Napoleon, the conquerer not the pastry

Napoleon Bonaparte was a military and political leader of France in the 1800's. He was a military genius and a brilliant politician that help to shape European politics. In the first decade of the 19th Century, The French Empire under Nepoleon, engaged in a series of wars against every European power. It was only his defeat in Russia, where he lost 600,000 men, that stopped him from dominating Europe. What would the world be like now if he would have defeated the Russians. Would France be the France of today?

Population explosion

During the 1800's, the industrial revolution saw the advancement of both the railroad and the steam ship. Both inventions lead to exploration and settlement, thus leading to a population growth. Advanced transportation allowed people to travel further distances and discover new lands for settlements. The mass transportation also allowed for the movement of goods such as food, building materials and machinery. During this same time, there were great advancements in medicine and vaccines. What played a bigger part in the population growth, advancement in transportation or medicine.

Timeline Rap

Hey guys, I wrote a rap kind of version to remember the Timeline. I tried my best to make it all fit. Hope it helps.



The Ming became King,
And the Ottoman came to power,
Columbus then new world,
Start of Mughal Empire,

Flourishing Spanish Empire,
Shogunate of Tokugawa,
Now it’s the Qing,
The BEI’s on ya,

America had a revolution,
Forming our constitution,
A revolution in France,
The Haitians stuck it to them,

Reign of Terror,
Followed by the Cotton Gin,
The Napoleon,
And the Steam Engine,

Mexican Independence,
Latin American Revolutions,
Factory Act to Opium War,
Power Looms’ been perfected,

London Exhibition,
Unification of Germany,
United America,
Trans-Atlantic Telegraphy,

Marx writes the Capital,
The Railroad’s Completed,
Meiji Restoration,
Italy’s now as you see it,

There was the First Boer war,
The Berlin Conference in 84,
Paris’ World Exhibition,
Chicago Columbian Exposition,

Sino started a war,
With the Japanese,
America attacked Spain,
While the Spanish flees.

Tests

Why take a test? What is the purpose of a test? How do you study? Can you learn something during a test?

I personally think, taking a test, from a student's perspective is to accumulate all of the already known facts and connections you should have learned over the past weeks, into one day where you show off to your teacher. I also think it helps the teacher too. It shows how well she has taught her students, for example, if everyone fails, then you know she isn't doing a good well explaining the basics. On the other hand, if everybody does decent or well, it gives the teacher a pat on the back for being a good teacher. In addition, I think the purpose of the test isn't just to study your butt off and try and do well. Your brain is setup that, if you memorize something over and over again, it will eventually be locked in your memory for good. Tests are a good way to mentally prepare your brain for the future to come. They make us remember important details we wouldn't have remembered if we had not been forced to study.

I study really well either alone taking practice questions and examples. But what I have recentely figured out, is that I can really remember something when I talk to someone about the topic. Either on the phone or in person, or even to myself, when I say something outloud I am more inclined to remembering what I said rather than just writing it down on a notecard.

Lastly, I believe that tests are mostly given because that is how the SAT is setup. It is a test. It tests your knowledge in a format that most teachers at Menlo School format their own tests. You may think that tests are just given so the teacher can you give you a grade in the class, but they are much more than that.

Extra Credit blog post: The strategy behind test taking

Extra Credit Blog: Why take a test? What is the purpose of a test? How do you study? Can you learn something during a test?

I feel as though taking a test is extremely beneficial. After four weeks of lectures, discussions and assignments regarding various topics, being tested on the material learned is the most efficient way of discovering how well one truely knows the material. Tests hold the soul purpose of testing both the student and the teacher on how well the lessons were taught and how efficiently the students were able to grasp the concepts.

My study habits depend on the subject. For my foreign language, which is French, I make flash cards for vocabulary words and gramatical rules. The note card method works very well for nearly all of my subjects, for they et the facts down and allow me to study independently by quizing myself. However for math and chemistry, I have to use the method of repetition. By printing out blank copies of tests, quizes, and homework, and re-doing all of them, it really helps me fully grasp all concepts taught and allows me to pick out exactly what I misunderstand or are not feeling as solid about.

During a test, I try to stay calm and just focus. It is a tendency for me to get freaked out once viewing the the material, whether it is an in class essay or 4 pages back to back filled with math equations. I try to get through everything that I know first, and then return back to problems or questions that I am having more trouble with. This way, if I don't finish in time, I will have mostly solid answers completed as opposed to one answer finished and 10 minutes worth of work put into an incompleted problem.

As finals are approaching, I feel as though I have managed my time much more efficiently this year than last year. The thought of taking two hours test surely does not put a smile on my face, however it does not fill me with the nausous feeling I received last year.

Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo was a large momentum shifter during Mexico's attempt to repel the French from their country. France had created a colony out of Mexico, all so that the French could obtain many riches from the mines in Northwestern Mexico. Mexico had had enough and tried to kick the French out of their country, along with ceasing to pay interest to France. France was angered and tried to take over Mexico, and they started off very well. However, when they reached the Town of Puebla, they were defeated by the Mexican army, despite being more numerous and powerful than the Mexican army. The day would remembered from that point on as Cinco de Mayo.

Darwin: Origin of Species ( primary source)

Of the Origin of Species by mean of Natural Selection, Is a book that was published by Charles Darwin in Nov/24/1859. This book is centered around the idea of Natural selection, which is the idea that there will be a struggle to survive based on your physical characteristics. In other words, survival of the fittest. Darwin backs up this idea with his findings of biology on his trip to the Galapagos Islands. These ideas were considered crazy at the time, but because they weren't threatening to the church, and weren't too radical, they were accepted over time.

Ignacio Zaragoza

Ignacio Zaragoza was a catalyst for the Mexican nation after he defeated the French army on Cinco de Mayo. Zaragoza was born in the Mexican state of Tejas (now modern day Texas) on March 24, 1829. His family moved to Monterrey in 1844 where he entered the seminary. During the political unrest of the 1850’s, Zaragoza led a group of volunteers to fight against Santa Anna. He was successful and ended up defeating Santa Anna. When the French attacked under the control of Maximillion, he controlled the battles of Acultzingo and Puebla. He is most famous for his triumph over much more numerous and well equipped French army at the Battle of Puebla. That day would later be named Cinco de Mayo. Unfortunately, Zaragoza died a few years later of malaria.

