Which of the following allowed the Americans to perform construction on the Panama Canal that the French did not have access to?
Rock drills
Steam shovels
Dynamite
All of the above
Which of the following describes Panama?
Panama is the southeastern end of the isthmus that bridges North America and South America.
Panama is between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean.
Panama is the size of Texas.
A and B.
Who wrote the Chronicles of
Narnia?
J. R. R. Tolkien
George R. R. Martin
J. K. Rowling
C. S. Lewis
Who wrote A Song of Ice and Fire?
J. R. R. Tolkien
George R. R. Martin
J. K. Rowling
C. S. Lewis
What is the mean in the following number set: 6, 7, 9, 11
8.25
4
7
7.5
What is the median in the following number set: 9, 12, 12, 13, 14, 15, 29
14.9
13
13.5
12.5
Who discovered penicillin?
Christiaan Barnard
Robert Koch
Alexander Fleming
Giovanni Morgagni
What is Louis Pasteur responsible for?
Performing the first open heart transplant
Discovering germs
Discovering the cause of tuberculosis
Discovering that blood flows in one direction in the body
Yiddish is a combination of:
Hebrew and German
German and Russian
Hebrew and Russian
Russian and Polish
Which of the following was a prayer book that contained the oldest Yiddish writing?
Ashkenazi
Sephardic
Worms Mahzor
Alef-beyz
ANSWER KEY: d, d, d, b, a, b, c, b, a, c
Lesson 27
HISTORY: The Great Depression
Economic Boom, Black Tuesday, Hoovervilles, The Dust Bowl, The New Deal, World War II
LANGUAGE ARTS: Alice in Wonderland
About “Lewis Carroll,” Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Through the Looking Glass, Symbolism, The Significance, History of Publication and Beyond
MATH: Game Theory
What Is Game Theory?, Cooperative Game Theory, Noncooperative Game Theory, Decision Theory, General Equilibrium Theory,
The Prisoner’s Dilemma
SCIENCE: Archimedes
About Archimedes, The Archimedes Heat Ray, The Golden Crown, The Archimedes Screw, The Claw of Archimedes, Work in Mathematics
FOREIGN LANGUAGE: Arabic
The Origins, Classical Arabic, Modern Arabic, Colloquial Arabic, The Writing System, Useful Arabic Phrases
LESSON 27A
THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Economic Boom Following World War I, America faced a time of economic expansion and the stock market had become increasingly popular. Many saw the stock market as an easy way to get rich, and as stock prices rose, people viewed stocks as a safe way to invest. Stocks were being purchased on margin, meaning people didn’t have enough to actually pay for the stock, so they would pay 10 to 20 percent and the broker would pay the rest. Not only did individual people put their money in the stock market, but even companies and banks invested money in the stock market.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
About “Lewis Carroll” Lewis Carroll (1832–1898) was the pen name of a shy man whose real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. Dodgson was a math professor at Oxford who was partially deaf and had physical deformities and a stammer. His appearance made him uncomfortable and shy around adults, but around children he was very different. Around kids, Dodgson was full of humor, highly animated, and most of all, a great storyteller. In 1856, Dodgson became close with the children of Henry George Liddell, a classics scholar who had accepted a position at one of Oxford’s colleges. Liddell’s daughter, Alice, would become the inspiration for Dodgson’s greatest work. He would often take the children on boat rides, entertaining them with fantastical stories. Ten years later, these stories would be published.
GAME THEORY
What Is Game Theory? Game theory is also known as the theory of social situations. Essentially, game theory involves determining the right strategies to use in situations while other competing strategies are also being used at the same time. Game theory also involves understanding how groups react. Game theory is a very useful tool, especially in economics. It can be used on a personal level, in business, and even at the national level. The assumption is that at all times, decisions made by the agents are rational. Of course, this is not always the case. Even when behavior is irrational, however, game theory can still lead to interesting findings about human nature. Though it might sound complex, game theory is actually fairly simple to understand.
ARCHIMEDES
About Archimedes Archimedes of Syracuse was a physicist, astronomer, mathematician, inventor, and engineer, from Syracuse, Sicily, who lived from 287 to 212 b.c. He is considered to be one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, on a par with Sir Isaac Newton. Though little is known about his early life, he studied in Alexandria, attending the school Euclid had established, before returning to Syracuse. His impact on the world has been incredibly long-lasting, and his inventions and principles in math and science can still be found today. Among his most famous inventions are the catapult and the compound pulley, and he made several important contributions to the lever.
ARABIC
The Origins Arabic is a Semitic language in the Afro-Asiatic group; however, it has preserved much of its Proto-Semitic (the predecessor to the Semitic languages) qualities. While many Semitic languages died, Arabic flourished with the rise and spread of Islam and the use of Arabic in the Qur’an. The earliest form of written Arabic appeared in the fourth century a.d., and by the seventh century, it appeared in the Qur’an.
