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  • Jewish Calendar


    The Jewish calendar is a religious calendar used by Jews all over the world and is also the official calendar of Israel. This particular calendar commands quite an ancient lineage, dating back to the Sanhedrin president Hillel II, who brought it into being in around C.E. 359.

    A Few Facts About The Jewish Calendar

    A regular (non-leap) Jewish year with 12 months can have 353, 354 or 355 days, while the Jewish leap year can have 383, 384 or 385 days. These various years are respectively known as “deficient”, “regular” and “complete”.  It is also worth noting here that a Jewish leap year has 13 months.

    The Jews use a lunisolar calendar, or a calendar that is a cross between the lunar calendar and the solar one. In this respect, the Jewish calendar is akin to the Chinese calendar. This particular type of calendar has its years corresponding to those in the tropical year and its months concurring with the synodic months. Obviously the architects of the calendar had quite a lot in their minds and it is not hard to imagine that the calendar incorporates rules that are quite intricate.

    To elaborate, the 12 months in the Jewish calendar comes to about 11 days short than the typical tropical year. And as a countermeasure, a leap month (also known as an intercalary month) is included after every third year to have the calendar in sync with the seasons. Now this may sound too much of an effort, but the ancient Israelites found ingenious ways to make way around the problem. 

    For instance, in the days of yore, the Israeli religious leaders would estimate the approximate date for Passover in spring based on whether the roads were suitably dry for the pilgrims to take on and also whether the lambs were ready to be slaughtered. If they didn’t find the conditions appropriate or the time ripe, they would add a month to the calendar.

    But this practice is not surprising, for throughout history there have been sundry people who have looked to nature to give them the requisite signals. Thus there was an aboriginal tribe in Taiwan who went out to the sea at around the time of new moon at the commencement of spring. If they spotted the very elusive migratory flying fish, they knew New Year’s day was nearing.

    The Jewish calendar is also known to yield itself to numerous modifications depending upon when the Jews would want their holidays and special ceremonies to be held. Thus for instance, they would holdup their New Year by a day if it falls on a Sunday, Wednesday or Friday during the normal course. This is done to ensure that Yom Kippur doesn’t occur on a Friday or Sunday and Hoshanah Rabba, on a Shabbat (Saturday).

    For the westerners accustomed to the rules of the Gregorian calendar, the following tidbits about the Jewish calendar would seem fascinating:

    • A conventional Jewish day begins either at sunset or the very time when three mid-sized stars are visible in the horizon, instead of midnight.
    • Depending on the particular season, the duration of the night might be different from the day. This is because sunset is taken to herald the commencement of the 12 night hours and sunrise, the start of the 12 day hours.

    An understanding of the influences that shaped the calendar, be it the Jewish calendar or the Hebrew calendar, will in turn help you appreciate man’s efforts to bring time within its shackles.


  • Egyptian Pyramids


    The Egyptian pyramids are one of the grandest edifices of ancient world architecture indicating a grand leap of human civilization.

    In Egypt, pyramids were built as the tombs of the pharaohs. The first Pharaohs erected simple tombs called ‘mastabas’, which consisted square rooms with coffins, mummies and some belongings. Then came the stylish step pyramid. In the Fourth Dynasty, during the rule of king Snefru pyramids became smooth sided. The scholars accept that pyramids were built as monuments of royal solar and stellar cults.

    Some Popular Pyramid Sites:

    Lepsius in 1842 made a list of pyramids, which counted the number of pyramids at 67, but since his time more pyramids, has been discovered. The present number of Egyptian pyramids as per the sources ranges from 80 to 110.

    Some Important Pyramid Sites As Per The Archaeologists:

    Abu Rawash

    Abu Rawash is the most northerly pyramid site. Present archaeological surveys regard this as the third largest pyramid about the same size of the pyramid of Menkaure, the third largest Giza pyramid.

    Giza

    Pyramid of Khufu, popularly known as The Great Pyramid is located in Giza, in outer reaches the city of Cairo. Pyramid of Khafre, which is relatively small and Pyramid of Menkaure are also located here. Great Sphinx also resides here. Giza also consists of a number of satellite edifices called the Leen pyramids.

