The wall was built by the government of a. Russia b. East Germany c. West Germany
The purpose of the wall was to a. stop people from immigrating to the country b. protect the country from military advances c. stop people from defecting
The wall came down in a. 1961 b. 1968 c. 1989
Discussion/essay questions
The Berlin Wall was one structure that represented a major political divide across Europe. Why do you think it is so easy to divide people?
Transcript
The Berlin Wall was a barrier that separated West Berlin from the rest of East Germany during the Cold War. After World War II, the Allied Powers divided Germany into four regions. The Soviet Union controlled the eastern region, and the United States, Britain, and France controlled the western regions. The communist government of East Germany built the Berlin Wall in 1961 to stop people from defecting. The only people who could cross the border were diplomats, and they had to go through special checkpoints. In 1989, East Germany finally declared that people would be able to cross the border freely. Over 2 million people arrived at the border. Some brought tools to tear the wall down. The fall of the wall came to signify the beginning of the end of the Cold War.
On April 26, 1986, the nuclear reactor of the Chernobyl Power Plant in Ukraine . The explosion occurred early in the morning, while plant were performing a maintenance check. They had turned off a control system that was keeping the reactor stable. The initial explosion killed two of the workers, and 28 other workers died of radiation sickness in the months after the . The explosion also caused residents of a nearby town called Pripyat to be exposed to radiation. Because of this, the residents were forced to evacuate and find new places to live. In order to more deaths from radiation exposure, the of what was then the Soviet Union created an exclusion zone around the Chernobyl plant. Although the zone is now safe for tourists to visit, scientists believe that the most contaminated areas will not be habitable for over 20,000 years.
Comprehension questions
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Discussion/essay questions
Nuclear power is a controversial topic. Many people are afraid of the potential dangers that nuclear power plants could cause. Chernobyl is a good example of this. However, nuclear power is a useful source of energy that doesn’t release carbon dioxide. How do you feel about nuclear power? Is it too dangerous, or are the benefits are more important than the risks?
Transcript
On April 26, 1986, the nuclear reactor of the Chernobyl Power Plant in Ukraine exploded. The explosion occurred early in the morning, while plant workers were performing a maintenance check. They had turned off a control system that was keeping the reactor stable. The initial explosion killed two of the workers, and 28 other workers died of radiation sickness in the months after the disaster. The explosion also caused residents of a nearby town called Pripyat to be exposed to radiation. Because of this, the residents were forced to evacuate and find new places to live. In order to prevent more deaths from radiation exposure, the government of what was then the Soviet Union created an exclusion zone around the Chernobyl plant. Although the zone is now safe for tourists to visit, scientists believe that the most contaminated areas will not be habitable for over 20,000 years.
Some historians have debated about which country was at fault for the Cold War. However, many believe that the Cold War was always going to happen, because the U.S. and the Soviet Union were powerful countries with opposing beliefs. Do you think it is possible for two powerful countries with different ideologies to exist without conflict?
Transcript
The Cold War was a political rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted from 1947 to 1991. It was caused by the opposing ideologies of the American and Soviet governments. While the U.S. was a capitalist country, the Soviet Union had a communist system. After World War II, the Soviets controlled communist governments in Eastern Europe, while the Americans were allied with democratic governments in Western Europe. The divide between Eastern and Western Europe became known as the Iron Curtain. Throughout the Cold War, both the Soviet Union and the U.S. tried to prove their superiority by gathering and testing nuclear weapons. While the two countries never fought each other directly, they became involved in conflicts between other countries. In the 1980s, the U.S. and the Soviet Union began to sign agreements restricting nuclear weapons. However, the treaties divided the citizens of the Soviet Union. Some people still strongly supported communism, and didn’t want to make peace with the United States. Others wanted to convert to a capitalist system. This division eventually led to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, which ended the Cold War.
Some people believe in the conspiracy theory that the moon landing was faked. Do you think this is possible? Why or why not?
Transcript
In 1969, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the moon. The decision to send astronauts to the moon was made in 1961, when U.S. President John F. Kennedy pledged to accomplish this before the end of the decade. Kennedy set this goal because of the rivalry between the U.S. and the Soviet Union at the time. The Soviet Union had already made advancements in space travel, such as sending the first unmanned probe to the moon, and sending the first human to space. The U.S. wanted to prove that they were capable of space travel as well. Over eight years, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) prepared and launched 11 missions that would lead to the moon landing. The final mission took place on July 20th, 1969. Armstrong was the first of the two astronauts to walk on the moon, where he said the famous quote: “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
