Jeopardy!

Well this isn't really incorrect information, but in the "Awesome Post-Classical Era Jeopardy Game", the religion 100 point one is phased as a question, when it should be phrased as an answer. But the information ia still correct. In this game, I got most of the 500 and 400 point questions wrong, except for the one about manors because we played a game about them in class, so it helped me remember. I got most of the 100-300 point questions correct.

In the 3rd game, the economy 100 point question asked what were two places India traded with,and all it said was the subcontinent and the ocean to the south. Not only did they not specify, but India also traded with other places such as China and Africa. They also asked "It takes 2 points to feed these", and the answer was 20 serfs. As creative as this question was, it was irrelevant to the test. In this game, I got a lot more questions right, probably because I had just done the previous game and many of the questions were similar.

In the last game, the first question for Chapter 13 simply says "The Byzantine Empire". There are many possible answers because it is so vague, but the answer talks of the rulers of the empire. If that was what they were looking for, they should have specified. This was simlar to the question that just said "Muhammed", and did not specify what kind of answer they wanted. This again happens with their question "What is King Harsha" and "What ia the caste system". They do not specify what the response should be. Again, this happens in the 300 point Chapter 16 question. Not only that, but it answers the question with another question.

Benedict's Rule

4) These monasteries could be useful because of their rigidity towards worshiping God. People who are worried about going to Hell could follow these rules, therefore the monasteries reduce the amount of crime because criminals would be focusing on these rules in the monasteries. Additionally, these monasteries would be home to genuinely good people, who would probably be willing to do things such as shelter the homeless and feed the poor at these monasteries.

5) Thia tells us that economic times may not have been the greatest, since it warns against stealing. Additionally, there was clearly a large lower class, since it talks about donating to the poor. These rules mostly apply to the middle class. This also gives us insight into the way this class behaves because of the rules it presents to them.

Indian Poetry

These poems do represent Indian society well. The poems discuss Indian culture and religious beliefs. One poem describes the caste system well. Another discusses India's polytheistic view of gods being everywhere and everpresent. I do like these poems; they are very calm and serene, and it gives them a nice tone.

Poetry And Other Stuff

The poems of the Tanand Song dynasties are similar in that they both use a lot of nature. Especially in Tang poetry, nature is a highly recurrent symbol. Additionally, the moon is a large symbol in both types of poetry. Song poetry seems to be a bit more solemn, and I prefer the Tang poetry. Tang poetry is happier, but it talks about getting drunk a lot. I don't think poetry can reflect a society, because there are so many different types of poetry.

Vladamir vs. Constantine - A Debate of Epic Proportions

Both Prince Vladamir of Kiev, Russia and Constantine of Rome converted to Christianity. But in my opinion, these moments in history are very different. For one thing, Constantine believed that he had received a message from God as his soldiers went into battle, and embracing this message of Christianity is what allowed his soldiers to win the battle. In this way, Constantine's conversion could be described as very grand-or epic, even. He changed Rome's official religion to Christianity, which brought about concern and questioning since the Romans were the ones who crucified Jesus in the first place. But in the case of Prince Vladamir and Kiev, Rome, he converted in a downgraded, "less epic" way. But, he ordered his subjects to convert as well, while Rome still had some tolerance for other religions and practices. In Rome, Christians were invited to come out and practice freely, which wasn't the case in Russia where people were forced to convert from their religion. Also, there were no questions or concerns for Kiev becoming Christian. In fact, it helped the city greatly. Byzantine culture spread to Kiev, and Kiev helped spread this culture throughout Russia. So, because the conversions to Christianity of Prince Vladamir and Constantine were so drastically different in their causes and effects, these moments in history differ greatly.

The Ages of Architecture

The Byzantine buildings seem to have a very modern style to them. Many of the buildings resemble apartment buildings and hi-rises you would see in cities today. Although they look like the more run-down buildings you'd see in the city, they still have the modern, present-day style. In this sense, because they greatly resemble modern American buildings, they don't have a very distinctive style. They tend to be very tall with lots of windows. The monasteries, on the other hand, are a little more distinctive. Their features seem to be curved rather than the straight lines and rectangles of the other Byzantine buildings. These buildings don't really have andy American ties.

