Pros and Cons of Imperialism

Pros:

• the colonizers brought new languages
• they built railroads
• they built schools
• they started new governments
• they modernized the way the Africans were living in

Cons:

• even though the Europeans brought new languages, they demolished the languages the Africans already had
• some Africans didn't want a new government run by people who took over their home
• also, some Africans didn't want their way of life to be changed
• since some Africans didn't like what was going on, they protested. This led to them being put in jail or even killed
• the Europeans enslaved the Africans and barely paid them
• they also imposed high taxes and if the Africans couldn't pay them off they'd be forced to work as slaves
• the European government gave all the black people less privileges than the whites
  
• when the Europeans enslaved the Africans, they treated them very badly

So, overall, imperialism had a negative effect on Africa.

Current Events #3

Lately in Southern Africa a disease called cholera has been passing around like the plague in Southern Africa (mostly Zimbabwe and South Africa). Cholera is an infectious disease, common in India and China and occasionally plague elsewhere, characterized by profuse diarrhea, vomiting, cramps, etc. (Dictionary.com) Nearly 800 people have died from this horrible disease, 660 people have been treated (not all survive though), and a majority of the victims (16,000 people) have been treated. So many things have been done to get to the end of this and we are all hoping they will succeed. Also, because of this situation, Zimbabwe’s and South Africa’s health services are about to collapse.


Citation

Current Events #1

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/07/africa_rural_hardship_in_zimbabwe/html/8.stm

Lately in Zimbabwe, there have been some very extreme rural hardships going on. One big one is education for kids and how they are fed.

Zimbabwean children go to school five days a week just like we do and have weekends on Saturdays and Sundays. But there is a difference. These children really like going to school for two reasons. The obvious reason is that they want to get and education, go to college so they can find a good job to hold their roof. But the reason that you might not have thought of is that they get a decent lunch at the school (which is paid for them along with the school fees). Since they barely can afford food, they really look forward to their meal; even though it isn't much. The meal usually consists of sadza (a porridge made from corn) or a cup of mahewu (nutritious millet brew). But now it is vacation for the kids so they are going without.
This is important to know because even though we may hate the food we get in school, those children would gladly eat and not waste a bit of it. We are living great lives, and there they are just hoping for things to get better.

Current Event #2

Johan Nel, an 18 year old a white teenager, pleaded guilty of killing four blacks and restarted racial tensions in post-apartheid South Africa.He was led away from court in January in Johannesburg, South Africa. He was pleaded guilty as his trial started Monday in Mmabatho, (185 miles/300 kilometers of Johannesburg). Many witnesses say that Johan began shooting at children in a poor black village on January 14. A few descriptions of the people who died were:

• a 3-month-old baby who was being carried on her mother's back.
• the 3-month old baby's 31-year-old mother.
• a 10-year-old boy.
• a 35-year-old man.

Prosecutors presented evidence that could influence the sentencing which is expected soon.

Citation is here

History and Culture of Southerrn Africa

The history of Southern Africa began with the native Africans and then the Europeans came. At around the late 1400s, Portugal traders stopped in Southern Africa on their route to Asia for spice trading. Since the trip from Europe to Africa was long and tiring, they placed bases around the Southern African coast. After the Portuguese, there were the Dutch. These people came from the Netherlands and were the first ever Europeans ever to settle in the region. In 1652, they set up a trade station at a harbor around the Cape of Good Hope (at the tip of Africa). Even though the Cape lacked gold, the climates there were very similar to what they were used to back in the Netherlands. There were two main groups in Southern Africa; the Afrikaners and the Boers. The Afrikaners were the Dutch, French, and German and their generations after them and the Boers were the Afrikaner farmers who spread out from the original colony. In the 1900s, the South African government was taken over by the white Afrikaners. The government then created an apartheid, a policy that separated whites, blacks, Asians, and coloreds. The Asians and Coloreds usually got more than the blacks.

