Social Science (087) — AI-generated practice question

The potato, introduced to Europe from the Americas after Columbus's voyages, initially improved the lives of Europe's poor by providing cheap, nutritious food, enabling them to eat better and live longer.

However, this benefit became a danger when people grew overly dependent on a single crop. Ireland's poorest peasants relied almost entirely on potatoes for survival. When a disease destroyed the potato crop in the mid-1840s, hundreds of thousands died of starvation, as they had no alternative food source to fall back on.

Thus, the potato's benefits turned into catastrophe because of extreme dependency on a single crop, showing that over-reliance on one food source is dangerous.

Source: Food Travels: Spaghetti and Potato, Chapter 3, Section 1.2

---

• The examiner wants you to explain both sides of the contradiction using facts from the textbook.
• Key points: (1) Potato helped Europe's poor eat better and live longer. (2) Irish peasants became totally dependent on it. (3) When disease struck the crop in the 1840s, mass starvation followed.
• The word "contradiction" in the question is your clue to contrast the two outcomes clearly.
• Always cite the crop disease and Ireland specifically — vague answers lose marks.