Istanbul Was Constantinople

1) Document 1 is somewhat credible, but I think it is exaggerated. The document is from a rabbi (Benjamim of Tudela), so he is most likely exaggerating the lavishness of the places of worship in Constantinople. He is most likely proud of the places of worship (being a rabbi), so it is extremely possible tha he exaggerated here. I think is document was written for the general public's knowledge of Constantinople.

2) Document 2 was definately written for the general public. The use of the informal pronoun "you" when talking to the reader supports this. I think Robert of Clari had loved in Constantinople, which is why he wrote this document. This document doesn't seem very credible; he isn't able to give a straight answer. He says "at least two hundred chambers, or three hundred". He doesn't seem sure of himself when it comes to his facts, which drastically lowers the credibility of this document.

3) For the most part, this document seems credible. It is not until the document starts discussing the statue of Hercules that it starts to get a bit unbelievable. The size of the statue seems to be greatly exaggerated. Because this was from a source about art, the author was probably someone who greatly appreciated art. So, it was probably geared toward art appreciators as well.

4) This seems to be a somewhat credible document, as well. It is from the British Library, so it must be somewhat accurate. But, the size of the city seems to be under exaggerated. For what is supposed to be a huge city, this map makes it look small. Again, being from the British Lbrary, it is probably directed towards the general public.

5) This document is probably the most credible out of the seven. It is a real photograph, not an illustration or a document. In that sense, we know that the information it presents is legitimate. It is not exaggerating or under exaggerating because it is a photograph. It is from an art recourse, so it is probably for art appreciators.

6) This document seems to be written by a historian for the general public. It seems pretty credible because it presents historic information about religious services in Constantinople. It does not discuss the city's wealth, which I think adds credibility to the document. It does not come across as over or under exaggerated as the documents that talk about the city's wealth do; rather, it presents factual information.

7) Document 7 seems to written by a historian as well, again for the general public. This document also does not discuss the city's wealth, but I don't think it is as credible as document 6. It's information doesn't seems as factual as the previous, and it seems a bit exaggerated. It discusses the topic from the view of an upper class merchant or government official, so it may not be as accurate as would be a document from an average citizen.

Silk Road Project

The mapping part of this project was definately a challenge. Tracing the routes of the different influences and goods was one of the easier aspects of the map, and so was labeling the different empires. Including the different geographical empires on the map was another easier part. I wasn't very happy with the outline of our map; it was difficult to do and there were a lot of erasings. Also, I wasn't happy that we outlined all the countries without realizing that wasn't one of the requirements. That was a good 20 minutes gone to waste. I also wasn't happy with the amount of time we were given. If we'd had a little more time, it would have been a lot less stressful. The hardest part of this project was trying to collaborate with my partner while I had no power for 2 days. It made collaboration difficult and took a lot of time away from our project. On the topic of collaboration, I thought we collaborated well until I lost power. My partner ended up doing extra work since I couldn't exactly be working on the research part from home. If we had to do it again, I'd make sure it wasn't due a couple days after a storm that wiped out 75% of the town's power. Also, I'd make sure that we didn't have to outline the countries before starting the project.

Jesus's Teachings: Moral and Ethical

Empires: Why Do They Form?

For one thing, in order for a civiliation to develop into a thriving society, let alone an empire, it must meet some geographical requirements. For one thing, rivers are a huge factor that help empires form. They allow trade, transportaion, agriculture, and the spread of ideas across a large area. For example, the Chinese Empire formed between the Yellow and Yangtzee Rivers, allowing the vast spread of goods, people, and ideas. In addition, being located near a sea or ocean allows for long-distance sea trade. India is a prime example of this kind of empire. Being located on a peninsula allowed the empire to engage in vast sea trade and grow into an empire. Additionally, a large network of roads helps a civilization embark in trade and the spread of ideas. Of course, the Roman Empire was famous for its many roads. In conclusion, geogrpahical features allow empires to grow along with the spread of trade and culture throughout and area.

Wikipedia: The New Textbook?

