The Neolithic Revolution

• How did we get here according to modern science? • How did people get food before farming? • Briefly try to explain how we are able to get a double cheese burger for a dollar, how is that even possible? How do the ingredients go from farm to the store?

• How did we (people) get here? • According to historians humans evolved from an earlier ancestor. Our earliest ancestors are known as Hominids

• How did people get food before farming? • Early humans got their food by hunting and gathering

• Briefly try to explain how we are able to get a double cheese burger for a dollar, how is that even possible? How do the ingredients go from farm to field?

• Explain in detail how the Neolithic/Agricultural Revolution led to the rise of complex civilization

• The First Humans, also known as Hominids

• Australopithecines, c. 2-4 million years ago East and South Africa • Homo erectus, c. 100,000-1.5 million years ago • “upright human being” • Europe and Asia

• Homo sapiens (“wise human being”) • Neanderthal, c. 100,000-30,000 B.C. • Neander valley of Germany, Europe and Middle East • Homo sapiens sapiens, • c. 200,000-150,000 B.C. • “wise, wise human being” • Africa

• • • • • •

Paleolithic Age, c. 2,500,000-10,000 B.C.E Nomadic people Gender based Division of labor Fire, 500,000 years ago Cave Paintings Lived near river valleys

• Based on the picture, what activities Can we infer Paleolithic People engaged in

Take a minute to read this comic. Based on what you read what was the Neolithic Revolution?

Domestication can be defined as a “…primitive form of genetic engineering in which certain plants and animals are brought under human control, their unwanted characteristics eliminated and their favorable ones enhanced

In contrast to hunting and gathering as a mode of life, agriculture means modifying the environment in order to exploit it more effectively. Agriculture alters both the animals and plants it domesticates. Ultimately, it changes the very landscape itself.

• Write the following in your notebook…. • A Nomadic society is one that is constantly on the move following animals and vegetation cycles • A Sedentary society is one that stays in one place and uses agriculture to support itself Imagine you are one of the few survivors of the zombie apocalypse. You and your group have been traveling for months and several of the members are thinking of finding a place to settle down. Think of one advantage and one disadvantage that would come with staying in one place. Then think of one advantage and one disadvantage that would come with staying on the move.

Nomadic Communities (write two for each!)

Lifestyle Use wild animals and plants for food

Migrate seasonally Live in family or tribal groups

Advantages

Disadvantages

Land supplies what is needed. Movement easier when food is scarce. Life encourages cooperation & language skills. Special weapons/tools for hunting/digging plants.

People are always searching for new food sources. It is more difficult to store food. People must carry everything along when traveling. Only simple social organization was possible.

Patterns of Living: Paleolithic Period to the Neolithic Revolution

Sedentary Communities (write two for each!)

Lifestyle

Advantages

Raise herds of tame animals

Plant seeds and raise crops Live in permanent settlements

Crops provide a reliable food supply. Population grows as life becomes more complex. Societies become more complex. Trade increases and commerce develops. Division of labor allows workers to specialize.

Disadvantages Crop failures due to weather or pests cause famines. Floods, fire, or even raiders could destroy villages. Disease spreads easily when people live together.

Patterns of Living: Paleolithic Period to the Neolithic Revolution

• Shift from nomadic (always moving around, following animal herds) to sedentary (stay in one place) societies • Domesticate animals rather than only hunting • Domesticate and cultivate plants rather than searching for edible food • Job Specialization & new trades

Civilization is a form of human culture in which many people live in urban centers, have mastered the art of smelting metals, and have developed a method of writing. One definition of civilization requires that a civilized people have a sense of history -- meaning that the past counts in the present.

The first civilizations began in cities, which were larger, more populated, and more complex in their political, economic and social structure than Neolithic villages.

• What do you think makes a civilization? • • • • • • •

1. Organized Government 2. Complex Religion 3. Job Specialization 4.Social Classes 5.Arts & Architecture 6.Public Works 7.Writing

• Çatul Hüyük, 6700-5700 B.C • It was a walled Neolithic community sustained by food surpluses enabling • Religion, specialization of labor, government, writing, etc…

• You will be given a data sheet to complete while you read about 8 different potential civilizations • IT is up to you and your partner to figure out which candidate is a civilization and which is not • To be considered a civilization a candidate must meet every qualifier – this means you’ll need to use evidence from the text to prove your claim.

Scenario… You are approximately 30 years old. You are married and raising a family. Both you and your spouse are selfemployed. The wife has to work an average of only 2 hours per day, while the husband works a maximum of 5 hours a day. This labor is sufficient to provide for your family’s basic needs of food, clothing and shelter. All of your remaining time can be devoted to recreational, social and religious affairs. Would you exchange this situation for jobs requiring at least 10 hours of labor a day? Although the new jobs require more work, they have a potential to produce a higher standard of living. Please give reasons for your decision.

Archeologists estimate that, in ordinary circumstances, the activity of gathering in temperate and tropic areas provides 75 to 80% of the total calories consumed, with hunting providing the balance. In existing hunting and gathering cultures, women usually do most of the gathering, while the men specialize in hunting.

Continue this under where you left off on your notes yesterday!

• How did the Neolithic/Agricultural Revolution change the way humans lived? • What did farming and the domestication of animals change in their day to day life?