A Ton of Crap
Page 5
GREEK MATHEMATICS
The Pythagorean School The Pythagorean School, taught by Pythagoras, though mystical, placed heavy emphasis on math. Pythagoras’s work had a deep impact in mathematical areas such as number theory, proof theory, plane geometry, solid geometry, and proportion. Pythagoras is said to have constructed the first proof of what would become known as the Pythagorean theorem, which states that for a right triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse equals the sum of the squares of the lengths of the two other sides. Or to put it simply, a² + b² = c².
THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
The Heart The heart is a muscle roughly the size of a clenched fist. It is two sided and has four chambers. Blood enters the heart through the right atrium. The right ventricle pushes the deoxygenated blood to the lungs. The left atrium then receives the oxygenated blood and pumps it to the left ventricle of the heart, which is responsible for pushing the blood out of the heart and into the body’s circulation.
ITALIAN
Vowels Vowels in Italian are short. They should be pronounced very clearly and not drawn out. The letters a, i, and u are always pronounced in the same way. The letter a is pronounced like in the word cat, the letter i is like the y in the word yellow, and the u is pronounced as in the word fun. The pronunciation of the letters e and o, however, will vary depending on which part of Italy you are in and could have an open or closed sound.
LESSON 4C
THE HUNS
Weaponry The Huns relied on two very powerful weapons: a composite bow and horses. The Huns were excellent horseback riders and fought as cavalry. The groups they attacked could not escape their hit-and-run tactics, and using their bows and arrows allowed the Huns to attack their enemies and inflict injury from long ranges. Warriors of the Huns also carried swords, lassos, and lances.
THE ALPHABET
The Greek Alphabet The Greeks adopted the Phoenician alphabet, and by the eighth century b.c., had modified it and created the first true alphabet, meaning both consonants and vowels were represented. The Greeks even used the Phoenician consonant symbols to represent vowels because they did not have the same sounds the Phoenicians did and they needed the symbols for the vowels. The Greek alphabet heavily influenced the Latin alphabet, which is the most widely used alphabet today.
GREEK MATHEMATICS
The Eleatic School Founded by Parmenides, the Eleatic School focused on opposing the physical theories of early philosophers and paved the way for metaphysics. Zeno, another philosopher in the Eleatic School, proposed challenges to ideas of motion and time, and against multiplicity. What Zeno actually does in his work, however, is invoke the notion of infinity.
THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
Red Blood Cells Blood is constantly flowing through our bodies and carries oxygen, nutrients, water, and waste products to and from our cells. Red blood cells carry oxygen and carbon dioxide. After picking up oxygen from the lungs and delivering it to the cells, the red blood cells transport the carbon dioxide to the lungs, from which it is then exhaled.
ITALIAN
Easy Consonants The modern Italian alphabet features fewer letters than the English alphabet. Missing from the Italian alphabet are the letters j, k, w, x, and y. The letters b, f, m, n, and v are pronounced the same way they are in English. One drastic difference when it comes to consonants is that the h in Italian is actually silent.
LESSON 4D
THE HUNS
Attila the Hun In 432, the Huns became centralized under the leadership of one ruler, Rua. Two years later, Rua died and his throne was passed on to his two nephews: Bleda and Attila. In 445, Attila killed his brother, taking complete control of the government and the Huns. Under Attila’s reign, the Huns defeated and conquered several rivals and made several attacks on the Roman Empire. Attila was one of the most feared rulers of the time.
THE ALPHABET
The Latin Alphabet The Latin alphabet, or the Roman alphabet, was taken from the Greek alphabet and then modified by the Etruscans and Romans. The Latin alphabet consisted of twenty-one letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, Z, H, I, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, V, X. This was the alphabet used when writing Latin, and as the Roman Empire spread, so too did the language and the letters. As the Romance languages started to evolve, the languages adapted with these letters.
GREEK MATHEMATICS
The Sophist School The Sophist School was founded in Athens around 480 b.c. For a long time, the Sophists were the only source of higher education in cities. The Sophist School placed emphasis on using abstract reasoning to understand the universe. The Sophists applied math to try to solve problems such as how to double a cube, square a circle, and trisect an angle with just a compass and a straight edge.
THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
White Blood Cells White blood cells fight germs. During an infection, the body produces more white blood cells, which will then try to attack and destroy the infection. When someone is prescribed an antibiotic, it is because the white blood cells need help fighting off the infection.
