AP World History – Final Exam Review Session

1. AP World History – Final Exam Review Session Period 1 Technological and Environmental Transformations

2. 1. Characteristics of the Homo erectus world • Tool making • Language • Bipedalism (moving on two legs) • Hunting and gathering

3. 2. Another label for “Paleolithic” • Old Stone Age

4. 3. Practices of the Paleolithic era that lasted in to the Neolithic era • Domestication of animals • To train animals to live in a human environment

5. 4. Advantages agricultural people had over hunter-gatherer groups • Immunities built up to new diseases due to denser population • Regular armed forces capable of sustained offensive and defensive campaigns • Greater ability to store food in preparation for times of scarcity • Tools and weapons made of metal

6. 5. Domestication of animals – where? • Sheep – southwest Asia • Cows – Eurasia • Camels – Arabia • Horses - Eurasia

7. 6. Importance of pastorialism for human development • Domesticated mammals began to provide more consistent sources of hides, bone, and protein

8. 7. What makes the Neolithic Revolution unique? • Attentuated (gradual) unfolding over thousands of years in diverse locals • The term revolution suggests an abrupt shift in the course of human events that was sparked in a specific location or region.

9. 8. Where did the Neolithic Revolution likely take place first? • The Middle East

10. 9. Characteristics of early agricultural systems • Domestication of perennial (growing once a year) plants in each region • Mesoamerica - maize

11. 10. Dates and locations of the first appearances of agriculture • Fertile Crescent – 8500 BCE • China – by 7500 BCE • Mesoamerica – by 3500 BCE • Eastern U.S. – by 2500 BCE • Andes South America – by 500 BCE

12. 11. Slash and burn agriculture • Used by subsistence farmers to provide temporary fertility to the soil by burning plants • Least intensive and sophisticated agricultural practice • Requires little manipulation of the natural world • Typical of populations transitioning from nomadic to agricultural practices • Ancient Mayans

13. 12. Changing role of women with the Neolithic Revolution • Greater confinement to the home to care for more numerous children • Result of increased population

14. 13. What effect did food surpluses have on early agricultural societies? • Trade practices emerged with the capacity to feed artisans who then had time to practice craft specialization. • In other words, SPECIALIZATION OF LABOR

15. 14. How did the health of humans change with the Neolithic Revolution? • Greater exposure to pathogens (infectious germs) due to proximity to farm animals and human waste caused new sicknesses. • Chicken pox, swine flu, bird flu – all due to sharing of germs with animals • Takes awhile for plumbing to be invented • Nomadic people moved away from their waste

16. 15. “Out of Africa” theory of human origins • Origin of anatomically modern humans in Africa based on genetic research

17. 16. Region of the world that was the most recent to see human settlement • South America

18. 17. Common traits of early civilizations • Writing • Formal state structures (complex, formal governments) • Urban life • Monument building • Reliable surpluses of food • Highly specialized occupations (more complex jobs including government, trade, religion) • Clear social class distinctions • Long-distance trade • Advanced technology

19. 18. Location of the earliest civilizations • River valleys

20. 19. Which region of the world saw the development of the earliest civilizations? • The Middle East

21. 20. Which group of people founded Mesopotamian civilization? • Sumerians

22. 21. Mesopotamian city-states and empires • Sumerians • Akkadians • Babylonians • Assyrians

23. 22. Hammurabi’s Code • Built on regional laws • Based on lextalionis (law of retribution) – punishments tied closely to offenses • Punishments were not equal if they crossed class lines • Judges could still make their own decisions

24. 23. Characteristics of ancient Egyptian pyramids • Served as tombs for pharaohs • Were built by slave and corvee (mandatory and unpaid) labor • Are reflective of advanced geometric knowledge • Contained numerous hieroglyphic symbols

25. 24. Egypt’s three kingdoms – how did they change over time? • Egypt became more expansionistic and had more contact with other civilizations • Reached imperial status in the New Kingdom after conquest of Nubia and coastal Mediterranean • Pyramids = Old Kingdom

26. 25. Which river valley civilization was the most isolated? • Huang He River (China)

27. 26. Who developed the first phonetic alphabet? • Phoenicians • Easier for ordinary people to learn than earlier written languages

28. 27. Purpose of writing for early civilizations • Writing permitted record keeping for trade and government • Religion • Taxes • Incas were an exception – no writing system

29. 28. Characteristics of ancient writing • Oldest known written language is Sumerian cuneiform. • All ancient civilizations had a form of writing except the Inca civilization in South America • Evolution of writing = pictures – symbols – phonetic letters • Their use was largely restricted to priests

30. 29. Early religious practices • Focused on animals and nature • Mesopotamians = studied the stars • Chinese shamans = Oracle bones

31. 30. Early characteristics of Jewish monotheism • Traces its origins to Abraham • Cultural traits of Mesopotamia • Viewed God as all knowing and all powerful • History, belief system, and legal code recorded in the Torah

32. 31. Characteristics of river valley civilizations • Typically in warm, dry climates • Flood of rivers provided fertile soil • Creation of calendars to predict flooding seasons • Irrigation system of control the floods • Large building projects required organized government

33. 32. Characteristics of Harappan society • Indus river valley • Disappeared mysteriously • Multistory structures

34. 33. Characteristics of Mesoamerica early civilizations • Not located in river valleys • First complex society was the Olmec civilization • Economies were based on market exchange and agriculture. • They practiced similar religions • Similar deities • Belief in cosmic cycle of creation and destruction • Human sacrifice • Large ceremonial centers

35. 34. What caused the decline of each river valley civilization? • Mesoamerica – large population growth and overfarming • Indus Valley – catastrophic event, climate change • China (Zhou) – pressure from nomads to the north, could not control nobles – led to period of the “warring states” • Babylonians (Mesopotamia) – invasions from nomads

36. 35. Impact of the rise of metalwork in the ancient world • Made farming easier • Revolutionized war fighting • Led to the further specialization of labor • Metallic coins facilitated trade

37. 36. Timeframe of the ancient and classical civilizations • Sumerian • Shang • Roman • Han

38. 37. Characteristics of the later Zhou dynasty that are lasting features of Chinese civilization • Origin and early spread of a Daoist worldview • Dynastic rule and the conception of the Mandate of Heaven • Intensive river valley irrigation and agriculture • Significant Buddhist penetration and influence among the broad masses of the people

39. 38. The Bhagavad Gita • Hindu text

40. 39. The Law of Manu • Basic text for Hindu gurus • Reflects Indian patriarchal society