Concepts & Relevant Examples in underline / “Facts”
- How did science affect humans’ conception of the natural world in the 20th century? What new technologies and discoveries affected this conception?
communication and
transportation, and how did
they impact conceptions
about size and distance?
What new scientific
paradigms changed the way
people understood the
natural world and humans
themselves?
How did scientific
discoveriesaffect humans’
ability to feed themselves?
How did medical innovations
affect humans’ survival
rates?
What new energy
technologies affected the
20th century? / Advances in science altered people’s understanding of the universe and natural world. This led to the development of new technologies that enabled huge population growth, which altered human interaction with the environment and threatened ecological balances. New devices that affected conception were devices in sources of energy, communication and transportation, and agricultural advancements.
New forms of transportation and communication technologies eliminated geographic distance and allowed people and countries from around the world to have instant connection with each other. New communication technologies like the telegraph and later the telephone and email made it easier for people to communicate over long distances faster. Cars, trains, and airplanes made it easier to move people and supplies across long distances in less time.
Einstein’s theory of relativity states that the laws of physics are the same for all non-accelerating observers and the speed of light in a vacuum is independent from the motion of the observers.
Quantum mechanics is a branch of physics that deals with the motion and interaction of subatomic particles. It deals with physical phenomena. There was a different understanding of matter in the physical world and how an atom could be broken down.
The Big Bang Theory is the belief that the universe was once at a very high density and then it expanded. After this initial expansion, the universe cooled to allow the formation of subatomic particles and atoms. Giant clouds of these settled to form stars and galaxies. The theory for the early development of the universe and that the universe was constantly expanding.
Psychology is the study of mind and behavior. It helps to explain why people act a certain way and help to diagnose a sickness and can be used to help doctors develop treatments for certain psychological disorders.
Scientific modification of the DNA in organisms allowed genetically modified crops to be created. These crops can be modified to produce more food, survive in harsher conditions, and even resist herbicides and pesticides. Hybrid cropsare a cross between two different varieties of plants and allowed scientists to develop plants for different traits like size, flowering, disease resistance, color, etc. The Green Revolution that occurred between the 1940s and 1960s increased food production worldwide by introducing improved fertilizers, seed strains, and irrigation. This led to higher crop yields and industrial wealth.
The polio vaccine, created by Jonas Stalk in 1955, helped eradicate the polio virus from most countries in the world and reduced the number of polio cases worldwide. Antibiotics like penicillin helped treat bacterial infections and decreased death rates dramatically. Penicillin is used to treat bacterial infections caused mainly by staphylococci and streptococci. The first artificial heart was put implanted in 1982. Artificial hearts replace a faulty heart until another one can be found or replace one altogether.It lowered the need and risk of heart transplants that dealt with actual human organs.These new innovations increased survival rates.
New energy technologies raised productivity and increased the production of material goods. Oil replaced coal replaced coal as the main energy source when it was discovered in underground reserves and has since become the most valuable commodity traded on the world market. Nuclear energy has been used to generate energy and electricity but is extremely dangerous and must be used with caution. There have been nuclear accidents, like the one in Chernobyl in 1986, that have lasting effects on the population and the environment. Renewable energy has also come into use as it can help to keep the environment clean. Renewable, or “green” energies, include wind, hydroelectricity, solar, biomass (the use plant matter and animal waste to create electricity), and geothermic energy (the use of heated water and steam to run power stations). /
- provide some examples of your own here with attention to cot
- Einstein’s theory of relativity
- Quantum mechanics
- the Big Bang theory
- psychology
- genetically modified crops
- hybrid crops
- Green Revolution
- polio vaccine & Jonas Salk
- antibiotics-penicillin
- artificial heart
- oil (early)
- nuclear
- “green” energies, renewables
- How did humans’ relationship to the environment change in the 20th century? What negative consequences in the 20th century accompanied the benefits of industrialization?
- population explosion and limited resources
- greenhouse gases and global warming
- desertification
- deforestation
- What caused some of the major demographic changes of the 20th century? A general answer here.
were some diseases
associated with poverty that
continued to threaten human
survival? Where were these
a major problem in the
20th?
What new, emergent
epidemic diseases
threatened humans?