ITALIAN
Harder Consonants These consonants are different than the ones you previously learned about. In Italian, some consonants have two different pronunciations depending on the letter before it. When a c is followed by an a, o, u, or a consonant, it is pronounced with a “k” sound, such as in the word cat. If it is followed by an e or an i, it is pronounced with a “ch” sound. If a g is followed by an a, o, u, or a consonant, it is pronounced like it is in the word get. If it is followed by an e or and i, it is pronounced with a “j” sound, like in the word gym.
LESSON 4E
THE HUNS
After Attila Upon Attila’s death, Ellac, one of his sons, overcame his two brothers and became ruler of the Huns. However, former subjects of Attila began to revolt and united under Ardaric, the ruler of the Gepids. The Huns would fight Ardaric’s men in the Battle of Nedao in 454, and lose, ending their supremacy over Europe.
THE ALPHABET
Old English Alphabet The first alphabet for the English language was the
Anglo-Saxon futhorc runic alphabet of the fifth century. It was used by the Anglo-
Saxons in what is now England. In the seventh century, Christian missionaries introduced the Latin alphabet to the Anglo-Saxons, and over time, the Latin alphabet began incorporating some of the Anglo-Saxon futhorc alphabet into it. The Old English alphabet was made up of twenty-four letters from the Latin alphabet and five letters from the English alphabet.
GREEK MATHEMATICS
The Platonic School The Platonic School was founded in 387 b.c. by one of the most famous Greek philosophers: Plato. And though he was not a mathematician, Plato placed great emphasis on mathematics. The most significant mathematical achievements were done by Plato’s pupils at this time, and the school was heavily influenced by the work of Pythagoras.
THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
The Aorta and Arterial System The aorta is the largest artery in the body. It originates from the left ventricle and distributes the oxygenated blood. From the aorta, the blood is then sent to the other arteries and arterioles, which are small arteries that deliver oxygen and nutrients to all of the cells in your body. At the end of the arterioles are capillaries, which pass the blood through the venous system.
ITALIAN
Articles Just like the other Romance languages, nouns in Italian must have a gender and number associated with them.
Singular Plural
Masculine il i
Masculine lo gli
Feminine la le
Masculine/Feminine l’ gli/le
There are two masculine articles. The first row is used for a masculine noun that begins with a consonant, unless that word starts with a z or begins with s and another consonant. In those cases, you use the second row of masculine articles.
LESSON 4f
THE HUNS
Legends The stories of the Huns’ conquests played an important part in the folklore of the Germanic people. In particular, the Old Nor
se Volsunga Saga, an epic poem from thirteenth-century Iceland, and the Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks make considerable mention of the Huns and the battles they fought. In the Hervarar saga, a battle is depicted between the Huns and the Goths, and in the Nibelungenlied, another epic poem, a woman marries Attila the Hun.
THE ALPHABET
Modern English Alphabet The Modern English alphabet is the current alphabet used in the United States, and it was established around 1550. With the advent of printing, the Old English alphabet evolved into the Modern English alphabet and actually got rid of many of the Anglo-Saxon letters, while maintaining the Latin alphabet. The Old English alphabet looked like this:
A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T V X Y Z & ⁊ Ƿ Þ Ð Æ
The Modern English alphabet distinguished the letters i and j from being a single letter, as well as u and v, and it is believed the w was added at a later time.
GREEK MATHEMATICS
The School of Aristotle Aristotle described three types of science. There was the theoretical, like math, physics, and logic; the productive, which were the arts; and the practical, which were politics and ethics. He distinguished the basic principles of mathematics into axioms, which include the laws of logic and contradiction, and postulates, which didn’t need to be self-evident, but the results from them must sustain their truth.
THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
The Venous System The venous system is responsible for bringing the blood back to the heart. From the capillaries, the blood flows through small veins called venules, and from there, the blood then flows to the veins. The superior and inferior venae cavae are the two largest veins in the body, and both end in the right atrium. The superior vena cava enters on the top while the inferior enters from the bottom.
ITALIAN
Useful Italian Phrases Here are some helpful phrases to use when traveling to Italy:
Hi. Ciao.
Good morning. Buongiorno.
Good evening. Buona sera.
Where is the bathroom? Dove posso trovare il bagno?
How much is this? Quanto costa questo?
Thank you. Grazie.
Do you speak English? Parli inglese?
Can you help me? Può aiutarmi? / Puoi aiutarmi? (formal/informal)
When does the train leave? Quando parte el treno?
LESSON 4 QUIZ
What animal did the Huns use to make them so successful in their attacks on enemies?
Dogs
Horses
Hawks
Tigers
Attila became the sole ruler of the Huns when he:
Killed his brother
Killed his uncle
Killed his father
Killed the leader of the Roman Empire
The Phoenician alphabet was the first alphabet to:
Use hieroglyphs
Use cuneiform
Use symbols representing words
Use symbols representing sounds
What contributed to the change from the Old English alphabet to the Modern English alphabet?
