The Neolithic revolution Essay Example for Free

The Neolithic revolution Essay The Neolithic revolution is often cited as the start of civilization. Here we see the end of the hunter-gatherer stage. Man has started farming and keeping livestock. It was the need of the Ice Age and thus, food was more available. The need to travel far distances for food came to an end. Groups started living in the same place all year round. People started to build permanent dwellings. This is important not only to western civilization but to all of us as a whole. The Neolithic revolution laid the groundwork for towns and cities. It fostered population growth and the need for an organized body to govern these settlements (Mithen, 2003, p55). What we now know as the Fertile Crescent was once occupied by the Sumerians thousands of years ago. At 4000 BCE, Sumerians lived in Mesopotamia. They built irrigation for their crops and great walled-in cities. Perhaps the greatest contribution of the Sumerians to early Western civilization was their system of writing and counting. It was the Sumerians who widely used the base ten for counting (Kramer, 1971, p25). Something that is still in use today. When we picture Pharaohs, we almost automatically see pyramids and the Nile. The Pharaohs were considered heads of government and the high priest of every temple. They were also considered half god and half man. Pharaohs are one of the earliest examples of a continuing monarchy as well as absolute rule. Their greatest contribution to civilization is their bureaucracy (Dowling. October 23, 2004. Mr. Dowlings Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt page,. http://www. mrdowling. com/604-pharaoh. html. 24 February 2008) A Greek city-state is called a Polis. These were independent cities with their own laws and rulers. Greeks pride themselves as being the only people who practiced democracy. It is said that the greatest innovation of the Greeks was the creation of the Polis. Democratic government required the creation of another foundation of modern civilization. And this was the determination of citizenship. Only citizens could participate in democratic exercises. Much of what the Greeks have instituted is still in practice today. (Hines, 1996, p. 156) The three early civilizations; Sumerian, Egyptian and Assyrian civilizations had much in common. First, these three civilizations each had a way of writing and counting. Second, all three were polytheistic (worshipped more than one god). Lastly, these civilizations thrived because they had a stable system of food production and were located near a body of water. The Sumerians used a system of writing called cuneiform. They used a sharp writing instrument called a stylus. The Egyptians used a set of â€Å"picture words† called hieroglyphics. The Assyrians used the Akkadian language, a branch of Semitic language. This was also written a form of cuneiform script (Ascalone, 2007, pp. 55, 90, 127) All three were polytheistic. The Sumerians worshipped various gods whom governed their daily lives. Like the Sumerians, the Egyptians viewed their gods as immortals with mortal attitudes. The Assyrians worshipped gods which they inherited from earlier civilizations (such as the Hittites and the Sumerians) (Simpson, 1971, p. 35) Lastly, the Egyptians thrived near the Nile River. The Sumerians and the Assyrians both thrived in the Mesopotamia, an area between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates. These civilizations benefitted greatly from being near a source of food and irrigation. All three differ at two points. First, are their ideas of an afterlife. And secondly, is their view on the absolute rule of monarchy. Sumerians believed that after death, there was no hope of being happy at all. In contrast, the Egyptians saw the afterlife as a joyous and abundant time for all. The Assyrians, owing to their ferocity and power did not stress the importance of an afterlife. Event though they did share the Sumerians’ beliefs. (Kramer, 1983, pp. 15, 68, 88) The Egyptians believed that their Pharaohs were half deity. In contrast, the Sumerians had different city states and were ruled by governors, kings and priests. The Assyrians had â€Å"merchant colonies† which also served as cities (Schomp, 2005, pp 74, 36, 11).

