An arc of rich farmland in southwest Asia
Fertile Crescent
A plan located near the mediterranean sea
Mesopotamia
A city that acts like and independent country
City-State
A series of rulers from the same family
Dynasty
An idea that spreads from one culture to another
Cultural Diffusion
Belief in many gods
Polytheism
Several nations under the control of one ruler
Empire
Babylonian King, created Hammurabi’s Code
Hammurabi
A member of a group that has no home and travels place to place for food and water
Nomad
A period in human history, beginning around 3000 BC, in which people began using bronze rather than copper or stone
Bronze Age
The development of skills in a particular kind of work, such as trading or record keeping
Specialization
a prehistoric period lasting from 2500000 BC to 8000 BC during which people made use of crude stone tools and weapons.
Paleolithic Age
Trading or exchanging goods without money
Barter
A professional record keeper in early civilizations
Scribe
A skilled worker who makes goods by hand (weaver or potter)
Artisan
A farming method in which people clear fields by cutting and burning trees and grasses, the ashes of which serve to fertilize soil
Slash - and - Burn farming
A prehistoric period that began about 8000 BC and in some areas ended as soon as 3000 BC during which people learned to polish stone tools, make pottery, grow crops, and raise animals
Neolithic Age
Taming animals for human use
Domestication
Member of a biological group including human beings and related species that walk upright
Hominid
A tiered, pyramid-shaped structure that formed part of a Sumerian temple
Ziggurat
A long-lasting pattern of organization in a community
Institution
A member of a nomadic group whose food supply depends on hunting animals and collecting plant foods
Hunter-Gatherer
A form of culture specialized by cities, specialized workers, complex institutions, record keeping, and advanced technology
Civilization
Biological species in which modern human beings belong
Homo Sapiens
A system of writing with wedge-shaped symbols
Cuneiform
The way in which people apply knowledge, tools, and invention to meet their needs
Technology
A people’s unique way of life, as shown by its tools, customs, arts, and ideas
Culture
A human-made object, such as a tool, a weapon, or a piece of jewelry
Artifact
According to Jared Diamond, what are the three major elements that separate the world’s “haves” from the “have nots”?
Guns, Germs, and Steel
Jared Diamond refers to the people of New Guinea as “among the world’s most culturally diverse and adaptable people in the world”, yet they have much less than modern Americans. Diamond has developed a theory about what has caused these huge discrepancies among different countries, and he says it boils down to geographic luck. Give several examples from the film to support Diamond’s theory.
It was expected for the westerners to have a lot of resources and the New Guinea people to have little amount of technology and a little amount of resources that were available to them every day.
For thousands of years, people have been cultivating crops. Describe the process used to domesticate crops and create plants that yielded bigger, tastier harvests.
They planted the seeds and plants at certain times of each year. They located bodies of water and planted the crops there where there was easy access and good soil. They then chose the biggest, tastiest, and easiest to harvest plant seeds and scattered them in the soil where they could grow into more and more plants.
According to Diamond, livestock also plays a significant role in a civilization’s ability to
become rich and powerful. How did the domestication of animals help people? Give several examples.
Domestication helped people kill them food, use them as clothes, and the animals could help us with farming. They helped humans with a plow allowing is to cover more ground and feed more people.
List the animals that can be domesticated and where they can be found.
Goats, sheep, Llamas, elephants, pigs, cows, horses, donkeys, camels, water buffalo, yaks
South america, north africa, asia, europe is where you can find these animals
Looking at the list of animals and locations from question 5, discuss how Diamond’s theory about geographic luck applies here.
Animals that were domesticated were more productive than animals that weren’t
How did the movement of the early civilizations of the Fertile Crescent (Middle East) further support Diamond’s idea that geography played a key role in the success of a civilization?
The fertile crescent was a large land area with some of the most fragile and nutritious crops. The domesticated animals they had helped them with farming. The land was too dry forcing the people to leave this area.
Do you agree with Jared Diamond when he says of a civilization’s ability to gain power,
wealth, and strength, “…what’s far more important is the hand that people have been dealt, the raw materials they’ve had at their disposal.” Why or why not?
I do agree, if you live in a reasonable temperature and with farm animals, you will have a successful growing up but if you live in an unfortunate atmosphere, you will struggle while growing up.