Why take a test?

Tests are extremely beneficial...for teachers. It is a perfect way for a teacher to see how much a student has learned and how much information they have retained. Luckily, the tests we take at Menlo are less about seeing how many facts we retain and more about using our knowledge of subjects to make connections and come to conclusions and in my opinion, this is what tests should be about. Unfortunately, because classes involve so much factual reading, often, 50% of tests test your ability to answer multiple choice or write as much as we remember about a certain passage.

There is very little to be learned from taking a test. In fact, the point is not to learn from the test because the test is to see how much YOU have learned. However, what can be learned is common themes and how difficult certain teachers tend to make tests. Many teachers tell you what the structure is but for those who don't, you can learn what to expect on future tests from taking the first one.

In conclusion, tests are helpful depending on what exactly is tested but often lack important questions that test your ability to think.

Why take a test: Final Exam

I don't know why schools give students finals. It isn't fair that we have to take a test that covers everything from the beginning of the year through half way through the year. It is nearly impossible to remember every single topic, so students stress out and have to study a ton. It is pretty much like teaching a whole semester in just one week, and for most students this is really overwhelming.  Not only do we have to worry about one class, but we have to worry about every single one. On top of a week packed with finals, teachers always throw in that five page research paper, that chemistry test, and that “Quest”. We are only left with the extended class periods to study for the finals, and that is just not enough time! What is the point of doing this? What are we going to gain out of this? I say that we gain nothing, and that teachers should consider taking finals out of our lives.

Taking Finals out of our lives would benefit the student in many ways. First, we would actually look forward to school in the last couple of weeks of the semester. This means that we can just have a regular schedule and be stress free. We would also not risk that grade that we worked so hard for over the course of the year during just one test.

I'm sure that teachers can find a better way to end the year. Instead of a hectic week, why not make it a fun week. We can have projects like the end of the year. Students get a lot more exited about this type of stuff because it is hands on. Or we could have finals, but just be reasonable on the assignments the week before. We could also have them spread out in a better way. Instead of having two a day, why not have one per day, and just have the entire week before be dedicated to just studying.

Extra Credit Test Blog

Tests are horrible. They are made in order to evaluate a student based upon the results of other people at your school or even compared with the other kids around the country. This is a very poor way of testing someone's knowledge, as there are so many factors that can affect how someone does on a test. Many of the factors are based upon the student, yet many times the teacher can affect the test in a way that screws over the person who takes the test. A student may have had a long night, and may not be thinking straight because of all of the other things on his/her mind. With so many classes, students can only retain so much information, which forces students to work until they are dead tired, which rarely allows you to get enough sleep and think straight. Tests force the students to do well, which puts the emphasis off of learning. The joy of learning is lost from the students, and there is only pressure to compete and do better than your peers. Tests are horrible as they take away from the joy of school, and cause bitter rivalries as to who did better on different assessments.

Why take a test?

Personally, i believe that taking a test/quiz is a good way to see how well someone has learned a particular topic. However, when tests get longer and longer, it becomes less about understanding and more about memorization. This is why it is better to take multiple small quizzes than one big test. Quizzes can be focused on one small piece of material and are an excellent way of judging how well a student know a topic because often, quizzes are either hit or miss. You either get it or you don't, there's not much of a middle ground. Quizzes are also easier for teachers to grade. Another benefit is that if a student bombs a quiz, they can make it up by maintaining a decent grade on the other small quizzes. If a student bombs a test, it could take a whole quarter of 100%'s to bring that student's grade back up. Doing bad on a test would also bring down the moral of a student, causing him to dislike the class more and be less inclined to learn.

Extra Credit Blog

xtra Credit Blog: Why take a test? What is the purpose of a test? How do you study? Can you learn something during a test?

Personally I despise test. They are the worst invention. I would rather have projects. Yeah taking test do test what you learned and your ability of remembering what we did during the unit, but couldn't we be tested by a project and hitting key points of the unit your project?. studying for history is a little bit difficult because there is so much to study since we cover so much information. I sometimes study too broadly and not deep enough and then i get to a few of the multiple choice questions and i am screwed. I like when you give us what to study like the prompts and other things we will need to know for the test. I do not really believe you can learn things during a test but reviewing for test is where i learn the most. Tests are Test and every class has them

Education's Effect on Colonial Era's Changing Identity

What came with colonial rule was racism, exposure to European culture, and economic & social disputes, which led to a massive identity crisis to all living in the Colonial Era. Various aspects of everyday life included social status, the location in which one lived, etc; however the most vital factoring portion for the majority’s transforming identity was Western education.

“To previously illiterate people, the knowledge of reading and writing of any kind often suggested an almost magical power. Within the colonial setting, it could mean an escape from some of the most onerous obligations of living under European control, such as forced labor.” (Page 607, Ways of the World) The introduction of education opened doors to an abundance of those who were now provided with the opportunity to do something productive with their life. The ability to obtain better paying jobs such as government bureaucracies, mission organizations, or working for business firms. Education also “provided social mobility and elite status within their own communities and an opportunity to achieve, or at least approach, equality with whites in racially defined societies.” (Page 607, Ways of the World) Along with adopting the rapidly spreading fashion of engaging in education, people were also adopting European culture. They began “dressing in European clothes, speaking French or English, building European-style houses, getting married in long white dresses, and otherwise emulating European ways.” (page 607, Ways of the World)

Along with the immediate change that the exposure and acceptance of education brought, it also conveyed long term change. “Western-educated people organized a variety of reform societies, which sought a renewed Indian culture that was free of idolatry, child marriages, caste, and discrimination against women, while drawing inspirations from the class texts of Hinduism.” (Page 608, Ways of the World) This portrayed the involvement of education into society would result in great progress for those living in the Colonial Era. Subjects such as mathematics, natural philosophy, chemistry, anatomy, and other useful sciences were included into curriculum taught by European gentlemen to Indian natives. Although this raised the caliber of the everyday individual, the benefits of education failed to reach the regions of equality amongst blacks and whites. For the most part, Europeans rejected the idea of treating those of other races as equals, and the common misconception of the well educated was that their cultures were “primitive, backward, uncivilized, or savage.” (page 609, Ways of the World)

As one can see, the advancement of education and its spread throughout the Colonial Era caused both positive and negative effects to be thrust upon those experiencing this change. In the long run, my personal thoughts on the matter are that education did nothing but good for this time period, and I feel as though the majority would agree with me. Yes, those of higher caliber may have magnified discrimination more severely, however the controversy regarding equality amongst races can be brought up in nearly any circumstance. Education is not to blame for the prejudice feelings of those well educated, and instead acted as a wake up call to the world, allowing them to erase oblivion and naivety from their vocabularies and make something of themselves.