In my opinion, Wikipedia is not a suitable substitute for a textbook, but it does have its pros. While it may be a lot more convenient simply typing in a topic rather than looking it up in a massive book, you don't know how accurate the information is. But then again, some of the information may come straight from the source and may be even more accurate than a textbook. For example, an actual Buddhist could be the one writing the article about Buddhism, therefore it is probably more accurate. But another problem with Wikipedia is that has so much information, linking to different articles. For instance, you could start reading about Buddhism but somehow ending up reading an article about Disney World simply by cliking on the different related articles. One pro about the textbook is that only relevant information is presented, so you know exaclty wat to study for a test.

In conclusion, I think that Wikipedia articles are helpful to read after you read the textbook. After reading about Buddhism in the textbook, you could skim the Wikipedia article for additional information. That way, you already know what information is relevant to the chapter, so you aren't reading about unrelated topics. Although both Wikipedia and a textbook both have their pros, the traditional textbook is the more helpful, reliable, and useful source of information.

Battle, Rebirth, and Immortality

According to the Bhagavad Gita, the mortal body is everlasting. So wouldn't that mean it's immortal? Not exactly. Unlike the teaching of Zarathustra, which relfects upon the belief that doing good deeds in life will win you immortality, the Bhagavad Gita teahces that you will continue to be reborn. One will go into new bodies almost in the same sense that one changes clothes. One does not go to a heaven or paradise to live as an immortal, but one's "lives" never end. Additionlly, the Bhagavad Gita repetitively refers to a "righteous battle" where it does not matter whether one wins or loses; if you win you continue living your current life, if you die you begin a new one. It teachs that it is your actions themselves that matter, not the means behind them. This is different from Confucius teachings, believing that people can always improve based on their motives in life. To use a modern example, according to the Bhagavad Gita, if you were to find return a lost cat to its owner, the fact that you did this is all that matters. It doesn't matter whether you did this simply out of the goodness of your heart or your selfish desire for the cash reward, which is what Confucius teachings are concerned with.

How do you define a "good" blog post?

In my opinion, length doesn't matter. As long as you prove your point well and get your point across, you have a good blog post, even if it is only three sentences long. And let's face it: no one wants to read a five-paragraph blog post. Vocabulary and grammar are important for more formal blog posts, but they shouldn't be huge factors that drastically influence a person's grade for a blog post (this is the internet, after all, and shorthand is used very frequently). In addition, good blog posts aren't cliffhangers; they don't leave you wondering "What did they mean by that?" or "I still don't get it." They should leave the reader thinking "Wow, I get it now!" A 3-point blog post meetsall this criteria, while a 2-point blog post doesn't quite match up to this criteria. They may leave the viewer thinking "I kind of see their point, but I'm still a bit confused." 1-point blog posts don't answer the original question and they don't get the point across. 0-pont blog posts are almost non-existant. Unless the post is completely off-topic, the fact that a person simply stated their point should earn them a 1. Again, blog posts aren't formal works of writing and should not be treated as such.

Book I. 5: The Master said, “In guiding a state of a thousand chariots, approach your duties with reverence and be trustworthy in what you say; avoid excesses in expenditure and love your fellow men; employ the labor of the common people only in the right seasons.”

In my opinion, this selection from The Analects would be useful to any government, including modern America. The selection basically says that when being in power over a large number of people, treat them with respect and be truthful and trustworty, do not excessively spend money on yourself and treat everyone as an equal, and do not overwork people for no reason; have them exert themselves only when necessary. These values are important today and are ideal for government leaders. Many government officials today are corrupt and untrutworthy. These valused urge against it, and government officials should listen. If a leader is not trustworthy, they will lose the respect of the many people looking up to them. In addition, some government leaders excessively spend money on themselves, and many wealthy Americans don't pay taxes. If wealthy Americans don't over excess, America's economy may not be where it is today. These moral values are fitting for anyone, but if America's government leaders follow them, America could be a better-governed country where everyone is treated equally.

Alexander the Great: Ordinary, But...

Alexander the Great's nickname may not be entirely accurate. He seems to be an ordinary guy for the most part. The only thing "great" about him is his ambition. To do what he did, and to do it at such a young age is clearly the result of some kind of superhuman ambition. If Alexander lacked this great ambition, he probably would have wanted to turn back when his troops did. But he prusued onward regardless. So, he was just an ordinary person, but his ambition and courage were extraordinary.