United States History Study Guide The Affluent Society

Possible Fill-Ins:
1. Baby Boom The white population saw a 20% increase.
2. AFL-CIO: The American Federation of Labor joined together with the
Congress of Industrial Organizations. This led to corruption in the union
leaders.
3. Operation DixieA failed plan by the CIO, who wanted better wages for
textile workers.
4. Alexander Fleming The man who accidentally discovered penicillin
5. SulfaA nickname for a powerful drug that could be used in surgery
6. DDT: A pesticide used during WWII. Prevented Malaria and Typhus
7. UNIVACFirst computer capable of processing numbers and alphabet
8. Minuteman: Powerful Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) that was
launched from land
9. Polaris: Powerful ICBM that was launched from submarine
10. Sputnik: Russians launched the first satellite into orbit
11. Mercury Project/Gemini Project: NASAs missions to launch manned vehicles
into space
12. Yuri Gagarin: Russian man, first man in space
13. Apollo 11: Mission that landed astronauts on the moon
14. Levittown: Pre-Fabricated Houses with identical interiors that could all be
assembled quickly to form a mini-neighborhood.
15. VitameatavegaminAlcoholic drink on the set of I Love Lucy. She drank it
and got drunk on the set.
16. Dr. Benjamin Spock: Wrote a book Baby and Child Care saying kids must be
nurtured. It re-enforced gender roles (women be mothers, men work to
provide)
17. Elvis: First rock star, symbol that the next generation was a lot different from
their parents.
18. Disk Jockey: People who played music over the radio
19. Payola Scandals: Record Companies paid DJs to air their songs to gain
popularity
20. Little Rock: The govt ordered the schools to allow blacks. A crowd of
protestors said no. The National Guard was sent in to fix the issue.
21. .


Possible IDs:
1. Suburban Growth: Following the baby boom, suburbs saw a large growth.
People began to buy more cars and homes to support their families. More
roads were constructed. This stimulated the economy even more.
2. Postwar Contract After the war, the Unions agreed that if they were paid
more, and given better benefits, they would not bring up issues of
management. (AKA: If the company paid them well, they wouldnt strike or
do anything to harm the companys production) As more machines were
brought into factories, unions saw a drop in participation
3. Vaccinations: As medicine research continued, scientists began to produce
more and more vaccines. First came the vaccines against smallpox. Then
came the Tuberculosis vaccines. Finally, the Salk Vaccine cured Polio. It was
originally administered with a shot, but eventually became an edible vaccine
in a sugar cube.
4. NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration. After Sputnik was
launched, they worked very hard to improve the USs Space Program. They
raised many children to become scientists. They had the Mercury Project, the
Gemini Project, and finally the Apollo Project. They wanted to increase space
travel with space shuttles. When the space shuttle Challenger blew up, NASA
lost a lot of public support.
5. Consensus The general belief that all Americans prospered during the
1950s. Americans believed firmly in capitalism and turned America into a
consumer-based society.
a. Consumer Goods: Hula Hoops, Cars, TVs, Radios, Houses, Mickey
Mouse Toys
b. Credit: People began using credit cards, and easy-payment plans
6. The Beats (Beatniks) A group of poets who harshly criticized the
monotonous lifestyle of American citizens. They thought America should be
limitless, but the politicians were restricting it. Young Americans were
beginning to behave differently from their parents. This led to the Hippies of
the 1960s and the 1970s.
7. Echo Park: The govt wanted to build a dam that went through Echo Valley.
Echo Valley had many Dinosaur fossils in it. The dam would destroy the
fossils. Bernard DeVoto wrote an article condemning the dam. The Sierra
Club, the nations leading environmental organization petitioned Congress to
block the dam project, which they did.
8. End of McCarthyism: McCarthy had been able to accuse anyone who went
against him. Finally, when he accused the Secretary of the Army people had
had enough. Congress began to broadcast his hearings. These were called
Army-McCarthy Hearings. When the public saw how little evidence he had,
he lost support. The Senate voted to kick him out and he died 3 years later of
alcoholism.
