How do natural features such as rivers, lakes and mountains unite people or keep them isolated from each other?

The Nile river is important to the Ancient Egyptians because it kept them alive and developed their knowledge. They depended on it for food, water, transportation and much more. They even thought of it as a kind of god. It flooded once every year, creating fertile soil for growing crops.

The Nile river is important to the ancient Egyptians because it kept them alive and it gave the Egyptian water to drink. It is also grew the material made to make papyrus. Another way that the Nile River is useful is that it floods usually, this helps them because then it can fertilize the Egyptians crops. The Nile River provided rich farmland. It provided water for crops, a way of transportation, water to drink, water to bathe in, and many other useful things. It also gave them protection form the other side of the Nile.

The Nile was one of the main factors in the ancient Egyptians' lives, although it was not very safe for the people living next to the Nile. Once per year, the Nile would flood. When the Nile wouldn't flood enough the farmlands would become useless the crops would not grow and people wouldn't have food; and if the Nile would flood too much the water would scoop away a lot; for example some of the crops would get washed away and the people that lived near it would drown. Once these problems occurred, the people would meet up and try to think of decisions. One of the major decisions they made, was to make the calender, with the same amount of days as there are now, and in that calender were 3 seasons, to see when it would flood, and when their crops would grow. That is when that led to the worlds' first Nation-State.

Mummies

Words Unknown to Me:
Cryonics: Is the freezing of the body just after they die. This is done to prevent the decomposing of the body.
Cadavers: Is a dead body used as a research for science.

What is a mummy?

A mummy is a corpse whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness, or ancient Egyptian embalming.

1)In what part of the world have mummies been found in? Mummies have been found in Europe, Asia, and in lots of places in Africa.

2) In what types of places have mummies been found? Mummies are usually found in really dry or hot climates, ice regions, or what used to be bogs. All of these places are helpful because it will preserve the body so it doesn't decompose.

3) How did ancient Egyptian preserve their dead? The ancient Egyptians removed all of the bodies inner organs. They used many salts and oils to dry out the skin and other parts of the body. The carcass was then stuffed and wrapped and preserved in linen.

4. Why do you think ancient Egyptians took such care to embalm their dead if the desert could do the job for them?
The Egyptians believed in afterlife. People would draw what they wanted on their tombs to present what they were aiming in their afterlife. As you might know, the Egyptians tombs were robbed, not only because the ancient Egyptians placed food on their tombs but also different symbolic objects that they wanted in there after life.

5) what features of a natural environment can caused bodies to be mummified? If a climate is extremely dry or very cold, this can cause the body to freeze or dry out so that they are preserved and have a much less likely chance of decomposing.

6. According to current scientific beliefs, what are some reasons people were intentionally mummified?
Most of the mummies have been used as a sacrifice to god. Many of the mummies that have been found that were sacrificed to the gods by the symbols they had and in which coffins they were found in. But other times the ancient people wanted the bodies because they believed in afterlife, and sometimes the archaeologists think that the bodies were killed in a war, and were somehow important to the people.

Relationship between mummies and their environment

1. What is the relationship between mummification and the natural environment? Provide specific examples from what you read during the previous lesson.

The natural environment enables mummification. For example, it is impossible for a corpse to be mummified in a tropical rain forest. However, with hot climates like what the Ancient Egyptians had, mummifying would be easier and a common thing to do. You could also mummify someone in a very cold climate, such as the Andes mountains in Chile. These natural environments could preserve bodies naturally.

What are the reasons mummies are made? Mummies are made for a lot of reasons. They are thought to be a way to give people an eternal life. If you lost a loved a loved one, it would be a lot more comforting to know that they are not going anywhere and that by mummifying them you are preserving their sole. Also, people were really fascinated with the idea of an afterlife. They wanted to preserve the bodies so that they had a chance at another good life in the afterlife. Although, not all mummification were not an act of love. In places like England there have been sightings of mummies that had been exicuted and their bodys had been thrown in the bog. Some still had ropes tied around their necks. There have also been frozen bodies found on the ops of mountains that would have probably been sacrificed.

First Empire project

This is a poster Blaise, Marko, and I have made for our first empire project. We studied the Phoenicians and made a play and the poster (above).

End of Unit Reflection

a) The domestication of Plants and Animals

What was one of the biggest steps in the growth of civilization? Definitely the domestication of plants and animals. It gave us humans a way to educate ourselves how to master the environment whom was surrounding our ancestors. Once they determined how to achieve this, they acquired an established food supply, usually possessing extra. Because people didn't have to work as hard to find food, they had time for specialization and division of labor.

b) The transition from hunter-gatherer communities to the first civilizations
Hunter-gatherers didn't have very secure ways of living. They followed the food, instead of making the food follow them. The transition to civilizations was easier and more comfortable. This way they had time to pursue other interests, they always had stable food supplies, and life became more predictable.

c)

Many different civilizations had their own perspective about whom or what they worshiped. Some cultures were polytheism which meant they believed in more than God. This then led to the subject of social classes, this started off with the priests. Many times they sacrificed people and animals to please the Gods.