    Giza Necropolis became popular since the Hellenistic era when Antipater of Sidon listed the Great Pyramid as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It has been a hotspot tourist destination since the yore and is the only remaining wonder of the ancient world.

    Zawyet el Aryan

    This is the site of two unfinished Old Kingdom Pyramids. The northern monument is believed to be of Pharaoh Nebka’s and the southern one is of the Third Dynasty Pharaoh Khaba’s.

    Abu Sir

    Abu Sir was the main royal necropolis during the Fifth Dynasty. Seven Egyptian pyramids adorn this site. Though the architectural excellence is not up to the level of the Fourth dynasty. This site speaks of a less glorious period in rule and of economics. All the chief pyramids of Abu Sir are built as step pyramids. The three prominent pyramids are Sahure, Neferirkare Kakai and Niuserre.

    The other famous pyramid sites are Saqqara, Dahshur, Hawarra , El- Lahun, Mazghuna, Lisht and Meidum. Some archaeologists opine that the Meidum pyramid, one of the three pyramids constructed during the reign of Sneferu, might be the first failed attempt of constructing a ‘true’ or smooth sided pyramid.

    The great Egyptian Pyramids exudes the charm and mystery and arouses the curiosity and interest of the travelers and scholars worldwide. It is the mystifying edifice of the mystic ancient Egypt.


  • Cairo Egypt


    Cairo, Egypt is one of the great capital cities of the world, an absolute melting pot of cultures, ancient and new. Add to it, the illustrious history that the city has stood witness to and you have a heady place that is rich in charm, elegance, peppiness and aristocracy, all at the same time. 

    About Cairo’s Geography

    Cairo, the capital of Egypt and the largest city in Africa, stands on the banks of the mighty river Nile in the northern part of the country. To be more precise, Cairo lies to the south of the place where the Nile branches out into the Nile Delta region.

    Cairo is a popular tourist destination and if you have the destination in your itinerary, then it is always worthwhile to gather the facts about the best times to travel to the place. And in this context, you have to take into account the weather of the place. The hot and dry summers are definite no-nos when it comes to visiting Cairo. The cooler months between November and March are the times to travel to Cairo and enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of the city.

    A Short History Of Cairo, Egypt

    The roots of Cairo can be traced back to Memphis, established around 3100 B.C. and went on to become the erstwhile capital of Ancient Egypt. The capital of Egypt further changed locations with Heliopolis to the south of Thebes and later to Alexandria under the rule of the Ptolemaic dynasty.

    Cairo, Egypt as it stands today, had its moorings in the Babylon Fort, a Roman fort built in and around AD 150, in the vicinity of a canal running from the river Nile to the Red Sea. The proximity to a water body and the security provided by the fortified structure lead to the establishment of a miniscule town, inhabited mostly by Coptic Christians, in the region.

    This town was later occupied by the Arabs under the leadership of Amr Ibn Al-As in AD 642. Their garrisons eventually came to constitute the permanent base of the Arab forces in Egypt under the Umayyads and Abbasids. This predominantly military base also houses the first mosque in Africa.

    Egypt had a new capital when in the year ad 972, the North African Shi’i Fatimid dynasty invaded the country and built their capital north of the old Arab garrison, at Al-Mansuriyyah.

    Throughout its history, there has been no dearth of foreign invaders setting foot on the soil of Egypt and with them the fortunes of the country’s capitals have swayed. Thus in the mid-1100s, Cairo was taken over by the Seljuks and Saladin and his descendents brought about a massive expansion in the structural dimensions of the city.

    Cairo, Egypt was brought under the aegis of the Ottoman Empire by Selim I in 1517, only to see the ruling Mameluks take over the reins in the capacity of vassals of the Ottoman Sultan. Henceforth, Cairo has been under the control of Napoleon, who took over Egypt in 1798 and General Kleber, who took upon the mantle of the ruler after defeating Napoleon in the Battle of Aboukir Bay in August 1798.  

