chinese nomadic farmers
E)southward moving warriors from Sweden

Question 62

Glasnost

A)was initiated in the aftermath of Stalin's death.
B)called for greater openness and political participation.
C)was followed by the bloody suppression of independence movements in the Baltic region.
D)was denounced by Gorbachev.
E)was a policy of the Bolsheviks.

Question 63

What have many of Russia's internal autonomous areas been requesting?

A)greater connections with Moscow and the rest of Russia
B)greater autonomy
C)greater connections with China and Mongolia to the south
D)great transportation linkages to the ice-free ports of the Arctic Ocean
E)greater unity among themselves

Question 64

Who was the main architect of the Soviet Union?

A)Tsar Nicholas II
B)Stalin
C)Trotsky
D)Mikhail Gorbachev
E)Lenin

Question 65

Which two countries were the primary rivals in the Cold War?

A)China and the Soviet Union
B)the United States and the Soviet Union
C)Germany and the Soviet Union
D)Russia and the Ukraine
E)the United States and Russia

Question 66

What has become of democracy in Russia in the post-Soviet era?

A)There has been a steady growth in democracy and civil liberties.
B)There was a general flowering of democracy followed by a reduction of civil liberties since 2002.
C)There was a brief decline in democracy, followed by a steady blossoming of civil liberties since 2000.
D)There have been no steps toward democracy.
E)There has been a steady decline in democracy since the Soviet Union broke up.

Question 67

Approximately what percentage of Russian citizens claim a Russian linguistic identity?

A)50%
B)65%
C)80%
D)95%
E)100%

Question 68

What is perestroika?

A)greater openness, a policy in the 1980s that encouraged several republics to demand independence
B)restructuring of the planned centralized economy, an early move toward a freer market
C)a policy of education improvement, in the last days of the former Soviet Union
D)the Russian word for railroad
E)improvement of the Russian environment

Question 69

One of Putin's early political moves was to crack down on dissidents in the Russian republic of

A)Belarus.
B)Latvia.
C)Moldova.
D)Chechnya.
E)Siberia.

Question 70

Which of the following is NOT a condition of the "Russian Federation Treaty"?

A)more localized political control for Russia's internal autonomous republics and lesser administrative units
B)more stringent environmental regulations and standards
C)greater economic freedom for Russia's internal autonomous republics and lesser administrative units
D)greater freedom for Russia's internal autonomous republics and lesser administrative units
E)weakening of Moscow's centralized authority to collect taxes

Question 71

What was the term that Winston Churchill gave to the boundary between Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union?

A)the Metal Screen
B)the Iron Curtain
C)the Cold War
D)the Black Shutters
E)the Bamboo Curtain

Question 72

In what Russian region has Islamic fundamentalism increased its presence?

A)Siberian region
B)Caucus region
C)Western region
D)Arctic region
E)the border between Russia and Finland

Question 73

Which of the following is TRUE of Russia?

A)It has allowed Chechnya to achieve independence.
B)It fought several major land battles against China along their common border in the 1990s.
C)It no longer has a seat on the UN Security Council.
D)Russia has ongoing territorial disputes with Japan.
E)It will allow all its territories to secede in 2015, if they wish to do so.

Question 74

The conquest of Siberia

A)was primarily carried out by Cossacks.
B)began in earnest in the late 1300s.
C)was complete when Russia defeated Japan in the Russo-Japanese War.
D)was initiated for security reasons.
E)involved war with China.

Question 75

Who were the Bolsheviks?

A)the last ruling dynasty of the Russian Empire
B)the earliest settlers of Russia, who came from Sweden
C)the title given to bureaucrats who ran the former Soviet Union
D)the militia group that overthrew the former Soviet Union
E)a faction of Russian communism representing interests of industrial workers, who established the former Soviet Union

Question 76

Where were most of Russia's major territorial gains in the nineteenth century?

A)Eastern Europe
B)Central Asia
C)Northern Europe
D)the Pacific region of Asia
E)the Baltic Republics

Question 77

What was the Russian policy enacted during the 1980s that meant for "greater openness"?

A)the Iron Curtain
B)Glasnost
C)Perestroika
D)Exclave
E)Cossack

Question 78

What is the language of the Volga Tatars of the Russian Domain?

A)Kurdish
B)Turkish
C)Finnish
D)Chinese
E)Slavic

Question 79

In the Russian Domain, what non-Christian religion has the greatest number of believers?

A)Hinduism
B)Islam
C)Buddhism
D)Judaism
E)Animism

Question 80

Which of the following countries is NOT a member of the Eurasian Economic Union?

A)Belarus
B)Kazakhstan
C)Estonia
D)Armenia
E)Russia