2. Imagine someone saying to you, "Learning about the Sumerians isn't very
important since they're long gone!" What would you tell them in order to change their mind? Learning about the first ever civilization is important so that we can learn about how we began to settle and survive the world around us. History is like a big puzzle, and only once we find all of the pieces can we truly see the whole picture. Sumerians seemed to be the first real smart people who actually thought for themselves.

Why was Catal Huyuk an important archeological find?

Catal Huyuk was one of the biggest settlements in the world at that time. And by studying it archeologists could find out a lot about the life of earlier humans in one of the first big settlements in the world what there living standards were like and how an average person lived. Through this one city historians and archeologists already found out that the people of Catal Huyuk mostly farmed, they also know the people traded there surplus and made hunting weapons and tools out of obsidian. Catal Huyuk was different than we would think of it there were no roads but everybody walked on each others roof you entered the house through the hole on the roof, to historians and archeologists revealed a lot about the peoples culture and thinking. Catal Huyuk is also very important because through out this we can see how most of the people in this region lived and worked and what the design was of most nearby settlements.

From earliest times, people have changed their environments. How have people today changed their environment. Discuss both the good and the bad.

From the beginning of time, people have always been eager to upgrade and change their way of life. This could be anything from the material of the basket they store food in to the color on their kitchen walls. While we are eager to change, the impacts of our upgrades have in many ways changed our planet and the environment. Although the upgrades have made life much simpler, it has taken a huge toll on the planet.

Although some of the changes we make have killed off some of our environment, not all of it is bad. From an early time people have discovered that when you grow crops, some of the seeds will naturally fall off and re-plant itself. People then knew to leave some of their crops during the harvest so that when the seeds fall, they can depend on those instead of killing more crops. Another great change is that people have discovered natural fertilizers to keep soil healthy for years and years. They can use the same fields instead of re-plowing off new land every year and killing all of the natural plants. early civilizations also molded their houses out of dry clay of mud instead of cutting down trees as timber for houses or killing animals to use the skin as tents.

Although not everything we do kills the planet, the way we are living today is destroying out environment. People use to live in small houses made of dry mud or clay. Today we made larger houses using valuble timber. Another change we have made for the worst is our food industry. We no longer take only what we need, but we buy in massive and un-natural amounts. In order to keep up with our many demands, the food industry is genetically enhancing our food to that it grows, lays, milks, ect. twice as fast and twice as much. This has also caused and unnatural increase in cow population. We bread so many cows for hamburgers that they are now the worlds second most populated animal. One last change that humans have made for the worst is our need for spaces. As people decided that everyone should have a house with a yard and a fence to block everyone out, cities expanded. As the cities expanded we developed ways to get around more conveniently. Cars, plains, and other forms of transportation have taken a huge tool on the environment. The wast we are making is getting so bad that we are developing holes in our ozone. Although the changes make life more efficient for us it is taking its toll on the environment.

We have come up with many changes that have taken their toll on the environment. Although not all the changes we make are bad, there are still enough un- earth friendly changes that soon the entire face of the earth could change. As we move on through history, we will continue to make changes, hopefully in the future they will be more environmentally friendly.

Unit 2 Reflection

1. Describe how you prepared/studied for the unit test.

a. Do you think your studying strategies were effective-why not?

I think my studying strategies were both effective and noneffective. That is because I didn't get a great grade, nor did i get a bad grade, meaning my studying strategies need some improvement. How I studies was i read my notes, and copied all the important things onto another piece of paper.

b. how will you prepare next time?

Well, next time what I will do is the same like this time, but also to quiz with my friends, meaning I take all the important details and facts and write them on another piece of paper, and then, quiz my friends, and make them quiz me.

2. What was the most surprising thing you learned about during this unit?

The most surprising thing to me was how there were so many types of humans! I never thought there were so many types of humans, in fact what i though was that the same type of humans (Homo Sapiens) was there only, and that over time we just advanced.

3. If we had more time to spend on Prehistory and early humans- what would u want to learn more about?

If we had more time, I would like to learn about religious history and when those religious things happened. After beginning this unit I always had this question at the back of my head 'If there were so many types of humans, when did the religious things I always hear about happen?' I would love to be able to learn about that, or just have a short class about it.