What diseases associated
with more sedentary
lifestyles and longer life
expectancies became a new
problem?
- How did technology regarding birth control and family planning impact global demographic patterns?
- How did new military technology affect wartime casualties?
wartime casualties? / During the 20th century, new technologies along with new diseases and epidemics caused major demographic changed. Advances in medicines help people live longer while diseases caused a huge number of deaths in certain parts of the world. Also, new technology and tactics used in wars led to an unprecedented number of casualties.
Malaria is a disease caused by the bite of a mosquito. Symptoms appear ten to fifteen days after being bitten and severe cases can lead to death. This disease is most common in places near the equator which is why it is common in Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Africa. Cholera is a disease that is caused by bacteria that is in human feces. When a body of water is used as both a bathroom and a source of drinking water, people get cholera. This is the case in Asia, Africa, and Latin America and these are the places where cholera is most commonly found. Tuberculosis is an highly contagious, airborne disease caused by a strand of mycobacteria that usually attacks the lungs but can affect other areas of the world as well. When untreated, this disease kills about 50% of those affects and kills between 1.3 to 1.5 million people every year. Like cholera and malaria, this disease is most commonly found in Asia and Africa.
The 1918 influenza began in Spain but soon spread throughout the world. It is the deadliest pandemic, killing between 20 to 40 million people; it killed more people than World War 1. The Ebola virus is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids, like blood, and is predominantly found in West Africa. It has been an ongoing problem since 1976 and continues to be a problem today. HIV/AIDS is a sexually transmitted disease that is transmitted during unprotected sex. It continues to be a problem today and has killed around 36 million people since the 1980s. There is no cure and once a person has contracted it, they have a projected life span of 9-11 years.The influenza pandemic was spread throughout the trenches of WWI also.
Diabetes is a metabolic disease that results from high blood sugar levels over a long period of time. The cause of Type 1 Diabetes is unknown and results in the pancreas’s failure to produce enough insulin. Type 2 Diabetes is caused by excessive body weight and not enough exercise. Heart disease includes many different types of diseases that affect the heart or blood vessels. Some examples are ischemic heart disease (IHD), stroke, and peripheral artery disease (PAD). These diseases can becaused by smoking, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, not enough exercise, a poor diet, or excessive alcohol consumption. It is the leading cause of deaths worldwide. Alzheimer’s is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that worsens over time. The cause is unknown but it is believed to be caused by many different genes in one’s DNA. This disease usually affects people over the age of 65 and begins with short term memory loss.
The birth control pill was approved for contraceptive use in 1960 by the FDA. Invented by Gregory Pincus, this pill prevented women from becoming pregnant when having sex. It was rejected by some of the developing countries (mostly in Africa and Asia) because of the importance their culture and religion placed on procreation. Industrialized nations utilized it and did not experience the huge population growth that most less developed countries did.
The Industrial Revolution led to new developments in military technologies. In World War I, machine guns led to major wartime casualties. Machine guns could fire 400-600 small caliber rounds per minute. This led to a huge number of deaths in the trenches on the Western Front. In World War II, the development of tanks and airplanes led to unprecedented casualties and the most deathly war in history. Tanks were invented by the British during World War I but were used on a large scale during World War II. These machines could travel hundreds of miles and were equipped with advanced weaponry. Airplanes were also invented during World War I but were used on a large scale during World War II. Airplanes could be used as fighters, bombers, or transport aircrafts. These machines could destroy towns and they were a large cause of the number of unprecedented casualties during WWII. The only nuclear weapon to be used in warfare to this day was the nuclear bomb that was created by the United States and dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August of 1945. These two atomic bombs killed around 130,000 people and affected many more. The nuclear weapons were developed by the Manhattan Project
The Nanjing Massacre during the Second Sino-Japanese war was an example of where advanced Japanese technology dominated over China. The Nanjing massacre was an episode of mass murder and rape done by Japanese troops in the town of Nanjing, which was the capital of the Republic of China.
