science Galileo

After doing the reading in the science section of the ways of the world, I came across Galileo Galilei. I was really interested on his scientific acheivement of making the telescope and discovering more about the solar system. So I decided to do some extensive research on the topic to answer some questions that were wandering in my head.

Galileo developed a more advanced telescope, which he saw sunspots with. With that, he discovered new stars such as Jupiter.

His discoery lead to the findings that all planets revolved around the sun and that there was a gravitational force because some of the planets seemed to dissapear from him when they actually revolved somewhere else.

Knowledge Categorization- Opinionative Discussion

As we discussed in class on Friday, there are multiple categories in which people choose to determine how one gains knowledge. Some we came up with were discovering wisdom through history, common knowledge, personal experience, testimony, scientific evidence, and the most controversial of the bunch, revelation and religious knowledge. As the discussion regarding the various units in which one categorizes their source of knowledge unraveled, the discussion became quite heated. With some taking the stance that the only way to truly believe what one is learning is when evidence is provided, the counter argument proposed the idea that not every bit of intelligence must have proof to back it up. Both arguments introducing topics fairly and both of equal stature, we were unable to come to a clear conclusion.
However, I felt that this is a situation in which an ending is not necessarily needed. Both opinions were stated clearly with personal opinions provided, proving that both sides felt passionate about what they were arguing. My personal opinion is that the categories Ms. Xia posted on the board regarding ways in which one gathers knowledge from were all adequate and I agreed with each of them. Yes, providing proven evidence on a matter will cause me to trust the topic to its fullest extent, however learning things through personal experiences and/or being enlightened religiously are ways I choose to abide by as well. Yet this is not how the whole class felt, and some argued that in order for one to truly believe, there must be a topic hand in hand with concrete proof. This proved that for some, believing is seeing, and for others, seeing is believing.
As we dive into our next unit, with chapters relating to great revolutions world wide, we will find that many of the transformations made will tie into our class discussion that took place on Friday. Not all discoveries and changes being made were supported by proof or concrete evidence, and some will run along the lines of a more spontaneous event, backed up by merely personal beliefs. It was crucial for us to get a taste for what we will be learning, and become better familiarized with a topic that will arise frequently as we continue to grow. Determining how one chooses to gain their knowledge is both a personal and essential task, and it was nice to begin in deciding which categories we will choose by introducing the topic in class.

Religion vs. Science

While I was reading the section, I noticed that even though the theories of the scientists in this age went against the church, the scientists themselves were religious men and believed in some teachings of the church. Some of them also believed in a divine being, which is interesting to think about when science is involved. Science explains a lot of things, but one thing it doesnt explain is why everything is how it is and why it all started and continues to work. I am sure this question plagued and continues to plague many scientists and regular people.

I was interested to find out more about Galileo's like in particular since he is one of the most famous cases of religion vs. science. Galileo was born in Pisa, Italy on February 15, 1564. His family was noble. Galileo considered priesthood as a child, but his father believed that medicine would be the best path for him to take. However, Galileo dropped out shortly there after to pursue his passion for mathematics and mechanics. Soon, he became well known by improving on the first versions of the telescope, as well as being the first to observe the seas of the moon and the satellites of Jupiter. Copernicus theorized that the earth was not the center of the universe, but was just one the many planets that orbited around the sun. Though he was smart and very wise, Galileo refrained from becoming a public supporter of the Copernican view for fear of ridicule, and his battles with the church over the subject became legendary in the scientific community. His legacy lives on , however, in physics and is considered to be the first modern scientist. He was a different kind of scientist; Galileo broke tradition and went straight to nature. He was one of the first scientists to experiment to investigate. Physics in his time were seriously erred, and he was out to correct them. In fact, Galileo is considered to be the father of modern physics. His findings are still alive and used today. His life was definitely an interesting and revolutionary one.

http://math.berkeley.edu/~robin/Galileo/life.html

Class Discussion and Relgion's Purpose

During class we had a very heated conversation in class about religion, God, and the "Scientific Revolution". Being a devout Catholic, I have a very strong belief about God and religion's true purpose. I am just going to voice my opinion because I am some what confused on our homework. I personally feel that religion is a pillar for humanity, and it is always there to support us. Ever since our evolution from apes, we have always wondered about who we are, why we are here, and how we have been brought to Earth. I personally feel that this is why religion was formed, to provide all of these answers that every single human being needs to have answered to keep them sane. If people to do not have any feeling about stand on these questions, then I truly feel they are not human, because this is part of brain and how we were "made", to wonder about these questions. Religion has provided answers and up until this "Scientific Revolution", people have followed what their religion says about these questions. I still follow what my religion says about the questions of life because I personally believe they are the right answers. Obviously I do not believe that the Earth is in the center of the Solar System, but I believe in the answers that religion has given me. I have grown up around these answers and they are what will keep me sane until I die, because it is what I want to believe. If someone disagrees and believes that there is no God, then that is their personal belief about these questions, due to the fact God has to do with almost of these questions. I belief in my ideas and I want them to be true, and no single person has to prove that my beliefs are true or false, because all the proof I need is my belief. Wasn't sure if this is what you wanted, but I thought I would voice my opinion.

Cy PowerPoint Presentation 9/29/2009

Tomorrow (9.29.2009), I'll be doing a PPT/Speech presentation, further discussing my thoughts on gods, religions, faith, and knowledge. It will focus on some of the comments people have made (specifically Rehan and Carson) during, and after our class discussion. It should take no longer than 10 minutes.

-Cy

Nicolaus Copernicus

In the reading, i found Copernicus particularly interesting. Before Copernicus, everyone believed that the earth was the center of the universe and that all attention of god and the universe was centered on the earth. it was believed that angels guided the planets around their orbits and god oversaw the whole thing, and intervened whenever he felt necessary. Then Copernicus came along. He believed that the earth was not at the center of the universe, but in fact the sun was at the center. that all things revolved around the sun and that the earth was in fact not the center of all attention. He strongly believed in his theory and believed it could be supported with sufficient evidence, but he didn't publish his findings and works until the day of his death, because of his fear of the Catholic Church. Copernicus marked the start of the scientific revolution, and many great astronomers would build on his discoveries.

A very brief history of his life:

He was born in Torun, Poland in 1473. He studied astronomy for the first time at University of Cracow, 1491-1494. Elected canon of the cathedral chapter of Frombork. He Matriculated in 1496 as part of his requirement as canon at the University of Bologna studying canon and civil law. Also worked as an assistant to the professor of astrology and mathematics. Studied medicine at the university of Padua from 1501-3, then moved to University of Ferrara to obtain doctorate in Canon law in 1503. 1514, Copernicus created his own theory on motion of planet and where the earth was located in the universe. 1530-40, his reputation as a skilled spread and he shared his theories and ideas with many scholars. His reputation even reached the ears of the pope. He published his theories in a book: On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres in march 1543, just a month before his death.

Response to Class Discussion on Science

To reflect on the class discussion, I have put a lot of thought into the idea of knowledge, and how it is transferred between people properly. Even in modern day society, it's very hard to know when something is honest or at least partially true. Especially when it's coming from a person, rather than a book, or some form of inscription. In the times of Isaac Newton, the church acted as a full form of government, and was able to enforce laws as if they were running the world. Newton is probably one of the most prestigious scientists of our time, but he was so afraid that he would run into trouble with the church for publicly announcing his beliefs, that he hid everything he had ever worked on. Newton was very church oriented, and he had nothing against the church, but yet he was still able to fight his religious beliefs and many a time prove the laws of the church wrong. But it was only after his death that people found his knowledge and all his writings. And it's parts of history likes this that show how people so blinded by faith can try to control knowledge and enforce their own beliefs. I'm sure that if Newton came out with his beliefs, that we would've been outcasted, or even killed. Information was almost at a halt in that period, because nothing could be invented without some sort of religious ruler looking over your shoulder. Some theorize that without the church around in europe, 1,000 years of development would have occurred because both the dark ages, and the watching eye of the church in Newton's time would not have existed. Knowledge is fragile, and as soon as you give it away freely, it can become so twisted that the original idea could be destroyed.

