Tokushima Public High School Entrance Examination - Social Studies flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Standard meridian of Japan

Japan uses 135°E as its standard meridian, giving UTC+9. Places 15° of longitude apart differ by one hour, so this line sets clocks across the country.

Pacific side vs Japan Sea side

The Pacific side of Japan has rainy summers and dry winters, while the Japan Sea side receives heavy winter snowfall from the northwest monsoon. The Seto Inland Sea area stays relatively dry year-round.

Food self-sufficiency rate

Japan's food self-sufficiency is about 38% on a calorie basis, though rice is nearly self-sufficient. Low rates reflect dependence on imported grains, soybeans, and feed.

Pacific Belt industrial zone

The Pacific Belt is the chain of industrial areas from Tokyo through Nagoya and Osaka to Kitakyushu. It concentrates factories, ports, and population along Japan's Pacific coast.

Map scale conversion

On a 1:50,000 map, 1 cm represents 500 m, so 4 cm equals 2 km. Larger denominators mean smaller scale and less detail; area changes with the square of the scale.

Population pyramid reading

A wide base shows high birth rates and a young population; a narrow base with a wide top shows aging. Dependency ratio compares under-15 and over-65 groups with the working-age population.

Yayoi period changes

The Yayoi period (c. 300 BCE–250 CE) brought wet-rice farming, bronze and iron tools, and growing social differences. Sites such as Yoshinogari show moated settlements and storage.

Taika Reform

The Taika Reform of 645 centralized government under the ritsuryo system, creating state-owned land and a census-based tax system, modeled partly on Tang China.

Kamakura shogunate

The Kamakura shogunate was founded by Minamoto no Yoritomo around 1185. It established warrior government, survived the Jokyu War, and repelled Mongol invasions in 1274 and 1281.

Sakoku and sankin kotai

The Edo shogunate restricted foreign contact through sakoku edicts and required daimyo to alternate residence in Edo under sankin kotai. These policies tightened control over domains and trade.

Meiji Constitution of 1889

The Meiji Constitution gave the Emperor broad authority and created a limited Diet. Voting was restricted by tax qualifications, and the military answered directly to the Emperor.

Postwar Constitution of Japan

Promulgated in 1946 and effective in 1947, the Constitution set popular sovereignty, fundamental rights, and pacifism. The Emperor became a symbol and the Diet the highest organ.

Hammurabi's Code

Hammurabi's Code was a Babylonian law collection carved on a stone stele around the 18th century BCE. It used cuneiform writing and set penalties that varied by social class.

Silk Road exchange

The Silk Road linked Han China with Central Asia, India, and Rome. Goods such as silk moved west, while Buddhism and other ideas spread along the routes.

Renaissance and Reformation

The Renaissance revived classical learning in Italian city-states from the 14th century. The Reformation began in 1517 when Luther challenged the Church, splitting Western Christianity.

Age of Exploration

From the late 15th century, European voyages expanded global contact. Columbus reached the Americas in 1492, Vasco da Gama reached India in 1498, and Magellan's expedition circled the globe.

French Revolution

The French Revolution began in 1789 with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the storming of the Bastille. It ended absolute monarchy and spread ideas of liberty and equality.

Opium War impact

The First Opium War (1840–42) forced Qing China to open ports and cede Hong Kong in the Treaty of Nanking. It marked the start of unequal treaties in East Asia.

Three principles of the Constitution

Japan's Constitution rests on popular sovereignty, fundamental human rights, and pacifism. Article 9 renounces war, and the Emperor is defined as a symbol of the state.

Separation of powers

The Diet legislates, the Cabinet executes, and courts judge independently. The Cabinet is responsible to the Diet, and courts can review laws under the Constitution.

Limits on human rights

Articles 12 and 13 allow rights to be limited for the public welfare. Rights such as speech may be restricted when they harm others, but the limits must be reasonable.

House of Representatives

The House of Representatives has 465 members, elected from 289 single-member districts and 176 proportional seats. It can override the House of Councillors on budget and treaty matters.

Voting age in Japan

Japan lowered the voting age to 18 in 2016. The change applied to national and local elections and aimed to raise youth participation in politics.

UN Security Council

The UN Security Council has five permanent members with veto power: the United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China. Japan joined the UN in 1956.

Monetary vs fiscal policy

Monetary policy is set by the central bank and adjusts interest rates or money supply. Fiscal policy uses government spending and taxes, usually decided by the legislature.

Labor Standards Act

Japan's Labor Standards Act sets an eight-hour day and forty-hour week in principle and regulates overtime pay. Minimum wages are set by prefecture and revised periodically.

Dependency ratio formula

The dependency ratio equals the population under 15 plus the population 65 and over, divided by the working-age population aged 15 to 64, multiplied by 100.

BCE and CE spans

There is no year zero. A span from 500 BCE to 1500 CE is 2,000 years, calculated as 500 plus 1500, so counting across the era boundary needs care.

International Date Line

Crossing the International Date Line eastward moves the date back one day; crossing westward moves it forward one day. Combined with 15°-per-hour time zones, this solves travel-date problems.

Percentage change formula

Percentage change equals the new value minus the old value, divided by the old value, times 100. A rising total with a falling percentage rate still means growth.

Source analysis steps

Identify the author, date, audience, and purpose of a source, then separate fact from opinion. Corroborate with a second source and note bias or omissions before concluding.

Trade surplus and deficit

A trade surplus means exports exceed imports; a deficit means imports exceed exports. Exchange rates, resource dependence, and overseas production can shift these balances.