Tech & Civ Neolithic to Egyptian Exam:

What were some of the characteristics of paleolithic society?

Paleolithic Period:

1. What makes humans human? What is the importance of language,  symbols, and tool making and tool use in the emergence of human beings? 2. How have humans evolved as part of the natural world and how have  environmental changes affected human development?

3. How and why has culture allowed humans to adapt better to  environmental changes than other animals?

4. What were some of the characteristics of Paleolithic society? What gender  divisions were there, if any?

a. Paleolithic society was largely dominated by small communities of  families living in highly mobile bands. These communities were  large enough to defend themselves against predators and to hunt  and forage for food. Hunting and gathering was the method that  members of Paleolithic society were to survive. Gender roles were  very evident amongst communities in this time period. Men, with  their stronger arms, were expected to hunt for large animals to  provide the meat source to the Paleolithic diet. However, hunting  never guaranteeing a successful kill meant that women, especially  older ones whose reproductive era had ended, played a very vital  role as the gatherer. The bulk of a bands daily diet would come  from gathering wild food and vegetables. Therefore, women most  likely held a very respected role within Paleolithic society.  

How and why has culture allowed humans to adapt better to environmental changes than other animals?

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5. How do we know what we know about early humans?

6. What makes humans human and not like other primates?

7. How and why do humans use tools differently than apes?

8. What can cave art tell us about technology and culture in preliterate  societies?

9. What is the difference between "prehistory" and "history"? 10.What is the role of fire in the Paleolithic Age?

11.How and why have humans evolved as part of the natural world and how  and why have environmental changes affected human development?

Neolithic Period:

1. What are other terms that describe the Neolithic Era?

a. The “New Stone Age’ due to the combination of agriculture with

How have humans evolved as part of the natural world, how have environmental changes affected human development?

the use of stone tools and “The Neolithic Revolution” because of  the rise of agriculture.

b. There were separate revolutions around the world at the same  time.

2. What are some theories about why human communities abandoned  hunting and gathering and adopted the practices of agriculture and  pastoralism?

a. Some theories suggest that humans were drawn to food production  for a steady supply of it, while others believed people in the  Middle-East settled down in order to grown grain for beer.  However, experts believe that agriculture and pastoralism were a  product of climate change. Don't forget about the age old question of What does the thermodynamic variable mean?

b. Warmer climates made agriculture easier, arid soil turned to wet  and wet soil turned to arid. Climate change was not always in favor  of agriculture.

3. When and in what parts of the world did humans domesticate rice early  on?

a. Rice was first domesticated in the Tangzi valley of China around  10,000 B.C.E. and then spread to Southeast Asia and India by 3,000  B.C.E.

b. Including Western Africa.

4. How did the domestication of animals differ from the domestication of  plants?

a. Unlike the domestication of plants, with the domestication of  animals, the selection to fit human needs is less apparent. Most  animals were domesticated for their meat, but even then, animals  such as domestic dogs and cats were rarely consumed.

5. Why did hunting remain the main source of meat and humans the main  source of labor power in the Americas when in most parts of the world  animals were domesticated for their meat and used for hard labor?

a. Unlike other parts of the world where domestication was key to  labor and meat supply, there were not as many animal species that  were to be easily domesticated in the America’s. Thus, humans had  to remain the main source of labor and hunting the main source of  meat in that part of the world. If you want to learn more check out How are strands connected?

6. What is a matrilineal society?

a. A Matrilineal society is one in which lineage and social classification

is traced through the mother’s ancestry rather than the father’s. 7. What is remarkable about the statues of deities in the religious shrines  found in Çatal Hüyük?

a. The number of statues of female deities far outnumbered that of male ones. In addition, the female statues were very plump,  suggesting that the villagers worshipped a female god of fertility.

8. What new technologies were developed with the introduction of  agriculture?

a. New, specialized tools emerged, such as stone heads for working  the soil, mortars and sharp stone chips for cutting. New farming  techniques such as altering the production of crops and plant  domestication were also developed. If you want to learn more check out What is the meaning of population ecology?

b. Tools of this time period were easy to make yet hard to use, and  found everywhere.

c. Quern is one of the first stone tools, much like a mortar and pestle. 9. What metals were used in the Neolithic period and for what?  a. Copper and lead were the most commonly used metals, and due to  their rarity, were initially utilized to make decorative or ceremonial  objects.

b. These metals were mostly found in graves and used as decoration. 10.What social, religious, and political changes came about as a result of the  introduction of agriculture?

a. With the advent of agriculture, farmers began to displace foragers.  Their continuous supply of food gave them an advantage in  

population growth and higher survival rates. With more  

communities farming and less hunting and gathering, the first forms  specialization, such as metalworking, came about. Different types  of society’s reflected different types of religions. Gatherers  

worshipped sacred groves and springs, pastoralists worshipped the  sky-god who controlled migrations, and farming communities  centered on a life-bearing Earth Mother. Some large, densely  populated settlements, such as Çatal Hüyük Jericho, formed out of  agriculture. These settlements participated in long-distance trade,  craftsmanship, and most likely had an early form of government. Don't forget about the age old question of What is anton van leeuwenhoek's contribution to cell theory?

