1. This Peruvian civilization was famous for its large designs in the sand using pebbles. The largest design is a bird that is 275m long. Who were these people?
2. This Inca ruler was kidnapped by the men of Francisco Pizarro. He was later garotted. His death would bring speed up the downfall of the Inca. Who was this man?
3. Many people believe that this civilization was behind the legends of Eldorado. Beginning with a letter 'C', these people lived in the Colombian Highlands until they were destroyed by the Spanish in the 16th Century. Who were these people?
4. The Tihuanaco civilization lasted between 800 BC and 1200 AD, its main city was situated near this famous South American Lake in Bolivia. Which Lake was this?
5. This vegetable had been cultivated by the Andean Indians since c. 200 AD. Which vegetable was this?
6. For which god did the Aztecs mistake Hernando Cortes for?
7. This civilizations' Golden Era lasted from AD 250 to AD 900. They lived in Southern Mexico, Guatemala and parts of Belize. Who were they?
8. Who was the Aztec Chief God and God of Matter?
9. Fifteen thousand men were sacrificed to this Aztec Sun God. Who was he?
10. What is the modern name of the City 'Tenochtitlan'?
11. This Ancient Middle American culture dominated the coastal plains between 1200 BC to 400 BC. Their name is the Nahuatl Indian word for ‘inhabitant of rubber country’. Who were they?
12. This warrior culture was based at the City of Tollan. They ruled Central Mexico between 900 to 1200 AD. Their civilization seems to have been created from several ethnic groups. Who were they?
13. What was Tlachtli?
14. This South American civilization called gold ‘the sweat of the sun’ and silver as the ‘tears of the moon’. Who were they?
15. This ‘last’outpost of the Mayan civilization was built in the Yucatan Peninsula. The city had two wells, also known as 'cenotes'. The citizens drank from one well and used the other for sacrifice. Name this city?
Answers to Latin American History I
1. The Nazca.
2. Atahualpa
3. The Chibcha.
4. Lake Titicaca.
5. The potato.
6. Quetzcoatl
7. The Mayans. They were also brilliant astronomers and Mathematicians.
8. Tezcatlipoca
9. Huitzilopochtli
10. Mexico City. It was founded by the Aztecs in AD 1200.
11. The Olmec.
12. The Toltec.
13. An Aztec game with similarities to volleyball and basketball.
14. The Incas.
15. Chichén Itzá.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Holocaust Education in Germany
Source: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/943953.html
German schools are failing in educating students about the Holocaust, a new study by a political education center has found, as German youth, who one historian said use the word "Jew" as a common curse in daily discourse, are increasingly distant from the suffering of the victims of Nazism.
According to a study commissioned by the Federal Agency for Civic Education, a political education center known by its German acronym BPB, history courses no longer manage to teach Germany's younger generation of the horrors of the Nazis.
In the report, which appeared in the German educational magazine Focus-Shula, teachers are quoted as saying that they are having trouble impressing upon school children the horrors of the Holocaust, and have stated that their tools for teaching about the Shoah are not effective. "The entire time we stood before the crematoriums of Auschwitz, the students took more interest in the types of pipes used to pump in the lethal Zyklon B gas, and not the fate of the Nazis victims," a teacher was quoted as saying. In their words, this generation's students are less sensitive to the horrors of the Holocaust than any before.
The research also examines the role that immigrants have played in the changing attitudes towards the Shoah. Experts are quoted in the study as saying that there is a marked rise in the number of Muslims in Germany, many of whom see the teaching of the Holocaust as a veiled endorsement of the policies of the state of Israel. "Out of fear of the students' reactions, many of the teachers avoid teaching this chapter of history in order to not be viewed by some students as supporters of Israel."
"The word 'Jew' has turned into one of the most common curse words among students in both east and west Germany," said Gottfried Cosler, a Frankfurt-based Holocaust scholar.
Robert Sigel, a historian who contributed to the study, is of the opinion that students are taking a great interest in the Holocaust, but that the methods in which the subject is taught today are in need of improvement. "Often time the teachers, especially the more devoted ones, get carried away, and demand way too much of themselves," Sigel told Focus magazine. "They want to teach the facts and at the same time get across a moral message, call for education and tolerance, deal with the extreme right and prevent anti-Semitism. They put all this material into the subject, and it's too much."
Susan Orban, a historian at Yad Vashem, says that the Holocaust should be taught using methods that have proved successful in the past. "Today's kids live in different times than that of Anne Frank," Orban said. In order to bridge the generational gap, she submits a different approach, "for example, asking them to imagine that they have to abruptly leave their homes and start a new life elsewhere." Such a method, according to Orban, would speak more directly to the children's hearts and minds than descriptions of the horrors of the concentration camp.
