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Difficulty: MediumAdvances in Technology and Exchange

"The shift of Western Europe’s energy base from domestic coal to imported oil was one of the most significant developments of the post-Second World War era. In 1947, coal met about 80 percent of Western Europe's energy needs, while oil accounted for only about 10 percent. By the mid-1950s, however, the rapid expansion of automobile ownership, diesel-powered merchant shipping, and oil-fired industrial boilers had doubled oil’s share of energy consumption, with the vast majority of this petroleum arriving via tankers from the Middle East."
—Report by the Organisation for European Economic Co-operation, 1956

The technological shift described in the passage was most significant in facilitating which of the following global trends in the late twentieth century?

  1. The expansion of global trade networks fueled by more efficient transport technologies.Answer
  2. B
    The spread of a 'Green Revolution' focused on replacing fossil fuels with eco-friendly, carbon-neutral agricultural practices.
  3. C
    The initial transition from wood to coal-powered steam engines during the First Industrial Revolution.
  4. D
    The establishment of direct Western political control and colonial annexation of oil-producing states.

Answer

The expansion of global trade networks fueled by more efficient transport technologies.
The transition from coal to petroleum in the mid-twentieth century provided a highly efficient energy source that powered internal combustion engines, commercial aviation, and diesel cargo ships. This shift lowered shipping costs and increased the speed of travel, directly enabling the rise of highly integrated global trade networks and transnational supply chains in the late twentieth century.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus to identify the core technological shift described.
The stimulus describes the transition of Western Europe's energy base from domestic coal to imported petroleum (oil) in the post-Second World War era.
Understanding the timeline and nature of this energy transition is necessary to evaluate its global impact.
2
Relate the shift to petroleum to its consequences for global transport and exchange.
Petroleum-powered vehicles (automobiles, diesel trains, cargo ships, and aircraft) became the foundation of modern logistics.
Connecting energy technologies to transportation shows how energy shifts directly enabled globalization and global trade.
3
Evaluate the options to identify which trend was directly facilitated by this energy shift.
The correct option correctly links petroleum-driven transport efficiency to the expansion of late-twentieth-century global trade networks, while incorrect options represent chronological confusion, political inaccuracies, or misconceptions about the Green Revolution.
This step ensures that the selected answer aligns with the historical reality of the post-WWII global economy.

Key Concept

The transition to petroleum as a dominant energy source and its role in accelerating global trade and transport networks in the twentieth century.
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