John’s Blog

The History of Mexico- In about 1200 B.C. the Olmecs were the first civilization to live in the Americas.  A very common type of food they grew was maize also referred to as corn. After the Olmecs, a new civilization took its place called the Mayans. The Maya people lived in the rain forrests of the Yucan Penninsula from A.D. 250 to 900. The Maya people were very religious and sacrificed people to the gods. The Mayans were also really smart. They developed the 365 day calender like we use today, hieroglyphics, temples, and murals or wall paintings. The Mayan civilization declined around A.D. 900 but nobody really knows why. They could have overused their land and couldn’t grow enough food or diseases could have spread. The Aztecs were the next civilization to revolve. The Aztec people are also known as Mexica. They moved to Central America around A.D. 1200. The Aztec capital was Tenochtitlan which is no located under the present day Mexico City. Hernan Cortes led the Spanish army into Mexico. Only 600 Spaniards were able to conquer the entire Aztec Empire. The Spanish made peace treaties with the indians who gave the Spanish thousands of warriors and supplies. Another advantish for the spanish was that they had horses, muskets, cannons, and steel swords. Also, the Aztecs thought that the men on horses were an important god coming to punish them so they were afraid. Mexico became a colony of Spain breifly after 1519. In 1821 the people of Mexico rebelled against Spain. At one time, California and Texas belonged to Mexico.

China-  China was once a communist state which is when the government has very strong control over the economy and society as a whole. From this, China was still behind other countries in technology, and manufactured goods were of poor quality. To help their economy get stronger China allowed many features of the free enterprise system to take hold without completely giving up the communist government. One feature is that Individuals can choose what jobs they want and where to start their own businesses. Another feature is that workers can keep the profits they make. The third feature is that farmers can grow and sell what they wish. Many foreign companies are investing their money in Chinese companies because Chinese workers are willing to work for less money and there are millions of possible customers for their goods. China’s rapid economic growth made more of China’s people able to get jobs in manufacturing and service industries. It also made wages increase and more goods available to buy. Four consumer goods could be TV’s motorcycles cars and DVD players. China’s economic growth has also hurt the environment because of poisonous chemicals being dumped into rivers and smoke from burnt coal polluting the air. Until 1997 the busy city of Hong Kong has been controlled by the United Kingdom and still remains busy like no other country.

  China’s rapid economic growth

     Did you know that the amazing country of India worships the cow and treats it as a sacred animal? Being the birth place of Buddhism and Hinduism, India is the home of over 700 dialects and languages. Surprisingly, there is a city in India called Shiva and is named after the god of death! Can you believe that over 200 years ago the British ruled India and built thousands of amazing railroad systems which became there main way of transportation? These trains can get extremely crowded with people. There are four people to a compartment and the trains use fans as air conditioning. If you are riding on one of these trains you don’t have to worry about starving because they serve food on it. If your wondering what the Indian people eat, they make their own meals varrying from drinks and soups to delicious hand made salads. India has their very own sacred river called the Ganges. Some people may find some of these facts rather disturbing. The Ganges is know to be the most polluted river. It is also where people bathe and swim. Here’s a good fact: If we even went in the Ganges we would get sick immediately because we would not be used to such polluted water. As people and animals pass away they are ceremonially thrown into the Ganges river. Over 200 stairs lead down to the Ganges called the Ghats. India is also know for the largest palace in the world called the Taj Mahal. It was built by a Muslim emperor, Shah Jahan, to store his dead wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It took 22 years to build and was constructed in 1631. Krishna, a Hindu god has a birthday every year. This important holiday is commonly celebrated by the Hindu people. During this celebration and many more the streets come alive with many activities. Activities like music, food, face-painting, and much more. During Krishna’s birthday many people send prayer candles into the river to worship her.. India has many endangered species and one of them is the elephant. Elephants can be found at Corbett National park in India. There is one way to get on a elephant: Step 1- put one foot on elephants trunk. Step 2- grab on to ears of elephant and pull yourself up. Step 3- keep pulling while the elephant assists you by lifting it’s trunk. Here’s an amazing fact for all those people out there begging to learn about India. About 20 people are killed by tigers every year! India is a fascinating country, and I think everyone should know about it.           

     What is happening to the world’s oil? That is a very good question. Some people don’t know this but, we are near the peak of oil production. We will have to find something else to power the transportation devices the world uses and replace the energy used to make thousands of products. It’s hard to believe that about 1.7 trillion barrels of oil have been discovered and 900 billion barrels of oil are yet to be discovered. In the Persian Gulf region there is an oil organization called OPEC. OPEC stands for Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. OPEC also controls most of the world’s oil with Saudi Arabia having 25% of the world’s oil. In fact, OPEC is having it’s 144th meeting on March 15, 2007 in Vienna, Austria.                                                                

     The Ottoman Empire, founded in the late 13th century, was ruled by an Asian ethnic group called Turks. These people migrated to Anatolia during the A.D. 900’s. Here, they created a powerful Muslim empire called the Ottoman Empire, led by the descendants of Osman I. In the 1400’s, the Ottomans conquered the city Constantanople which had been the capital of the Byzantine Empire for almost 1,000 years. They renamed this port city Istanbul as it is called it today. Istanbul is the only city in the world which is located on two continents, Asia and Europe.

       Socially, economically, and militarily the Ottoman Empire was a medieval state, unaffected by the developments in the rest of Europe. The Ottoman Empire was ruled by sultans who believed that leadership was a divine right bestowed on a chosen family. Ottoman princes were sent off to the provinces with their tutors to learn the business of government. Often these princes had to compete for the throne. The sultan would likely kill most of his male relatives to secure his position on the throne. Bribery and corruption were common in the government and the sultans had little actual involvement in any public affairs.

       The sultans lack of control led to the decline of the empire while World War I led to the actual collapse of the empire. In 1922, Turkish  nationalists overthrew the sultan and modern Turkey’s history began.    

 I got my information from infoplease.com and Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia.

[googlevideo]1342581201055111088&q[/googlevideo]If I could go anywhere in the world, it would be Hawaii. I would go there because of the sandy beaches, enormous volcanoes, and the delicious refreshments. I would probably go cliff diving as much as I could. Another reason I would go there is to surf the huge waves. The water is so clear there that I could probably see millions of fish and maybe even some sharks! I would go visit almost every volcano. I would definitely buy some souvenirs. Check out this picture that was photographed in Hawaii, presented by google.