Sigel expressed similar sentiments, adding that the children of immigrants have shown particular interest to the victims of Nazism given that many of them suffered from racial persecution, religious intolerance, and even genocide in their native lands.
German schools are failing in educating students about the Holocaust, a new study by a political education center has found, as German youth, who one historian said use the word "Jew" as a common curse in daily discourse, are increasingly distant from the suffering of the victims of Nazism.
According to a study commissioned by the Federal Agency for Civic Education, a political education center known by its German acronym BPB, history courses no longer manage to teach Germany's younger generation of the horrors of the Nazis.
In the report, which appeared in the German educational magazine Focus-Shula, teachers are quoted as saying that they are having trouble impressing upon school children the horrors of the Holocaust, and have stated that their tools for teaching about the Shoah are not effective. "The entire time we stood before the crematoriums of Auschwitz, the students took more interest in the types of pipes used to pump in the lethal Zyklon B gas, and not the fate of the Nazis victims," a teacher was quoted as saying. In their words, this generation's students are less sensitive to the horrors of the Holocaust than any before.
The research also examines the role that immigrants have played in the changing attitudes towards the Shoah. Experts are quoted in the study as saying that there is a marked rise in the number of Muslims in Germany, many of whom see the teaching of the Holocaust as a veiled endorsement of the policies of the state of Israel. "Out of fear of the students' reactions, many of the teachers avoid teaching this chapter of history in order to not be viewed by some students as supporters of Israel."
"The word 'Jew' has turned into one of the most common curse words among students in both east and west Germany," said Gottfried Cosler, a Frankfurt-based Holocaust scholar.
Robert Sigel, a historian who contributed to the study, is of the opinion that students are taking a great interest in the Holocaust, but that the methods in which the subject is taught today are in need of improvement. "Often time the teachers, especially the more devoted ones, get carried away, and demand way too much of themselves," Sigel told Focus magazine. "They want to teach the facts and at the same time get across a moral message, call for education and tolerance, deal with the extreme right and prevent anti-Semitism. They put all this material into the subject, and it's too much."
Susan Orban, a historian at Yad Vashem, says that the Holocaust should be taught using methods that have proved successful in the past. "Today's kids live in different times than that of Anne Frank," Orban said. In order to bridge the generational gap, she submits a different approach, "for example, asking them to imagine that they have to abruptly leave their homes and start a new life elsewhere." Such a method, according to Orban, would speak more directly to the children's hearts and minds than descriptions of the horrors of the concentration camp.
Sigel expressed similar sentiments, adding that the children of immigrants have shown particular interest to the victims of Nazism given that many of them suffered from racial persecution, religious intolerance, and even genocide in their native lands.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
British Monarchy sites
For generalists like myself who have an interest in the British monarchy - the following are two excellent sites worth looking at for information.
http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/plantagenet_2.htm
http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page1.asp
http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/plantagenet_2.htm
http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page1.asp
Abe Lincoln Quotes
The following is a list of quotes by the Great Ajmerican President Abraham Lincoln.
Source: http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Abraham_Lincoln
Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.
Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. As a peacemaker the lawyer has superior opportunity of being a good man. There will still be business enough.
Force is all-conquering, but its victories are short-lived.
He can compress the most words into the smallest ideas of any man I ever met.
I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crises. The great point is to bring them the real facts.
I will prepare and some day my chance will come.
If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one?
If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.
If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend.
It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.
It is difficult to make a man miserable while he feels worthy of himself and claims kindred to the great God who made him.
Let me not be understood as saying that there are no bad laws, nor that grievances may not arise for the redress of which no legal provisions have been made. I mean to say no such thing. But I do mean to say that although bad laws, if they exist, should be repealed as soon as possible, still, while they continue in force, for the sake of example they should be religiously observed.
Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.
No man has a good enough memory to make a successful liar.
No man is good enough to govern another man without that other's consent.
Tact is the ability to describe others as they see themselves.
That some should be rich, shows that others may become rich, and, hence, is just encouragement to industry and enterprise.
The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just.
Whatever you are, be a good one.
When the conduct of men is designed to be influenced, persuasion, kind unassuming persuasion, should ever be adopted. It is an old and true maxim that 'a drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall.' So with men. If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend. Therein is a drop of honey that catches his heart, which, say what he will, is the great highroad to his reason, and which, once gained, you will find but little trouble in convincing him of the justice of your cause, if indeed that cause is really a good one.
When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, it's best to let him run.
Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.
You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.
You may deceive all the people part of the time, and part of the people all the time, but not all the people all the time.
'Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
When I do good, I feel good; when I do bad, I feel bad, and that is my religion.
You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time.
Source: http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Abraham_Lincoln
Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.
Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. As a peacemaker the lawyer has superior opportunity of being a good man. There will still be business enough.
Force is all-conquering, but its victories are short-lived.
He can compress the most words into the smallest ideas of any man I ever met.
I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crises. The great point is to bring them the real facts.
I will prepare and some day my chance will come.
If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one?
If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.
If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend.
It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.
It is difficult to make a man miserable while he feels worthy of himself and claims kindred to the great God who made him.
Let me not be understood as saying that there are no bad laws, nor that grievances may not arise for the redress of which no legal provisions have been made. I mean to say no such thing. But I do mean to say that although bad laws, if they exist, should be repealed as soon as possible, still, while they continue in force, for the sake of example they should be religiously observed.
Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.
No man has a good enough memory to make a successful liar.
No man is good enough to govern another man without that other's consent.
Tact is the ability to describe others as they see themselves.
That some should be rich, shows that others may become rich, and, hence, is just encouragement to industry and enterprise.
The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just.
Whatever you are, be a good one.
When the conduct of men is designed to be influenced, persuasion, kind unassuming persuasion, should ever be adopted. It is an old and true maxim that 'a drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall.' So with men. If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend. Therein is a drop of honey that catches his heart, which, say what he will, is the great highroad to his reason, and which, once gained, you will find but little trouble in convincing him of the justice of your cause, if indeed that cause is really a good one.
When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, it's best to let him run.
Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.
You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.
You may deceive all the people part of the time, and part of the people all the time, but not all the people all the time.
'Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
When I do good, I feel good; when I do bad, I feel bad, and that is my religion.
You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Ancient Greece Quiz - Early Period
Ancient Greece - The Early Period
1. What island was the home of the Minoan civilization?
2. Give or take a century each side, between which centuries did the Minoan Civilization exist?
3. What was its most well-known city?
4. Which British archaeologist excavated this city?
5. Who was the Minoan’s most prominent king?
6. The eruption of which volcano destroyed much of the Minoan civilization?
7. What unusual (for its’ times) gender power structure was inherent in Minoan civilization?
8. On which island was the Arthritiki Civilization located?
9. Which civilization succeeded the Minoans as the dominant power in the Aegean?
10. Who was the most famous queen of this civilization mentioned in 8?
11. Which archaeologist excavated the ruins of the civilization mentioned in 8, in the Northern Pelopenese?
12. Who were the Bronze Age invaders who overran Greece from the North?
13. What handicap is the bard Homer alleged to have suffered from?
14. Who is considered the first writer of Ancient Greece?
15. In what Ancient kingdom was the City of Troy located?
Answers to Ancient Greece The Early Period
1. Crete – The Minoans were a proud seafaring race of possible Middle-East origin.
2. 1500-900 BC.
3. Knossus
4. Sir Arthur Evans.
5. King Minos - Father of the famed Minotaur.
6. Stromboli
7. The women were the individuals who controlled the land.
8. San Torini. I visited these ruins in 1991 and recommend those on a trip to San Torini do the same.
9. Mycenae
10. Clytamenstra – She has a beautiful beehive tomb located in the North-East Pelopenese.
11. Heinrich Schlieman – The same man who excavated Troy.
12. The Doric Greeks.
13. Blindness – Some people argue that Homer was not one person but several different authors.
14. Hesiod
15. Thrace – A nation renowned for its sword fighters.
1. What island was the home of the Minoan civilization?
2. Give or take a century each side, between which centuries did the Minoan Civilization exist?
3. What was its most well-known city?
4. Which British archaeologist excavated this city?
5. Who was the Minoan’s most prominent king?
6. The eruption of which volcano destroyed much of the Minoan civilization?
7. What unusual (for its’ times) gender power structure was inherent in Minoan civilization?
8. On which island was the Arthritiki Civilization located?
9. Which civilization succeeded the Minoans as the dominant power in the Aegean?
10. Who was the most famous queen of this civilization mentioned in 8?
11. Which archaeologist excavated the ruins of the civilization mentioned in 8, in the Northern Pelopenese?
12. Who were the Bronze Age invaders who overran Greece from the North?
13. What handicap is the bard Homer alleged to have suffered from?
14. Who is considered the first writer of Ancient Greece?
15. In what Ancient kingdom was the City of Troy located?
Answers to Ancient Greece The Early Period
1. Crete – The Minoans were a proud seafaring race of possible Middle-East origin.
2. 1500-900 BC.
