A Ton of Crap
Page 41
LESSON 36D
CIVIL RIGHTS
Desegregation of the University of Alabama In 1963, George Wallace, who had run his campaign with a slogan of “segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever,” became governor of Alabama. In June of that same year, the state government was barred from interfering with the admission of two African American students attending the University of Alabama. Wallace made himself the registrar of the university temporarily, and stood at the door of the building, refusing to let the students come in to register. President Kennedy called in the Alabama National Guard, and 100 members of the National Guard escorted the two students. The commander, General Henry Graham, ordered Wallace to move, telling him “step aside.”
FRANZ KAFKA
The Trial The Trial tells the story of Joseph K., a young man who, on his thirtieth birthday, is visited by two warders and arrested, even though he has not done anything. K. is told to stay at home and wait for instructions. The story then follows K.’s process of dealing with the law and the untouchable court. On Joseph K.’s thirty-first birthday, he is once again visited by two warders, who bring him to a quarry and tell him to kill himself. Though K. does not fight them, he cannot do it, and they kill him.
DIOPHANTINE EQUATIONS
Linear Diophantine Equations A linear Diophantine equation is written in the form: ax + by = c. If the value of c is the greatest common divisor of both a and b, then there is an infinite number of solutions. A problem that meets these characteristics is known as a Bézout’s identity. This is also the case when the value of c is a multiple of a and b’s greatest common divisor. When the value of c is not the greatest common divisor for both a and b or a multiple of a and b’s greatest common divisor, then the Diophantine equation does not have any solutions.
MITOSIS
Telophase Once the chromatids have reached their opposite poles, new membranes begin to form around the sets of chromosomes, forming two nuclei. These two nuclei are, for the time being, in the same cell. RNA synthesis occurs and the nuclear envelop reappears, which then breaks down the chromosomes to the point that they can no longer be viewed with a light microscope.
KHOISAN LANGUAGES
Khoe The Khoe languages, of which there are seven languages that still exist today, is the largest and most diverse of the Khoisan languages, with over a quarter-million people speaking a Khoe language. The Khoe languages were the first that European colonists were introduced to. The most well-known language is Nama, found in Namibia. Though Khoe languages make use of clicks, they are not used as much as in other Khoisan languages. There are two main branches of Khoe: Khoekhoe, found in South Africa and Namibia, and Tshu-Khwe, found in Botswana and Zimbabwe.
LESSON 36E
CIVIL RIGHTS
The March on Washington On August 28, 1963, a massive march was held in Washington, D.C. The march, which was intended to pressure the government to act faster, had around 300,000 demonstrators. Civil rights organizations marched for an end to segregation in public schools, the right to vote, protection from police brutality, and a law that prohibited segregation in the work place, among other things. The event featured performances from artists such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, readings by celebrities Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier, and most importantly, Martin Luther King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech.
FRANZ KAFKA
The Castle The Castle tells the story of K., a land surveyor, who arrives at a village to do work. The village’s government office is found in a Castle above the village. The task of doing the work he was hired to do becomes increasingly more difficult for K. as he interacts in the village and bureaucracy. The Castle is Kafka’s only book that expresses close relationships between characters. Instead of an unattainable quest, such as those found in Kafka’s other works, The Castle is really about the lives of the villagers.
DIOPHANTINE EQUATIONS
Exponential Diophantine Equations When there are exponents with a variable or additional variables, it is known as an exponential Diophantine equation. For example, the Ramanujan–Nagell equation states 2n – 7 = x2. There is no general theory that allows one to solve these types of problems. Thus, in order to figure out the solution, one can try simple trial and error, testing out possible values and working from the solutions to see which number it should be, or methods like Størmer’s theorem which is based on Pell’s equation.
MITOSIS
Cytokinesis Technically, cytokinesis is not a part of mitosis; rather, it completes the cell division. After telophase, there are two nuclei in a single cell. All that is left is for the cell to divide in half. Cytokinesis actually begins during anaphase and continues simultaneously through telophase. The cell first begins to furrow, a process where it starts pinching in. The cell pinches until there are two daughter cells, each with its own nucleus. These two cells will then continue the cycle.
KHOISAN LANGUAGES
Tuu Another language family is the Tuu languages, which consists of two clusters, and is a part of the Khoisan family (they are referred to as Southern Khoisan). The two branches of the Tuu languages are Taa and !Kwi. Once widespread, today the only !Kwi language that still exists is Nluu (which only has around a dozen elderly speakers). Taa also only has one existing language today; however, it is more robust, with around 4,200 speakers of the language. There are many similarities between the Tuu languages and the Juu languages. The Tuu languages feature what is known as bilabial clicks, which are more complex and distinct, and it is one of the only languages to do so.
