A Ton of Crap
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INCA MATHEMATICS
The Quipu The Incas created a tool called the quipu. This was not a calculator used to add or subtract, but rather a storage device used to record. It is this use of the quipu that allowed the Incas to successfully create roads, sophisticated agriculture, administration, and textile designs. The tool was made entirely of strings that were then tied into knots. Each knot represented a number, with a positional base ten representation, a system that we still use to this day.
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
Neurons The nervous system works via nerve cells, or neurons. These cells process and transmit information through chemical and electrical signaling. What makes neurons different from other cells is that they have very specialized extensions called axons and dendrites. Dendrites receive the information, and the axon carries the message to target cells.
FRENCH
French Consonants French consonants are pronounced similarly to the way they are in English. However, there are two major exceptions. Consonants at the end of a word (except c, r, f, and l) are not pronounced, and unlike in English, you are not supposed to linger on consonants. They should be short and quick, so that you can move on to the next vowel. The letter r is also pronounced from the back of your throat.
LESSON 3C
ANCIENT EGYPT
The Old Kingdom The Old Kingdom refers to the rule of the Third Dynasty to the Sixth Dynasty from 2686 to 2181 b.c. This is a time defined by a flourishing economy, a well-defined justice system, and a strong government. It is during this time that the famous pyramids of Giza were built, marking great artistic and technological advancements. A new class of educated scribes also arose.
COMPOSITION
Modifiers A modifier is any word, clause, or phrase that adds meaning to another word or part of a sentence. There are two types of modifiers, pre-modifiers and post-modifiers. The head is any word that determines the nature of the sentence. A pre-modifier goes before the head, and a post-modifier goes after the head. For example, “history book,” is an example of a pre-modifier, and “A book on history” is an example of a post-modifier.
INCA MATHEMATICS
How the Quipu Works The quipu was used in a truly ingenious way. The knots placed on the string were put in different positions representing the base ten counting system. Knots near the end of the string represented the digits. A space followed by more knots represented the tens. If another space was left and then followed by more knots, this represented the hundreds, and so on. For example, to represent the number 246 on the quipu, there would be six knots, a space, then four knots, a space, and then two knots.
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
The Central Nervous System The central nervous system consists of two of the most important parts of the nervous system: the brain and the spinal cord. The brain is considered to be the command center of the nervous system, since it controls all of the workings of your body. The central nervous system collaborates with the peripheral nervous system in controlling the behavior of the body.
FRENCH
French Vowels Unlike consonants, French vowels are pronounced differently than they are in English. Vowels do not form diphthongs like in English. Instead of closing the vowel with a “y” or “w” sound, the vowels stay constant, and the tongue remains tense while pronouncing them. The letters a, o, and u are hard vowels, and e and i are soft vowels. When followed by m or n, vowels sound nasal, meaning that when pronouncing them, air escapes both the mouth and the nose.
LESSON 3D
ANCIENT EGYPT
The Middle Kingdom The central government of the Old Kingdom collapsed in 2160 b.c., and around 2055 b.c., the prosperity and stability of Egypt was restored when Mentuhotep II came to power beginning what is known as the Middle Kingdom. Once again, art, literature, and great monuments defined this period. One stark contrast between the art of this time and that of the Old Kingdom, is that this work focused more on the individual and a democratization of the afterlife in which every person possessed a soul and was greeted by the gods and goddesses when they died.
COMPOSITION
Prepositional Phrases A prepositional phrase adds meaning to the verbs and nouns in a sentence. It is composed of two parts; a preposition (a word that expresses the relationship between a noun or pronoun and the other words in the sentence), and the object of the preposition. For example, when looking at the phrase “In the building,” the word in is our preposition because it indicates the location, and the building is the object of the preposition.
INCA MATHEMATICS
The Color-Coding of the Quipu The Incas did not stop at counting with the strings of the quipu. The quipu had a very functional purpose, and in order to discern what each value represented, a system needed to be in place in order to tell the Incas what was being counted. There were hundreds of strings on the quipu, and yet their system was very easy to understand. What they did was actually color-code the strings. So, for example, a green string might represent a certain type of crop, and the knots on the string would indicate how much of that crop was recorded.
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
The Peripheral Nervous System The peripheral nervous system consists of the nerves that receive and send the information from the central nervous system. There are two types of nerves: motor nerves, which send signals from the brain to different tissues in the body; and sensory nerves, which receive information in the form of pain, heat, or touch and then send those impulses to the central nervous system.