Physical Geography of Southern Africa

The physical geography Southern Africa has many land features and diverse climates. South Africa consists of many plateaus. At the edge of plateaus, there is a steep face or a raised area called and escarpment. In eastern South Africa part of the escarpment is made up of the Drakensberg mounatin range. Many large rivers pass through Southern Africa. One river, the Okavango River begins in Angola and into a basin in Botwana. But, this river never actually reaches the ocean. Instead, it ends up as a swampy delta which is home to crocodiles, zebras, and hippos. Most of the region is placed on grassy plains, which the Drakensburg and Inyanga mountain ranges which separate them into different countries. Other animals living there are lions, tigers, elephants, and antelope. The climates in Southern Africa vary from place to place. Basically, South Africa is different in every country.

SQ3R Summary- Your Region Today

There are many challenges that Southern Africa has had to face to make it the region it is today. Even though there are still many problems, it is still a big change from what it was before.

A few years ago in South Africa there was a system going on called the apartheid. The apartheid was a rigid policy of segregation of the nonwhite population. When South Africa was using this system, many people around the world protested against this. Examples of how they protested are:

· Many countries banned trading with SA

· Put up sanctions

· Some companies in the US and Europe refused to invest in the country

· Many sports and organization refused to let South Africans play in the meets

So, since the SA government didn’t want all this bad attention, they stopped the system immediately.

What happens in the future:

· They had a republic with an elected president

· People emphasized equality and human rights

· Helped create better jobs and working conditions for the blacks

· Most SA industries were owned by whites

· But sometimes when something went wrong, people were scared to stand up for their rights

So in conclusion, I’d say that overall Southern Africa benefited from these changes.

Footprint cartoon

What are the main visual elements?

In this cartoon, there is a picture of Africa with a footprint stamped on top of it. The main colors are black and white.

What issue is this political cartoon about?

I think this cartoon is trying to show how when the Europeans, they left their own trademark on the country. They must have dominated the whole region and said, “This is our land and we claim it.”

What is the cartoonist’s opinion on this issue?

The cartoonist must have wanted to show that this topic was very serious and needed to be fixed. Like I said before, the colors used are black and white. I think this represents the fact that this cartoon must be serious. The edges of the cartoon also show that this topic is serious. If someone was doing a happy topic about Africa, the might have softened up the edges (still keeping the shape the same), but here the edges are sharp and rigid.

What evidence in the cartoon supports your opinion?

Now this may not have a big effect but the patterns and shape of the shoe prints shows that it was a European shoe because the Africans had shoes but not great shoes. This is just an opinion. Like I mentioned before, I said this topic is serious because of the color and shape.

What other techniques could the cartoonist have used to make this cartoon more persuasive?

I think the cartoonist did a good job, but I think he/she could have made the Africa map part 2-D and made the footprint a little thicker in the width and still give the 3-Dimensional look. If he/she did this, it would make the footprint stand out and make more of an effect.

Scramble for Africa

1. What strategy did you use to claim land?

We searched the resources map and the atlas for the largest amount of resources. Our team was the first to roll and so we also got nine dice. So our first number was very high and we got first preference. This wasn't really a strategy, but it was an advantage. In the negotiations after every round people kept asking to trade Sierra Leone, but we said no. Later on, in round 3 we ended up trading with Belgium for a part of South Africa.

2. What factors did you consider in claiming land?

How much iron, copper, and zinc each part of Africa had.

3. Who won the Scramble for Africa?

Germany (my team) or Great Britain. I'm not really sure.

4. Who lost in the Scramble for Africa?

Spain lost. They could have improved their score though if we had time to finish round 4 so it's inaccurate.

TBAS-Trustworthy?

­­­­­­­­­­­­I think that we can trust Julius Lester in To Be a Slave because all of his facts are supported with good evidence and different sources. Basically, the book isn't really a story it's just him asking different people what it was like to be a slave. He wrote To Be a Slave because he wanted to know what it was like to have been a slave and he couldn't find a book that really told him. He figured that if he couldn't find a book, he'd have to get the answers himself. Also, Lester’s ancestors were slaves. So, that is why I trust Julius Lester in the book.

5 Themes of Geography

This is a ride called Lazy River at Splish Splash Water Park.

Movement: All the people on the ride are on a tube getting moved by the water current to the end of the ride.
Region: United States
Human Environment Interaction: The people used the space to make the water park. And the people in the water park are in the water ride.

Location: Absolute; Splish Splash Waterpark Box 1090 Riverhead, NY 11901-1090 United States. Relative; Near Calverton and Centerville.
Place: What makes it unique is it is a very large water park which is packed everyday. The ride is extremely long. Everyone is in bathing suits.