Spanish-American War :: essays research papers

The cause of the Spanish-American War relates directly to Cuba, and the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine. In 1895, Cuba was extremely governmentally disorganized, and was beginning to rise against Spain. The Cuban’s soon adopted a conception that the more damage that they did to the Cuban mainland, the faster the Spaniards would leave Cuba, and the Americans would help the Cubans to win their independence. The Americans soon came to Cuba, in an attempt to assist the Cubans in their fight for freedom. The Spanish intervention with Cuba threatened the trade routes that America had near, and with Cuba. By helping Cuba, America would be vastly saving itself economically because these routes were highly valuable. During this time you must remember that the United States had a new, powerful Navy, and they were anxious to show their power off to the rest of the world. Cuba served as the perfect stage to put on a show. When Spanish General Weyler arrived, he controlled the rebellion in Cuba by herding the Cuban citizens into enclosed concentration camps. They were detained under very unsanitary and inhumane conditions. Many of them died. This treatment of the Cuban people by the Spanish angered the American public, and they demanded that war be declared against Spain. The American people were clearly disgusted by the way the Spaniards treated the Cubans. Why wouldn’t they be? The Spaniards treated them like scum. They were livid; the Americans wanted the government to take action against the Spaniards for the actions they took against the Cubans. Both Presidents Cleveland and McKinley tried to keep America out of war. In 1896, Congress overwhelmingly passed a resolution that called for President Cleveland to review the impending situation in Cuba. The anti-imperialist Cleveland refused to do anything. But, on February 15, 1898, the American battleship U.S.S. Maine anchored in Havana Harbor exploded. Two hundred and sixty of the American crewmen were killed. On April 11, 1898 President McKinley went to Congress and asked for American troops to stop the war. Congress agreed and on April 25 the U. S. declared war on Spain. In McKinley’s declaration of war against Spain, he stated "For the recognition of the independence of the people of Cuba, demanding that the Government of Spain relinquish its authority and Government in the island of Cuba, and to withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters, and directing the President of the United States to use the land and naval forces of the United States to carry these resolutions into effect.

Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission

This proposal provides insights on the challenges that the Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission, the agency that assists in the administration of policies and programs that enable students learning in the United States (US) to meet their needs pertaining to education and culture, and mediates between educational institutions in the US and the other branches based in Saudi as well as the predicament that Saudi students studying in the US under the Saudi government’s sponsorship are facing, which the researcher deems to be primarily.A consequence of the agency’s failure to provide adequate solutions and the resulting students’ powerlessness to raise their concerns to appropriate authorities.An intensive literature review on materials that reflect the interdependence of the Arabian cultural mission and the Saudi students it serves in the United States was conducted to gather pertinent information for this study. Information gathered revealed that the major concerns of the students namely:1) inadequacy in language proficiency due to inappropriate language education curriculum;2) cultural discrimination resulting to isolation and formation of cliques;3) delay in defraying school fees resulting to a number of late registration and, in austere cases, to students having to drop off from school;4) the agency’s reluctance in assisting students to acquire relevant immigration documents; and5) the existing inappropriate matching system that determines students’ eligibility to be accepted to certain courses they intend to apply for are primarily caused by the agency’s current programs’ inadequacy to respond to the needs of their clientele.Recommendations presented propose reasonable modifications to the existing practices carried on by the agency which if ever adopted are deemed to improve the current state of interdependency between the cultural mission and the Saudi students studying under the government sponsorship in the United States.

How America Became Obese - 873 Words

One thing that the world’s health experts and leaders can agree upon is that obesity is a major health problem in our modern era. Obesity is not only an aesthetic concern, there are also serious medical conditions associated with obesity such as diabetes type 2, heart disease, increased blood pressure, and increased cholesterol. In America alone, over 300,000 people die every year with obesity related health problems. (Sharma) That being said, worldwide there is little agreement about what is a safe BMI (Body Mass Index) to avoid the complications of obesity. Worldwide over the last twenty years there have been many research studies into the causes of obesity. While many correlational links have been found, it is safe to say that obesity is a complex multi-faceted problem. Researchers have found a relationship between fetal malnutrition and later in life obesity, as well as a relationship between the thrifty genotype and inability to lose weight. Both of these correlations to obesity are thing that an individual has no real control of so they will not be examined in this essay. Relationships have also been found between increased caloric intake, decreased physical activity, and sleep deprivation with obesity, which are all things we can control so they will be discussed in this essay. Increased caloric intake is a problem throughout America as well as the rest of the world. As new and cheaper methods to sweeten food have been developed, such as corn syrup make it easy andShow MoreRelatedObesity And Its Effects On Obesity1637 Words   |  7 PagesMany people wonder how destructive can effects of obesity be. First of all what is an obesity? Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual s ideal body weight. It is a very serious problem and is becoming very dangerous in today’s world. Obesity is now considered to be the second most preventable death in America, with tobacco being the first. 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