Extra Credit

I think that tests can help you learn how to manage your time and how to prepare for larger assessments. I don't think many people really care for them that much, but they help establish critical time management skills. When you have a big test that covers a lot of material you need to learn to put time aside to study and to study at least a couple days rather than just cramming the night before.

Studying for tests can very depending on the class, the material, the teacher, and how you learn best. Flash-cards are a great way to help you memorize facts or terms. I love making extensive review sheets because writing it out helps me remember the material and it is nice to have everything organized in one place. Then I can go over it and star what I need to study more and check off what I feel confident about.

I think that material wise, you can remember something during the test or make a connection that you hadn't previously thought of. I guess if you didn't study very well then the material may be new and then you can learn something. But I wouldn't really on learning the whole test while you are taking it because I am pretty sure that isn't very possible and I don't think you would be very happy with your grade.

I think that study sessions are also a great way to review for a test. If there isn't a study session then come in and see if you can meet with your teacher. When I do to study sessions I find it best if you have studied before you come in and then come in with certain questions rather than just telling the teacher to quiz you are tell you what you need to know.

I don't really like tests. I prefer projects and presentations I think. That is mostly because I do better on those but tests are a great way to assess how well the students are learning and how well the teacher is teaching.

Bomb Vessels

In the early expeditions to Antarctica, explorers were required to use Bomb Vessels to break through the ice. They were the only ships with hulls strong enough to withstand the great force.

James Clark Ross

James Clark Ross was an explorer. He led an expedition around Antarctica where he charted much of the coastline.

Lord Mayo, Indian Cotton Trade

Lord Mayo was born in 1822 and died in 1872. England, after the American Civil War, began to rely heavily on India for their raw cotton. Lord Mayo invested alot of money in proper irrigation for cotton plants and railways to get the cotton to Britain quickly. ALthough he was not able to often be in Parliment to loby for India cotton, James Mangles who was a member of parliment representing an area right outside London did loby for Indian Cotton. In fact his son Ross Donelly Mangles later became the chairman of the East India Company. Lord Mayo sadly was murdered in 1872 by a Muslim convict, while he was inspecting a prison. He left India in a surplus and made way for more cotton to be grown and transported. Before Lord Mayo, the main problem with India Cotton is that it just couldnt live up to the American standard. India didnt have proper labor techniques, it had monsoon seasons that would kill the cotton plant, it did not have proper irrigation, the soil did not remain fertile for even a growing season, and they had terrible transportation. Lord Mayo fixed many of these problems.

Steam Engine

The steam train was a huge innovation for land travel. It took the same steam engine that helped revolutionize river travel, and used it on land. Richard Trevithick and George Stephenson invented the first steam train in 1803, with help from the funding of Samuel Homfray. It made its first journey in 1804 traveling nine miles with seventy passengers, and hauling ten tons of cargo, in just under two hours. The reason that this was so significant was that the only was to transport goods across land, before the steam train, was either by foot, by stage coach, or by wagon train. The steam engine provided a easier and faster way to transport things, replacing horse and man power.

In 1804 the first passenger car was invented, and shortly after that the Stockton and Darlington Railroad Company was the first to carry both passengers and goods on a regular schedule. They used an improved version of the steam train made by Stephenson which was able to pull six loaded coal carts, 4 cargo carts, and 21 passenger carts over nine miles in just one hour. Then in 1863, after much railroad advancement, the transcontinental railroad was built. For six years the United States slaved over completing the railroad line connecting Sacramento, California with Omaha, Nebraska. Finally in 1869 the railroad was completed. People could now travel more than halfway across the country aboard one train. The 1848 gold rush contributed a lot to the desire to travel west, and the railroad made it easy to do that. Before that transcontinental Railroad, it took travelers over four months to make the journey, because they were making in horse powered wagon trains. The Transcontinental Railroad made the journey possible in only a few days, just a fraction of what is was before.

The Steam Train was a huge advancement, because now mass amounts of goods and passengers could be quickly transported long distances. Instead of loading up caravans of horses and wagons and mules with hundreds of pounds of goods, people now had a far faster, safer, and more reliable way to do it. On trains. People also now had a much faster and reliable form of transportation for themselves. And not to mention, much more comfortable. They now had the ability to travel 2000 miles in just a few days. At the time, this was unheard of. And that is why the steam train and railroad were so revolutionary.

Steamboat

Robert Fulton's steamboat The Clermont

The first steamboat was invented in the late 1700s, but no effective models were invented until 1807. Before 1807, steamboats traveled only 2 mph and were far too expensive to operate and maintain. in 1807, Robert Fulton built the Clermont, the first successful steamboat. It made a journey from New York City to Albany in 32 hours, a new record. It average 5 miles per hour, up and downstream. It would make the trip once every four days, transporting up to 100 passengers and cargo. After the Clermont, steamboats became very popular, and different forms of boats were created. One example is the showboat, which was a steam powered boat with boat with various forms of entertainment aboard. Theaters, saloons, galleries, and ballrooms were available for people when showboats came to town. They were traveling entertainment. One more form of boat that became popular was the packet boat. It was a boat purely made for transportation. Anything from people, to cargo. They were flat, deck boat, primarily used to transport large amounts of crops and goods up and down rivers, but had some room for people aboard. Steamboats had a great effect on the industrial revolution, improving river transportation and trade, along with helping the growing industries and factories distribute their goods.

The Eiffel Tower

Bergdoll, Barry. The Eiffel Tower. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2003.