“Violence leads to more violence.”

I think the quote, “Violence leads to more violence,” means that if you kill someone (violence), the people who cared about that person will get revenge (more violence).

In Act three, Scene 1, Line 85, Casca, the others, and then Brutus stab Caesar one by one. And then, in Act three, Scene 2, Lines, 215- 221, the citizens want revenge.

In my life when I pinch my cousin, she'll pinch me back and we have this whole fight which never ends well. So, "violence ALWAYS leads to more violence."

Brutus's Dilemma

If I were Brutus, I wouldn’t side with the conspiracy because I would definitely want to keep my friendship with Caesar. Instead of killing him, I’d maybe want to help him rule Rome when he is crowned king. If anyone wanted to persuade me to stop siding with Caesar, I would try my hardest to not be convinced. I can see that because in Act One, Scene Two, lines 98-139, Cassius is telling Brutus a story that Caesar is weak and not fit to be king. This is why Cassius is going to try another way to persuade Brutus.

Leadership

I feel that a leader is someone who takes charge and guides everyone with the activity we are given. They are confident about what they say and don't feel shy helping others out. When everyone is stuck with something or people are getting off topic, a leader will help them out and get them back on track. An example of that is in a Socratic Seminar and when people didn't know how to continue with the topic, the leader would bring up a question to ask to get their minds thinking again. I think that two people in our humanities class who show a great deal of leadership are Jemima and Jonathan. I feel this because they qualify for all the points of being a leader. They are very sure about what they are saying and definitely not shy about helping others out when they get stuck.

3 Reasons For Imperialism

The three reasons for imperialism are gold, god, and glory. An example for gold is raw materials, an example for God is forcing people to convert people to the religion of your choice, and an example for glory is conquering colonies. So in India, South East Asia, and Africa, the British wanted raw materials. But in the Middle East, they just wanted natural resources, especially oil. For God, the British only aimed for India and Africa. Their goal was to convert all the Hindus, Muslims, and Africans, in those locations, to the Christian religion. For glory, the British conquered and gained colonies in India and Africa. South East Asia, they used violence and in the Middle East they conquered politically and economically.

Quarter 1 Feedback/ New Goals- Quarter 2

My first goal was mostly met. It was that I put more detail into my assignments. I think it wasn't fully met because:

• In the Outsiders project, my explanations could have described more about how each character related to the song.

• For the IR project, my three pieces needed more facts and detail.

It was partially met because:

• I feel my portfolio snapshots were detailed I think that I used all the detail from the news stories.

My second goal was to be more open-minded about projects. I think this was met because in the IR project, there were some ideas that my teammates didn't agree. I made a choice to not only have my decision.

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My goals for this quarter are:

• To have better study skills to study for tests because my test scores could have been better if I knew how to study better.
• To do my homework the night it's assigned that way I don't have a big load the night before.
To add more detail into my projects and writing like I said last quarter.

Capitalism Cartoon

What are the main visual elements?

The main visual elements are:

• The man who belongs to the Capitalism side
  
• One worker who is being held up by the Capitalism guy
• Money dropping from the labor
• Bags below that say "Profits from Child Labor."

What issue is this political cartoon about?

I think this cartoon shows an angry man, who's probably not satisfied with the labor's work.

What is the cartoonist’s opinion on this issue?

I think the cartoonist's opinion on this issue show that the man is very self-centered and doesn't care about how the labor feels. This man seems to be very angry about how his buisness is doing and taking it out on the labor. Since the buisness is most likely privately owned, not by the government, it's harder to run it.

What evidence in the cartoon leads you to believe that the author feels this way?

The man seems to be greedy because he is very fat. I think he must have spent all the company's money and is now running out of it.

What other techniques could the cartoonist have used to make this cartoon more persuasive?

He could have had a nother labor in his other hand so we can se that he's really mad.

Positive and Negative Effects of IR

Positives:

• There production of products in the town got completed quicker because there were machines/ more efficient methods(like the spinning jenny)
  
• They produced high quality products

• There were not many cottage industries left(which produced high quality products, but in more time)

Negatives:

• There were less jobs available
• Some jobs required skill, and many immigrants didn't have that
• The machines were dangerous(such as poeple could get their finger stuck in a machine and have to have it amputated)
• The wages were very low, and on top of that, women got less pay than men
• They had to work long hours in horrible working conditions
  

1870’s Stock Market simulation

I was absent for this simulation so I can't do the feedback.