LESSON 36F
CIVIL RIGHTS
Civil Rights Act of 1964 In 1963, President Kennedy proposed a new Civil Rights Act. When Kennedy was assassinated, the bill was still being worked on in Congress. On July 2, 1964, the bill was signed into law. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 made it illegal to racially discriminate in public places like restaurants, hotels, and movie theaters, and required that employers provide equal opportunities for employment. Any project that received federal funding would have it cut if it was found that there was discrimination based on race, color, or nationality. It also stated that standards must be uniform concerning the right to vote.
FRANZ KAFKA
Amerika Kafka’s Amerika follows the journey of Karl Rossmann, a seventeen-year-old European emigrant, who is forced to go to New York after a sex scandal with a housemaid. Unbeknownst to Karl, his uncle, Senator Jacob, is also on the boat. Senator Jacob recognizes Karl and has him stay with him, but later abandons Karl. The book then follows Karl as he interacts with people and gets various jobs, until ultimately, Karl decides to join a theater in Oklahoma. The book was never finished, but Kafka told Max Brod that it would end on that chapter, with the theme of reconciliation.
DIOPHANTINE EQUATIONS
General Method to Use for First-Order Equations with Two Variables When given a first-order equation that has two variables, there are several steps you can take to figure it out. Instead of using x, y, and z, simplify it to x, x2, x3. The first step is to rewrite the equation so that it appears as ax2 + bx1 = c, so that a is larger than b. Then divide a by b, creating a quotient and a remainder (q and r). Rewrite a as: q • b + r. Now, make the equation so that the left side looks like: q • term + value • x2. Then replace term with x3.
MITOSIS
Meiosis Meiosis is a cell division that occurs to produce germ cells like the sperm and egg, and thus is a necessity for sexual reproduction. In meiosis, a copy of the mother’s chromosomes and a copy of the father’s chromosomes are taken. Four haploid cells are produced, each with one copy of a chromosome. This process is responsible for creating genetic diversity, because each cell has its own unique combination of chromosomes. A single parent cell will create four daughter cells, and each daughter cell has half the amount of chromosomes as the parent cell.
KHOISAN LANGUAGES
Other Click Languages Not every language that features clicks is considered a Khoisan language. There are several non-Khoisan languages that
feature the click consonant. The Nguni languages and Bantu languages both have the click, and even an extinct Australian language, known as Damin, featured clicks. The Bantu incorporated clicks into the languages as a result of neighboring Khoisan languages and absorption and displacement of those populations, especially through intermarriage. The Dahalo language of Kenya is believed to have gotten clicks from an earlier language, which might mean it is in the same situation as Sandawe or Hadza.
LESSON 36 QUIZ
The idea that “separate but equal” was not actually equal first appeared in:
Brown v. Board of Education
The Boycott of Montgomery public transportation
The March on Washington
The Civil Rights Act of 1964
In response to George Wallace refusing to let African American students enter the University of Alabama, what happened?
President Kennedy called in the National Guard.
Riots broke out.
The students were not allowed to attend the school.
Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech.
In “The Metamorphosis,” what happens to the protagonist, Gregor Samsa, in the beginning of the book?
He leaves for America.
He travels to a village for work.
He turns into a giant insect.
He is arrested for a crime he did not commit.
Which of the following is a theme found in the work of Franz Kafka?
Absurdity
Alienation
Injustice
All of the above
In Diophantine equations, the value of variables x and y are:
Decimals
Fractions
Whole numbers
Imaginary numbers
In ax + by = c, if the value of c is the greatest common divisor of both a and b, then there is:
Two solutions
No solution
An infinite number of solutions
Only one solution
At which stage do two nuclei form?
Metaphase
Anaphase
Telophase
Cytokinesis
At which phase do chromosomes align along the middle of the nucleus of the cell, which are then held in place by microtubules of spindle fibers?
Metaphase
Anaphase
Telophase
Cytokinesis
What might the different mitochondrial DNA found in the Hadza people imply?
They are the closest group of people related to Neanderthals.
Original human languages featured clicks.
They speak a more advanced language due to their DNA.
Clicking is found in DNA.