I am using The Eiffel Tower book for background information that will assist my intro paragraphs and help me get a better understanding of the topic i am doing (eiffel tower). Also there is a chapter in the book about the building process of the eiffel tower, this will help me when i relate the eiffel tower to the scientific revolution. This book is very useful in the research process of this essay.

Marx/Smith

After reading the 2 different sections, I thought that Karl Marx took a negative view from the perspective of a worker and knew a lot more about the struggles whereas Adam Smith knew a lot about the system but saw it as very effective. If I had to decide who I thought had better insight into this issue I would Choose Marx. Marx talked about how the worked was selling his labor for very little, allowing the capitalist to make a lot more money by selling the products the laborers make for as high as possible. Marx had a better idea of what was actually going on with this system, whereas Smith only saw the profit that was being made and the creation of new inventions and new technology. He said everyone working in their own self-interest was good for the country and that everyone this way could live a good life. However, this is not the case for those who were laborers working long hours and making next to nothing, unable to support their families and themselves. On the other hand, Marx continues to see all the flaws in the system, especially with machines and how they cut labor and slowly humans become "slaves" to them and capitalists can lower wages further and further. This is why I thought Marx overall had a better understanding of this system of work.

Tesla

Nikola Tesla was born into a serbian family in the Austrian Empire in 1856. He was fairly educated and decided from an early age that he would become an electrical engineer. He lived a life of crazy inventions, and with the constant need to improve on his work. He has been called the mad scientist of our times, and no one can compare to his lack of rationality. He always put himself in the middle of danger, mostly because he knew he would leave unharmed. Although the Tesla Coil was one of the most renown inventions Nikola had, he went on to make households electrical by streaming long wires through the structure of a mansion, and leading all the power lines to a steam engine generator that would lay outside the home. It was very likely that there would be problems with this set up, and in many cases there were. He even set fire to a mansion when the electrical wires sparked. Beyond all of this, Tesla made a name for himself, and even today, he never ceases to amaze.

Research Blog, King Cotton and his Retainers, WOodman

“In ’63 and ’64, New Orleans could boast of more cotton factors than cotton. The principal business was in the hands of merchants from the north, who had established themselves in the city soon after its occupation by northern forces. Nearly all coton sent to the market was from plantations leased by northern men, or from purchases made of planters by the northern speculators. The patronage naturally fell into the hands of the new possessors of the soil, and left the old merchants to pine in solitude. The old factors, most of them southern men, who could boast of ten or twenty years’s experience, saw their business pass into the hands of men whose arrival in New Orleans was subsequenmt to that of gernal butler.” Camp-fire and Cotton-field: southern adventure in the time of war(New York 1865). This is an article about how the SOuth lost their cotton production to the NOrth at the end of the Civil War. AFter decades of plantations and cotton production, Northerners came into New Orleans and took over the production. Since the south was in so much debt, when NOrtherners came with a lot of money they easily bought out their southern competition. They would take the SOuth's land in return for paying their mass amount of debt, in this way the SOuth lost their debt but also their main source of income. Their plans of dealig cotton directly to Europe were shattered now that they didnt even have cotton production anymore. Keep in mind that this article seems to paint a positive picture of the SOUth loosing cotton production because it a New York article from the time when the North was winning the Civil War.

Adam Smith/Karl Marx

Adam Smith is known to be the father of capitalism and for a lot of his life, he observed the ups and downs of the factory system. During his time, mercantilism, where it was keen to get as much gold traded as possible, was a dominant idea. Since he focused on this idea so much, he proposed quite a few ideas for the improvement the industry. 

He believed that labor should be divided among people so that it can be more efficient; he called this the Division of Labor. In further depth, he divided the people into three classes: landowners, people who have money, and those who have their own manpower. In this situation the laborers would work for the other classes. One major idea that Smith points out is that a country is not rich because they trade a lot, but it is rather important how much work is being done which proves that free trade is more successful than mercantilism. 

Karl Marx lived during the height of the Industrial Revolution. He is known for his new idea of "socialism." Many people looked at the Industrial Revolution from the perspective of the new ideas and machinery, but Marx looked at it from a worker's perspective. Unlike Smith, Marx had two classes in mind: a worker who sells his labor, and the capitalist who has money to buy it. The pattern he noticed in this system was the capitalist would pay his laborer the least amount he can, but then sell his products in the highest amount he can. Instead of being thankful to the new machines, Marx believes that the laborer becomes a slave to the machine because he is always trying to catch up to the speed of the machine. In conclusion, this leads the capitalist to become more and more wealthier while the laborers lives become miserable even after all the work they do. 

Sir Thomas Johnstone Lipton (Lipton Tea)

Sir Thomas Johnstone (!850-1931) Lipton was a British merchant who started as a small tea seller, and led the great Lipton Tea to a worldwide advancement and enjoyment. Thomas spent some years in the United States and returned to his hometown Glasgow and owned his own small grocery store. He was so dedicated even in his small business that he became a millionaire at the age of thirty. Thomas began thinking about how the public can easily enjoy all the foods in his store, but the tea's were very expensive and not everyone could afford them. His concern led him to make a very tasty tea called Lipton Tea which became popular throughout and is still complimented by people today.

Treaty of Nanjing (Opium War)

The treaty of Nanjing was signed on August 29, 1842. It marked the end of the opium war between the Qing Empire and the British Empire. The treaty heavily favored the British because of the fact that the British had won the won by the end. The British would obtain 21 million dollars when the treaty was signed and would gain another 15 million in the next three years. They would also gain control of numerous ports and cities in China including Hong Kong. The Chinese gained almost nothing from this treaty but it was the only way they could obtain peace. This picture shows the signing of the treaty.