New tactics used during the two World Wars led to unprecedented casualties. During World War I, trench warfare was used by the Western Front. In this type of warfare, each side would dig out trenches and then try and take the other sides trenches by rushing between the two sides. The invention of the machine gun led to many casualties when this happened. Trench warfare led to stalemate in which there was no real winner and a war of attribution where each side was just trying to outlast the other. During World War II, firebombing became a common tactic that was used. Firebombing used incendiary bombs that would start fires that could spread and destroy large areas. This tactic was used on urban areas to try and break the other sides will to fight; they targeted cities and civilians. Firebombing caused many casualties among civilians. Dresden was a city in Germany that was destroyed by firebombing and killed around 25,000 civilians. /
- Malaria
- TB
- Cholera
- 1918 influenza pandemic
- Ebola virus
- HIV/AIDS
- Diabetes
- heart disease
- Alzheimer’s
- “the pill”
- machine guns
- tanks
- airplanes
- nuclear weapons—the atom bomb
- trench warfare
- firebombing
- Hiroshima, Dresden, Nanjing
Key Concept 6.2 Global Conflicts and their Consequences / Answer
Concepts & Relevant Examples in underline / “Facts”
- How did the overall global political order shift as the century progressed? What did NOT change?
such as the Ottoman,
Russian, and Qing empires
collapsed. What external and
internal factors contributed to
each?
Colonies gained
independence
where/when?
Some colonies gained
independence through
negotiation.
Other colonies achieved
independence via armed
struggle. / In the beginning of the time period, the world was mostly dominated by European powers along with the United States and Japan. Most of the areas in the world, excluding South and Central America, were colonized and under the control of the European powers. Even though South and Central America were independent, they continued to be influenced by the Europeans and the US. Throughout the time period, colonies began wanting independence and this led to wars and conflicts with high numbers of casualties.
In the early 1900s, older, land-based empires collapsed. External and internal factors contributed to this. Examples include:
Ottoman Empire- For the Ottoman Empire, there were many internal revolts from different groups of people within the empire who wanted independence. An example of this would be the Greek Revolution that occurred during the 1820s and led to independence in 1830s. Along with this, a line of incapable leaders came to power and unrest stirred up. Other problems included that the empire became too large to be maintained, army discipline and leadership declined, and the Ottomans fell behind in military technology. By the time World War One broke out, the Ottoman Empire consisted of only the Anatolian plateau, the fertile crescent, and a tiny bit of land in the Balkans. The Ottomans sided with the Germans and ended up losing the war. As a result, the Ottoman Empire was broken up into a series of different countries and territories. Mustapha Kemal/ Ataturk became the leader of Turkey and introduced modern reforms and created the modern secular state of Turkey as it is today.
Russian Empire- Factors that led to the collapse of the Russian empire include unequal distribution of wealth, corruption of the czars, and food shortages along with repression, lack of technology and industrialization, and severe losses to Japan and in the World War The November revolution in 1917 put Lenin and the Bolsheviks party in power along with Trotsky. From this, a communist Russia was built.
Qing Dynasty- The Qing Dynasty fell in 1911 due to a number of external and internal factors. These included corruption in the exam system which lead to corruption in the government, food shortages, bureaucratic breakdown, and a government that was not able to deal with issues. In the last part of the dynasty, the Dowager empress Cixi ruled. She was a traditionalist and crushed any move toward serious reforms. In the end though, the Qing dynasty was overthrown through uprisings and demonstrations that caused the dynasty to topple.
In the 20thcentury, the colonies that were gaining independence were in Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. These places began to gain independence after World War II up until the 1990s.
India gained its independence from the British through negotiation. The movement for independence was led by Gandhi who promoted satyagraha or nonviolent noncooperation. Basically, the Indians frustrated the British by not cooperating and then not responding with violence when they were attacked for it. Eventually, the British sent someone to negotiate freedom with India. This led to the Partition of India in 1947 where India was divided into two countries: India and Pakistan. India was predominantly Hindu while Pakistan was predominantly Muslim.
The Gold Coast also gained their freedom through negotiation. Kwame Nkrumah led the nationalist movement and created the Convention Peoples’ Party (CPP). He launched rallies, boycotts, and strikes. Eventually, the British conceded and tried to prepare the colony for independence by education some of the Africans and letting them take over the administration of the colony. The Gold Coast officially gained its independence in 1957 and Nkrumah was recognized as the prime minister.