Laura+M.

Hi :) I'm Laura. Here's my page, enjoy!

=**Unit 4 Primary Source: The Stolen Generations**=

[] The Stolen Generations were the children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were removed from their families by the Australian Federal and State government agencies and church missions. The removals occurred in the period between approximately 1909 and 1969, although in some places children were still being taken until the 1970s. Documentary evidence, such as newspaper articles, reports, and interviews like the one above, to parliamentary committees, suggest a range of rationales. Motivations evident include child protection, beliefs that given their catastrophic population decline after white contact that Aboriginal people would die out, and a fear of miscegenation by full-blooded Aboriginal people.

Above is a photo of some aboriginal children, most likely half-castes, that were taken from their families and sent to a facility designed to helpthese children get jobs. The jobs, would most likely be house maid and waiter jobs in which they would be mistreated greatly. Here they would also learn the ways of Christianity and the English language, stripping them of their culture.

A study indicated that Aboriginal people were less likely to have completed a secondary level of education, three times as likely to have acquired a police record and were twice as likely to use illicit drugs. It has been discovered now that the social and pyschological implications from being taken away from their families at such a young age has caused many issues. Some of these include not being able to raise their own families, social and behavioral issues, and alcoholism or drug abuse tendencies.

**Unit 3 Primary Source: Voltaire**

François-Marie Arouet was born on the 21st November 1694 and died on the 30th May 1778, and is known by most as his pen name, Volatire. Volatire was French Enlightenment writer, philosopher, and historian, was famous for his attacks on the Catholic Church, for preaching freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and the separation of the church and the state, and his wit. He wrote plays, novels, poems, essays, and historical and scientific works, as well as writing more than 20,000 letters and 2,000 books and pamphlets. He became fluent in Greek, Latin, Italian, Spanish, and English. Despite his father wanting him to become a lawyer, Voltaire knew he wanted to be a writer by the time he left school. After multiple imprisonments and exiles, he managed to get himself exiled to Britain where he became fascinated with their relative freedom of speech and constitutional monarchy, as opposed to the absolute monarchy in France. He believed the French Bourgeoisie to be too small and ineffective, the aristocracy to be corrupt, the commoners to be ignorant, the Church to be oppressive, and he distrusted democracy. He has been quoted to say "it is better to have one lion, than one hundred rats" showing that he believed as long as there was an enlightened monarch with ideas of social reform and of improving illiteracy rates, society would be fine.



Voltaire is known as a defender of religious freedom and tolerance, free trade, civil liberties, and social reform. He fought against the limitations of censorship, religious dogma, in tolerance, and other institutions of his time. He is one of the greatest names, alongside Montesquieu, Locke, and Rousseau of the French Enlightenment and his works and ideas influenced both the French and American Revolutions.His ideas of religious tolerance, freedom of speech, and right to a speedy trial helped make up the US Constitution in that many of the Founding Fathers were influenced by Voltaire.


 * This is really interesting, he has a lot of influence. Do you think he would have come up with some of his ideas if he hadn't been exiled to Britain and seen their political structure? SM**

=School of Athens: Diogenes of Sinope=



As number 16 on the full view School of Athens painting by Raphael, Diogenes of Sinope lounges casually. I chose Diogenes because of his outspoken and eccentric personality, which are not traits I would use to describe a philosopher. Diogenes, also known as Diogenes of Cynic, was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynic philosophy. He was born in Sinope, modern-day Sinop, Turkey, an Ionian colony on the Black Sea. In 412 or 404 BCE and died at Corinth in 323 BCE. While not much is known about his childhood, his father, Hicesias, was a banker. At some point, the exact date is unknown, Diogenes and Hicesias were caught debasing the currency and Diogenes was exiled from the city. He then moved to Athens and modeled himself on the example of Hercules. He believed that virtue was better shown in action rather than theory and he used his simply lifestyle to criticize the behavior and social values of what he saw as a corrupt society. He became notorious for his philosophical stunts, like carrying a lamp in the daytime claiming to be looking for an honest man. He embarrassed Plato, disputed his interpretation of Socrates and sabotaged his lectures. He was also responsible for publicly mocking Alexander the Great. I chose Diogenes because he believed so passionately that his ways were right, that the society was corrupt and that action proved more worthy than theory. He adds a little character to the idea and general traits of most philosophers. Good reasons for choosing him....he's the man. -SW

Diogenes connects to the Renaissance because he was a Greek philosopher and the Renaissance was all about reviving Greek and Roman texts and ideas. He also had a largely different personality than to most typical philosophers because of his blatant honesty and openness, which set him apart from the rest and the Renaissance was also about turning typical European society into a new vibrant one.



Another person who should have been included in The School of Athens is Confucius because of his great influence of both philosophy and religion within most of Asia and some parts of Europe. He created a philosophy that structured China, and spread to other places, but that provided order and also defined the relations between people and the importance of them.