Picture from

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Nanjingtreaty.jpg

Info from

http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/History/hits?docNum=BT3403700875&tab=4&locID=menlo_schlib&nav=1&origSearch=false&hdb=ALL&t=RK&s=1&r=d&items=0&secondary=false&o=&sortOrder=RE&n=10&l=dE&sgPhrase=false&c=1&tabMap=5&bucket=psm&SU=Treaty+of+Nanjing

Primary Source in 1851

As I was looking through the New York Times, I spotted an article from way back in October of 1851. I clicked onto the link and I found an article talking about who and what inventions had been brought to the Great Exhibition of 1851. I obviously knew a couple of them brought since we learned about so many in the Industrial Revolution unit. Some inventions that were at the fair that I knew was the Cotton Gin. We all know who and what the Cotton Gin was and so I found it very interesting that it was being showed off at the Crystal Palace. Another one we all know is the Reaping Machine. I remember reading about the reaper and how it saved men from working all day in the fields. Also, inside this primary source were a list of awards that these inventors got for their amazing invention. Some catagories of awards were, Council Medals, Prize Medals, Honorable Mention, and the Money Award. Each award was given to numerous amounts of people, since everybody was split into their own "Class." Each class was filled with the almost the same invention. For example, "Class II" was all food related items that were being showed off. There was maple sugar, soft wheat, flour, etc. Some "Classes" had only one item included in it because that meant that invention was unique and there was nothing else that closely resembled to it. An example of that would be the Mechanical Reclining Chair. It was a very interesting and unexpected find from W. Ragan. This primary source really made me think about how little our world was before the Industrial Revolution. I cant even think about being alive, without a place to stay, having my parents be gone all day and then once they come home all they want to do is sleep, or have none or little food set at my table. I am grateful for the fact that I do have those things, and if it wasn't for all these intelligent thinkers, the world would not be like it is today. Furthermore, primary sources are a good source of data because they teach you a lot about what was happening exactly in the time you are talking/researching about. I find it hard to read a secondary or even third source about the Industrial Revolution because you really don't know what it was all about unless you were actually there.

Attached is just a small snipit of what the article looks like, since the full article is too big to be posted.

Crystal Palace

The Great Exhibition of 1851 took place in the beautiful Crystal Palace, which located at the time, was in the heart of London. People from all over the world came to either show off their invention or come to look at all the prized possessions. The Crystal Palace held more than 12,800 square feet for all of the famous inventors to show off their masterpiece. In addition, the Crystal Palace was later used for numerous more events than just the first world fair ever to be done.

Citation of picture- http://www.ursusbooks.com/thumbnail.php?img=./itemimages/123543a.jpg&maxwidth=700

Isabella Bird

The book that Isabella Bird wrote Six Months in the Sandwich Islands, this book gave readers vivid pictures of the geology and also it introduced them to a new culture. This book talked about Isabella's journey in Hawaii, she climbed to the tops of volcanoes and visited the rain forests. The book gave a deeper understanding to the cultural which is essential. I mentioned in my last blog that the idea of Europeans being superior than other races was an idea that was held very highly in the Western. However Isabella was able to go against this idea because she had the experiance. She traveled to these places like Hawaii and learned about the people and their culture. There was more to them than Europeans saw and she was able to see it. Isabella didn't start the idea of all humans from different races are equal but she was one of many who set this idea in motion. Along with this her books uncovered places and "worlds" that they didn't know of. In Africa the Westerners colonized them but here she saw them in their natural life styles, she allowed the people to be themselves which uncovered these "barbarians" for what they really were.

Levin, Ruth. "Splendid Possibilities: Isabella Bird Visits Hawai'i in 1874." OAH Magazine of History. JSTOR. < search="yes&term=" term="Isabella&list=" searchuri="%2Faction%2FdoAdvancedSearch%3Fq0%3DIsabella%2BBird%26f0%3Dall%26c0%3DAND%26q1%3D%26f1%3Dall%26c1%3DAND%26q2%3D%26f2%3Dall%26c2%3DAND%26q3%3D%26f3%3Dall%26wc%3Don%26Search%3DSearch%26ar%3Don%26sd%3D%26ed%3D%26la%3D%26jo%3D%26dc.History%3DHistory&item=" ttl="264&returnArticleService="> (Dec 2, 2009).

Isabella Bird

This image shows Isabella Bird, she was a traveler, explorer, and writer. Isabella was ill as a young women, and her doctor recommended her that she traveled henceforth she took her bags and set off to see the world. The places she visited were Colorado, Hawaii, Japan, Tibet, and more. Her health got better with the traveling. Also the books that she wrote on journeys, that are still read today, gave insight on eastern cultures which were challenged by Western stereotype. Which as we all know, was very big deal because the Europeans considered themselves superior to others. Isabella saw what these people could do instead of seeing what they looked like. Also she presented new knowledge of places not well known to the rest of the world. She was an explorer in a sense because she visited lands that were not well known to the world and she wrote down what she saw and her journeys in some books. Once Isabella's traveling began it did not end you can say she had a passion for traveling and with it she was able bring new ideas that could of lead to larger ones. Personally, I think that Isabella could of also help establish the idea of an independant women because she traveled mostly alone with the ocasional companion that she met along the way. However a women alone and looking after herself, was frowned upon by the Western society.

Image and info:
"Isabella Bird." <> (Dec 2, 2009)

Primary Source: Statue of Liberty

The New Colossus, by Emma Lazarus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

My Analysis:

Above is a poem I found that describes the Statue of Liberty. The statue itself sends a message to people and nations. A message that states her "commanding" presence, her "mighty" stature, and her "welcoming" nature. All of these are meant to describe the U.S. as a country. The golden door is America. The Statue of Liberty represents the U.S. for the rest of the world.

http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/History/hits?docNum=CD2154000050&tab=4&locID=menlo_schlib&nav=1&origSearch=false&hdb=ALL&t=RK&s=1&r=d&items=0&secondary=false&o=&sortOrder=RE&n=10&l=dE&sgPhrase=true&c=1&tabMap=119&bucket=psm&SU=%22statue+of+liberty%22

Periodic Table #2

 Began by organizing the elements by atomic weight and realized that they would go from a halogen to an alkali metal to an alkaline earth metal
 From 1869-1871 he revised and added the elements to fit into the table he had created
 He altered the accepted atomic weights to make them fit because there were the transition metals and the rare earth metals that didn’t fit the pattern that he discovered before
Many people were questioning his decision to change the elements masses but they thought that they organization was good and so it might work out. He was also considered one of the greatest chemists at the time.