Sources: In the past I have done some research on Newton and his works in comparison to the European Church.

knowledge

In reponse to our class discussion i would like to try and define what knowledge to a single person is. KNowledge is something someone believes full heartedly and/or can be proven. ALthough its not just math or science, it is also learning about a subject like what people others believe or knowledge of fiction stories that obviously arent true. KNowledge can be broken into subjects and can be accumulated, but knowledge of the world can never be attained. KNowledge is comprehending something and retaining this fact based on intellectual reasons and not out of being forced into it. Therefore in order to be knowledgable one must have a memory and the knowledge must be usable in a conversation. For example HP can stand for Harry Potter or the company, is not knowledge because this is just a repeated fact and isnt streching any length of the brain. Although it may seem like i am contradicting myself by having knowledge be both memorization but not simple undisputed facts, knowledge lies on the fringe and is therefore hard to define. I would even go as far as to say knowledge is wisdom, the brain not only remembering but comprehending and appreciating a piece of trivia. This piece of trivia is something that may not be fully understood when first thought of or told to, but in context and over time appreciation grows.

Comparing the three most scientifically advanced countries

Europe, China, and the realm of Islam were all majorly advanced in the scientific world. China had its' education. They focused on the writings and examiniations of Confucianism. One scholar once said that "the pursuit of scientific subjects was thereby regulated to the margins of Chinese society." He meant that the Chinese just wanted to focus on their religion and how studying and learning what Confucianism is all about was their main goal in excelling. In addition,unlike the Europeans, they did not believe in making independant institutions just for scholars who would be studying with freedom. On the other hand, the realm of Islam saw that philosophy and natural science were just lies in the world and they wanted to pursue in education by Quranic studies and religious law. Inside their religious book, the Quran, which was the divine guidance and direction for mankind, and considered the original Arabic text and final revelation of God,was what all religious scholars thought and believed in. They tried challenging scientificly speaking and humorously failed because they still believed that "God would protect them from useless knowledge." Last, but not least, Europe had a whole new twist to advancing scientifically. By the twelfth to thirteenth century, Europe had progressed dramatically ahead of all the other countries. They came up with a variety of institutions including the Church, towns/cities, and even universities. Like I said in the realm of Islam, they believed that relgious law was more important than any other aspect for advancement, which makes sense why Europe was so far ahead of them in the "race." The race so to speaking is who can be the most advanced. So instead, they followed secular law. Europeans found themselves exchaning all sorts of important resources from all over the world. Some major staple resources were lands, people, plants, and animals. The 4 key, in my mind, elements to survive and acheive great things. Europe had found a more useful and quicker way to develop their technology compared to China and the realm of Islam.

Galileo and Newton

Galileo and Newton were scientists that had major findings and discoveries that contributed to the Scientific Revolution.

Galileo was the first to use the telescope to observe the universe like the stars and moon and sun. He also noticed that the sun has spots on it and that is is not perfect. These sun spots helped provide evidence that the Sun rotates and that the Earth could rotate as well too. He also started the theories of gravity and the acceleration of falling objects.

The discovery of gravity helped spark the discoveries and the laws of gravity that Newton later established. Here is a link that states Newton's Laws of Gravity.

Newton's laws of motion

The church did not appreciate Galileo's new findings. He challenged them because of these new ideas and because of that the later part of his life was spent under house arrest. This connects to the the social and political changes because the church was losing its authority because people were realizing new things that that they could do more things on their own instead of under the rule of the church. Science began to take away power from the church and helped establish more individuality in the people.

I hope this is ok... :)

Scientific Revolution/Class Discussion

A brief response to Cy's thoughts as well as our discussion on knowledge:

Do we need proof, evidence, a scientific explanation? NO. Certain things can not be explained. Whether you connect these to God or any other force is entirely up to you. I gave this example earlier: a recent plane crash this year killed 153 people on board except for one little girl. Now anyone can come up with numerous scientific or obvious explanations for why she did not die and plunge into the ocean like the rest however, in my opinion, I believe that God has the power to intervene.

That is just my opinion.

Scientific Revolution

Why was Europe so special? Europe was special because it was home to the brilliant minds in the world of Science. These being: Corpernicus, Cardano, Galileo etc. Although they were intelligent, that and their theories made them targets for the Church. Theories like Galileo's, bashed those of the church. In order for peace to be maintained between Church and Science, there would have to be an even amount of influence. Without it, you have people like Giordano Bruno, who was burned at the stake. Science could not overrule the church, it was just unacceptable. This is why you see Galileo and Newton writing pieces stating that the key to human salvation can only be attained through religion and religious practice.

Scientific Revolution/Scientists

I want to talk about the class discussion we had briefly, and the reading assigned for homework.

In class, we had an intense debate on what is "true" knowledge, and what are our sources to believe these facts. I think this is a very good subject to debate on because it all depends on perspective and purpose. That class discussion could have gone on and on, only because people have different scientific and religious beliefs. For example, a strong Christian believer will continously argue the fact the God exists and he created the universe. Not everyone believes this because they are not of the same faith. This is why it is all about perspective because religiously, a person will be convinced only because they believe in their religion, but if you only believe in scientific evidence, then you will argue with this point. This is exactly what occurred in class. 

In the reading assignment, I noticed that their was kind of a dominoes affect on how we received proof on how the universe is placed and how it exists today. A Greek philosopher named Aristotle portrayed the point that the earth was the center of the universe, and all the planets revolved around it. Later in 1543, Copernicus proved that Aristotle's judgment was incorrect and that the sun is the center of the universe while the earth and all the other planets revolve around it. In the early 17th century, a German mathematician named Kepler, focused on what the planets around the sun were doing. They were not just floating around, but were actually placed on elleptical orbits in which they moved in a perfect circle. The Italian man, Galileo created a new and improved telescope in which they were able to focus in on the planets themselves. I found this to be an interesting pattern because as technology grew, each aspect of the universe was looked at more closely. 

Copernicus' Ideas to help the scientific revolution

While most people in Europe between the mid sixteenth century and the eighteenth centurywere trying to convert others to christianity, others decided to go against the christian belief and see if they could solve some of the earths biggest mysteries. Copernicus was one of the greatest scientist to live, he figured out that the theory of of everything revolving around the earth was false. He discovered that everything revolved and orbited the Sun. Copernicus thought this theory was incorrect and was determined to find calculations to prove he was right. Although his theory was completely different from the religious stand point and the bible he was not afraid to prove the church wrong, even if it caused disrupt. In the end Copernicus was correct about the planets rotating around the sun and about the earth spun on an x axis. This was just one of the many ideas which helped the scientific revolution grow and eventually lead to the modern era.

Scientific Revolution

In class last Friday we received a presentation about the Scientific Revolution. Before the revolution the church was the one with all the power. Even though there was king, the pope held power over him. The way people lived was according to the bible. Everything was wrapped around religion, one reason people looked towards the pope for wisdom was because they were the only literate people. They could read they had the largest education compared to other people. He sometimes even had more education than the king himself. The Scientific Revolution was a point in time after this when scientists such as Copernicus, Aristotle, Galileo, and others were bringing new ideas. All of a sudden the universe wasn't geocentric but heliocentric. There was something called gravity, that allowed us to come back to earth every time we jumped. People themselves then started reading the bible on their own. They weren't relying on others but instead they themselves tried answering question for themselves. The pope wasn't the only literate person, the king then started taking the power back by receiving education. The Scientific Revolution was a point in time where the church lost power to the king and we were learning about the world.