    Ismail Pasha And The Fortunes Of Cairo

    The prosperity and the progress of Cairo, as you witness it now, owes its origins to a certain visionary named Ismail Pasha. During his rule, Ismail Pasha wrought in radical changes in the city’s landscape with the construction of the Suez Canal in 1863. This, in turn opened up Cairo and Egypt, for that matter, to the world and had the westerners flocking to this exotic land.

    It was also during the reign of Ismail Pasha that an extensive network of gas lighting was installed and the railway lines were expanded to bring in far-flung areas into the fold.

    Westernization of Cairo in the true sense of the term took place with Ismail Pasha deciding to revamp Cairo in the lines of Haussmann, a booming European city that he was greatly impressed with. His grand dreams with the city were carried on by his successor Ali Pasha Mubarak.

    Cairo: From The Perspective of The Tourist

    Holidays in Cairo promise loads of fun and frolic by way of the hordes of historical remains and sites to visit, reveling in the eclectic culture of the region and of course, immersing oneself in the vibrancy and exuberance of the population.

    Cairo is the chosen base of the countless millions of tourists who visit Egypt every year, lured by the magic and mystery of the Pyramid at Giza, the majesty of the sphinx and the fabulous tales that abound about the gods and goddesses of Egypt.

    When you travel to Cairo, Egypt be sure to take the trip to its old (Coptic) and the medieval (Islamic) quarters to understand the influences that shaped the city. The Hanging Church and the Ben Ezra Synagogue (Egypt’s oldest synagogue) are the places to visit when you are wandering down the cobbled streets of the Coptic regions of the city.

    The Islamic quarters of the city is home to the Ibn Tulun, one of the largest mosques in the world and the oldest university in the world, which is housed inside the Al-Azhar mosque. Besides, you can also roam about the colorful bazaars herein.

    Other places worth a visit when you are in Cairo are the Egyptian Museum, that houses amongst other lavish and stunning exhibits, the exquisitely crafted solid gold mask belonging to Tutankhamen; Qarafa or the City of the Dead, a one-of-a-kind “living cemetery” and of course, the massive Citadel wherein you can also catch the Whirling Dervishes giving a soul-stirring and entrancing performance.

    Cairo, Egypt presents a wonderful kaleidoscope of colors and motifs and there are not many cities in the world that can offer this exhilarating blend of sheer spiritual and sensorial pleasure. 


  • Harriet Tubman


    Harriet Tubman was born a slave. No one is quite sure of
    which year she was born, dates vary from 1819 – 1821. When a slave master died
    the slaves were either sold or taken over by whoever inherited them. Harriet’s
    master died, and all his property, including the slaves, was to be sold. Harriet
    escaped from the property in Maryland. She went to Pennsylvania where she could
    be free.

    After Harriet was free she wanted to help other people to
    be free. First, she rescued her sister and children, and then she helped many
    more people. She then worked as a “conductor” on the underground railway. It
    was a way of smuggling people to freedom. Each trip was very carefully planned.
    People were passed along from “conductor” to conductor. The conductors were
    people who helped the escaping slaves. They provided them with food and shelter
    and passed them on to the next person in the chain. The “passengers” were
    hidden in churches and homes along the way. It was very dangerous for anyone who
    helped them. If they were caught they could be sent to prison. Harriet could
    have been returned into slavery, if she was caught.

    Harriet was a master planner. She thought of all the small
    ways they may be discovered. She even gave babies something to make them sleep,
    so they wouldn’t cry and be discovered. Harriet was not afraid to protect
    herself or her passengers. She carried a gun, and would threaten any passenger
    who looked like giving trouble, or returning. If any slave changed their mind,
    Harriet would force them to continue at gunpoint. She could not afford for them
    to return and say where they had been.

    When the Civil War started Harriet helped out as a nurse, a
    cook and a scout for the Union Army. She was respected by most people for her
    work, but did no receive a pension, because she was black.

    She set up charities to help former slaves and she raised
    money for schools and to help the poor and sick. She started a home for elderly
    colored people. She dies in that home in 1913.

    Read about

    Harriet’s early life

    Take a
    virtual trip on the Underground Railroad

    Join our Black History Month Challenge:

    Learn more about the challenge.