Sacks, Oliver. “Best Invention Everything in Its Place.” New York Times Magazine. April 18, 1999. Newsbank. http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_product=AWNB&p_theme=aggregated5&p_action=doc&p_docid=11421F7941D12DC6&p_docnum=4&p_queryname=2

Mendeleev’s Table. History Resource Center: World. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/History/hits?docNum=CD2210013968&tab=16&locID=menlo_schlib&origSearch=false&hdb=MW&t=RK&s=1&r=d&
items=0&secondary=true&o=&sortOrder=RE&n=10&l=dI&sgPhrase=true&c=1&tabMap=114&bucket=
img&SU=periodic+table

Pages 604-605

In Africa, during precolonial times, women were always active farmers. They worked with their husbands to farm the land, planting crops and harvesting them. Along with that the women were expected to care for children, and food preparation. Women were expected to feed their families.

But during colonial times as economic demands grew, women’s work load grew much more. Cash crop farming became very popular. Men withdrew from subsistence farming and began to become involved with all money aspects of cash crops. This left the women with a doubled workload. They had to feed their family and husbands, and they had to work hard to produce the cash crops that their husbands were selling. Their work hours went from 40 a week to 70 a week from precolonial times to 1924. Also, men moved to cities seeking employment, leaving the women alone on the farms. The women had to complete all domestic work, and they had to provide food for their husbands because the wages in the cities were very low. Women headed 60% of households, because 60% of men migrated to urban areas.

Women began to face economic opportunities. They would sell cloth, various foods, and inexpensive imported goods, while their husbands dealt with the more profitable goods. Women began to be viewed as independent head of households, and tried to escape patriarchal values.

Shackleton and Discovery

This is a picture of Ernest Shackleton's ship crashing in Antarctica. Shackleton was an explorer of the late 1800s and early 1900s. His goal was to become the first explorer, along with his crew, to cross Antarctica through it's central pole. During the expedition, their ship got stuck in the Antarctic ice. Two rescue ships were sent, but neither could get close enough to Discovery (the original ship) to free it from the ice. However, in february of 1904, some of the Antarctic ice began to break around Discovery, and Shackleton's ship was freed.

World's First Ferris Wheel- picture and source

The world's first ferris wheel, named after George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. was invented in 1893 with the sole purpose of being displayed at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois. It became one of the world's largest attractions, and I look forward to learning more about this topic.

Economies of cash-crop agriculture and wage labor- connections between then and now

Before Asia and Africa were enclosed within colonial societies, they were the power-house of producing items internationally for a significant period of time. They offered an amble supply of goods such as peanuts and palm oil in West Africa, cotton in Egypt, spices in Indonesia, and pepper & textiles in India. Colonial Rule was present in some areas and led to an increase in cash-crop production as well as some advantages to local farmers. Local farmers were able to own their own land, build substantial houses, as well as buy imported goods. Cacao was discovered and become extremely popular due to the fact that unlike cotton, "it was compatible with the continued production of foods and did not require so much labor time." (page 601, Ways of the World) It changed the way of the early twentieth century, and according to page 601 of Ways of the World, “a hybrid society was taking shape, partly peasant, in that most members farmed their own land with family labor…and partly capitalist, in that a minority employed wage laborers, produced chiefly for the market, and reinvested profits.” This quote states the kind of society that was evolving and how the twentieth century dealt with the changes it underwent. However, what came with the major increase of jobs/occupations was the need for more workers. There was a shortage of labor which resulted in a whirlwind of issues. “A shortage of labor fostered the employment of former slaves as dependent and exploited workers and also generated tensions between the sexes when some men married women for their labor power but refused to support them adequately.” This quote, stated on page 601 of Ways of the World, states one of the only downfalls of the economics of the cash-crop agriculture.

Along with the many changes that the early European culture experienced, some migration also took place. As stated on page 602 in Ways of the World,“Driven by the need for money, by the loss of land adequate to support their families, or sometimes by the orders of colonial authorities, millions of colonial subjects across Asia and Africa sought employment in European-owned plantations, mines, construction projects, and homes.” Large European-financed plantations began growing sugarcane, rubber, tea, tibacco, and sisal, along with multiple other items that lured thousands, including those from India, China, and Java. What came with this however were poor working conditions, disease, gender discrimination, and poor pay. The migration to European farms or plantations was more common in Africa than in Asia, due to the fact that the lose of jobs was on the increase in Africa. With the help of colonial governments, the “settler colonies” of Africa (Algeria, Kenya, Southern Rhodesia, South Africa) were able to have large land masses in their possession which has once been the home of multiple African societies. More of the land was granted to whites, who were by this point making up about 20% of the population. Mining became a primary source of wage labor for a growing amount of people, however the working conditions were despicable. Whites and blacks were beginning to experience discrimination now more than ever before. Well-educated whites were able to find business opportunities as doctors, teachers, professional specialists, and jobs of that nature. Those of the opposite skin color, however, were unable to find work so easily. Racial segregation was introduced.

To be honest, in order for me to make connections between the lifestyles of both Africans and Asians both past and present, I would need to be more educated on the topic. I feel as though my knowledge on the matter is based off of mere stereotypes, or whatever the latest I am hearing on the news regarding one of the two locations. Now that we will be learning and discussing the history of both Africa and Asia, I feel as though I should learn more about the present day aspects of both areas. The connections I can make, however, is that Asia was and is still a huge exporter of goods for around the world, and that Africa continues to experience racial segregation.

Darwin

Darwin was the scientist who started the theory of evolution. He not only believed this, but he made it public. As he published books, more and more people started believing in this theory, and soon much of the population believed in evolution. This picture shows that some of Darwins beliefs were that man evolved from apes. Darwin had many other interesting beliefs on how everything worked, and that is why I want to learn more about him.

Ota Benga

This picture is of Ota Benga, the African Pygmy who was brought from the Congo to live in the Bronx Zoo in New York. This action shows the start of classifying races in American and European society in the late 1800s early 1900s. Instead of seeing this as something cruel, this was regarded as scientific, and the exhibit was something that was "intriguing" for everyone to see. Ota Benga was placed in the same habitat that the monkeys were in, which showed how the European mind classified races at the time. The zoo director William Hornaday apparently saw no difference between an orengutan and a "little black boy".

I got my picture here.

I got some information here.