LESSON 27B
THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Black Tuesday On October 24, 1929, what would become known as Black Thursday, the New York Stock Exchange crashed and large amounts of people began selling their stocks. Black Thursday is considered the beginning of the Great Depression. Five days later, Tuesday the 29th, was the worst day in the history of the stock market. Panic spread and people could not sell fast enough. With everyone selling and nobody buying, stocks plummeted. That day, known as Black Tuesday, more than 16.4 million shares of stock were been sold. The next day, the stock market was closed.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland tells the story of a young girl named Alice who one day while sitting by the river sees a rabbit run past her talking about how late he is. As he goes down the rabbit hole, Alice follows him. At the bottom, Alice finds a drink labeled “drink me.” As she drinks, she begins to shrink, and soon she enters a wonderland full of talking animals and interesting creatures. Each time she eats or drinks, she changes size. When the Queen of Hearts accuses the Knave of Hearts of stealing tarts, Alice tries to help out, but instead, she gets accused. The book ends with Alice back on the riverbank, awake, leaving us to wonder whether it was all just a dream or not.
GAME THEORY
Cooperative Game Theory There are two types of game theory: cooperative and noncooperative. The main difference between the two types is found in the independence given to the players of each. In cooperative game theory, players do not know what will happen outside of what will happen with their own decisions, but they rely on the cooperation of the other players in deals or contracts. In essence, they are making decisions based entirely on what they know of their choices. An example of a cooperative game would be if there is a person willing to sell an object, and there are two different and unrelated people wanting to buy that object
at their own prices. If there is bargaining between two of the three people, then there is cooperation.
ARCHIMEDES
The Archimedes Heat Ray Archimedes invented many objects, though none have been as controversial as his supposed heat ray. In the second century a.d., it was written that Archimedes created a device that had the ability to destroy ships with fire. Anthemius of Tralles claims that he did so using glass. The Archimedes Heat Ray used mirrors that would focus the sun’s light onto a ship, making the boat catch on fire. There have been many attempts at recreating the Archimedes Heat Ray. A test in 1973 resulted in an immediate explosion of the test boat; however, it is believed this was due to its tar paint. In 2005, students from MIT conducted a test that resulted in small flames, but only after an extended period of time. The Archimedes Heat Ray has been tested numerous times on the popular show Mythbusters, and each time it has been “busted.”
ARABIC
Classical Arabic Classical Arabic is the language that is featured in the Qur’an and classical literature, and is based on the medieval dialects of Arabic. Classical Arabic is considered a sacred language and is only used for prayer. Of the Old North Arabian languages, Classical Arabic is the only one to survive. Many symbols featured in the language are absent in the present form of Arabic.
LESSON 27C
THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Hoovervilles Hoovervilles were the names given to the shantytowns (named after President Hoover) that formed coast to coast in the cities of the United States. The Great Depression led to widespread poverty. From 1929 to 1933, over 100,000 businesses failed and many people were left homeless with nowhere else to stay but in these shantytowns. The largest Hooverville was found in New York City’s Central Park. When Hoover’s term ended in 1933, unemployment was at 13 million.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
Through the Looking Glass Through the Looking Glass continues Alice’s story at a later point in time. At the beginning of the story, Alice comes to the realization that she can step into the mirror, leading to an alternate world. There, she finds a book that is written backward. As she holds it up to the mirror, she reads a poem “Jabberwocky” (another one of Lewis Carroll’s most famous works). As she leaves the house, she comes across several new characters, including Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the White Queen, and Humpty Dumpty (who explains “Jabberwocky” to Alice).
GAME THEORY
Noncooperative Game Theory Noncooperative game theory involves making a decision based on the participation of the other players, but without any sort of cooperation in the form of deals or bargains. Instead, decisions are made independently. Noncooperative game theory is about working from what is known about the other players to achieve your own goals. In noncooperative game theory, all of the other players’ moves and options are known by everyone else. For example, if a major retailer wanted to make a decision regarding a product, they might check with their competition to see if the decision is worth it.
ARCHIMEDES
The Golden Crown Archimedes was approached by King Hiero II, who suspected that his goldsmith had replaced some of the gold in his new crown with silver. The king asked Archimedes to figure out if this was the case, and because it was for the gods, he was not to damage it in any way. Archimedes realized that the density of the crown could be measured by placing it in a tub of water. If the crown was made of other materials, the density would be lower than that of gold. By doing this test, it is said that Archimedes was able to conclude that the crown had been made of materials other than gold. Whether this is the method he actually used has been called into question, however, due to the fact that the differences in density are so slight (the water would have risen in centimeters).
