Blog Number 6# Chapters 16, 17 and 18 Chapter 16 was refreshing to read in that it was for sure a time of change but, the change came from the people looking for something better. I like to see how as the world evolved so did the people meaning that the people became more educated and demanded better conditions for their livelihood. This showed that the indigenous people wanted to maintain their own way of life and their own cultures. This is demonstrated through the American, French and Haitian revolutions. This also helped in the abolition of slavery throughout the world, or at least the movement in that direction. As well this assisted in the beginning stages of the feminist movement in the Americas and Europe. This also seemed to mark the time in Europe where militaries were beginning to act on behalf of their own nations. Chapter 17 was to the most important stage of world history, the industrial revolution helped pave the way for where we are today and without it we would have been in the dark ages for who knows how long. With the rising population it was imperative from a resource perspective that the world need to adjust and be one step ahead of the game which is where science and technology came to the fore front. One thing that I was not aware of was how much the railroads played such an integral part of the industrial revolution within Great Britain, I guess I never really thought about it but with the size of Britain it makes sense. It is also interesting to see during this time how many Europeans began to spread throughout the world. Once again I found it very interesting to see how different these industrial revolutions were from one region to another but how they were all occurring at the same time such as the Russian, European, Latin and Central Americas. It was also interesting to see how much production was coming from the US and Europe and how little was coming from the rest of the world. Chapter 18 is when Europe began to race for supremacy in Africa and Asia with the French British and Germans leading the way. To me this is when true racism began with the stereotypes of the Chinese and African people. I was amazed to see how much of Africa and the south pacific had been colonized by the Europeans, it was one big land grab with the indigenous people not know what hit them. This is also when it was the big businesses taking advantage of the people by enslaving them through cheap labor. It is also interesting to see this global migration from the major population centers to less populated areas. This led to people looking to become more racially segregated and with similar people. This colonial era is one that I personally can do without, it just seemed like a time of snootery and elitism.

Blog Number 5# Chapters 13, 14 and 15 Chapter 13 was a chapter that just made me laugh in that the European view on things during that time was so elitist and self-promoting. They just seemed like they knew everything and were always right and never wrong even when it was obvious that they were. This was shown in everything the Europeans touched in the Americas. I found it hard to believe the number of Native Americans that died from European diseases, and also how delicate civilizations were during this time to such things. I found it interesting to see the parallel emergence of the big powers Russia and China. Chapter 14 was a very disappointing read in that it marked the beginning of the real slave trade throughout the world. It also showed the Portuguese to be nothing but a bunch of pirates, while the Spaniards looked like they just wanted to colonize anywhere they could get to. It seemed to me that because the Portuguese didn’t have much trade to offer they went heavily into the slave trade and created a market. Chapter 15 was nice to see some stabilization from the humanistic globalization of Christianity. Although Christianity had its obvious downfalls the basic humanistic fundamentals were entrenched throughout the world. I also liked how science started and was seen as more of Cultural Revolution. I just can’t imagine now being in a time where science was looked at as witchcraft, even when the answers are irrefutable. The early stages of the enlightenment would have been a very scary time to be living in especially if you were looking to prove science.

Blog Number 4# Chapters 9, 11 and 12 Chapter 9 was a chapter that helped me better understand what is going on in the Middle East today. The birth of Islam played an integral role in establishing the Middle East and Africa as we knew it then and today. During this time the desert in the Middle East and Africa was in a state of change and uncertainty, with Islam being the one stabilizing factor in these areas. I also found it very refreshing to see that Islam at the time was a very tolerant religion which helped in the stabilization with the people in the area. I also find it very depressing that they are a religion that has not grown with the times and placed more value on the humanistic beliefs. I also found it refreshing to see how the Islamic religion brought upon more of an open network of exchange for goods and technologies. Chapter 11 was a very interesting chapter in that the Mongols were a bunch of bad asses who dominated the world for a short but brutal time. They were basically the initiators of psychological warfare by sending bodies riddled with the plague to the enemies by catapults. I also found it interesting that they were able to conquer the largest area of land ever known to man without really adding anything from a humanistic rule. They were however a very resourceful group that more or less started the global exchange by taking the best of all cultures and not only improving upon them but also spreading these new improvements globally. Chapter 12 was a cool chapter because it showed me how and why both China and India are who they are today. They really wanted to Isolate themselves during that timeframe and seem to want to do the same today. The only thing I think China has going for it is that Buddhism is still fighting to stay relevant within China’s communist rule. While with India I find that even though the government has renounced the Caste system it is still very relevant today. Both of these actions show how China and India want to be left alone to practice what they want. It was also cool to see the emergence of the Americas and the global population increase.