Nikola Tesla

Nikola Tesla was the mad scientist of the 1800's, he created many contraptions relating to electricity and showed them off to masses. As you can see above, Nikola Tesla is sitting inside a cage as jolts of electricity travel around him, without actually touching him. The cage protects him as a tesla coil sends an immense amount of energy outward all around him. The reason we call him mad, is because he's sitting inside reading a book as if he hasn't even been phased by this experience. Tesla went on to try other experiments with electricity and always put himself in the spotlight when he performed his scientific wonders. I got my picture here.

Richard Owen

Sir Richard Owen was the person who came up with the term "dinosauria." Dinosauria came from the Greek words "deinos" (fearfully great) and "sauros" (lizard). He recognize these beings as very large, but extinct reptiles.

From a group of fossils of a few different dinosaurs, he found a couple big differences between the bones structures of living reptiles and these fossils. One big difference was that the fossilized reptiles all had column like legs (legs that were directly underneath the body like a lion's or a dog's) instead or legs that sprawled out to the side like the common lizard's. Another thing he found was that the fossils contained five vertebrae that were fused together and attached to the pelvic bone.

Owen first published his findings in 1842 in the Proceedings of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. He mentioned the new distinct class of creatures and how they were enormous in comparison to the reptiles living at the time. He also went over his reasoning behind the name "dinosauria" and some basic characteristics of what he thought dinosaurs were probably like. In total, Owen named and described around 20 different dinosaurs and was the first person to ever do such work.

Enchanted Learning. Sir Richard Owen. 1998. <> December 1st, 2009.

Opium Wars

The opium wars took place during the 19th century and had lasting implications on both China and the surrounding nations. The wars were based off of disputes between the China when they were under the Qing Empire and the British Empire. I am going to go into more research about the Opium Wars and their lasting affects on the world. This picture is one of the most famous pictures because it represents the burning of a British trade ship while it was coming into a Chinese port. I am not sure why the text is underlined.

Lipton Tea

Sir Thomas Johnson Lipton is the original owner of Lipton Tea. This newly created tea was first started in Glasgow, Scotland. Sir Thomas's initial goal was to go out and search for the best tea with high quality but also a reasonable price for others enjoyment. He first came to this idea because before Lipton tea, other tea's were very expensive. Sir Thomas's accomplished goal stood right when he established his first tea packing company in Hoboken, New Jersey. Sir Thomas led the U.S to further success because Lipton controlled 50 percent of the tea making in America around the 1990's.

 

Antarctica

John Davis (pictured above) was the first person to step foot on Antarctica on Febuary 7, 1821.

The Periodic Table

The periodic table was created by Dmitry Mendeleev in 1869. He was also know as Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleyev, Dmitrii Ivanovich Mendeleev, Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev, Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev, and Dmitry Mendeleev. He came up with the periodic table and above is a picture that shows a reprint of the original one. He arranged these elements by atomic weight. Below is the current periodic table today, which many of us have seen in our current Chemistry class. Many new elements have been discovered and there is more information about the earlier ones as well. This was one of the great scientific advancements of the 19th century because it enabled them to organize the elements and then research and discover more about them and even discover new ones. It is obviously a very effective way since we are still using it in the 21st century, two centuries later.

Citations:

Vucinich, Alexander. Mendeleyev, Dmitry Ivanovich. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/History/hits?docNum=K3404100815&tab=32&locID=menlo_schlib&origSearch=false&hdb=MW&t=RK&s=1&r=d&items

=0&secondary=true&o=&sortOrder=RE&n=10&l=dB&sgPhrase=true&c=1&tabMap=114&bucket=bio&SU= periodic+table (accessed December 01, 2009)

Pictures from:

http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/History/hits?docNum=CD2210013968&tab=16&locID=menlo_schlib&origSearch=false&hdb=MW&t=RK&s=1&r=d&

items=0&secondary=true&o=&sortOrder=RE&n=10&l=dI&sgPhrase=true&c=1&tabMap=114&bucket=

img&SU=periodic+table

http://www.bpc.edu/mathscience/chemistry/images/periodic_table_of_elements.jpg

Eiffel Tower

This is a picture of the Eiffel Tower being built in Paris in 1887. As you see in this picture this is just as the tower was going up. It took two years until completed and it was built by Gustave Eiffel. This was just part of the world fairs and was not intended to stay up forever. As you can see in this picture Paris was not as hopping as it is today and the Eiffel tower has something to do with the tourist in PAris.

Statue of Liberty

The Statue of Liberty was shown on October 28th, 1886. The tower was a gift from France, originally named: "Liberty Enlightening the World". The statue stands at Liberty Island in New York. At the time, President Grover accepted this gift as a monument to celebrate 100 years of American Independence.

http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/History/hits?docNum=BT3401804032&tab=1&locID=menlo_schlib&origSearch=true&hdb=ALL&t=RK&s=1&r=d&items=0&secondary=true&o=&sortOrder=&n=10&l=dR&sgPhrase=true&c=1&tabMap=119&bucket=gal&SU=%22statue+of+Liberty%22

http://www.kakambourasfamily.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/StatueofLiberty1939WF2.jpg

Tokugawa and Meiji Restoration- Digging Deeper

Read 1 and blog about how a specific area interacted with European forces. What were colonizing motives? How did the people being colonized respond?

Prior to U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry's arrival, Japan was governed by a shogun, or military ruler, who was a descendant from the Tokugawa family. They were a a largely influential family in Japan's history due to the fact that they acted "in the name of a revered but powerless emperor." (page 578, Ways of the World) The expectation of this shogunate was to at all costs protect Japan from the return of civil war with 260 daimyos, or rival feudal lords.

The shoguns were able to provide Japan over two centuries of peace, thanks to their own military power and political skills. In order to stay colonized and control the daimyo, they placed strict regulations on internal travel and communication and "required the daimyo to spend alternate years in the capital of Edo, leaving their families behind as hostages during their absence." (page 578, Ways of the World) However, due to the fact that by default the daimyo were the more powerful ones, they began acting as if they were independent states. They built separate military forces, law codes, tax systems, and currencies. Tokugawa Japan had no national army, however, along with no uniform currency and hardly any central authority at the local level, meaning they were "pacified...but not really unified." (page 578, Ways of the World) In order to further colonize the country, the Tokugawa placed strict and detailed guidelines for governing the occupation, residence, dress, hairstyles, and behavior of the four status groups, ranked hierarchically. The Japanese social structure was divided into four groups:

1) samurai

2) peasants

3) artisans

4) merchants

As time went on, Japan needed to make sure that it could stay united and colonize its people. As the substantial burst of economic growth, commercialization, and urban development came to be, peace is what came along with it. Japan was becoming on of the world's most urbanized countries. Education was becoming of prime importance as well, with 40% of men and 5% of woman able to read and write, which was a huge improvement. The growth of importance of education was subconsciously building Japan a remarkable industrial foundation and in turn colonized the people and the future of Japan.