Evaluation of Feedback Goals

I feel that my first goal: to put more detail into my assignments, has partially been met because I haven't done much writing yet so I can't compare it from last year. And my second goal: to be more open-minded about things, such as projects, hasn't been met yet either because we've only had one project so I can't tell if I was open-minded.

The Factory Game 2

The setting of the second factory game we played was actually a factory, whereas last time we were just members of a family who were making birthday gifts. When we played yesterday, we were under a lot of pressure, from both the manager and the boss However, on Thursday, Mr. Coyle didn't talk to us as a boss, he talked to us as a teacher. But even though we were under the same pressure that workers in a real factory were, I felt that many of us wouldn't take the job seriously because we knew that our life really didn't depend on it. But if our life was depending on the job, then maybe we wouldn't have laughed much during work. But overall, it was a good simulation for helping us understand the Industrial Revolution.

The Factory Game

In humanities class today, we study about the Industrial Revolution. After that we played a game called the Factory Game. Our task was to use all of the shapes given to us to make a birthday gift for our brother or sister. I felt that the game wasn't that hard, but I do think that if this weren't a game the pressure of creating a present would have been harder. I also think that the task itself was easy; meaning there was no right or wrong way that it was supposed to turn out(except for the fact that we had to use all the shapes). Even though we could only use markers, crayons, scissors, and glue, I thought this activity was a good idea. In the end, I made a snow angel.

A Messy Room

Instead of having to describe a messy room from the top of my head, I could just go in my older brother's room.
As I walked into my older brother, Satwant's, room(to annoy him), I almost slipped on what looked to be an over sized shirt; you know the ones people keep for memory. Argh! He walked closer to me, and I wondered, for a split-second, he was going to ask me if I was alright. But then he passed me just to turn on the fan on level three. All of a sudden papers started flying thorough the air and blowing my hair into my face. "Hey, Kirenjot, could you turn that off for me?" He asked me me while he was picking up some of his essay paper.
Just as I was about to press the off switch, I decided , just for the heck of getting him mad, that I would turn the fan on level five. But too bad for me, I got shoved out of the room. I took one last look at the textbooks covering the bed and click. He locked the door.
One question:
When I'm seventeen, will I be like him?

P.S. I may have eggagerated a bit about his room.

Mother Necessity

What do I think Necessity is the Mother of all Invention means?

I think "Necessity is the Mother of all Invention" means in order to make an invention you need all the necessary items for it. Instead of using horses for communication, we could use the telephone. And instead of having no light, the light bulb was created. It is written Mother instead of Father because mothers give birth so giving birth to an invention is like that.

How I Learn

I feel that I am an auditory learner. I feel this because when I watch videos or actions I get confused. And when I put diagrams together I also get confused. But when I listen to the idea, it's easy for me to put all the ideas together in my mind after hearing it. Also I can relate what I hear to other things I know.

Quarter 1 Goals

Two highlights from the first week of school was I got to meet new people and I got a variety of new classes. My first impression of 8th grade humanities was that it was going to be extremely hard and I was going to be way behind in everything.
One of my goals for this year's humanities to put more detail into my assignments. Last year, in humanities, my detail wasn't very grand, and that caused me to lose some points on my grade. I'll be able to tell if I've improved at the end of the quarter by comparing my work and asking others if they understand my story.
My second goal for humanities is to be more open-minded about things, such as projects. If we were given five choices (like we were for the Outsiders project), I shouldn't always choose the movie review type of option, but I should choose a harder or maybe a little more complicated one. I'll be able to tell if I've improved if if I look at all of my choices that I chose throughout the quarter and see if they all aren't very similar.

My Gang

My gang has various members; some are my family while some are friends.

The first members of my gang are my parents and my brother, Satwant, because they give me love and play board games with me when I'm bored. The last four other people in my gang are my favorite cousins, Tejan, Divia, Savneet, and, Prabhdeep because they take me shopping and play sports with me. Kaveen is another member in my gang because we are extremely close family friends and our parents have known each other before we were born.