Short Answer Questions:

1. Why does Jared Diamond think that agriculture was the “worst mistake” If you want to learn more check out Functionalism theory is the theory of what?

humans made? Is he right or wrong?

∙ a. According to Jared Diamond, Agriculture was a profound catastrophe  with enormous consequences. With agriculture came disease, despotism,  and social and sexual inequality (Diamond, 28). Unlike hunters and  gatherers who enjoyed a nutritious, varied diet, farmers diet was  considerably poorer. A farmer’s diet consisted of “a few starchy crops”  (Diamond, 28) and led to a drastic decline in human health. With the  adoption of agriculture, the average height of men and women went from  5’9”/5’5” to 5’3”/5’, and an increase in enamel defects, malnutrition, and  anemia (Diamond, 29). In addition, the average lifespan decreased and  the average working time for farmers increased, leading to poor quality of  life and spinal defects indicative of hard labor. It was also found that  agriculture and the domestication of animals for agriculture, led to an  increase in disease. Chilean mummies from c. A.D. 1000 were found to  have bone lesions caused by disease (Diamond, 30). Despite all the  evidence, I disagree with the fact that agriculture was the “worst mistake  in the history of the human race”. I believe that early agriculture, which  was far less advanced and varied than today, did have these enormous  consequences. But, I think we have learned from our mistakes to make  agriculture what it is today. And, it is irrefutable that, without farming,  the current global population would be even close to what it is and the  world would be a very different place.  

2. What evidence does Diamond cite to make his argument? 3. What does Diamond’s article tell us about the idea of progress? 4. What does Diamond's article tell us about history?

Ancient Mesopotamia:

1. What characteristics do civilizations typically have?

Civilizations usually start in certain pockets of the world, their cities serve  as administrative centers, politics is based on territory not family lines,  have early forms or irrigation, class differentiation, record keeping,  advances in the arts and sciences and monumental building.

2. Where, when, and how did the first civilizations arise?

The first advanced civilizations arose in Mesopotamia and Egypt before  3000 B.C.E.  

3. How did the physical landscape affect Mesopotamian society? The rivers would often over flood their banks, watering the adjacent  fields. However, these floods could be violent and come at the wrong  time for agriculture. So irrigation was invented to help bring water to  settlements away from the river and prevent the effects on a society if  the river were to change course.

4. What was the social structure of Mesopotamian society?

Mesopotamian society was divided into three classes, the free  landowning class, which included royalty and high-ranking officials, the  class of dependent farmers and artisans, and the class of slaved. 5. What role did religion play in Mesopotamian society?

The Mesopotamians believed the gods to be anthropomorphic and  possess much of the same emotional traits as humans. Thus, the gods  were feared and were believed to be the source of natural disasters.  State-organized religion was formed and cities built temples to show  devotion to the gods.  

6. Name three technological achievements of Mesopotamians. Writing, ceramics, and the use of metallurgy to create bronze. 7. What did people use during the Neolithic revolutions for lighting after the  sun went down?

They used a type of oil map made from a fire-proof clay vessel filled with  oil with a wick sticking out of it. This allowed the wick to soak up the oil,  and thus stay lit.

8. What differentiated the Indus Valley civilization from Mesopotamian  civilization?

There was a greater supply of metal in the Indus River Valley than in  Mesopotamia, so metalworking was more common and most tools

produced were common, everyday objects. Whereas in Mesopotamia,  most metal objects were decorative in nature.

9. What can we derive from the design of cities in the Indus Valley? Both the major urban centers and smaller settlements exhibit uniformity  in technique and style. This indicates either strong central control of  extensive communication between different regions.

10.What explanation seems to be the most plausible for changes in the  environment of the Indus Valley?

One of more natural disasters, such as flooding or earthquakes. Gradual  ecological change may also have played a role as the Hakra river dried up  and salinization and erosion increased, causing shifts in the course of  rivers.