3. Knossus
4. Sir Arthur Evans.
5. King Minos - Father of the famed Minotaur.
6. Stromboli
7. The women were the individuals who controlled the land.
8. San Torini. I visited these ruins in 1991 and recommend those on a trip to San Torini do the same.
9. Mycenae
10. Clytamenstra – She has a beautiful beehive tomb located in the North-East Pelopenese.
11. Heinrich Schlieman – The same man who excavated Troy.
12. The Doric Greeks.
13. Blindness – Some people argue that Homer was not one person but several different authors.
14. Hesiod
15. Thrace – A nation renowned for its sword fighters.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
The Church Street Bombing
This is an excerpt of an on-line discussion with a fellow who was not aware of Nelson Mandela's violent past.
Hi Richard
I too opposed Apartheid and I do not agree with the sentiments of the Springbok club at all. They do not represent my views, however I used their website as a reference as this 'event' from Mandela's life seems to have been downplayed or glossed over in the traditional history of the Anti-Apartheid struggle. The sources are very scarce.
However the fact of the matter is that the Church Street Bombing did occur - Mandela did consent to it - (he mentions this in his book). I was living in Pretoria at the time and my father's office was a few blocks from the site of the bombing. I remember this event very clearly. Church Street is the Yonge Street of Pretoria - the bomb went off at rush hour on a Friday afternoon to ensure maximum civilian casualties. The carnage was awful. There were many people (both black and white) who were cut to shreds by the falling glass from the surrounding buildings. Regardless of how one wishes to justify this act, it was terrible atrocity and probably didn't do much to advance the anti-apartheid struggle.
I do not believe (based on their life actions and philosophy) that neither Gandhi nor King would have consented to such violence. One does not hear of this bombing as it does not fit in with the current image of Mandela as a voice of peace. But we cannot deny the facts - it happened. Even Amnesty International would not endorse Mandela as he refused for a very long time to denounce violence.
Having said this I do respect Mandela's policy of reconciliation which seems to have temporarily healed some of the evils of the Apartheid Era (at least for now). But lets not forget history in our rush to embrace the future.
Your comparison with the King David Bombing, while on the surface comparable, does nor accurately reflect the same moral equivalency as the Church Street Bombing. The King David Hotel was the headquarters of the British forces in Palestine. The bomb threat was called in and many civilians left well in advance as did some of the military. However there were those who chose to stay (they were guided more by arrogance than anything else) and therefore paid the price. The King David Hotel was a justifiable military target.
I would have no complaint with the ANC attack on Church Street if the perpetrators had warned the civilian population ahead of time and chosen a military target instead. After all like the Irgun their struggle was legitimate.
Thanks for the opportunity to indulge.
Gavin
Hi Richard
I too opposed Apartheid and I do not agree with the sentiments of the Springbok club at all. They do not represent my views, however I used their website as a reference as this 'event' from Mandela's life seems to have been downplayed or glossed over in the traditional history of the Anti-Apartheid struggle. The sources are very scarce.
However the fact of the matter is that the Church Street Bombing did occur - Mandela did consent to it - (he mentions this in his book). I was living in Pretoria at the time and my father's office was a few blocks from the site of the bombing. I remember this event very clearly. Church Street is the Yonge Street of Pretoria - the bomb went off at rush hour on a Friday afternoon to ensure maximum civilian casualties. The carnage was awful. There were many people (both black and white) who were cut to shreds by the falling glass from the surrounding buildings. Regardless of how one wishes to justify this act, it was terrible atrocity and probably didn't do much to advance the anti-apartheid struggle.
I do not believe (based on their life actions and philosophy) that neither Gandhi nor King would have consented to such violence. One does not hear of this bombing as it does not fit in with the current image of Mandela as a voice of peace. But we cannot deny the facts - it happened. Even Amnesty International would not endorse Mandela as he refused for a very long time to denounce violence.
Having said this I do respect Mandela's policy of reconciliation which seems to have temporarily healed some of the evils of the Apartheid Era (at least for now). But lets not forget history in our rush to embrace the future.
Your comparison with the King David Bombing, while on the surface comparable, does nor accurately reflect the same moral equivalency as the Church Street Bombing. The King David Hotel was the headquarters of the British forces in Palestine. The bomb threat was called in and many civilians left well in advance as did some of the military. However there were those who chose to stay (they were guided more by arrogance than anything else) and therefore paid the price. The King David Hotel was a justifiable military target.
I would have no complaint with the ANC attack on Church Street if the perpetrators had warned the civilian population ahead of time and chosen a military target instead. After all like the Irgun their struggle was legitimate.
