Chapter 2: The World Today

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Chapter 2 The World Today

• Section 1 Patterns of Early Civilizations

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Chapter Perspective

• The agricultural revolution led to the rise of
  civilization.
• The industrial revolution helped European nations
  to control much of the world.
• Developing countries face many challenges as they
  work to build modern and economic systems.
• Interdependence is a key feature of todays world.

3
Stone Age People

• Scientists traced human origins to about 2
  million years ago
• Most early people survived by gathering fruit,
  seeds, and nuts and by hunting small animals
• Early Achievements- people learned to make stone
  tools and weapons known as the Stone Age
• Stone age people use rocks for knives, spear
  tips, and arrows
• They learned to control fire and developed simple
  language
• Language and better tools allowed them to hunt
  bigger animals

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• They were nomads which meant traveling from one
  place to another to find food
• 90,000 years ago the Earth experienced an ice
  age, in which people took shelter in caves
• They adapted by using animal fur and skins for
  clothing
• The agricultural revolution 10,000 years ago
  Stone Age people made two key advances
• they learned to farm
• they domesticated animals

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• 7000 B.C. farming developed in the
  Tigris-Euphrates Valley
• Southeast Asian culture may have developed 2000
  years earlier
• The agricultural revolution had many consequences
  such as
• 1) People no longer had to constantly search for
  food
• 2) New ways of life developed such as smaller
  hunting bands
• 3) Population increase
• 4) New forms of government developed
• 5) Religious beliefs changed, instead of
  worshipping centered on animals they looked to
  nature gods such as sun and rain gods
• 6) New tools were developed, such as woven
  baskets
• 7) Developed irrigation

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The First Civilizations

• Population increase gave to the rise of towns and
  cities
• City dwellers rely on a surplus to survive and
  cities became key features of civilizations
• Civilization highly organized group of people
  with their own language and ways of living
• Many civilizations developed in river valleys in
  northeastern Africa, Indus valley, and the Huang
  He river
• Most characteristics of civilizations are
  organized governments, complex religions,
  specialized skills and jobs, social classes, and
  methods of keeping records

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Government and religion

• Archaeologists are scientists who study the
  objects left by early people
• Remains show evidence of huge palaces and
  irrigation systems, thus early civilizations had
  large governments
• Temple remains indicate the belief of religion
  and cooperation of large numbers to build such
  projects
• Specialized jobs special skills of artisans or
  skilled craft workers i.e. weavers and metal
  workers
• Social classes- king at the head of society, then
  priests and nobles, officials, merchants,
  farmers, slaves
• Record keeping- system of writing, tax records,
  ceremonies and prayers usually writing was done
  by pictographs

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Cultural Diffusion

• i.e. the Sumerian and Chinese harnesses are
  examples of trade and improvement through
  cultural diffusion, Monotheism influences
  Christianity and Islam
• Changing World Powers
• Empires rise and fall
• 100 A.D. - The Romans and Chinese
• 1300 A.D. Rise of Islam, African Kingdoms,
  Mongol Empire, Aztec, Incas
• Europe on the fringes on the borders of trade
  routes, small European kingdoms had feudal
  battles for land
• However, much would change