ARABIC
Modern Arabic Modern Arabic is the standard Arabic language of today and it is based on Classical Arabic. The Arabic language is diglossic. Essentially, what this means is that Arabic speakers speak two languages: the dialect that they speak in, and then the codified and universal form of Arabic that is used on a larger scale for things like writing, literature, television, film, and media. Modern Arabic is also used when two people of different Arabic dialects speak to one another. The spoken dialects of Arabic are rarely written.
LESSON 27D
THE GREAT DEPRESSION
The Dust Bowl During World War I, the farms of the Southern plains in the United States were extremely profitable. The demand for wheat and corn was high, and farmers produced food for the homeland and abroad. In the 1930s, however, a combination of events would lead to the Dust Bowl. The farming practices, with much of the land deeply planted, plowed, and farmed, began to take their toll. The 1930s saw a great drought that lasted years (the worst in the history of the United States), and with the heavily plowed land, the once-prosperous agriculture was now devastated. Inches of dried soil would get swept up by the wind, darkening the skies with dust that would engulf entire towns.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
Symbolism Lewis Carroll’s books feature quite a lot of symbolism, most significantly, the loss of childhood innocence that everyone must face. Alice’s body constantly changing shape, creating a great amount of discomfort for her, is actually symbolic of puberty and the changes of the body. Throughout the books, Alice is constantly given puzzles to solve that seem completely unsolvable. This is to show that life is always full of challenges and one’s expectations and the reality are not the same thing, that sometimes life is frustrating.
GAME THEORY
Decision Theory Decision theory involves a single-person game and focuses on the forming of one’s beliefs and the making of decisions that are goal oriented. Normative decision theory concentrates on how one should make a decision, and descriptive decision theory concentrates on how a decision is actually made. Decision theory is particularly useful for economists, and a popular use of decision theory states that with risky alternatives, the preferences can be seen as the maximization of the anticipated value of the money income.
ARCHIMEDES
The Archimedes Screw Archimedes was commissioned by King Hiero II to build a huge ship, so large that it would begin taking on water, and Archimedes’s solution was the creation of one of his most famous inventions: the Archimedes screw. The screw was initially used as an irrigation device and for pumping water out of ships. On the outside, the device appears as a cylinder. Inside the cylinder, a spiral blade the size of the cylinder turns. Water enters through the bottom of the cylinder, and as the spiral blade turns, the water gets raised to the top. The Archimedes screw is still being used to this day, often for pumping grains and coal.
ARABIC
Colloquial Arabic Colloquial Arabic refers to the spoken form of the language, of which there are several different dialects. The two main divisions, however, lie between the Arabic language spoken in the Middle East and that spoken in North Africa. Dialects of Arabic are so different due in part to the various nations of the Muslim world and the influence of the languages that were spoken in these lands prior to Arabic. The five major dialects are Egyptian Arabic, Maghrebi Arabic, Mesopotamian Arabic, Levantine Arabic, and Gulf Arabic.
LESSON 27E
THE GREAT DEPRESSION
The New Deal When Franklin Delano Roosevelt became president, he focused on reforming the nation and set forth the New Deal (a phrase he coined during his speech accepting the nomination). The New Deal was split up into two phases, one from 1933 to 1934, and the other from 1935 to 1941. The first phase concentrated on regulating agriculture and business. During the first phase, programs like the National Recovery Administration, the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, and the Federal Communications Commission were established. The second phase focused more on the working class and social legislation. It is during the second phase that Social Security was created.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
The Significance Lewis Carroll’s work was groundbreaking for the time. Other Victorian children’s books focused on giving rules for children to live by.
But Lewis Carroll’s stories of Alice’s adventures embraced silliness and fantasy. The Alice in Wonderland series showed for the first time that children’s books did not have to include morals or teach any sort of lessons. They showed that children books could just be fun and allow children to use their imagination and embrace nonsense and fantasy.
GAME THEORY
General Equilibrium Theory General equilibrium theory is an economic theory first proposed in the 1870s, with its modern form created in the 1950s. In economies with multiple markets, general equilibrium theory is used to study supply and demand to show that there is equilibrium in the prices. General equilibrium theory is usually used on a macroeconomic scale for such things as analyzing stock prices, tax policy, and international trade. The private sector uses the general equilibrium theory as a model. To analyze individual markets, partial equilibrium theory is used.
ARCHIMEDES
The Claw of Archimedes The Claw of Archimedes was a weapon created by Archimedes to protect the city wall of Syracuse. Though the actual appearance of the claw is unknown, it is believed the device was a crane that featured a grappling hook. These hooks would connect to enemy ships and either lift the boats entirely out of the water, or simply shake them enough to capsize. The claw was used during the Second Punic War, as the Romans attacked Syracuse.
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