Empires

The aspect that drew my empire close to the Portuguese, was the heavy focus on trading with other empires. We were able to successfully bring our empire to power through trade with various African tribes, which in total, advanced our culture and technology. We also established tribute systems such as the Ming empire. Like the Moghuls, we unitied people who share common beliefs. The Moghuls united the Hindus, who all shared the same religion. We united the African tribes, who all shared the common lifestyle and beliefs.

Mughal Empire

From the reading over the Mughal Empire that I did, I get the idea that the text book is trying to make this man Akbar seem like a very nice and accepting guy. There is no doubt that he is a very accepting man, because he did accommodate foreigner as much as he could, but what were his intentions of doing this? 

I get the feeling that Akbar only did these nice deeds to everyone only because he wanted to be accepted by everyone. This seems very selfish because he should actually want to do it, because it really matters to him. He should not only do something because It is what is best for himself.

Even though Akbar might have done these good deeds because it was in his best interests, ultimately his actions helped shape a very accepting community. By him accepting the Hindus, other cultures came such as the turks, because they knew that they would be accepted there. This boosted the mughal economy and it thrived throughout Akbar's rule. Once Akbar died, Aurandzeb took over, and completely reversed what Akbar was doing, by banning traditions of other religions other than muslims, and also by implying the Jizya tax, a non-believer tax, he completely destroyed the mughal empire. He made the empire so weak, that after he died, Britain took over with ease.

The Sun Wizards

Carson, Dylan and I came up with the Sun Wizards, a very successful Civilization that started in the Panama area, and expanded to the North and South.

Ottomans:

The Ottomans were a very organized civilization that had very successful conquering expeditions. Like the Ottomans, the Sun Wizards are also a very organized civilization that easily conquered land because of there organized government. The Sun WIzards were very persistent like the Ottoman, and they never gave up until they had what they wanted. The Ottoman and the Sun Wizards are just simply very successful civilizations that lasted a long time because of there persistence.

Aztecs:

The Sun Wizards adopted many of the Aztec customs when they took over the Aztec Empire. One of the main inspirations to the Sun Wizards was the cosmopolitan of Tenochtitlan. The Sun Wizards fell in love with this great city on the Toxcoco Lake, and formatted their whole trade industry after Tenochtitlan. After discovering the way that the Tenochtitlan dealt with trade, the Sun Wizards placed plantations of different crops all over the Empire, and that way the Sun Wizards were dependent on only themselves, and not on different Empires around them. This lead to very little warfare, adding to the years that this civilization of the Sun Wizards survived.

Ming:

The Sun Wizards share one main thing with the Ming Dynasty, and that is that they both established great power, and were both seen as huge threats. The Ming acquired this by going on extensive maritime expeditions, and the Sun Wizards with there strong and organized government were seen as a threat to anyone, because they very easily took over the Aztecs. They only shared this main aspect, because the Ming were also a very weak and unorganized dynasty, which the Sun Wizards aren't.  The Ming were unorganized because they had opposing government such as the Eunichs vs the officials, which lead to huge disagreements that caused the Empire to fall by itself. This would never happen to the Sun Wizards  because they are not weak, and they are very organized. They only have one main form of government, and that is why they don't have disagreement in the empire.

Incas:

The Inca Empire was one of the empires that the Sun Wizards conquered, and prior to conquering them, we named our Empire after a very important element in the Inca civilization, and that is the sun. To the Sun Wizards the sun is the essence to everything, because it keeps the crops growing, which does two things. First having the crops keeps everyone alive, because nobody starves to death, and it also keeps the economy running. After conquering the Inca Empire the Sun Wizards also used the method of having storehouses, so that nobody in the Empire went hungry during times of war or bad seasons.

Spain: 

The Sun Wizards shared the ambition that Spain had to conquer new lands, but they also differed a lot from the Spaniards. The Spanish did have ambition when It came to conquering, but it was way too much. Unlike the Spaniards who treated the Indians very poorly, we Sun Wizards learned to live with our newly conquered people. During our invasion we only went to kill the main emperor of the civilizations instead of constantly inflicting violence on every single person. After the Invasion everyone was accepted into any position of the civilization, and no one was discriminated. This made everyone happy, and thats why the Sun Wizards were a more successful empire than any other empire.

Vlog #1 on Private Revelations/Religious Experiences

Vlog #1, Part 1: Does Religion Deserve Scrutiny? Should Religious People Have to Provide Evidence for Their Claims?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghbjkqwCXFQ&hd=1

I've made a video based on the discussion we had in class the other day. It is pretty much self explanatory. Also, its my first video blog so go easy on me...

Although I'm not presenting this in class, i think it fits the criteria of a synthesis.

I created something to present for the class in 5-10 minutes (PowerPoint/video clip/speech), that presents an interesting point beyond the original document (in this case, a point beyond our discussion in class) and supports it with evidence.

The next video I make will have to do with the veracity of the Bible, and other evidence Christians use to back their claims.

Ottoman's Constantinople Invasion

Something that was mentioned during the Ottoman Empire reading was the fall of Constantinople. The brief comment about the Ottoman siege on Constantinople in Strayer's Ways of the World left me wondering, how was it that such a great capitol was taken over this easily by the Ottomans? 

 This once prosperous capitol of the Byzantine Empire was conquered by the Ottoman Empire during April 5, 1453 through May 29, 1453.  It was a really well planned out attack that the Ottomans led, and the army protecting constantinople was greatly outnumbered. 

The seizer of constantinople took everyone by surprise, because the Muslims weren't the biggest threat to anyone. It was usually the Europeans that started all of the wars between themselves and the Muslims but now this Turk powered Ottoman Empire was relentless and overpowering. They started by first setting up forts along Dardanelles, a neighboring city to Constantinople, and then all at once they had the 80,000 to 200,000 men march to constantinople. The army protecting Constantinople was greatly outnumbered, as they only totaled to 7,000 men, while the Ottomans had 80,000 to 200,000 men. The majority of the Ottomans started by firing at the walls, while a small number of them went of to seize the less populated areas of Constantinople. The plans of the Ottomans to simple get in by firing at the walls did not work at all, and at one point the Ottomans tried to peacefully deal with the situation, and they offered to stop the conquest if the city was given to them. Then when this offer was denied by the Byzantine Empire, a massive wave of Ottomans charged at the walls, but they did not manage to enter the great city. After that wave, the city of Constantinople was hit by a second wave of Ottomans, and this wave did manage to breach a section of the walls. Shortly after that, the Ottomans discovered an unlocked gate, and they quickly flooded the city, ending the seizer. This picture here show the flood of the Ottomans into Constantinople. And that is how the Ottomans managed to take over this very powerful city of Constantinople.

The Ming Dynasty

The Ming dynasty expanded over east Asia, or China from 1368 to 1644. I like to call the Ming dynasty a time for China to recover and become very powerful in their new ideas and talents. They had a well built centralized government system in which the emperor was the main head, and the loyal eunuchs worked under them. Using this strong base, they strategized to repair the old work of the Mongols when they were in rule, restoring all the cultivation and doing a great amount of farming. They also repaired parts of the Great Wall and were known to built the "forbidden city." Through all these efforts, the international and domestic trades rose vigourously and the population flourished. This marked the spot of the Ming dynasty being the most successful and prosperous civilizations of the world. Since they were located along the coast of China, it gave them an advantage in creating large fleets of ships and sailing across the world in hope for progress. The muslim eunuch, Zheng He led one of these expeditions to many places like, India, Indonesia, Arabia and East Africa, bringing back people to make the Ming even stronger. "Bringing order to the world," the Ming presented tribute with these people and finished their trading opportunities.