Influence of the Greek alphabet
The invention of the printing press
Introduction of the Latin alphabet
Christian missionaries introduced Anglo-Saxon futhorc
Thales is credited for being the first mathematician to discover and teach deductive proofs in geometry. He was part of the:
School of Aristotle
The Ionian School
The Platonic School
The Pythagorean School
Aristotle divided math into two things, axioms and:
Art
Physics
Postulates
Logic
Your blood moves from the heart via arteries, and to your heart via veins, delivering ______ throughout your body.
Antibodies
Capillaries and arteries
Superior and inferior venae cavae
Oxygen and nutrients
After picking up oxygen from the lungs and delivering it to the cells, what do the red blood cells then transport to the lungs?
Carbon dioxide
Nitrogen
Carbon monoxide
None of the above
What vowels are always pronounced the same way in Italian?
E, O, I
A, I, U
A, E, I
U, O, E
How do you ask “How much is this?” in Italian?
Quando parte el treno?
Può aiutarmi?
Quanto costa questo?
Puoi aiutarmi?
ANSWER KEY: b, a, d, b, b, c, d, a, b, c
Lesson 5
HISTORY: The Ottoman Empire
What the Ottoman Empire Was, Rise of the Ottoman Empire, The Ottoman Empire Expands, Society of the Ottoman Empire, Decline of the Ottoman Empire, Collapse of the Ottoman Empire
LANGUAGE ARTS: Language
Why Humans Are Different, Linguistics, Semantics, Pragmatics, Phonetics, Syntax
MATH: Chinese Mathematics
Before the Qin Dynasty, Math of the Han Dynasty, Math of the Tang Dynasty, Math of the Song and Yuan Dynasties, Precious Mirror of the
Four Elements, From the Ming Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty
SCIENCE: The Respiratory System
Inhalation, Exhalation, The Lungs, The Nose and Nasal Cavity, Asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
FOREIGN LANGUAGE: German
The Origins, Old German, Middle German, Modern German, German Today, Useful German Phrases
LESSON 5A
THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
What the Ottoman Empire Was The Ottoman Empire was based in Turkey and lasted from 1299 to 1923. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the Ottoman Empire was at its peak, with territory ranging from North Africa to southwestern Asia and southeastern Europe, across twenty-nine provinces. For six centuries, the empire’s capital city, Constantinople, was the center of interaction between the East and the West.
LANGUAGE
Why Humans Are Different Human language is truly unique, and much different from languages of other animals. Humans can make an extremely wide variety of sounds to create languages, and in fact, the sounds and words we make are arbitrary. For humans, language is something that is learned through social interaction. Other animals, however, have only a very limited set of sounds they can produce, and those are genetically transmitted.
CHINESE MATHEMATICS
Before the Qin Dynasty Mathematics has been found carved in oracle bones dating back to the Shang Dynasty, which lasted from 1600 to 1050 b.c. From the Shang Dynasty onward, the Chinese developed a full decimal system and showed a basic understanding of equations, arithmetic, algebra, counting rods, and even negative numbers. In the Zhou Dynasty, which lasted from 1122 to 256 b.c., Chinese students were required to study mathematics. There is little to no knowledge of the mathematics of the Qin Dynasty.
THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
Inhalation The function of the respiratory system is to supply the blood with oxygen, which is then transferred to the rest of the body. Oxygen is received through breathing. The oxygen enters through the nose and mouth. From there, it goes through the larynx and trachea to the chest cavity, where the trachea then splits into small tubes called bronchi. The bronchus then divides once more, creating bronchial tubes, which lead to the lungs.
GERMAN
The Origins German is one of the largest Indo-Germanic languages today. Though it has words based on Latin, it is not a Romance language. The closest relative of German is actually English, but it is also related to Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, and Swedish. The earliest record of the language dates back to 750. The origins of the German language are broken down into three periods: Old German, Middle German, and Modern German.
LESSON 5B
THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
Rise of the Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire arose in the early fourteenth century, just as the Roman Empire began to fall. It was originally created when the empire of the
Seljuk Turks broke down. As the Ottomans began absorbing other states, by the reign of Muhammad II in 1451, all local Turkish dynasties had ended. Under Osman I and subsequent rulers, many attacks were aimed at the Byzantine Empire.
LANGUAGE
Linguistics Linguistics is the study of human languages, and it can be broken down into three categories: grammar (the rules used when speaking the language), meaning (how a language uses references to process and assign meaning), and its context (the evolution of language). Linguists believe the ability to learn and communicate with language is an innate process for humans, similar to our ability to walk.