FRENCH
Articles In French, there is always an article in front of the noun, and these change according to gender (masculine, feminine), and number (singular and plural). There are three types of articles: definite (equivalent to the in English), indefinite (equivalent to a/an in English), and partitive (used when a singular noun can represent smaller parts, such as the word food). The articles are:
Definite Indefinite Partitive
Masculine le un du
Feminine la une de la
Plural les des
Before Vowel l’ de l’
LESSON 3E
ANCIENT EGYPT
The New Kingdom The New Kingdom lasted from the sixteenth to the eleventh century b.c. and was defined by military campaigns that made the Egyptian empire the largest it had ever been. Amenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten, instituted new and radical worship of a new sun god, Aten. Attacking the priestly establishment, Akhenaten eventually made the Aten the only god. When Tutankhamen came to power after Akhenaten’s death, he returned Egypt to a polytheistis religion.
COMPOSITION
Adjective Clauses Adjective clauses help indicate which part of a sentence is more important than the rest of the sentence a process known as subordination. The adjective clause is a dependent word group that modifies the noun. These usually include words like which, who, whose, and that. For example in “The dog that ate everyone’s lunch wanted seconds,” that ate everyone’s lunch is the adjective clause.
INCA MATHEMATICS
Local Statisticians The Inca king appointed people, called quipucamayocs, to use the quipus, and effectively act as statisticians for the towns. These people were to use and interpret the quipus and keep census records on the population, as well as records of all produce, weaponry, and animals. This information was then sent to the capital, Cuzco, every year.
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
The Somatic Nervous System The somatic nervous system, or voluntary nervous system, is part of the peripheral nervous system. It is responsible for processing sensory information — such as pain, heat, and touch — from an external stimuli, and controlling the voluntary muscular systems. The somatic nervous system allows a person to receive sensory information and react to environmental changes. The somatic nervous system is also part of the autonomic nervous system.
FRENCH
French Today French is the native language for approximately 75 million people worldwide, and it is the national language for over 25 countries including Franc
e, Haiti, Luxembourg, and Monaco, and more than 15 countries found in Africa. It is also one of the official languages of Canada, Switzerland, and Belgium, as well as one of the six official languages used by the United Nations today.
LESSON 3F
ANCIENT EGYPT
The Late Period The Late Period lasted from 664 to 323 b.c. It is considered to be the end of the once-great Egyptian Empire. From 525 to 404 b.c., Egypt was part of the Persian Empire. The twenty-eighth dynasty, led by Amyrtaeus, saw a revolt against the Persians; however, by the thirtieth Dynasty in 343 b.c., the Persians had once again reoccupied the land.
COMPOSITION
Participle Phrases A participle is a verb form that is used as an adjective. For example, cooked, cooking, and having cooked are participles of the verb cook. A participle phrase is a sentence that consists of a present or past participle, with any modifiers, objects, and complements. For example, in “Running down the aisle, she knocked over the soup display,” running down the aisle is the participle phrase.
INCA MATHEMATICS
The Yupana In a letter to the king of Spain, Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala describes and illustrates a picture of another counting device created and used by the Incas: the yupana. His drawing resembles that of a counting board. Scientists are unsure if the Incas used this as an abacus or some type of calculator, and it is not known whether this was merely just another recording device or a tool for solving mathematical equations.
THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
The Autonomic Nervous System The autonomic nervous system is part of the peripheral nervous system and controls involuntary body functions. Two important aspects of the autonomic nervous system are the sympathetic nervous system, which comes into effect causing the fight or flight reaction; and the parasympathetic nervous system, which comes into effect in nonemergency situations, causing the body to rest and relax.
FRENCH
Useful Phrases Here are some helpful phrases to use when traveling to a French-speaking country:
Good morning/Good day. Bonjour.
Good evening. Bonsoir.
Do you speak English? Parlez-vous anglais?
Thank you. Merci.
How are you? Comment allez-vous?
What time is it? Quelle heure est-il?
I need to use the restroom. J’ai besoin d’utiliser les toilettes.
Please repeat. Répétez, s’il vous plaît.
LESSON 3 QUIZ
Around 3100 b.c., the ruler Menes established Memphis as the capital city, uniting:
Upper and Lower Egypt
Western and Eastern Egypt
Egypt and Mesopotamia
The Nile River and the Yellow River
When Amenhotep IV came to power, he instituted new and radical beliefs. Which of the following was Amenhotep IV responsible for?
Leading a revolt against the Persians
Creating a class of scribes
Turning the polytheistic religion into a monotheistic one
Creating mastabas
In the sentence “Bobby sees a cat,” what is the subject?
The cat
Seeing
Bobby
There is no subject in this sentence.