Aztec

The Aztec Empire started off with the Mexico people who slowly emerged into an unstable empire of five to six million people. The empire was known for their various goods such as, impressive textiles, clothing, military supplies,  jewelry and other goods. The Aztec location was quite unique because they had multiple bridges, canals, causeways, beautiful garden around. Their trading industry strengthened the domains of the Aztec and created large markets of quantitative goods. Since this was their major accomplishment, the merchants were ranked very high in the society as well as their wealth. 

During the fifteenth century, the Aztec regularly performed human sacrifices as an important aspect of their religious lifestyle. They believed that the center of the world, the sun, and the god Huitzilopochtli would be hovered with darkness every now and then, and the only way to renew it was by using human blood. It was a form of return to the gods because they had shed their own blood in creating human kind in the beginning of the world. The best ways to supply this blood was human sacrifices, wars of expansion, and the prisoners of wars. This religious aspect spread into the political aspect because the emperors of other empires were impressed and also scared of this deadly style the Aztecs had. 

the Incas vs. the Aztec Empire

The Incan and Aztec Empires were politically and religiously very different, but followed the same idea of gender spots in their society. Very quickly, the Aztec empire did not make any of their conquered people do anything, they left them alone while the Inca empire made them do work in families households, on farms, and in temples. Discussing the religious subject, the Incas practiced human sacrifices on the religious events every now and then, but not as much as the Aztecs; they completed this sacrifice a great amount. 

Men and women's roles is a big topic in both ancient and modern history. The Incan and Aztec empire followed the same gender roles on a normal base. The men are generally ranked as a higher position and more involved in the military issues, while the women take care of the household, and do the cleaning and caring after the children. Politically speaking, both the empires acquired this same system on the people they conquered. 

Comparison between MY empire and the others

Megan, Lizzie, and I created the South-East Asian Empire, which was found right next to the Ming dynasty and close to the coast of South east asia, and near the Himalayas. 

~Ming 

Our Our empire followed the one of many similar tactics of the Ming. They slowly progressed into forming a large and strong empire. We followed the same path by gathering many different types of people and bringing them together into one powerful empire. 

~Ottoman 

The Ottoman empire is the most similar to our empire because of its diverse people. Our empire brought together those of many cultures including people around China, India, the indonesian islands, and even the coast of australia. Ottoman's successfully worked with this variety of people and were able to manipulate different ideas to form a great empire. 

~Safavid

Whenever I read about the Safavid, I think of religious aspect of the people in that empire. Our empire had a rule to give religious freedom for everyone, because they all came from such unique backgrounds. I feel we had a combination of Safavid and Ottoman even though they were rivals.

~ Mughal 

The Mughal empire is known to try to keep a good partnership between the Islamic and Hindu civilizations. Our empire quite similarly did this, because we made sure to keep a good cultural connection with all the diverse people we had in our empire. Instead of rejecting their ideas, we brought all the cultures into some sort of connection, allowing us to find ways for even trading. So it only brought success for us. 

Aztec~

The Aztec empire were very confident in the things they did. They had slaves that worked for them, and they also performed human sacrifices as a ritual. Our south-east asian empire had slaves from many cultures, so we had many different capabilities of small peasants, bringing us speed in our physical needs. 

~Incan

The Incan  is known for their bureaucratic empire, in which a high emperor reigned for a period of time. Our empire had the exact same system, with Megan, Lizzie, and GG sitting at the top position of emperor. We also had peasants working under us, but they were also treated properly given their freedoms necessary. This peasants in the Incan army were called mita. An important similarity is the gender system. Like the Incans, we also believed that women should have a step up to their own empire. Not only did they do the housework, but were in power and capability to run some government issues for their Incan empire. This is why us three head emperors are women =] 

What should we call the 1500's-1600's?

I believe this era should be called the Powerful Era. From all the information I have learned from reading about the Ottoman, Safavid, Mughal, Songhay, Aztec, and Incan empire, they all seem to follow a similar path when they begin there "power." Each empire combined many great ideas, and built a good cultural structure to keep their empires running successfully. They pretty much covered every social and political aspect in which it helped them conquer others also. The better the chemistry among the people within, the better they will do surviving and taking over others. 

old assignment (inca)

The Incan empire had a majority of people that spoke Quechua. This large empire was located along the Andes mountains near the west coast of South America. Comparing it to the Aztec empire, the Incan was much larger, stretching to about 2, 500 miles. They are known for their bureaucratic system in which a high emperor  reigns at the top and covers about eighty provinces with peasants working below them. The Incan also allowed their group of people to follow their own religious traditions, so they were not forced to follow a specific Incan priority. The one thing that got me interested was the gender system. The book did not get very specific on every detail, but it made me realize how woman stood in society. 

Mughal Empire: Muslims and Hindus

The book states that the Mughal Empire had both Muslims and Hindu religion. The main division out in the Mughal Empire were caused by religious differences.About 20% of the population was Muslim and the rest were some form of Hinduism. Akbar the most famous emperor created a cult that had Islam, Hinduism and Zoroastrianism. It was essential to be loyal to Akbar. The Mughal empire had a culture where hindus and muslims could be a comfort with one another. Which was a plus for the Empire because then more people could join to grow the population of the empire. This new culture was a hybrid of Indian, Persian, and Turkish. THe philosopher Phayk Ahmad Sirhindi, disagreed with this idea of a mixed culture everything in support for hinduism represented impure Islam. Some Hindu temples were destroyed and music, dance, gambling, drinking, prostitution, and narcotics were very outlawed. There were many opposition movements that were opposed to the Mughals. This was a very different type of empire because it allowed two different religious traditions to attempt to combine. This technique of a multicultural empire worked for a while but eventually failed because of their differences which resulted in tension.

The Downfall of the Aztec Empire

The Aztec’s were once a great nation in Mesoamerica. Along with the Incas, they were one of the most powerful empires in the Americas. They were able to successfully build numerous temples that still stand today including the Chichen Itza, which is one of the world seven architectural wonders. Unfortunately for them, the Spaniards came to the Americas in the 1600^th century. Along with warfare and diseases, they individually, brought down the Aztec empire. With their first encounter with the Spaniards, the Aztecs wanted to use the Spanish soldiers as sacrifices for their rituals. Also, they demanded numerous tributes from the Spaniards to enhance their society. The Spaniards did not want to pay these immense tributes, so they destroyed the Aztec empires. The Aztecs would remain as one of the greatest empires mezzo-America had ever seen, but they cursed themselves with these sacrifices and tributes that they wanted.

Mughals

Akbar was a Muslim leader in the nation of what is now India. He was able to successfully unify the native tribes that inherited the nearby native tribes. He was able to accomplish this task by intermarrying with all the major political and influential leaders in India. He had over 400 wives and by doing this, he was able to gain trust with these leaders by marrying their oldest and wisest daughter. Once he was able to unify India, he removed the Jazya tax, which taxed non-muslim believers. Do to the fact that 80% of India was Muslim, he did not want to tax all of his citizens. Imposing this tax, he was able to appeal to all Hindus across the world to his nation. This was one of the first unification of Hindus and what Akbar created will later become the Hindu capital in 5 years.

Age of Oceanic Trade

I think the time period between the 1500's and 1600 can be described this way because almost every empire was involved with trade across vast seas. Their was an extensive amount of trade between the Portugese, Chinese and East Africans. As Spain began to conquer the Aztecs and Incas, trade began increasing between Europe and the Americas. Most of this consisted of livestock and crops such as potatoes, corn, tomatoes and fruits. However, along with this came diseases. There was also a lot of trade between the Indian Ocean. Europe also benefitted greatly from this because they were able to make a connection with Asia. This gave them access to resources they would never have.