  • Ancient Art


    Ancient art includes the diverse forms of arts developed primarily in the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia, Rome, India and China. Each civilization had its particular style and has influenced later arts of different cultures. They also give us an insight into how ancient artists worked.

    As history reveals, The Jomon’s of ancient Japan first founded pottery as an art form. Ancient art of the Arabs and Persians were a combination of paintings and writings with architecture. In Mesopotamia, the mother of all civilizations, writing and agriculture were discovered. They also enriched the later civilizations with their arts. Sumerians embellished their pottery with paintings and created beautiful jewelry. One of the most fascinating artifacts from that period is a wooden box decorated with lapis lazuli.

    As history suggests, Babylonians were said to have discovered the making of bricks which developed into architectural splendors like columns and pillars. Frescoes, tiles and walls were all beautiful and colorful. They also created fantastic artifacts in metal, gems and embroidery. The later Assyrians used stone slabs and sculptures for architecture. Also jewelry making with copper and gold attained perfection.

    One of the most artistically rich civilizations is that of Egypt. This civilization was based on religion. Their gods and pharaohs were worshipped devotedly and were depicted widely in their arts. In ancient Egyptian art a sense of proportion and balance was maintained by using orderly lines and shapes. Hierarchy was of vital importance in ancient Egyptian art and the pharaoh was the most important personage and was painted larger than any of the others.

    Gods, goddesses and animals as symbolic elements were widely used in ancient Egyptian art. Color was also an important aspect in the arts. Their art reflects a profound knowledge of human and animal anatomy. This ancient art survived through many centuries due to the dry climate of Egypt.

    Like Egypt, Greece was the hotbed of civilization. In the ancient art of Greece, pottery sculptures and architecture was prevalent. Greek art is distributed among three periods- Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic. The history of Greek pottery also includes periods like Protogeometric, Geometric, Archaic, Black Figure and Red Figure. The architecture and sculptures of ancient Greece have lasted through the ages.

    Ancient Greek paintings have unfortunately not survived long. You can find only a few examples of Greek paintings on terracotta and on tombs and walls. The paintings on pottery are aesthetically pleasing and have survived longer than on any other medium.

    Ancient Roman art was inspired by Greek and Etruscan arts. When the villas of Romans were excavated in Pompeii, strong affinity for Greek art was found to be present. Most Greek art survives through their copies by the Romans. The difference lies in the fact that Greeks depicted insights into human life whereas Romans glorified great events and personages through their art.

    Apart from these civilizations, ancient art of Minoa during the Bronze Age is famous for its ceramics, frescos, landscape paintings and stone carvings. The ancient Mycenaean specialized in working with gold. Scythian art consisting of gold jewelry are found from Hungary to Mongolia. Their art is small, characterizing their migratory lifestyle. Also ancient Chinese art has significantly influenced all arts of the Far East.

    From every conceivable medium like pottery, stone, glass, metal to textiles and categories such as architecture, paintings, jewelry and weapons, ancient art spans all ages and various cultures and civilizations.


  • Ancient Egyptian


    Ancient Egyptian civilization started from the Nile Delta in the north and stretched out far south to Jebel Barkal at the Fourth Cataract of the Nile. Moreover, areas of the southern Levant, the Eastern Desert and the Red Sea coastline, the Sinai Peninsula and the Western Desert also fit the geographical range of ancient Egyptian civilization.

    Ancient Egypt matured for more than three and a half millennia. It came into being with the unification of Nile Valley polities in about 3500 BCE. However, this civilization is believed to have ended in 51 BCE when the Roman Empire took over Ptolemaic Egypt.

    The ancient Egyptian civilization thrived well due to the river Nile. The dawn of Egyptian culture began with the wandering hunter-gatherers who embarked on living along the Nile during the Pleistocene. The artifacts and rock carvings that have been unearthed tells us about these early people. Human occupancy has also been traced in the southwestern corner of Egypt in close proximity to the Sudan border during this period.

