Cultural Transformation, Religion & Science (Ch. 15 / Week IV)

A New Way of Thinking: The Birth of Modern Science

• The Question of Origins: Why Europe? 
• Reinvigorated & fragmented civilization 
• Universities became more independent from religion 
• Science as Cultural Institution
• Nicolaus Copernicus, "at the middle off all things lies the sun."
• Giordano Bruno, proclaimed an infinite universe and many worlds
• Enormous cultural transformation were almost entirely men
• Science and Enlightenment 
• Belief in the power of knowledge to transform human society
• Women argued for the rights between sexes
• Too much reliance on human reason
• Looking Ahead: Science in the Nineteenth Century
• Enlightenment was challenged not only by romanticism and religion but by European science itself 
• Darwins idea of evolution were as Shattering than Copernicus's idea of sun-centered universe
• European Science beyond the West 
• The telescope was widely spread around the globe after the discoveries of the moons texture and various other planets
• Chinese Scientist adopted European mathematics 
• Ban on importing Western books were lifted and Japanese scholars started to translate medicine, astronomy, geography, and mathematics

Progress and Enlightenment 15.2

Marquis De Condorcet 

Sketch of the Progress of the Human Mind

Marquis De Condorcet in, Sketch of the Progress of the Human Mind, expresses that humanity has finally gained its reasoning and ability to proclaim every opinion to reason. He goes on to talk about three important points for the future: the destruction of inequality among nations, the progress of equality within nations themselves, and the real improvement of humanity. He claims that a day will come were the sun will shine only on free men born knowing no other master then their own reason. Human creation based own scientific theories will bring forward new tools and machines that will change the capabilities of mankind forever. An individual will work less time but more productively. In so boldly acknowledging the future with science theories, Condorcet believes that less waste and less raw materials will be wasted. Written in 1793-1794, Condorcet predicted something that up until the 21st century mankind has not yet figured out a way to waste less raw materials. 

Politcal & Economic Transformations (Ch. 13 & 14 / Week II)

Chapter 13 delt with political transformations, empires and encounters, in a premature America. European empires in America had a strong advantage compared to their competitors. Their geographical position in the atlantic ocean gave them strong air currents towards America. Apart from having effective mobilization and material resources, Europeans brought with them diseases and  germs which wiped out approximately 90% of the native american race. This biological wipeout is known as "the Great Dying" which included disease like small pox, measles, typhus, influenza, malaria, & yellow fever. This event gave way to labor shortages which created the Columbian Exchange. Columbia exchange brought immigrant newcomers and enslaved Africans. Among them were plants and animals. The food crops that were cropped changed populations in Europe, China, and Africa.

There were various colonies in the Americas at the time. There was the Aztecs and Incas which was dominated by Spanish settlers who promoted commercial agriculture and silver & gold mining. Spanish males in this colony would intact recreate with natives and form what they called mestizos which were declared middle class after pure spaniards. Then there were colonies of sugar which were in Brazil and Caribbean. Brazil was controlled by Portuguese forces and the Caribbean was controlled by the French. The value in sugar was in high demand in Europe where it would be used as medicine, spices, and sweetener. Due to sugar production being so dangerous the controlling forces looked at the atlantic slave trade for their workforce. Approximatly 80% of slaves ended in Brazil or the Caribbean. Settler colonies in North America (New England, New York, Pennsylvania) were under British control. North American Colonies were said to be pure colonies because they didn't really need slaves. Independent farmers worked their land therefore they were actual settlers. The Settler Colonies focused more soft-gold, fur, unlike the South and Brazil/Caribbean. 

Chapter 14 felt with economic transformations, commerce and consequences, in a premature America. The beginning of the chapter talked about European & Asian commerce. The European & Asian network of commerce stretched from East Asia to China. The Portuguese Empire of Commerce formed a Trading Port Empire which was basically piracy. They controlled more of half the spice trade to Europe because of their advanced naval capacity. The East India Companies (Dutch, & British East India Company) were military and economically strong. The Dutch Inda Company monopolized nutmeg, mace, & cloves through bloodshed and slavery. The British India Company Established 3 major trading settlements in Bombay, Calcutta and India's West Coast.