The Age of Maritime Connections

The era that describes the 16th/17th century is essentially an era of maritime connections. This period time saw an influx of sea trade, naval exploration, which lead to discovery and economic growth throughout the world. This era was marked by events such as colonization across the Atlantic sea, East Asian trade throughout the Indian ocean, and more generally, connections being formed between every populated continent on the planet.

Had this era been omitted from history, Asian countries would most likely be our contemporary super powers. Resource-empty Europe only was able to succeed because of the pressure that Asian countries put on them. Europe had to find resources in order to stay alive in this competitive game of survival, that we call the 16th century. By exploiting the Americas and Africa, Europe was able to take advantage of the resources around them. And there's no way they would have been able to even reach these countries with such ease, if not for their powerful navy.

Trading and Expanding

I think that this whole section is mainly about two things, trading, and expanding. At the same time that some of the civilizations were expanding, they were also trading along the way. Most civilizations had something different to offer another civilization except for a few that didn't have any goods to offer to the outside world. These groups were the ones that tended to expand because of there naval success. After they expanded, they would then use those resources to trade with the outside world. The civilizations that did have something to offer from there lands, tended to stay in there lands, and not travel around seeking great fortunes. They were already self sufficient, and did not need to rely on any country for there success.

1500s the Period of Knowledge

I personally call the 1500s the period of knowledge. All throughout the 16th century, empires were expanding, trying to gain more knowledge about what else is out there in the world. By doing this, the empires were able to discover eachother, and learn from eachother. From this encounter, culures were able to feed off of eachother and enhance them their own society too like the encounters between the Spainards and the Incas. Also, trade routes were established which were vital to the development of such powers like the British Empire whose establishment in India would catapualt them into the power seat later in the 19th and 20th centuries. Also this time period is when empires began the technological race, trying to obtain the best ships that can take them the farthest. With the beginning of the technologic race, empires were able to learn more about the world and what they can and cannot do like the Portugeuse develpoping their ships that could take them almost around the world. I personally believe that the 16th century is probably one of the most important because of the knowledge about the world and ourselves that we aquired was so important to the development of humans.

Age of Conquest and trade

I would call the 1500s the age of conquest and trade. Most major empires were exploring and expanding their Empires, conquering whoever necessary. There was much cultural mixing, and violence during the process. Also there was a lot of trading happening between empires and societies to grow stronger. They would take advantage of their own resources, and use it to gain resources from others. They learned a lot from doing so.

Period of Rapid Transition

Marjory:


I would call this period the rapid transition. The evidence that most prominently would agree with this tittle is the the history of Spain in the 1500s. All of a sudden, Spain was exporting 85% of the world's sliver out of the AMericas and taking it directly to China and the Philipeans where due to the Chinese's now single tax instead of many tax levies, it was possible to import tons, literally, of silk and other goods out of China. Due to all of this trading, the Spaniard's economy boomed but it was only an inflation because people didnt continue to stimulate it through more buisness ventures and other things besides jut silver trading. The America's also would support this tittle because all of a sudden westerners came bringing with them diseases and the idea of free labor from the Native Americans. They were killed off by the thousands and in some places only 10% of the population survived the mass take over. Due to Japan's healthy changes in population control, enviornment, and economy their economy was able to outlast the silver boom. SO this could be interpretted as not being evidence to support my title. Their transition took more time, because one of their biggest problems was population. There is no way a population can be healthily controled in less that a couple of generations. Japan did however make a tranistion for their future. 

The Period of Development

I would call this period The Period of Development because all the different empires were just getting started.  They all had to developed and grow before they became strong and this is the time they advanced and began to become more advance. Developing their cities and towns was extremely important because it was one of the main bases for their empire.  

Marjory's Empire Project Reflection

For the project involving empires, I very much liked how we were able to chose our starting point and then make our advancements. The starting point of course had to realistic and therefore just because it was close to where you wanted to take over, didn’t mean that that’s where one could start. For our group, we decided that the most profitable and simple place to take over would be South America. The reason being that by doing this we would have one strong and swift attack on the capital where the central government is, and by destroying this we would be able to cause chaos and distress among the Incans. At a time when there is chaos is a calm and reasonable plan comes into place it usually is accepted and this is what we will do. We would place ourselves as head of the empire, installing lesser governors for smaller regions. The old empire, to keep peace, would be a co-emperor even though in reality his job would be quite small.
Our empire would be similar to the ottomans because we both started out as harsh warriors and then created a prosperous and semi-peaceful kingdom. Also similar to the ottomans is the fact that we have very diverse terrain. From the high and dry Andes to the lush and bountiful rain forest there is all types of land.

We are similar to the moguls in that both of us are governing people with different religions from us. However, instead of oppressing the, we will encourage them. We are different in that we adopt the religion as our own and help build many temples worshiping Incan gods.
The Aztecs are similar to us because we both started out on islands, but then through our negotiations, warfare, and marriages we were able to establish an immense empire.

Contrary to the Ming’s centralized government, we will have a capital but governors with province capitals in each of the provinces. Similar to them however is our way of exploring. We will try to reach and discover new lands; we unlike the Ming will try to take it over since our empire is only expanding.  A lot of money and resources will be given to expeditions going into unknown territories.

We are not at all similar to the Safavids because no religion will be imposed on our people because this will in the end create immense political unrest and contradict our plans to pacify the Incan people. Our take-over of the Incans will try to be not a huge change for the people, but just a huge change for us in that we get lots more money.

Silver and Global Commerce

Yes i know a blog on the silver reading wasn't assigned, but i was a blog behind so i did this blog instead of doing a presentation in class on something else.

Everything started with  the finding of enormous deposits of silver in Bolivia and Japan. This dramatically increased the amount of precious metal that could be used to trade with. Around this time, China's economy was thriving, with a growing demand for silver. When the Chinese government began to require that its population pay taxes in silver, the demand for the metal became even greater. Because of this, the value of silver climbed higher and higher. For foreigners, this was a huge opportunity because the Chinese people were willing to offer larger amounts of their exports for the same price in silver, in order to stay in business. Very quickly, trade for China's porcelain and silk went through the roof. The silver business soon left the spice trade in the dust, setting off a chain reaction of global silver trading.

Although merchants trading silver were living the good life, silver miners were on the other end of the spectrum. Potosí, the largest city in the America's, was home to around 160,000 people. The wealthier of the group lived wonderful, carefree lives or luxury, while the Native American miner's worked in bad enough conditions that funeral ceremonies were sometimes held if a man was drafted into the mine.

The greedy upper class in Spain was responsible for the decline of the value of silver in the early 1600s. They simply did not know how to spend their huge sums of money productively. This caused Spain to back down, losing its dominating power over the rest of Western Europe. The Japanese were a different story when it came to silver. Rather than squandering their silver profits on useless luxuries like Spain, they used them to unify Japan and end as many conflicts within the territory.

The Age of Expanding and Conquering

I would call the 1500s The Age of Expanding and Conquering for the very obvious reasons that that many different civilizations explored, expanded, and conquered. Spain and Portugal both expanded immensely into various regions of the world's oceans. The Spanish claimed a large part of Latin America, too. The Ottoman Empire also did a great deal of expanding in the Middle East. In general, basically every empire of the time used the 1500s as a time to explore their surroundings and try to learn more and more about possible nearby resources or trading posts.

Age of Expansion

I would call the 1500s-1600s the Age of Expansion. Expansion meaning, not only borders but knowledge about the world and people. For example, the Portugese expanded their borders along the coasts of Africa and some parts of Saudi Arabia. Instead of doing the usual thing, controling the people, the Portugese started a sort of mailing service. In Europe their was the Renaissance, the time of new thoughts and ideas. Also the Spaniards sailed all the way across the ocean and discovered America they took over the Indians. Sailing across the ocean was a big feat on it's own, this then gave people the idea of instead of travelling on foot on the Silk road and other roads, they started sailing the oceans. Everywhere in the world there was empires growing in size, power, and knowledge about the world. The world was a mystery but than their knowledge grew and it allowed them to improve in their lifestyle and ways.