“In the store” is an example of:
A participle phrase
A prepositional phrase
An article
An adjective clause
The quipu had hundreds of strings on it, and yet it was very easy to understand. That is because:
The strings got progressively shorter.
The knots were made bigger for larger numbers.
The strings got progressively longer.
The strings were color-coded.
The number 45 represented on the quipu would look like:
25 knots, a space, then 20 knots
5 knots, a space, then 4 knots
10 knots, a space, 10 knots, a space, 10 knots, a space, 10 knots, a space, and 5 knots
40 knots, a space, 5 knots
The central nervous system consists of the brain and the:
Blood
Lungs
Arms and legs
Spinal cord
Fight or flight is a result of:
The central nervous system
The peripheral nervous system
The autonomic nervous system
B and C
In French, an article is always in front of:
A noun
A verb
An adjective
An adverb
When followed by _____, French vowels sound nasal.
P and L
M and N
R and Q
K and A
ANSWER KEY: a, c, c, b, d, b, d, d, a, b
Lesson 4
HISTORY: The Huns
Who Were They?, Conquerors, Weaponry, Attila the Hun, After Attila, Legends
LANGUAGE ARTS: The Alphabet
The Phoenician Alphabet,
The Aramaic Alphabet, The
Greek Alphabet, The Latin Alphabet, Old English Alphabet, Modern
English
Alphabet
MATH: Greek Mathematics
The Ionian School, The Pythagorean School, The Eleatic School, The Sophist School, The Platonic School, The School of Aristotle
SCIENCE: The Circulatory System
What Is the Circulatory System?, The Heart, Red Blood Cells, White Blood Cells, The Aorta and Arterial System, The Venous System
FOREIGN LANGUAGE: Italian
The Origins, Vowels, Easy Consonants, Harder Consonants, Articles, Useful Italian Phrases
LESSON 4A
THE HUNS
Who Were They? In the fourth and fifth centuries a.d., a nomadic group of people from Central Asia spread to the Caspian Sea, coming into contact with the Roman Empire toward the end of its reign. These people were fierce warriors (with a specialty in archery), animal herders, and expert horsemen. The tribes were called the Hsiung-nu; however, in the West, they were referred to as the Huns.
THE ALPHABET
The Phoenician Alphabet By 3000 b.c., there was the cuneiform of Mesopotamia, and the hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt. The Phoenician alphabet, however, was quite a different writing system from either of these. Instead of using pictographs, the Phoenician alphabet was something called abjad. Abjad was a non-pictograph consonantal alphabet that showed symbols representing sounds. This writing system quickly spread throughout the Mediterranean and was adapted by many cultures.
GREEK MATHEMATICS
The Ionian School Founded by Thales in 643 to 546 b.c., the Ionian School was a pre-Socratic group of philosophers that focused on teaching philosophy, science, and the origins of the universe. Thales is credited for being the first mathematician to discover and teach deductive proofs in geometry, using Thales’s theorem, which states that if there are three points on a circle and the first and last point make up the diameter, then the angle of the three of them combined is a right angle.
THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
What Is the Circulatory System? The circulatory system consists of the heart, blood, and blood vessels. It is the body’s transportation and cooling system. Your blood moves from the heart via arteries, and to your heart via veins, delivering oxygen and nutrients throughout your body. The blood also picks up any waste products in your system, so the body can get rid of them.
ITALIAN
The Origins Italian, like the other Romance languages, stemmed from Vulgar Latin, and it most closely resembles Latin. Around the fourteenth century, the Tuscan dialect began to dominate as a result of the aggressive commerce centered in Florence. In 1525, Venetian linguist and lawyer Pietro Bembo set out to make the dialect spoken in fifteenth-century Florence the official language of Italian literature. The first official Italian dictionary was published in 1612.
LESSON 4B
THE HUNS
Conquerors The Huns first overcame another nomadic group that lived between the Don and Volga rivers, the Alani. From there,
they attacked the Ostrogothic kingdom and in 376, the Huns attacked the Visigoths. During the fifty years following their conquest of the Visigoths, the Huns firmly established their status with both the Western and Eastern Roman Empires through constant raids and attacks.
THE ALPHABET
The Aramaic Alphabet The Aramaic alphabet was an adaptation of the Phoenician alphabet, and all Middle Eastern alphabets can be traced back to it. Much like the Phoenician alphabet, the letters only represented consonants, but it did also have certain places where long vowels were to be pronounced. To this day, the Hebrew alphabet is the closest relative to the Aramaic script of the fifth century b.c. The inventory of the letters and the shapes of the letters are practically identical.