The samurai, who once lived only by the sword, were broadening their horizons as well. They discovered the importance of business and commerce and drifted from the long held tradition of honoring the warrior code. They still ranked highest on the social pyramid, however were not as educated in the business aspect of society. This led to some anarchy, for now the social status were experiencing some disorder. Peasants began moving to cities and taking the jobs of artisans or merchants. According to a decree of 1788, the peasants "have become accustomed to luxury and forgetful of their rain..." (page 579, Ways of the World) This led to the shogun declaring that all luxury items must be avoided by the peasants, which was, like many others decrees, ignored.

The attempt at colonizing Japan, some successful and others not, led to widespread corruption. Unfortunately, the shogunate were losing control.

However, this the shogun's downfall led to the Meiji restoration. At this time, "the country's new rulers claimed that they were restoring to power the young emperor, then a fifteen-year-old boy whose throne name was Meiji, or Enlightened Rule." (page 580, Ways of the World) Now that the shogunate were eliminated, the new patriotic leaders of the country made clear their goals-- "to save Japan from foreign domination, not by futile resistance, but by a thorough transformation of Japanese society, drawing upon all that the modern West had to offer." (page 580, Ways of the World) Knowledge became a greatly influential aspect to the countries transforming society, and was greatly motivated "so as to strengthen the foundations of imperial rule." (page 580, Ways of the World)

All in all, Japan underwent multiple changes throughout the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. The shoguns held power for an extended amount of time, and were able to colonize the country for as long as they could. The social pyramid experienced a bit of a shaking up, if you may, and the samurai's lifestyle underwent a modernized makeover. Corruption was slowly taking over the Tokugawa regime, and Japan experienced a bit of a rough patch regarding a visit from Commodore Perry in hopes of opening more ports for trade. The Meiji restoration was soon after underway, slowly but steadily attempting to repair the areas needing mending in Japan. As a whole, Japan did a sufficient job in keeping itself colonized and the changes that took place did have both a positive and negative effect on society, however never posing a drastic transformation.

Tells of Atrocity in Belgian Congo

In the reading (599-600) it talks about the outrages being widely publicized in Europe. So I thought I would look for one of those articles, and I found one. It is from the New York Times in 1909. It talks about a little 2 year old boy from Congo, and how important he was and how everyone on the ship wanted to shake his hand. It also sort of shows how long it took people to hear about what was happening around the world because we now know that by 1908 Leopold's reign of terror was already over.

Here is the Link.

Opium War/Anglo-Chinese War

In the 1830's the British had a huge drug cartel, one bigger than any drug cartels today. They were growing Opium/Poppies in India and having it shipped out to them by the East India Trade Company. The company shipped lots of opium which were then traded for Chinese goods and other things like that. This massive amount of opium being distributed created a country filled of drug addicts. In 1836 trafficking became illegal but the British would just bride the officials. The amount of opium in China was getting smaller and smaller. The addicts were getting sadder and sadder. This period of time was called the Great Tragedy and to help ease the pain of not having the drugs, the emperor made opium illegal. The English were still sending ships trying to get the drugs into the country. China decided that they would just go out and force the ships to turn around and not bring the drugs into their country. Well, this idea worked but gave the English another idea, they could just bring warships with them on their trafficking trips. Now the Chinese warships were nothing compared to the English, with their gunships. The British would go back and forth on the coast firing at forts and fighting on land. Finally the Chinese were forced to agree to the Treaty of Nanking, which made it so that all British people on Chinese soil committing a crime would be subjected to British law. No restrictions were placed on the British trade into China, so the drug trafficking doubled, and the opium levels grew once again.

I learned everything off of this site. Here!

Economies of Coercion

During the colonial era, there was much more demand for labor for local projects and building infrastructure. Also, labor was needed to harvest natural products. Of course this labor had to be unpaid. In Africa, specifically the Congo, many natives were forced to collect rubber for Belgium (Leopold II). This was required by law, that you were required to work 10-12 days a year without pay. Although it doesn't seem that bad, they were treated poorly. It escalated to the point where if they could no longer retrieve rubber, Leopold and his men would go to the villages and kill innocent people. Eventually, many people got word of this, causing Belgium to take control over the Congo. This in turn ended Leopold's "reign of terror."

In the Netherlands, a similar system was put into place. Peasants were required to cultivate 20% or more of their land in cash crops to pay for taxes. These crops were sold to the government at low rates and then sold off to the rest of the world making a lot of profit. Once again, if people could not cultivate their land, they would be lashed and often starved.

I had always thought that Africans were only taken out of Africa and then forced into labor. I did not know that there were enough valuable natural resources within Africa for Europeans to force labor there as well. In the end, throughout history nations have taken advantage of African people in order for cheap labor. Unfortunately this led to massacres of thousands of people.

Strayer 566-569

After reading about China and Europe's conflicts over Opium and the beginning of the first Opium War, I felt as though the entire situation could have been avoided.

Based on what I read, it was obvious that Britain took complete advantage of China after the Opium war. Britain, with its high ego because of their new military, decided to wage war against China. Soon after, China signed Britain's treaty which was completely in favor of Britain and allowed them to open numerous ports in China and impose tariffs on goods. The same thing happened after Britain won the second Opium War. It is clear that China let Europe push them around, taking control of the ports and allowing Europeans and other foreigners to live in China under their own laws. China, previously a very powerful nation, has fallen at the hands of Europe and their weakened government was the result of Imperialism. Why was China so feeble? Why did they let Europe and other nations such as France and Japan take advantage of them and control of areas of their country? Most likely, China underestimated Europe's newfound power, especially after the effects of the Industrial Revolution.