The Period of Expansion of Empires and Trading

I would name the 1500's-1600's The Period of Expansion of Empires and Trading because many new empires grew and developed during that time period and trading was a major factor in the growth of the societies. Many new trading ports were established and trading was the way civilizations survived. They used other places' goods that helped gain wealth for the countries and places with a lot of the highly wanted goods.

Research through Trade

I think that if I were to name the century of 1500-1600 in terms of the empires that existed within it, I would call it "Research through Trade". Because every empire that flourished in terms of technology relied on trade to advance in science, and this trade was also essential for the empires to stay afloat. The trade also allowed many ideas, alliances, and views on the world to be created.

The Age of Exploration

I would say that the 1500s-1600s would be called the Age of Exploration. In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue, and came to arrive in the new world. Previously, there had been no knowledge of another body of land, so this would lead the exploration of the land that we call the Americas. Different empires from around the world were trying to figure out what this new land could be used for, which lead to the empires creating colonies on the americas in order to grow cash crops. Little did they know, the land had barely been explored and there was much more that could be found among the lands of america.

Although the americas were a large find in the 1500s and 1600s, this was not all of what was happening during this time. There were different empires from different parts of the world that were rising, and others that were falling. Regardless, the empires knew little of what was going on across the continent. They were only beginning to have over seas relations with other empires. These trade routes lead to the expansion of the world, and grew connections with the larger part of the world.

Age of the Empires...

I think that I would call the period from the 1500's to the 1600's the Age of the Empires. I would call the beginning of that age Exploration and the end Change of Empires. At the beginning all the newly created empires traveled from their usual places and found new empires to conquer or become a part of. At the end they all had either strengthened or changed their old home or ways of life.

Comparisons between Magicia empire and other 15th century domains

The empire of Magicia relates to the studied empires in multiple ways. As we, the Sun God’s children, gained more and more knowledge of the various domains, we chose to adopt the styles and mannerisms that we liked and noticed ways that led to success. Some of the aspects of the various neighboring empires were:

Ming: According to the textbook, the Ming dynasty held “heir to a long tradition of effective governance, Confucian and Daoist philosophy, a major Buddhist presence, sophisticated artistic achievements, and a highly productive economy.” (Pg. 370, Ways of the World textbook) The listed aspects of the dynasty were ones we took note of, and chose to include some of them into the lifestyle of Magicias. Our empire strives to have a steady and significant government, causing the people of our colony to respect and trust their rulers. Our island is known as the “island of ideas,” which includes artistic developments of every kind. We plan on bringing our discoveries along with us as we travel and conquer. As for a productive economy, we aspire to hold that title as well. The ideas and schemes we propose to neighboring communities can be bargained for money, power, and land, which in turn will open many doors to discovering new ways of producing a successful economy.

Aztec: The Aztecs were known for their productive military capacity, which impressed us immensely. Through negotiation and perseverance, they were able to build their own capital city of Tenochtitlan. They took an aggressive stance for their military, and in turn were able to bring “more of Mesoamerica within a single political framework ever before.” (Page 384 Ways of the World textbook) Being able to embark on a military journey much like that of the Aztecs is one Magicia plans on doing, and are in the midst of building an unbeatable army. As for their method of payment, the Aztecs required the conquered peoples and cities to “regularly deliver to their Aztec rulers impressive quantities of textiles and clothing, military supplies, jewelry, etc.” (Page 384, Ways of the World) We do not plan on copying exactly this method of the Aztecs, but one similar to it is one we plan on executing. Due to the fact that we will be providing an enjoyable and successful lifestyle for those that we conquer, we will expect the same respect in return, both through methods of payment as well as appropriate well being.

Inca: The Inca Empire was named the Western Hemisphere’s largest imperial state. We plan on Magicia carrying the same name. Not only in population, but also in terms of power, wealth, and supremacy. The Incan government was one in which we choose to adopt and incorporate in our empire. They ran a bureaucratic empire, however allowing many accommodations for local situations. “At the top reigned the emperor, an absolute ruler regarded as divine, a descendant of the creator god Viracocha and the son of the sun god Inti.” (Page 386, Ways of the World) Due to the fact that we stand as the three children of Inti, we hold the absolute highest ranking in society. Below us rules an Emperor, governors, and various appointing and supervising citizens overseeing one of the many regions of Magicia. Holding this style of Government, we plan to be successful throughout our journey of domination.

Russia: The Russians held multiple qualities that the empire of Magicia plans on incorporating in our lifestyle, however one deliberately stood out. “Everywhere Russian authorities demanded an oath of allegiance by which native peoples swore “eternal submission to the grand tsar,” the monarch of the Russian Empire.” As mentioned earlier, as the children of Inti and acting as the ultimate leaders of our empire, we expect the devotion we deserve. We have genuine intentions in befriending the civilizations conquered by us and luring them under our rule, however with the expectations that they will respect us. We will not demand grand quantities of tribute and require absolute devotion from all, yet we do insist assuring that our people are aware of our power and take that into consideration at all times.

Ottomans: The Ottomans diligent mannerism of staying dominant is a quality us Magicians admire greatly. Standing as the creators of the Turkic warrior groups, a significantly aggressive clan of warriors, the Ottomans were successful in sweeping over the majority of the Middle East, North America, and southeastern Europe in order to “create the Islamic world’s most significant empire.” (Page 425 Ways of the World) Along with its substantial power in conquering and taking over almost all neighboring areas, the Ottomons were also known for their “Persian culture, especially its poetry, painting, and traditions of imperial splendor.” (Page 425 Ways of the World) Both qualities the Ottomons hold of successfully defeating all of their challengers as well as including cultural diversity into its lifestyle were ones we found extremely successful. We plan on creating somewhat of the same name for ourselves, in someday being known as one of the greatest elite’s of the new world, along with carrying respectable assets along the way.

Safavids: The Safavids made a daring move that Magicians respect but do not agree with. In forcibly imposing a “Shia version of Islam” (Page 380 Ways of the Worlds) on the Persian lands, they did “gain popular support and came to define the unique identity of Persian culture.” (Page 380 Ways of the World) However, we do not agree with forcing a religion. When conquering lands, we plan on being open to adopting the religion(s) of those now under our rule, along with openly introducing the religion we practice on the island of Magicia. In doing this, our people will feel as though their voice can be hard as well, allowing them to have a say in the religion(s) of the empire.

Mughals: The four empires of Ottomon, Safavid, Songhay, and Mughal “brought to the Islamic world a greater measure of political cohrence, military power, economic prosperity, and cultural brilliance.” (Page 381, Ways of the World) The Mughal empire played a crucial role in creating political unity, resulting in “a land of great wealth and imperial splendor.” (Page 381, Ways of the World) That is exactly what we intend to do as well. In staying dominant and using the knowledge we will have gained along our journey, the Magicians will lead our conquered lands in significantly better shape than before. Consistently maintaining a strong army ready to fight at any time, along with proficient work techniques and never taking a step without sustaining constant class and using the adopted ideas of varying empires, the Magicians will defeat all.

 

Powerpoint/Movie

Tomorrow, on 9/16/2009, I will be doing a 10(ish) minute Powerpoint + Video presentation on Native Americans and Colonialism.

-Cy

The Sun Wizards

Dylan, Agustin, and I formed the Sun Wizards colony. We were based in what is now Panama and then expanded both to the north and to the south.