Thanks for the opportunity to indulge.
Gavin
Arab-Israeli Conflict Quiz #1
The Arab-Israeli Conflict I
1. At which International Conference after World War I was the Palestine Mandate granted to Britain?
2. This area was separated from Palestine and given to the Emir Abdullah in 1921. What was it named?
3. This declaration promising Palestine as a Jewish homeland was issued in 1917. Which Declaration was this?
4. What did Britain issue on May 17, 1939 to restrict immigration into Palestine?
5. Which Country had a mandate in Syria after the First World War?
6. What was UNSCOP?
7. What was the name of the Arab village that was attacked by the Irgun and Stern Gang on April 9, 1948 in order to end the blockade of Jersulalem and attacks by Arabs on Jewish convoys?
8. Jews from this ship that were denied entry into Palestine by the British were eventually interned in the British-occupied zone of Germany. Which ship was this?
9. This man, the Mufti of Jerusalem, collaborated with Hitler during World War II. Who was this man?
10. Of 8, 10, 12 months how long did the War of Israeli Independence last?
11. According to the United Nations Partition Plan, approved by the UN General Assembly by a vote of 33 against 13 with 10 abstentions on the November 29, 1949, what was to become of Jerusalem?
12. Which four countries did Israel sign armstices in 1949 with?
13. This man was Israel’s Ambassador to the UN at the time of the Suez Canal Crisis. Who was he?
14. Which Gulf did the Egyptians blockade on May 22, 1967 cutting off the Israeli port of Eilat?
15. This party seized power in Syria in 1967. Which Party was this?
Answers to The Arab-Israeli Conflict I
1. The San Remo Conference of 1920.
2. Transjordan. It would gain independence as Jordan in 1946.
3. The Balfour Declaration.
4. The White Paper.
5. France
6. The UN Special Committee on Palestine.
7. Deir Yassin.
8. Exodus 1947.
9. Haj Amin el Husseini.
10. Eight months.
11. It was supposed to an international zone. The rest of the region of course was split into a proposed Jewish and Arab state (this does not include the East Bank of the Jordan which had already become a separate entity ‘Transjordan’ earlier).
12. Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria with Ralp Bunche, who would later win a Nobel Peace Prize serving as Mediator.
13. Abba Eban.
14. The Gulf of Aquaba.
15. The Ba’ath Party.
1. At which International Conference after World War I was the Palestine Mandate granted to Britain?
2. This area was separated from Palestine and given to the Emir Abdullah in 1921. What was it named?
3. This declaration promising Palestine as a Jewish homeland was issued in 1917. Which Declaration was this?
4. What did Britain issue on May 17, 1939 to restrict immigration into Palestine?
5. Which Country had a mandate in Syria after the First World War?
6. What was UNSCOP?
7. What was the name of the Arab village that was attacked by the Irgun and Stern Gang on April 9, 1948 in order to end the blockade of Jersulalem and attacks by Arabs on Jewish convoys?
8. Jews from this ship that were denied entry into Palestine by the British were eventually interned in the British-occupied zone of Germany. Which ship was this?
9. This man, the Mufti of Jerusalem, collaborated with Hitler during World War II. Who was this man?
10. Of 8, 10, 12 months how long did the War of Israeli Independence last?
11. According to the United Nations Partition Plan, approved by the UN General Assembly by a vote of 33 against 13 with 10 abstentions on the November 29, 1949, what was to become of Jerusalem?
12. Which four countries did Israel sign armstices in 1949 with?
13. This man was Israel’s Ambassador to the UN at the time of the Suez Canal Crisis. Who was he?
14. Which Gulf did the Egyptians blockade on May 22, 1967 cutting off the Israeli port of Eilat?
15. This party seized power in Syria in 1967. Which Party was this?
Answers to The Arab-Israeli Conflict I
1. The San Remo Conference of 1920.
2. Transjordan. It would gain independence as Jordan in 1946.
3. The Balfour Declaration.
4. The White Paper.
5. France
6. The UN Special Committee on Palestine.
7. Deir Yassin.
8. Exodus 1947.
9. Haj Amin el Husseini.
10. Eight months.
11. It was supposed to an international zone. The rest of the region of course was split into a proposed Jewish and Arab state (this does not include the East Bank of the Jordan which had already become a separate entity ‘Transjordan’ earlier).
12. Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria with Ralp Bunche, who would later win a Nobel Peace Prize serving as Mediator.
13. Abba Eban.
14. The Gulf of Aquaba.
15. The Ba’ath Party.
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