Mesopotamia Overview

Today in class we continued a PowerPoint and discussed more on the topic of Mesopotamia, the city of Sumer. The people of Sumer began worshiping gods and goddesses of the natural elements. Over centuries the people made up a time system depending on the 60 seconds in a minute and the 60 minutes in an hour. Also they created groups of times based on the moon cycles. They even build a temple called Ziggurat on top of a mountain. The wandering nomads used animal herds to produce crops. And the first set of rules or laws arose under the rein of King Hammurabi of Babylon. For example some of the laws include, "If any one bring an accusation of any crime before the elders, and does not prove what he has charged, he shall, if it be a capital offense charged, be put to death, If any one steal the property of a temple or of the court, he shall be put to death, and also the one who receives the stolen thing from him shall be put to death, and If any one lose an article, and find it in the possession of another: if the person in whose possession the thing is found say "A merchant sold it to me, I paid for it before witnesses," and if the owner of the thing say, "I will bring witnesses who know my property," then shall the purchaser bring the merchant who sold it to him, and the witnesses before whom he bought it, and the owner shall bring witnesses who can identify his property. The judge shall examine their testimony -- both of the witnesses before whom the price was paid, and of the witnesses who identify the lost article on oath. The merchant is then proved to be a thief and shall be put to death. The owner of the lost article receives his property, and he who bought it receives the money he paid from the estate of the merchant." This are the basis for rule and morals over people. It was the first way to try to prevent crime.

Prehistoric Era

Today in class we were given an overview of the textbook for Western Civilization. Humans began evolving in the Prehistoric Era. There was no tools, inventions, writing, or even any language. Most people relied on themselves to survive. Humans lived like animals, migrating around as the climate and game changed. After the Prehistoric Era there was the Neolithic stone age. Humans began feeding themselves constantly, leaving time for inventing useful tools. People began hunting, gathering, and living in groups. People still migrated with the animals. Farming began in the Agricultural Revolution. The population grew, due to the ability to take care of their babies, due to the source of food provided by farming. Humans started building homes and staying in the same location. The wheel and plow were tools that advanced their farming, and some jobs became more important than others. Villagers started to wonder why things happened, like the droughts, floods, climate changes, and etc. Finally there was Mesopotamia, located in the fertile crescent. Over the years population kept increasing until it reached 40,000 in Mesopotamia. New professions were available due to the diversity and need for more jobs. Kings emerged as a result for a need of higher power. And the first version of writing formed called cuneiform, symbols meaning pictures and events. 

Semester Overview

In class we shared a little about each other and learned on another's names. We went over the basics of the class and what it was going to be about. After that, we visited the class blog for Western Civilization and created our own blog. Then we all were asked to send an email with the address to the new blog.