Diana+K.

Hi guys! Welcome to my page :) I'm Diana from Riverglen Junior High and a sophomore here at Boise.

Hope you'll have fun in AP World!

Unit 4 Primary Source- __**The Last Tsar**__

Above is the image of the last tsar, Nicholas II of Russia, and his family. Born on the 18th of May, 1868 to Alexander III and Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia, Nicholas II began his rule as the last Emperor of Russia at the age of 26 until his death on July 17, 1918, when he and his family were brutally shot to death in a basement in the middle of the night. Unprepared to take the title of Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of all the Russias, Nicholas II watched as his reign initiated with Russia being one of the world's most atrocious powers, to economic and military collapse. The Tsar's reign was strongly resisted. During his reign, several rebellions broke out. His reaction to several of these rebellions gave him the title of Bloody Nicholas due to the Khodynka Tragedy (Human stampede--some 1,389 people died from this), the anti-Semitic programs, Bloody Sunday, his violent suppression of the 1905 rebellion, and his decision to execute any potential political opponents.

Although suppressed political rebellions and opponents, in the people's eyes, when Nicholas II went onto the battle field, he was no better of a leader. Russia suffered a humiliating loss during the Russo-Japan war. Including the total annihilation of the Russian Baltic fleet by the Japanese at the Battle of Tsushima. Unfortunately for him, Nicholas entered the battle field confident that the upcoming war would bring Russia a new sense of morale and nationalism. Even after Russia's many defeats, the last tsar still believed that Russia was capable of a final victory. In August of 1914, as head of state, Nicholas II approved Russian military mobilization which marked the entry of Russia into WWI, which led to the deaths of 3.3 million Russians due to Russia's lack of proper military artillery and coordination. It is believed that several policies oversaw by Tsar Nicholas II and his incompetence to lead Russia's military are key aspects that brought the Romanov Dynasty to its knees. Upon assassination, the Tsar's net worth came to $900 million (equivalent to $13.7 Billion in 2012 US dollars). Even so, the Tsar and his family were posthumously recognized as martyred saints by the Russian Orthodox Church outside of Russia.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_II_of_Russia

http://www.penn.museum/cgi/cuneiform.cgi--- you can write your name in Cuneiform at this link. My favorite character of the School of Athens is Hypatia. I chose Hypatia as my favorite character for a number of different reasons. One reason being that she is a well-known female figure known for her outstanding achievements in mathematics. Thus, she overturns any typical gender-oriented stereotype that men were typically more educated than women. She looks very serene in the painting, giving a sense of peace to the whole scene of chaos. Even though Hypatia does look serene compared to the overwhelming sense of chaos around her, she seems to perfectly fit in, which gave me the feeling that she was probably very calm and mellow compared to the wild men around her. Hypatia was the head of the Platonist school at Alexandria, where she also taught philosophy and astronomy. There, she bestowed the knowledge of Plato and Aristotle to all her students. She participated in the School of Athens as a third century thinker Plotinus, taking part in the traditional aspect of the mathematical classification in the School of Athens. After being accused of aggravating a conflict between two well-known figures in Alexandria; the governor Orestes, and the Bishop of Alexandria, Hypatia was ultimately murdered by an angered Christian mob. However, not all Christians despised her, some Christians even used her as a symbol of virtue. If I were to put another character in the School of Athens, I think I would put in would be Empress Wu from the Tang Dynasty due to the fact that she was a very influential female character as well. She was the only female in Chinese history to rule solely as emperor. By thirteen years of age, Empress Wu was known for her wit, intelligence, and beauty. Great suggestion and write up. Nice job. -SW

Primary Source: Tenochtitlan- "The Venice"

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Founded in 1325, Tenochtitlan, the floating Aztec city state is considered one of the greatest and most well-structured city of all time. Tenochtitlan became the capital of the expanding Mexica Empire in the 15th century, and at its peak, became the largest city in the Pre-Columbian Americas. Located on the Lake of Texcoco, the floating city had a stunning population of 250,000 people, which was two times more than that of London and Rome combined.

The constructors of Tenochtitlan made use of the city's unlikely location. They built Chinapas or self-irrigating gardens. The entire city took up this system, and had its own irrigation system with canals giving the city of Tenochtitlan the nickname "Venice". "The Venice" was held up by a grid-like bed of reeds perched on top of poles. Due to the brackish waters of Lake Texcoco, the mud at the base of the Lake made a sturdy surface as to which the poles were implanted.

Although Tenochtitlan was the largest city in the world, it doesn't exist today. Previously overtaken by the Spanish in 1521, The ruins lie in the central part of modern-day Mexico city.

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Hey Diana, I think that Tenochtitlan must have been such an amazing city. It was practically floating in the middle of a lake! The ruler must have had to exercise tons of power to organized such a project. Are their many ruins of Tenochtitlan left? It seems as though they would mostly be gone. -LM

Primary Source: Taj Mahal- Indian Architecture



The Taj Mahal: India's most famous work of Architecture located in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. The palace is made of white marble that the Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan, built to honor his favorite and most beautiful wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died of giving birth to their 14th child, Gauhara Begum. ‍The Mausoleum itself was completed in 1648‍ (where Mumtaz Mahal's body now rests), and the construction of the surrounding buildings and garden were completed five years later.. The mausoleum is widely recognized as "T he jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage". The Taj Mahal gains its popularity by being an exemplary definition of Mughal Architecture; where the Indian Architecture and Persian Architecture styles are combined to make a stunning masterpiece such as this one.

The word Taj Mahal is originally Persian, meaning the crown place. In 1983, almost 4 centuries after the construction of the work of art had been completed, the Taj Mahal became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It struck the world as such a beauty, that there have been numerous replicas around the world. Located only 10 miles east of the Bangladeshi capital, you will find Bangladesh's attempt to replicate this structure. Literally translated as; "Tomb of the Lady", you will find a striking resemblance to the Taj Mahal in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. And last but never the least, the Trump Taj Mahal. Located at 1000 Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey, US along the shore. Now, while this may not be a close twin to the famous architecture, the casino in New Jersey has replicated the famous dome structure of the building and has the Taj Mahal, Indian theme on the interior.

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Why Do Indians Worship the cow? The rumor that all the Indians worship the cow (//go)// is not necessarily true. The Hinduism religion believes that cows should be respected as a source of food and thus, is forbidden to be killed (Aghanya- that which may not be slaughtered). Although the Hindu religion believes as such, Hindus themselves do not worship the cow; neither do cows have a sacred life in India. Instead of being respected as a sacred item in India, the cow is respected as more of a cultural aspect than anything else. In antediluvian India, large animals such as oxen and bull were offered to the gods as a sacrifice, and the plentiful meat was eaten. Although meat eating back then was allowed, the slaughter of milk producing cows was not.



The cow was a symbol of wealth and surplus during those days. The Indians also worshiped the cow because they claimed that the cow gave more than took. Cows were used for a number of different things such as; dairy, plowing the fields, and their dung was used for fuel or compost. The cows had a similar status as money/gold has today. Today, cows are used in many Hindu Pujas (the act of showing reverence to a god/spirit) and the drinking of the cow’s urine is considered to bring you good luck.



__Sources Cited:__ @http://www.religionfacts.com/hinduism/things/cow.htm

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