AP World History Exam: Period 6 Notes (1900 C.E. to the Present)

Six Things to Know about AP World History Period 6

1. Due to improvements in health care and the decrease of the death rate, the world population went from 1 billion people in 1900 to over 6 billion. The movement of people has also increased throughout the world, with many in search of better economic opportunities. Some refugees, too, are being forced to leave their homelands.
2. Traditional social structures have been challenged as a result of movements that have attempted to empower the working class, such as the introduction of communist governments in various parts of the world.
3. Women gained the right to vote in many parts of the world, as well as access to new economic opportunities and education. The development of the birth control pill empowered women by allowing them to control their own reproductive systems.
4. The world became more and more integrated through technology, cultures have blended, and some came to dominate. At the same time, religious fundamentalism has developed in some regions, possibly to combat Western-dominated global culture.
5. The rise in the nation-state and nationalism has led to the adoption of political systems from totalitarianism to democracy. At the same time, the rise of a more globally connected world may blur the lines of the nation-state.
6. The world wars demonstrated the influence of technology on warfare, but also indicated the decline of Europe as the dominant global power. Colonial areas asserted themselves and fought for independence, but were later faced with a new global conflict called the Cold War. Since the end of the Cold War, nations have made attempts at both economic and political reforms, and international and multinational organizations have made attempts to establish a new world order.