Aztec Empire

Our empire had a lot of the same values and beliefs as the Aztecs mainly due to the fact that we eventually took over the Aztecs. They were know for a lot of trade and commerce within all of their cities and due to the fact that we had many different cultures and different regions within our empire, we were allowed to trade various goods from different areas in our empire. With having these trades all across our empire we were able to enhance our culture and unite the community of the Sun Wizards.

Inca Empire

The Inca Empire were the first that we conquered, as so in order to gain their trust, we adopted their religion. This enabled us to connect with the Incas more and connect with them more. Another thing we did was carrying on what they did in every city. They would have food supply stations and here we would pass out food and various supplies to the citizens of that city. This benefited all of our citizens because it allowed to good health because no one was dying from hunger and created a sense of equality between our citizens.

Safavid Empire

Like the Safavid Empire we had one official religion all across our empire. When we conquered new cities and other empires we would force them to adopt the religion too. This created a sense of unity which is needed when you have a very large empire like we did. Even though new people would not be up to converting at first, we felt it is necessary for everyone to share the same common ideas.

Portugal Empire

The Portuguese were known for expanding their empire all across the world. They had wanted to see more of the world and also they wanted to become more of an elite power. Our empire also did this by expanding our borders from the top of what is now Mexico to the tip of Argentina. This expansion helped us gain resources and become more powerful which is exactly what the Portuguese did.

Ming Empire

The Ming are most commonly know for beginning the production of the Great Wall of China. They did this to "protect" themselves from the Mongols but really they wanted to flaunt their power. Like the Ming, we created a great monument to the Sun God, Inti, in out capital. This monument is over 30 ft tall and is made of pure gold. We as an empire, did this because we wanted everyone to know when they enter our capital, that we are wealthy and powerful. Also right behind the statue is a giant temple dedicated to Inti and our religion. This temple took 10 years to build and is the greatest temple the world will see for the next 500 years. We did this because after our civilization withered away, we want people to know what our religion stood for and that the Sun Wizards were a truly powerful empire.

Madagascan Empire

Inca: The Incans believed in a set of deities that were all powerful and controlled everything, including crops and agriculture. They believed in human sacrifice to please their gods. In Madagascar we do not believe in human sacrifice. There is not much religion besides staying honorable and loyal to the Madagascan Empire.

Aztec: The Aztecs served as mercenaries, negotiated elite marriage alliances with them, and has large military power. They were a violent war nation. In Madagascar, we are a trade centered empire, thriving on trade with Europe and China, along with collecting a toll for allowing ships to pass between us and Africa. We have a relatively strong naval fleet.

Ming: The Ming government was a very centralized government. The power all in the hands of the emperor. The emperor had a very loyal group of men exercising great power and authority. The emperor worked towards restoring China from the mongol years. In Madagascar, we have a dictator ship, where all the power is in the hands of one leader. This is kinda similar to that of the Ming. But in madagascar the dictator did not have a loyal group of men enforcing power, but instead had one assistant helping carry out his responsibilities, which were very few in Madagascar.

Spain: When spain made its conquest of south america it created new colonial societies. At the top were spanish settlers, followed by mestizos, who were mixed race between the spanish and the natives. next came the natives who were greatly disrespected. In Madagascar we don't have a social ladder. All are mostly equal in a non-communist way. No one wants to be best, everyone wants to just be friends with each other and continue living life, working together to strengthen the Madagascan Empire.

Europe: In europe the Renaissance caused science and art advancements to boom. Society began to focus more on art and realism. Creating sculptures and painting with much detail, trying to portray things as they are in real life. Also, huge advancements were made in astronomy, geography and mathematics. In Madagascar we don't focus at all on art or science. Instead we mostly focus on innovation, and on trade. We try to think about how to get a step ahead in trading, and how to have more power over the trade system

The Almighty Sun Wizards

Carson, Agustin, and I created the empire of the Sun Wizards in Central America and expanded to both the North and South. We have taken over the Incas, as well as the Aztecs.

Incas:

One of our main things in common with the Incas is the way both civilizations view the Sun. Being the Sun Wizards, we obviously think very highly of the sun and the rest of the universe. The most important aspect in life for the Incas was the sun, and they also were very interested in the moon and stars.

Aztecs:

The Aztecs were another civilization that was very involved with the divine, as they had numerous gods of their own. The Sun Wizards also have many agricultural similarities with the Aztecs. Part of this is probably because the Sun Wizards took over the Aztecs and continued most of their way of life under a new government.

Russia:

Like Russia, the Sun Wizards conquered most of their neighboring civilizations pretty quickly. The Russian Empire was also able to expand over a variety of terrains, such as glassland, forests, and tundra. The Sun Wizards have expanded across a number of different terrains too, such as forest, desert, and grassland.

Ottomans:

The Ottomans were a very successful civilization for a hundreds of years, just like how the Sun Wizards will thrive for hundreds, most likely thousands, and possibly even billions of years to come. Another similarity between the Ottomans and Sun Wizards is the diversity of the people within our Empire. Although the Sun Wizards will conquer far and wide, they let the people of each area preserve most of their respective cultures and ways of life, simply under a new ruler.

Ming: 

The main thing the Ming and The Sun Wizards have in common is the idea of a monarchy. Both empires are entirely under the rule of one emperor. However, the Sun Wizards have many different political levels, while the Ming have a much steeper political ladder.

Empire Comparison

The empire I helped to establish was the South-East Asian empire. This empire compared to...

1. The Ottoman Empire- The Ottoman Empire had a very diverse population as does our empire. It was very wealthy and our wealth was still growing but China was a very prosperous place and we were developing ways to gain wealth as we went on.

2. The Aztecs- The Aztecs believed men and women were equal and we were all about equality and free choice of religion. So in the case of the roles of men and women they were both able to work and do as they wished to help society.

3. The Ming Dynasty- We were very close to the Ming empire and we eventually were able to conquer it and use its strengths. It was very strong and well established while ours was just developing and had many different cultures inner-twined and so we benefited a lot when were able to join forces and use what they had had.

4. Inca Empire- The Incas had very strict ways of doing things, like handing out food and their government and what was done with certain women. This was very different from our empire which was more relaxed and lenient with our rules and ways of how things were done. We made sure to maintain order while balancing some free choice.

5. Mughal Empire- The Mughal Empire tried to help incorporate different religions to work and blend together. We also blended everything together and took the best of all of the different cultures to try to make our society the best it could be.

I think that these comparisons are interesting to look at because our empire was very similar to the Ottomans, Aztecs, and Mughals and not as similar to the Incas and the Ming. This is interesting because with the other empires out there is in interesting to see what we shared and what ended up working out well.

Empire Reflection- KEK

I linked the most important aspects of my empire to the Incan Empire and the Aztec Empire. There were a lot of similarities between my empire, KEK, the Incas, and the Aztecs. To start of, the Aztecs built their empire from scrath and not having to be taken over by another empire. As for us, we had the same mentality. We built our empire which was made of a strong and worthy government all by ourselves. We didn't need anyone elses help to achieve this large task. In addition, we were also similar to the Aztecs because we also had a military army team instead of slaves. We thought that having slaves were cruel and that every human being, woman or man, should be treated as an equal. Even though, KEK is in a country/continent with the most exported slaves, we felt as if using them would ruin our whole empire and people would look down at us as hurtful individuals. As for some differences between KEK and the Incan Empire, I would say that my empire has a lot less religious "advancements." What I mean by that is the Incans seperate people into groups based on who they are as a person and what they believe in. They group them into catagories as if it's a game. People who worship the sun god live in one area with a government official as their "president". In other places, they would put groups of people who believe in another god so to speak. Also, they'd group them into how one thinks about things. Everyone has different opinions, so they feel as if they should group the people with the same opinions into one "city." Lastly, a similarity of the Incan Empire, Aztec, and the KEK empire would be their intelligent way of making alliances with other empires. For our project, we made alliances with at least 3-4 major empires and many little ones along the way to Shanghay.