    What’s more, in 6000 BCE well planned agriculture and huge building construction featured in the Nile Valley. There was somewhat a similar picture in the southwestern corner of Egypt where people were engaged in herding cattle along with erecting big buildings. The Egyptians were fashionable people and their clothing was quite prominent. Mortar i.e. masonry came about in 4000 BC. Egypt’s Predynastic Period that stood between 5500 and 3100 BCE witnessed small settlements that mushroomed along the Nile. And just before the first Egyptian dynasty stepped in Egypt, it was separated into two kingdoms namely, Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. Narmer was the first king and he is credited for unifying Upper and Lower Egypt.

    The theories on the subject of the origin of the early Egyptians are a victim to controversy. The Egyptian society was a culmination of North and East African and not to mention the Southwest Asian peoples. Egyptian mythology tells us that religion played a very significant part in Egyptian lives. In fact, the religious beliefs held by the people of Egypt started from the predynastic times and continued all the way till the advent of Christianity and Islam in the Greco-Roman and Arab epochs. The ancient Egyptians worshipped sun as the most important deity. They believed that the sun’s passageway across the sky symbolizes the undying cycle of birth, death and rebirth. They also believed that they would become eternal beings after death. Customs and rituals were important to early Egyptians. The temple was considered a very holy part where only priests had admittance except for only special occasions, when entry of common people into the temple patio was acceptable.

    Interestingly, the religious side of ancient Egyptian civilization had it’s own influence on the arts of the times. Whether it was the pharaohs, who were also considered divine, or the gods or goddesses, everything formed a part of the great works of ancient Egypt.

    It was found that Egyptian beliefs and values spread far and wide to different antediluvian cultures, thanks to the evidence of mummies and pyramids outside ancient Egypt. Egypt in those times extended links with Nubia and Punt to the south, the Aegean and early Greece to the north, the Levant and other areas in the Near East to the east, and Libya to the west.

    According to the Egyptians, human existence in life and death revolved around the body and soul. They believed that mummification and burial in tombs was a means for the departed to find their way in the afterworld. Not just that, you will be surprised to find that tombs were crammed with food, tools, domestic wares and treasures. This was to ensure that the departed would subsist blissfully ever after.
     
    Pyramid is the most famous tomb of all. They come in a shape similar to the holy mound where the gods first came into view in the creation tale. The best of architects and engineers of those times had put in their heart and soul to erect these giant architectural marvels. Pyramids were obvious targets for tomb robbers. In fear of robbery, the kings concealed their tombs in the Valley of the Kings. British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922. It is indeed one of the greatest archaeological finds in history whatsoever. Archaeologists are still finding their way to newer discoveries while the scientific study of imperial mummies is helping to uncover facts about the genealogy of the pharaohs.

    Ancient Egyptian civilization like no other civilization has made it’s own mark in world history. Be it their religion, culture, people or even architectural wonders like the pyramids and the Sphinx, the Egyptians were simply great achievers.


  • Elizabeth Blackwell


    Elizabeth Blackwell, born in 1821, was the first woman
    doctor in the United States. She was also the first woman to be entered into the
    Physicians’ Register in the UK.

    She was born in Bristol, England in 1821. At that time it was
    not common for girls to receive a proper education. They were taught good
    manners and useful household and social skills. They were not considered as
    anything more than homemakers. Elizabeth Blackwell’s father, Samuel Blackwell,
    had different views. He thought girls should receive the same education as boys.
    Elizabeth, her four sisters and her four brothers all received the same,
    extensive education.

    Samuel Blackwell was against the Church in England. He also
    suffered business losses. He decided that he should move with his family to
    America. In 1832, the family immigrated to America. The entire family became
    involved in the abolitionist movement. They even hid escaping slaves in their
    home. Samuel Blackwell was unable to make much money. By the time he died, in
    1838, there was very little left for his family to live on. Elizabeth, along
    with two of her sisters, started a small private school for girls, to help bring
    in money.