9. Massive Retaliation: John Foster Dulles, a rich lawyer, said when faced with
Communism, America would threaten that country with Nuclear War. We
would push the other country to the brink of war, then the other country
would be forced to give us what we want because they would not be willing
to risk nuclear war. This would benefit the American Economy
10. Vietnam: After the War in Korea was ended, another conflict sprung up
almost instantly. The French were trying to re-conquer Vietnam (It had once
been their colony). They were unsuccessful. The Vietnamese leader Ho Chi
Minh finally destroyed their forces at a brutal battle in Dien Bien Phu.
11. Israel: Israel became its own country in 1948 after years of struggling.
a. Iran: The UN and US were happy about this, but Iran wasnt. This
worried the US, because Iran had oil. If they disagreed with the US,
they might not sell oil to them. The CIA infiltrated the Iranian govt,
staged a coup, and overthrew the dictator.
b. Egypt: Egypt was also not happy that Israel was recognized as a
country. The US said that Egypt had to accept Israel or we would not
give them money for a Dam across the Nile. The Egyptians then
attacked the Suez Canal and took it from the British. The Egyptians
said that they would use the money from this canal to build the dam.
The US sent in troops reclaimed the canal and the US and Egyptians
came to an agreement.
12. U-2 Crisis: Khrushchev and Eisenhower would meet each other in America
and the USSR. Khrushchev came to America and the two discussed the Berlin
Situation. Before Eisenhower could visit Russia, however, the Soviets shot
down a highflying American U-2 plane. The American pilot was in captivity

Possible Short Answers:
1. *Keynesian Economics (This will definitely be a question)*: During WWII
and the Depression, politicians wondered if capitalism was viable at all. John
Maynard Keynes said that a government could vary its fiscal policy and
could manage its monetary policy to prevent inflation and stimulate the
economy. (Easier way of putting it: A government changes both fiscal and
monetary policies to prevent inflation). Basically, the government can
intervene without screwing up private industry (Capitalism). In 1954
there was a mini-recession. Keynesian economics were used and the
recession turned into a time of prosperity. In 1957, there was another mini-
recession. This time, Keynesian economics were NOT used and the recession
got worse. Keynesian Economics also said that the best way to fix poverty
wasnt to redistribute wealth. Instead, the best way was to increase
production rates, which in turn would fix poverty.
2. HIGHWAYS
a. Federal Highway Act of 1956: The govt gave $25M to build highways
all across the nation. 40,000 miles of highway were built.
b. Faster Travel: It was now possible to travel much faster between two
cities, and between a city and a suburb.
c. Manufacturing Plants: Before Highways were built, all factories had to
be inside big cities, where prices were high. Now, they could be
located in rural areas, where prices were much cheaper. Trucks
(instead of trains) could transport the goods into the city to be sold.
d. Consumerism: Highways allowed people to live in the suburbs and
travel easily into the city for work. People could now have nice homes
far away from confined city housing. Homes began to have garages,
backyards, pools, barbecue pits, etc
e. Fast Food: As people began traveling more between work and home
they needed food quickly. Fast food restaurants, such as McDonalds,
began to spring up everywhere
f. Natural Resources: As cars and homes became more common, the
demand for natural resources increased. Many oil wells began to
become depleted and people began to look to other countries for oil.
3. I Love LucyLucille Ball started out as a radio host. Eventually she became
quite popular and CBS moved her to TV. Her husband, Desi, was Cuban. CBS
didnt want him on the show, but Lucy insisted. They became one of
Americas most loved couples. The show accurately represented 1950s
America (although it was a little exaggerated). It lasted for many years, and
was the most popular show by far. When Lucy had a child in real life, CBS
played a pre-recorded episode where she gave birth to a child. Politicians and
other workers would move their schedule around so that it didnt interfere
with Lucy.
4. Poverty
a. The Other Americans: Michael Harrington wrote a book The Other
Americans about the poorer Americans. Many people (20% of the total
population) were borderline poverty. Five percent of that 20% had no
hope of ever achieving affluence
b. Farmers: As Agricultural prices dropped, farmers began to move into
the city in search of work. This cause prices to fall even more. The
farmers that remained made about the money that used to make.
The discovery of synthetic fibers in 1944 also reduced the demand for
cotton.
c. Ghettos: While the white population moved out of the city, towards
the suburbs, the Black and Hispanic populations moved into the cities.
Many people have argued why ghettos became so poor. The general
belief is that the first people into the ghettos were poor, and so their
children were poor. This started a cycle of poor people that few
minorities ever escaped from.
i. About 20 years after WWII, the governments of inner cities
began to tear down trashy buildings to build newer nicer ones.
