Technology & Innovation
What ship used in the Indian Ocean—with a stitched hull—shows early long-distance maritime exchange?
The dhow.
What devotional form of Islam spread rapidly through brotherhoods?
Sufism.
Which African export, besides enslaved people, allowed the Asante to acquire firearms?
Gold.
What campaign beginning in 1095 attempted to reclaim Jerusalem?
The First Crusade.
What artistic and intellectual flowering emphasized humanism?
The Renaissance.
What Chinese innovation allowed merchants to avoid carrying heavy coins and expand transactions?
Flying cash (early paper money).
Which Indian religious tradition absorbed Buddhist practices?
Hinduism.
What cash crop from India and the Middle East became highly sought after in Europe and helped stimulate long-distance trade networks?
Cotton.
Which empire expanded across the eastern Mediterranean defending Sunni Islam?
The Ottoman Empire.
What Ottoman era saw an explosion in elite art and luxury consumption?
The Tulip Period.
What weapon technology developed under the Song dynasty changed warfare?
Gunpowder weapons.
What Confucian-based system determined entry into China’s bureaucracy?
The civil service examination system.
What Spanish labor requirement forced Andean peoples to work in silver mines?
The mita system.
What nomadic conquerors from the Eurasian steppe created the largest contiguous land empire in history, reshaping political and military structures across China, Persia, and Central Asia?
The Mongols.
What Mughal emperor created a syncretic religious philosophy blending Hindu and Islamic practices?
Akbar.
What type of European ship developed during the Age of Exploration—light, fast, and able to sail against the wind—enabled long-distance voyages to Africa, Asia, and the Americas?
The caravel.
In Ming China, what belief explained that the emperor ruled as the mediator between Heaven and Earth, giving him cosmic legitimacy?
The Mandate of Heaven.
What valuable metal extracted from the Americas—especially at Potosí—became the engine of global trade and tied together Europe, Africa, and Asia in the early modern period?
Silver.
Which war reflected Britain and France’s competition for North America before 1763?
The Seven Years’ War (French and Indian War).
What blended traditions from Indigenous, African, and European cultures in the Americas?
Creole cultures.
What navigational tool allowed sailors to determine latitude during long voyages?
The astrolabe.
What major Christian reform movement in the sixteenth century challenged papal authority and split Western Christianity into competing denominations?
The Protestant Reformation.
What Qing policy restricted Europeans to one port and licensed Chinese guild merchants?
The Canton System.
What uprising became the only successful enslaved revolt, creating a new nation?
The Haitian Revolution.
Which European scientist argued the universe followed mathematical laws in the Principia Mathematica?
Isaac Newton.