    Elizabeth was interested in becoming a doctor. She was
    convinced that women would rather see a female, than a male, about their health
    problems. She studied medicine, privately, while teaching. At the same time she
    applied to medical school. Over twenty medical schools rejected her. It was
    unthinkable for a woman to become a doctor. Elizabeth didn’t give up her
    dream, though. Finally, she was accepted by Geneva Medical School, New York, in
    1847. It was supposed to be a joke. The male students were asked to vote on
    whether she should be allowed in or not. They voted yes because they thought she
    could never succeed, and they would teach her a lesson. Elizabeth didn’t see
    it that way. She studied hard and graduated first in her class, receiving her
    degree in 1849.

    She returned to Pennsylvania and worked in the hospitals
    there. During that time she became a naturalized US citizen. She wanted to
    become a surgeon, and traveled to Paris hoping to train with the great surgeons
    there. Again she was refused admission to the medical community. Instead she
    enrolled in the Midwifery School. She attended to women and sick infants. She
    accidentally infected her own left eye while treating a baby with a severe eye
    infection. This resulted in the loss of her eye that was later replaced with a
    glass eye. She also lost all hope of becoming a surgeon.

    She then moved onto London and trained under Sir James Paget.
    All of her training could not get her a job in a private practice in the States.
    No man was going to take in a woman associate. Since she couldn’t get into an
    established practice she decided to set up her own, with her sister Emily. Emily
    was following Elizabeth into medicine. She was having an even harder time than
    Elizabeth finding a college that would accept her.

    Elizabeth rented a house and set up her private practice in
    it. She slowly began to get patients. Two years later she opened a dispensary
    for poor women and children in a slum area of Manhattan. Emily eventually
    graduated from medial school and joined Elizabeth. Together they opened the New
    York Infirmary for Indigent Women and Children. Many other newly graduate women
    doctors did their training there.

    In 1958, Elizabeth returned to England. She became the first
    woman to be entered on the Physicians’ Register there. She gave lectures on
    education reform, and inspired Elizabeth Garrett Anderson to take up medicine.
    Garrett Anderson was a pioneer of women doctors in England. She opened a
    hospital like the one Elizabeth Blackwell had opened in New York. That hospital
    remained open until very recently (about 1980).

    Elizabeth returned to America just in time to see the
    beginnings of the Civil War. Elizabeth and Emily helped train nurses for the
    Union Army. Elizabeth was appointed head of the Sanitary Commission by President
    Lincoln. At the beginning of the Civil War very little was understood about
    hygiene and how it affected health. Elizabeth was one of the first to understand
    how hygiene helped prevent the spread of infection. In 1868 the Women’s
    Medical College opened in New York, next to the Infirmary. Elizabeth was
    Professor of Hygiene.

    She decided that women were well established in American
    medical circles and turned her attentions to England, once again. She moved back
    to England, becoming a Professor of Gynecology there. She died in 1910, at the
    age of 89 in Hastings, England. By the
    time she died female doctors were accepted in England and the United States. The
    Women’s Medical College had closed as regular colleges were accepting female
    students. There were 7,000 female doctors in the States. She had paved the way for them
    all!

  • Five Themes of Geography


    In 1984, probably long before anyone reading this was born, a group of people decided what children should learn about geography. Basically, they decided that you should know about the Five Themes. Since then someone else has come up with something called the National Standards. When we describe a place we still use the five themes, the standards are more to do with the way we are taught things.

    Here are the five themes. When you have finished reading them all, try out the exercise at the end to find out just how much you understood.

     

     

     

     

    Location

    This is divided into 2 parts:

    Specific location

    General Location

    Specific location is shown by an address. The address can be any type of address that gives an exact position. It is sometimes called absolute location
    Here are some examples:
    A Street Address:
    1, Silly Street, Anywhere Town, Nowhere Place
    A Map Address:
    15o20′ North, 20o15′ West

    Both of these examples well tell you exactly where a place is.

    General location is shown by saying where something is in relation to somewhere or something else. It is also known as relative location.
    Here are some examples:

    • ten minutes away by train
    • in front of the bank

    With these two examples you can only find what you want if you know from where you are starting. It’s useful, though, for describing things. If I just told you that New York was located at 40o North, 73o West, you probably couldn’t picture that in your head. If I told you that it was in the North-Eastern United States, you could probably imagine it much better.