The Madagascan Empire

Coming from an island composed of mainly lemurs and trees, the Madagascan Empire had nowhere to go but up. We Madagascans created this Empire based upon the traits of previous more successful Empires so that we could create the best Empire that we would, with all that was at our disposal.

The Aztecs

Many would see the Aztecs as religious figures. The Aztecs performed massive sacrificial rituals to display their loyalty to their gods, as well as their power to impress enemies. Coming from Madagascar, we have no formal ideas about the topic of religion. We are a non religious Empire, where the citizens may follow the religion of their choice, as long as they continue to show their loyalty to the Madagascan Empire.

The Incans

The Incan form of government is somewhat similar to the Madagascans. The Incans have a government headed by the Emperor who is said to be a descendant from the creator god Viracocha. There were many provinces within the Empire and each was headed by a governor. The Madagascan Empire has an Emperor, however in our government we call him the Dictator. The Dictator is voted in by the people after his/her term is over. A term for the Dictator lasts 10 years, and the Dictator can only be elected once. It is similar to the United States where the President changes, however the Dictator has supreme power, and what he says goes. Below the Dictator we have two more levels of officials. Below our Dictator we have the Prime Minister, and below him we have the President. 

Portugal

Portugal found very much success when it came to wealth. They were not a very powerful Empire, yet they were extremely wealthy, and had a great economy. Much of their wealth came from the colonies that they had on the Americas. Sugar was a highly sought cash crop, which was harvested in Brazil, which was controlled by Portugal. Portugal was made wealthier because of the sugar. Madagascar had a similar approach. When we arrived at Africa, the whole of southern Africa was unconquered and untested. Unknown to the people, the diamond and gold mines of the Southern Region of Africa were still uncovered. Our plan was to unite Southern Africa, and take over the diamond and gold mines in order to create a business with precious metals.

Spain

Spain is known for its military strength. Taking over both the Aztec and Incan Empires, Spain was probably the most powerful Empire in Europe. Madagascar is the exact opposite of this. We have virtually no population, so we need to be strong with our allies. Alone we are powerless, however together with other Empires we are very powerful.

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire stood for many things: wealth, power, as well as splendor. It was the ultimate Empire, being militarily powerful, as well as economically rich. Few Empires could even hope to be as successful as the Ottomans. Unfortunately, we can not even compare to them. Our Empire is built through trade, while the Ottomans are wired through trade, and punish others through their military. We can somewhat compare to their economy, however their army is far greater than we could ever hope to be. They are a true empire.

Empire Reflection

The KEK Empire had some of the same ideas as the Russian Empire Inca Empire, The Ottomans, The Aztecs, and The Ming Dynasty.  

The KEK was similar to the Russian Empire because just like the Russians the KEK traveled around Africa to discover green land they could potentially grow into cities and small towns.  Also tribes lived in the grasslands of Africa, so the KEK traveled through there to try to have them join the empire. This potentially grew the empire's population.  

By collecting all the grassland the KEK started to produce crops and good that they could trade just like the Inca empire did.  The Incas were huge on agricultural goods and trading.  We tried to be as successful as the Incas but their business of trading became very successful. Even though we did not have  as strong of an agricultural business, we still built a strong economic Empire. 

The KEK and the Ottoman Empire were different because the Ottoman Empire had political unity meaning that decisions were made based on everyones opinion rather than the person in charge, in the KEKs position it would be the Emperor making all the political decisions.  The KEK has a a social order and the highest class makes all the decisions. 

The KEK Empire was like the Aztec Empire in the way that we built our Empire from scratch.  Like the Capital of the Aztec Empire was Tenochtitlan, we built our capital in the middle of our empire.  That made the Empire stronger by having an important city to help guide the Empire.

The KEK was also like the Ming Dynasty because the power came from the Emperor himself and not the people who are living in the empire. This is the case for the Ming Dynasty, ALL the power comes from the emperor himself and not his followers.  

Our Empire

Our empire Elle, Kathleen, and mine was in East Africa and had taken over most of Africa. At least the regions that were able to be conquered such as the Savannah.

Ottoman Empire: Like the Ottoman Empire we took over the Songhay and the tribes of the Savannah through spreading our religion which is Christianity. Our religion was our source of influence.
Portugal: Like the Portuguese we had a ruler too however our ruler had to work hand in hand with church officials because it had to agree with the religion.
Safavid: Unlike the Safavid who split the politics and religion we didn't. For them it caused them to rise while for us it was our downfall.
Mughal Empire: The Mughal Empire was known for their religious tolerance which allowed them to conquer India. However we forced everyone to be Christians since we believed that this would help us to be accepted at the beginning it allowed us to rise but after a couple hundreds of years we declined because our people saw this as a restriction of freedom.
Aztec: In the Aztec Empire women and men were regarded as equals both men and women were allowed to work at temples. However our empire was Christian at is not considered decent for a women to hold a status as priestess.

The Californians

The empire I helped design was a group of Californians (The Majoria), who controlled most of the west coast of North America (now the United States).

The Ottoman Empire: Like the Ottoman empire, our empire was very accepting of all the people within it, and we had no restraints on religion. We did practice some shamanism, but it was not a belief that was required in our empire. We were also very accepting of others and we only had military support for defense, just as the Ottoman Empire had.

The Portuguese: The most similar thing between our Empire and the Portuguese was that we had extensive trade networks that were spread throughout the world, and were near limitless in terms of the distance we traveled. We were able to become allies with civilizations all of the world, and we were able to slowly adapt all of their technologies, and we incorporated their beliefs with ours.

The Inca Empire: Both the Incas and our Californians were able to have a wide variety in food and could adaptively grow anything in our region. This was not only because both our lands were fertile and abundantly filled with life, but we were able to learn many ways of farming from our travels throughout the world. One could deduce that our wide range of crops could even triumph the diversity found in South America

The Qing Empire (Dynasty): Just like the Qing we had a very organized and split law system that allowed all of our citizens to be fairly represented in court. We even organized our capital city around this system by dividing a circle in half and having each side represent a side of law. Both sides would work together, but they also had different views.

The Aztec Empire: Similar to the Aztecs, our Californians had a strong system of slavery that was both democratic, and hierarchical. We would enslave people, but allow them to either buy their freedom or work the penalties off. It was a "tough love" system that would always result in freedom in the end. Very few slaves were not allowed their freedom in our lands.

Empire Reflection

Quick Overview: Our empire was based in California, or Marjoria, and was separate from most of the other empires. We did not choose to expand much since there were vast mountain ranges to the east, conflicts going on to the south, and a poor environment up north. We relied on trade with the Native Americans at first then set sail for Russia Spain, China and East Asia.

Spain

Like Spain, our empire was able to conquer native people with ease. Spain did this because they were more technologically advanced than the Incas and Aztecs. The same goes for our empire because we chose to trade with China and gained access to better artillery.

Ming Dynasty

When comparing our empire to the Ming Dynasty, you will notice that the Ming Dynasty often came in to conflict with the Mongols and were under their rule for about a century. However, our empire was relatively peaceful, having simply conquered Native Americans with not much effort.

Aztec Empire

When looking at the Aztecs, they have a “loosely structured and unstable conquest state, which witnessed frequent rebellions by its subject people.” Because our empire was much smaller and had a very complex but stable government, there is no rebellions or conflicts.

Ottomans

When you look at the Ottoman Empire you can see why they thrived. That is because this empire was built around so many different cultures. However, this is where our empire lacked what I think is necessary for any empire; diversity in culture and ethnicity.

Portugal

Very similar to Portugal, our empire maintained a strong trading network along our coastline. We chose to sail towards China, Spain and Russia, forming relations with them much like Portugal did with their voyages down the west coast of Africa.