Use the Passage Below to Answer All Parts of the Question

question 33

Essay

Use the passage below to answer all parts of the question that follows.
"It is now clear that Old World plagues killed at least half the population of the Aztec, Maya, and Inca civilizations shortly before their overthrow. The sheer loss of people was devastating enough . . . but disease was also a political assassination squad, removing kings, generals, and seasoned advisers at the very time they were needed most. . . . The great death raged for more than a century. By 1600, after some twenty waves of pestilence had swept through the Americas, less than a tenth of the original population remained.
Ronald Wright, Stolen Continents: The Americas Through Indian Eyes Since 1492, 1992.
(A) Identify ONE reason the population of the Americas was so vulnerable to Old World plagues.
(B) Identify and compare the impact of ONE plague that was transferred along trade routes in Afro-Eurasia in the period from 1200 to 1450.
(C) Identify and explain at least ONE other factor that contributed to the destruction of the Aztec, Maya, or Inca empires.

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Definitions:

Residential Wells

Small-scale water extraction facilities located on private property used primarily to supply water to individual homes or small communities.

Aquatic Ecosystem

A water-based environment, including oceans, rivers, lakes, and wetlands, where plants and animals interact with the physical and chemical features.

Sewage, Sludge

The semi-solid by-product of the sewage treatment process, often treated and disposed of or sometimes used as a fertilizer after undergoing further processing.

Deep-Water Ocean

Areas of the ocean that are located far from land, typically at depths greater than 200 meters, characterized by cold temperatures and high pressure.