    Place

    The place is a description of what the place is like, rather than where it is (location). It is a description of what makes that place different to others. If I was trying to tell you about the bedrooms in a house, and I wanted to explain to you exactly which one I meant, I could say, “the one with two beds and one window”. If the other rooms had only one bed each, or two windows, then you could easily tell which room I meant.


    This is divided into 2 parts:

    Physical Differences

    xHuman Differences

    Physical differences, or characteristics, include things that occur naturally, such as mountains, rivers, type of soil, wildlife, climate etc.

    I might say that a place is flat with rich soil and many rivers. I’m still being vague, but already you can see a picture of it in your head, and maybe even begin to imagine what the land is used for.

    Human differences, or characteristics, are things that have changed due to people, such as roads and buildings, how people live and their traditions.

    This is where you can really go to town in your description. You can discuss the cities, lifestyle, culture and all sorts of other interesting facts that make the place you are talking about different and special.

    Human/Environmental Interaction

    This is about the relationship between people and their environment, or how they work together. It answers a lot of important questions: What effects have the people had on their environment? How has the environment affected them, do they depend on it for anything? What changes have they made to their environment to make it easier to live in?

    It can be divided into 3 parts:

    How people have been changed by the environment.
    How the environment has been changed by people.
    How people depend on the environment.

    How people have been changed by the environment can be called adaptation. It is the way humans change to suit their environment.
    An example of this is people who live in very cold climates wearing well-insulated clothes to keep warm. It can also include the way people transport things, in a desert the best way to transport some things is by camel.

    How the environment has been changed or modification is the way people change their environment to suit themselves.
    Artificially watering your lawn, if you live in a dry area is one example, or on a grander scale, creating fertile land in desert areas to grow food crops. Another good example is clearing forests to make room for growing crops.

    Depending on the environment is when people depend on their environment for something.
    Examples of this are using trees for firewood, or coal to warm us in winter, rivers to transport goods and natural resources like oil and coal, to sell or exchange for other needed items that are not available.

    Sometimes it is difficult to tell exactly where something belongs . For example, if people clear forests to get wood for fires and to grow crops, that may be considered changing the environment to suit themselves and depending on the environment for something. When you think about the environment and people, just remember the three important questions:
    How have the people changed? How have they changed the environment? Do they depend on the environment for anything?

    If you have the same answer for two questions, then it must be important, but you don’t need to say it twice.

    Movement

    Movement includes the movement of people, things, such as goods, as well as communications (the movement of ideas).

    We can describe the type of communications a place has and the main forms of transportation, as well as what goods are exported and imported. These all come under the heading of movement.

    Regions

    Regions are areas that can be grouped together by a set of things special to that region. We have countries, ruled by governments, areas speaking the same language, or having the same religion, and we have areas served by a particular service, such as a school district.

    The three types of area are:

    Defined by a government or physical characteristics

    Defined by a function

    Loosely defined

    Regions defined by a government or physical characteristics are regions that are strictly maintained, such as countries or continents.

    Regions defined by a function are areas served by a particular service.
    Take the example of the school district for Geek’s Rule School. If Geek’s Rule School closes down, then the school district will no longer exist. Of course, it won’t just disappear in a cloud of smoke, but it will have to be named or described some other way.

    Loosely defined regions are regions that are grouped together in general terms.
    These are things such as the North, or the Midlands or the Buddhist World, or even the Far East and Middle East. They are the sort of definitions that people will argue about, and say that a certain place should or shouldn’t be included in the definition of that region.

    Making Sense of it All

    Now that you have found out a little about the five themes, how can you use them?

    Imagine for a minute that you are a newspaper reporter. An important discovery of a lost land has been made, and you have the chance to be the first person to interview the returning explorers. Make a list of the questions that you might ask. Remember, the five themes and ask the most important questions from each.