=Primary Source Unit 2: Chinampas, The Floating Garden=

[|http://www.history.com/videos/aztec-ingenuity#aztec-ingenuity] - Here's an interesting video on chinampas.

The word chinampa actually means "square made from canes". Chimampas are an ancient Mesoamerican method of agriculture that used a rectangular are of fertile land to grow crops on the shallow lake beds in the Valley of Mexico. Sometimes referred to as floating gardens, chinampas were fake or man-made islands that usually measured from 300x15ft and 300x30ft in Tenochtitlan, but often had measurements in other places. There were created by digging out the shallow area and then fencing he rectangle using wattle, or woven wooden strips. The area was then layered with mud, lake sediment, and decaying vegetation which eventually brought it above the level of the lake. Often willow or cypress trees were planted at the corners to secure the chinampa. Between each chinampa was a channel wide enough for a canoe to fit through. Each chinampa also had high crop yields, carrying up to seven crops each year.



The earliest recorded chinampas date back to the Middle Postclassic Period from about 1150 - 1350 CE. Not only did Aztecs conduct military campaigns to obtain control of shoreline regions perfect for these fields, but they also, according to some researchers, undertook significant state-led efforts to increase their extent. During the Spanish conquest of Mexico in which dams and water channel gates were destroyed, many chinampas were abandoned. Crops that were grown on the chinampas include maize, beans, squash, amaranth, tomatoes, chili peppers, and flowers. It is said that the food grown on chinampas made up one half to two-thirds of the total food consumed by the people of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital. Even though the Mesoamericans were considered to be a primitive people, such innovations, like the chinampa, provide evidence that they may have even exceeded the European civilizations of that time. This is mainly because the chinampa was self-irrigated with a high food production.

[|http://www.history.com/videos/aztec-ingenuity#aztec-ingenuity] []
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=**Primary Source Unit 1: The Code of Hammurabi**=



The Code of Hammurabi was written and enacted through the Babylonian Empire. It was written by the sixth king, Hammurabi dating back to approximately 1772 B.C.E. This is one of the oldest deciphered pieces of writing, as well as one of the first set of laws to be recorded. It also the longest surviving text from the old Babylonian period. There is only one almost complete example of the Code that has survived to this day. It looks like a huge index finger, about 2.25 meters or 7.4 feet tall. This specific example is carved in the Akkadian language using cuneiform script.

The Code consists of 44 columns with 28 paragraphs all adding up to 242 laws. These laws were mostly about establishing contracts, transfers, and other legalities including liabilities and payments. One third of the Code addresses issues such as those of household and family relationships as well as social and sexual behaviors. Only one provision defines and imposes the obligations of an official or person of authority.

The Code of Hammurabi is seen to be an early example of a fundamental law regulating a government, ‍almost like a primitive constitution‍. It also one of the earliest exmples of the presumption of innocence. The Code has led other civilizations and societies to a government regulated by law, constitutions, the presumption of innocence, as well as the concept of "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth". This Code has enforced equality, justice, and law-abiding citizens. Without this code, we may not have the same governmental, or social systems we have today.



= = =**Class Starter: Corvus**=

Corvus refers to a Roman military boarding device used in naval warfare. It was used during the First Punic War against Carthage. There was a large bird beak shaped spike on the underside of it. This was used to pierce the deck of another ship and created a stable and strong grip between the ships, allowing men to cross over. It was operated by a series of pulley systems and rope, allowing men to drop and raise the Corvus when needed. Even though Romans were better at land battles, they defeated Carthage due to this technological advance. This was because it mimicked land battles in the way it allowed men to fight hands on in both their own ship and their opponents. However the ship was useless in rough seas because it destroyed the structures of both ships. It was soon abandoned after two whole fleets were lost at sea.



During the First Punic War against Carthage from 264-241 BCE, Hannibal was the lead general of the Carthaginians while Gauis Dullius was the consl of the Romans. This was when Dullius won his first battle in 260 at Mylae. When Hannibal spotted the Romans he went to see with a 130 sail and were expecting an easy win. When they first saw the Corvus attached to each ship, they didn't think anything of it. However, as soon as the Roman ships came into close proximity they dropped each Corvus and began boarding the Carthaginian ships. This allowed the Romans to fight the same as they would in a land battle, and consequently giving them the upper hand in an "easy win". Many Carthaginian crew members were either killed or surrendered by the surprising turn in events. The first 30 ships were taken along with their crew, including Hannibal's ship. However, he managed to escape on the dingy boat. Other boats attempted to approach from other angles but were still being attacked by the Corvus. The Carthaginians finally gave up and turned to flee leaving behind victorious Rome. Carthage lost 50 boats in the First Punic War.



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