1. What was land reclamation and how did it increase the amount of farmland available in Europe?

2. How did crop rotation differ from traditional farming methods, and what made the four-crop rotation system so effective?

3. What new crops from the Columbian Exchange became important to European agriculture, and why was the potato particularly significant?

4. What was the enclosure movement and what were its effects on both agricultural production and peasant farmers?

1. How did technological advances in farming contribute to increased food production and reduced labor needs?

1. What transportation improvements did European nations make in the 18th century and how did they facilitate food distribution?

2. How did Nicolas Appert's canning process contribute to solving food supply problems?

1. What were the major epidemic diseases that affected Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries and what impact did they have on population?

2. Why did the bubonic plague eventually disappear from Europe, and what theories do historians propose?

3. How did smallpox affect European society and what percentage of the population did it kill in the 17th and 18th centuries?

1. What connection did scientists discover between unsanitary conditions and epidemics, and how did this lead to public health campaigns?

2. How did Lady Mary Wortley Montagu and Edward Jenner contribute to combating smallpox?

1. What additional health practices became important during the 18th century and how did rising living standards improve overall health?

2. How did increased urbanization create new public health challenges despite improvements in sanitation?

1. What were the main features of the European marriage pattern and how did it limit population growth?

2. How did urbanization and the rise of the middle class begin to change traditional marriage patterns in the 18th century?

1. What dramatic change occurred in the rate of illegitimate births between 1600 and 1850, and what factors contributed to this increase?

2. What social stigma did unwed mothers face and what were their limited options for survival?

1. Why were foundling hospitals established and what challenges did they face in caring for abandoned children?

1. What dangers did childbirth present in the 18th century and how did improved nutrition and health reduce infant mortality?

2. What was wet-nursing and why was it popular despite increasing the risk of infant mortality?

3. How did Enlightenment thinkers like Rousseau challenge traditional practices regarding infant care and child-rearing?

1. How did the concept of childhood change during the Enlightenment and what role did the middle class play in this transformation?

2. What were John Locke's and Jean-Jacques Rousseau's ideas about child development and education?

3. How did artistic representations of children in the 18th century reflect Enlightenment attitudes toward childhood?

1. What were the key features of Prussia's compulsory universal education system and why was it considered a model for other nations?

2. How did the Prussian curriculum encourage the development of national identity?

1. How did the French Revolution and Napoleon transform France's educational system?

2. What was Marquis de Condorcet's plan for education and how did Napoleon's system differ from it?

1. What educational reforms did Empress Maria Theresa mandate and how did her system differ from Prussia's?

1. How did European urban populations change between 1500 and 1750, and which cities experienced the most rapid growth?

2. What were the major negative features of 18th-century city life that affected all residents?

3. Why did urban mortality rates remain high despite higher incomes and more dependable food supplies than in rural areas?

4. What improvements did cities make over time to address problems of overcrowding, sanitation, and public health?

1. What attractions and opportunities did wealthy urban residents enjoy in 18th-century European cities?

2. How did the living conditions and economic opportunities of the urban poor differ from those of the wealthy?

3. What social problems resulted from urban poverty and how did the poor respond to increased misery?

4. What philanthropic organizations emerged to address urban poverty and what services did they provide?

1. What is the standard of living debate among historians regarding early industrial urbanization?

2. How did mass migration to cities create conditions necessary for the Industrial Revolution?