This is called Urban Renewal.
5. Civil Rights Movement
a. Brown v. Board of Education: The Supreme Court ruled that Separate
but Equal did not apply to education. The case involved a young black
girl who had to travel miles to attend a colored school, when she lived
next to a white one.
b. Massive Resistance: Many school districts (up North) were okay with
this decision by the Supreme Court. However many Southerners were
very upset with the law. Within 3 years, only about 1 in 5 schools
were desegregated. Many parents removed their children from school
if a black person attended that school. The National Guard was sent in
to allow a black student to attend a school in Little Rock
c. Montgomery Bus Boycott: This is Rosa Parks, and everyone knows
this story. It led to the Supreme Court declaring that segregation on
public transport was illegal.
d. Martin Luther King: Followed the teaching of Gandhi, Christianity, and
Henry David Thoreau
e. Desegregation of Military and Sports: Jackie Robinson





Random Info:
1. Nuclear Shelters: Understand why we did the two activities about nuclear
shelters. He usually puts activity questions on the quizzes as some form of
short answer or fill-in.
2. Economic Growth: During the 1950s, the US stimulated the economy by
funding schools, housing, veterans benefits, welfare, highways etc.
3. Western Expansion: During WWII, the government had constructed factories
in the west. As highways became more accessible, and cars became more
common, people began to move out west. The warmer climate also
contributed.
4. Companies Consolidating: Because the government tended to give the
largest contracts to the largest businesses, many medium sized companies
joined together to get these contracts. Many agricultural companies also
joined, due to mechanized farming techniques. As these companies got
bigger, they couldnt afford any strikes, so the leaders gave in more to labor
unions. Union members got better standards of living, and increased wages
per week.
5. Antibiotics: Louis Pasteur discovered that bacterial infections would be
defeated with ordinary bacteria. Later, scientists discovered that these
antibiotics could be used in surgery to prevent infection.
6. Television and ComputersIn New Jersey, engineers built a new transistor.
They also found a way to get rid of vacuum tubes. Integrated circuits
combined transistors, resistors, and diodes. This meant TVs could become far
more common. TV became a symbol of typical gender roles. The programs
showed men working, and women being wives/mothers. If this represented
your family you felt happy, and part of the American society. If it didnt
represent your family you felt alienated by society. Computers also became
smaller and capable of processing more data. Businesses used them to
crunch numbers quickly.
7. Missiles: The US became obsessed with created unmanned rockets that could
pilot themselves across the oceans. The Air Force originally ran most of these
tests. This eventually led to NASA.
8. Family Life: After WWII, men and women moved to the suburbs for two
reasons
a. Connected Family: The men and women wanted to enjoy life and be
happy. They were sick of the turbulent lifestyle that WWII caused
b. Racial Inequality: Many black people moved into the cities. To avoid
them, and all the problems that were caused by whites living near
blacks, whites moved into the suburbs.
c. Feminism Weakened: The book Baby and Child Care by Dr. Spock
became very popular. It said that women should spend all their time
with their kids, raising them properly. This weakened the Feminist
movement.
d. Increase in Travel/Vacations: As paid vacations became more
common, people began to travel more. Planes, highways, and cars
helped to make these vacations possible. People began traveling to
National Parks to walk, hike, or camp. (See Echo Park^)
9. New Music: For many years, Americans had really liked the sound of blues
music and black rhythm. However, racial boundaries made it impossible for
them to listen to this music. Elvis helped to break down these barriers by
including black rhythm in his music. Many radio stations began to broadcast
music instead of news. Records also made music more popular because they
were cheap and easy to make. Rock was to the 1950s what Jazz was to the
1920s.
10. Eisenhower as a Businessman: Eisenhower hired many business leaders to
the government. They were able to make unfair laws that benefitted
corporations, not the public. Charles Wilson, president of General Motors was
famously quoted saying What was good for our country was good for
General Motors, and vice versa. Eisenhower also funded the Highway Act. He
raised the minimum wage from .75 to $1.
11. Cuba: This Chapter just covers what the last one did too with Castro taking
the govt and making Cuba Communist.
12. Hungary Revolution: Protestors within Hungary began to demand that they
be made into a democratic nation. The Soviets came in with tanks and
Hungary stayed communist.