The largest and most diverse Khoisan languages are:
The Khoe languages
The Tuu languages
Sandawe
Taa
ANSWER KEY: a, a, c, d, c, c, c, a, b, a
Lesson 37
HISTORY: Gulf War
Invasion of Kuwait, Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm, Scud Missile Attacks, Battle of Khafji, End of the War, The Impact on the Soldiers
LANGUAGE ARTS: Journalism
Johann Carolus, The Oxford Gazette, The Civil War, Henry Stanley, William Randolph Hearst, Muckraking
MATH: Category Theory
What Is Category Theory?, Functors, What Categories Are Made Of, Completeness and Co-Completeness, Natural Transformations, Duality
SCIENCE: Types of Animals
Vertebrates, Invertebrates, and Chordates, Mammals, Reptiles, Echinoderms, Mollusks, Marsupials
FOREIGN LANGUAGE: Amharic
The Origins, Grammar, Writing System, Rastafarians, Amharic Today, Useful Amharic Phrases
LESSON 37A
GULF WAR
Invasion of Kuwait From 1980 to 1988, Iraq and Iran engaged in an extremely bloody conflict that left Iraq deep in debt. On August 2, 1991, Saddam Hussein sent 100,000 troops to Kuwait. Saddam believed that Kuwait exceeded its quota in the production of oil, driving the global market prices down, and as a result Iraq was losing much-needed revenue from its oil. There were two days of intense fighting, which resulted in the Kuwaiti Armed Forces being overrun or fleeing to Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Iraq occupied Kuwait for seven months, and during that time, Kuwait was looted and there were human rights abuses.
JOURNALISM
Johann Carolus Johann Carolus lived from 1575 to 1634, and is responsible for publishing the very first newspaper, called Relation aller Fürnemmen und gedenckwürdigen Historien (meaning “Collection of all distinguished and commemorable news”). The paper was published in 1605 in Strasburg when it was part of the Holy Roman Empire. Carolus made his living writing these newsletters by hand and selling them to subscribers at high prices. In 1604, Carolus bought a printing shop and began printing his newsletters. He realized that if he printed a lot and sold them cheaper, he would make more money.
CATEGORY THEORY
What Is Category Theory? Category theory is an extremely complex process that takes mathematical results that already exist and abstracts them even further. Not only does this give perspective for results, but it also unifies mathematics. This can lead to some very important outcomes. Category theory can reveal that unrelated topics in mathematics have common ideas, a proven result can create many results in other areas of math, and extremely difficult problems can be translated into problems that are easier and relate to other fields of math. Concepts are viewed as a collection of arrows and objects that satisfy specific conditions.
TYPES OF ANIMALS
Vertebrates, Invertebrates, and Chordates Vertebrates, which belong in the subphylum Vertebrata, are any animals that have an endoskeleton, or internal skeleton, with a backbone and vertebrae. Invertebrates, on the other hand, do not have an endoskeleton and do not constitute a separate subphylum, but are found in a wide variety of animal groups. Chordates are somewhere in the middle. Most chordates are vertebrates; however, not all of them are. Chordates don’t have spines but have nerve chords at a stage during development. Any animal with a spine is a chordate because the nerve chord turns into the spinal cord. Humans are chordates; however, the features that make us chordates are developed in the embryo stage and no longer exist when we are grown.
AMHARIC
The Origins Spoken in Ethiopia, Amharic is a Semitic language that stems from the Ge’ez language. In the first millennium b.c., south Arabian immigrants brought the Sabean language to Ethiopia. In the next millennium, the Ethiopians had their own version of the language, with influence from the Cushitic people, known as Ge’ez. Before the tenth century, Ge’ez was no longer used as the spoken language; however, it is still used by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. From Ge’ez came three languages: Tigrinya (which most closely resembles Ge’ez), Tigré, and Amharic.
LESSON 37B
GULF WAR
Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm Saddam Hussein’s actions created a threat to the United States, especially relating to the oil production in the Persian Gulf. With the approval of Saudi Arabia, President George H. W. Bush sent ground troops and warplanes to Saudi Arabia as Iraqi troops began approaching the borders of Saudi Arabia, indicating an interest in the oil fields. The U.S. deployment sent out to defend Saudi Arabia was known as Operation Desert Shield. It was the largest deployment since the Vietnam War. Thirty other nations joined the United States. On January 17, 1991, with the understanding that Saddam Hussein would not withdraw, Desert Shield turned into Desert Storm.
JOURNALISM
The Oxford Gazette One of the most important milestones in the history of journalism was the publication of the Oxford Gazette in 1665. The Oxford Gazette was the first newspaper that was ever printed. The paper was available to every class, and most significantly, the text was separated into columns. The Gazette was printed twice a week under the same name, which was also a major change. Other newspapers during this time that were published
twice a week would alternate titles. The Gazette, the official publication of King Charles II, was printed in two locations: London and Oxford. The Oxford Gazette later changed its name to the London Gazette, and it still exists to this day.
CATEGORY THEORY
Functors Categories can be thought of as even more abstract. A category is a kind of structure, and as such, one can search for processes that preserve this type of structure. Those processes are known as functors. What functors do is associate an object of a category to another object from another category (and with every morphism in the first, a morphism in the second is associated). Functors allow one to study the relationships among a variety of classes of structures; a fundamental concept in areas such as algebraic topology.