    Here are some questions to get you started:

    • Where is it?
    • Where exactly is that?
    • What does it look like?
    • How many people live there and where?
    • What settlements (cities, villages) does it have?
    • What sort of climate does it have?
    • Does it have any extremes of weather?
    • Is it prone to any type of natural disaster?
    • What are the natural resources and how are they used?
    • What type of agriculture is there?
    • What are the main types of transportation and communication?
    • What makes the people there different to people in other places?
    • What sort of government does it have?
    • Is it associated with any other place?

    That is just the short list. It will give some basic facts about the place. Each of the topics can be expanded on to give a much more detailed description.

    Resources:
    Five Times Five
    The Five Themes of Geography
    The Five Themes of Geography

  • Degrees on a Compass

    Since a circle has 360 degrees, a compass has 360 degrees, too.
    North is at 0 degrees.
    The cardinal points divide the circle into 4 equal parts.
    360 divided by 4 = 90, so the cardinal points are 90 degrees apart.
    Therefore:
    North=0East=90South=180West=270

    The intercardinal points mark the midway point between the cardinal points.
    90 divided by 2 = 45
    Therefore:
    NE = 45SE = 135SW = 225NW = 315

    Note that the cardinal points are also 90 degrees apart, because there are four of them.

    The secondary intercardinal points mark the midway points between the cardinal points and intercardinal points.

    • The cardinal and intercardinal points are separated by 45 degrees.
    • 45 divided by 2 = 22.5


      • Therefore:

    • NNE = 22.5
    • ENE = 67.5
    • ESE = 112.5
    • SSE = 157.5
    • SSW = 202.5
    • WSW = 247.5
    • WNW = 292.5
    • NNW = 337.5

      • Note that the secondary intercardinal points are 45 degrees apart because there are 8 of them.

      You could of course work out that each point is separated by 22,5 degrees, and just work your way round the points adding 22.5 to each. How you got the answer is not very important. It is important that you got it right!

        

  • Early Explorers in Antarctica

    Although the Ancient Greeks had believed that there was
    land to the far South, they had absolutely no proof of it. The very first proof
    came in     January 1773. At that time, Captain
     James Cook, a British explorer, crossed
    the Antarctic Circle. His expedition did not see land, but they did see rocks in
    some of the icebergs they passed. The presence of the rocks meant that there
    must be land. He sailed his ship right around Antarctica but could not get close
    enough to spot land. Massive sheets of ice prevented him from getting any
    closer.

    Following James Cook more and more explorers ventured into
    the Antarctic Circle. Antarctica wasn’t going to be easy to discover, though.
    It took almost another 50 years before anyone actually spotted land.     Fabian von
    Bellingshausen     was probably the first person to see the continent of Antarctica.
    He was a captain in the Russian navy. He spotted it in     January
    1820    ; 47 years
    after Cook said it was there. He also sailed around the continent. Because he
    had larger, stronger ships than Cook, he was able to push further south. He
    described the land as a field of ice covered with small hills.

    Cook had said that he thought no benefit could be had from
    Antarctica. The Russians thought the same. Bellinghausen returned to Russia and
    never returned to Antarctica.

    News of Bellinghausen’s sighting didn’t reach many
    people at the time. Other people claimed to be the first to see it. These
    included an American whaling captain and two British naval officers. Most
    historians now agree that Bellinghausen was indeed the first person to see it.

    On February 7,
    1821    , John
    Davis    , became the first person to
    land on Antarctica. He was Captain of an American whaling ship. Some Historians
    claim the part he landed on is not part of the true continent, but a Peninsula,
    or piece jutting out.

    At about the same time as Bellinghausen was making his
    discoveries a Scot, named     James
    Weddell    , was also discovering things about
    Antarctica. He took two sealing expeditions South, and discovered a sea of ice.
    He named it after the then King of England, George IV. Last century it was
    renamed the Weddell Sea. There was a species of seal named after him, also. It
    took 80 more years until anyone managed to get further south than he had. No one
    else managed to sail through the Weddell Sea in all that time. Although he began
    his expedition at the same time as Bellinghausen, he didn’t reach his
    southerly point until three years after Bellinghausen first saw Antarctica.

    Weddell’s crossing of the Weddell Sea, in 1823,
    marks the end of the first stage of
    Antarctic Exploration.

     


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