Short Answer Questions:

1. What makes pyramids and ziggurats remarkable?

Pyramids and Ziggurats were both massive structures that attested to the  values of the society which created them. What makes these structures so  remarkable is the sheer size of them. The completed Great Pyramid was  481 feet high, and almost 800 feet in length and width. A structure of this  size required an estimated labor force of 100,000 men (Saggs, 66).  Comparable to Pyramids were Ziggurats. Though their dimensions were  often not that of the pyramids, they were still massive in size and  required complex feats in Engineering the complete. The Hanging Gardens  of Babylon were built for a concubine of King Nebuchadnezzar who was  homesick from her mountainous homeland. It was built as an artificial  hillside and even had hidden machines for bringing water up from the  Euphrates and into the gardens itself (Saggs, 67). Another profound  example was the Tower of Babel, at the time the world’s tallest structure.  Although different in size and purpose from Pyramids, Ziggurats were  equally spectacular structures which dominated their cities (Saggs, 69). 2. What is similar and what is different between pyramids and ziggurats?

3. How were pyramids and ziggurats built?

4. What does the author of "Pyramids and Ziggurats" mean by this statement:  “Like all great building works, they were an assertion of the values of the  society which created them”?

Ancient Egypt:

1. How did geography and the environment affect Egyptian civilization,  culture, and religion?

∙ In Egypt, there were far more natural resources than there were in  Mesopotamia. In addition, the Niles floods were more readily controlled,  thus agriculture and civilization thrived on the banks of the river.  

∙ Trade between Egypt and other civilizations was limited for a long time,  so their religion was unique.

∙ The cyclical nature of their eco-system caused them to form a very cycle based religion.

2. How, when, and by whom were the pyramids built?

∙ The Pyramids were constructed by the Egyptian kings, Pharos, and were  built using limestone blocks, ropes & pulleys, and rollers between 2360  and 2550 B.C.E.

∙ Used almost unlimited human muscle power for construction. 3. How was the government and society of ancient Egypt structured?  ∙ The Egyptian administrative system began at the Village level, then to the  

districts and central government. There was no official class structure in  Egypt. At the top was royalty, the middle was lower-level priests, artisans  and officials, and at the bottom were peasants.

∙ Government controlled long-distance trade. There were also Merit-based  promotions for the first time in history.

4. How did Egypt change with the “New Kingdom”?

∙ The North came under the control of foreigners, there was economic and  political decline, the kingdom was eventually reunified and expanded, a  woman ruled the empire, and a new capital was built.

∙ Many new and progressive rulers, such as Ramesses II.  

5. What are some of Ancient Egyptian’s advances in technology and what we  might call science today?

∙ Mummification (Human Sciences), Engineering, Astrology, and  Mathematics.

∙ Simple machines were developed, ropes, pulleys, ect.

6. Why did Egyptians mummify dead bodies and what did they learn from  mummification?

∙ Egyptians mummified bodies because it was believed that once the spirit  reached the after-life, the state of the body would reflect the state of the  spirit. From mummification, the ancient Egyptians learned about human  anatomy.

∙ Many material items were placed with the body in case they were needed  in the after-life.

7. In what ways did ancient Egypt differ from Mesopotamia? ∙ Unlike, Mesopotamia, Egypt has far more natural resources and its river  flooded at the right time for grain agriculture. Mesopotamia was much  more urban than Egypt, where the majority of the population lived in  rural villages. And, unlike Mesopotamia, cities were governed by a central  federal authority, the Pharaoh.

∙ Ancient Egypt was not invaded as often as Mesopotamia. 8. What was the importance of writing to Egyptian society?  ∙ Literacy was a hallmark of the Egyptian administrative class, and writing  

was used mainly for administrative record keeping. In addition, Egyptian  writing included tales of adventure, religious hymns, poetry and  instructional manuals.

9. Why was Nubia important for Africa and the Mediterranean? ∙ For thousands of years, Nubia served as a corridor of trade between  tropical Africa and the Mediterranean. Nubia was rich with natural  resources such as gold, copper and semiprecious stones.

10.What was the relationship between Egypt and Nubia? How did it change  over time?

∙ Nubia was used as a resource and trade corridor. Where gold and other  luxuries from the tropics were shipped up river through the land of Nubia.  Over time, Egypt took a more aggressive stance towards Nubia, as it set  up forts along the 2nd Cataract to help regulate trade and cut out the  price-driving middleman.

11. What do you find interesting about ancient Egypt and what would you like  to learn more about?

∙ Northern Egypt was called the lower valley and vice-versa. ∙ Pharaohs were treated as gods.

∙ What was city life like?

∙ We want to know more about the pyramids.

Quiz Map:

This is a detailed geographical map of the blank one Professor Laney posted on  Canvas. She said there will be about MAJOR locations to label. I would know  where the rivers are, location of the major civilizations and cities, ect.