Dyana's Global Blog

Mikhail Gorbachev and the Collapse of Communism

2010-05-11T19:14:00.000-07:00

Mikhail Gorbachev was the president of Russia. At age 45 he was the youngest president. He believed that nothing good was being done in Russia. That they should have fresh new perspectives new ideas to make Russia wealthier with new ideas. He called it the "Glasnot" , it was said that this will open Russia to a become a new country. Then he wanted to make economic reforms. he called it "Peristrokia". this helped to make new jobs to help the people.

The collapse of Communism

2010-05-07T09:34:00.000-07:00

The collapse of Communism began because many people were tired of the soviet system and began fighting for democracy. In Germany, the Collapse of Communism meant that the two Germany's had to become 1 so the Berlin Wall was taken down. Seeing the results of that other countries that were in the Iron Curtain began rejecting communism. Countries like Poland East Germany and Hungary. Then The USSR collapse alone.

Nelson Mandela and Apartheid

2010-04-29T09:30:00.000-07:00

Apartheid was a policy of segregation in South Africa in the years 1948-1990. It was made because white people thought they were superior to the colored people. the colored people were forbidden to vote. Nelson Mandela was put in prison because he fought for the independence of South Africa. He used the method of non-violence to free the people from Apartheid. He was in jail for 26 years. Fought for freedom and was a hero.

African Independence

2010-04-29T09:29:00.000-07:00

Africa was conquered by varies countries in Europe. The people of Africa was tired of Following everything the conquering countries say. Some of the conquering countries were Great Britain and Italy. In the 1950's the Africans began to fight for their independance. A good example in Algeria, which won its independence was Algeria. With the leader from the FLN or the Algerian National Liberation Front, Ahmed Ben Bella. He was the president of Algeria in 1963. He made Land reforms and made new plans foe education.

Film Lesson: "The Right Stuff

2010-04-14T09:32:00.000-07:00

The film "The Right Stuff" was released in the year 1983. The movie shows the Cold War between The United States and Russia. The Russians were so advanced in space that The U.S started to compete with them. Instead of sending a man to space they sent a monkey. When they heard the Russians send a man to space they were embarrassed because they could have been the first to send a man to space but they decided to sent a monkey. The scenes that made me remember are when they were training the monkey and the humans and realized that they could do the same tasks as the humans. Eventually the U.S. won the "war" against Russia.

NATO and The Warsaw Pact

2010-04-12T09:12:00.000-07:00

NATO was an organization that started in the year 1950. It includes countries in Europe and North America like the U.S., Great Britain and 11 other nations. The purpose for NATO was if a country in the organization was attacked by an enemy the other from the organization would back up the country in a war. At the moment NATO was against communist which means they were against Russia (Soviet Union). it includes 12 nations including Great Britain and the United States. The Warsaw Pact was the treaty made by the communists to keep the Eastern Europe communist and for mutual support in case of an attack from NATO. It was formed by Russia, Poland, East Germany Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania. They formed it because they saw NATO as a threat to communism.

FILm Lesson: "Schindler's List"

2010-03-25T09:33:00.000-07:00

The movie" Schindler's List" was a good movie. It showed us the way the poor Jews were treated by the Nazi. It was unbelievable how people could treat others the way the Nazi treated the Jews. the move showed us what happened from before the Jews were sent to the Ghettos and how they killed them. the scenes that i remember was when the Nazis came out of nowhere and simply took the Jews to the camps. also the adorable little girl with the pink coat that went into the house to hid under the bed. Or the man that was taped on the bottom of the bed and was shot a lot of times. Schindler's List was a powerful movie that illustrated the days the Jews suffered under Adolf Hitler's rule.

Film Lesson: "Night and Fog"

2010-03-24T09:34:00.000-07:00

THE MOVIE NIGHT AND FOG, IS A DOCUMENTARY MADE IN THE YEAR 1956. TEN YEARS AFTER THE LIBERATION OF THE JEWISH FROM THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS. THE DOCUMENTARY WAS SHOT IN THE ABANDONED CAMP OF AUSCHWITZ. THE DOCUMENTARY SHOWED A LOT OF PICTURES THAT WERE TAKEN THE TIME THE JEWS WERE IN THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS UNDER THE OBSERVATION OF THE NAZI. I WAS HORRIFIED TO SEE ALL THOSE PICTURES OF THE HOLOCAUST. I BELIEVE IT WASN'T AS POWERFUL AS "SCHINDLER'S LIST. I BELIEVE SCHINDLER'S LIST WAS BETTER.

The Treaty of Versailles (ended WW I)

2010-02-25T09:28:00.000-08:00

The Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919. The treaty required Germany to accept that they were responsible for the war and have to give up land military and the economy. I think the Treaty of Versailles was fair because it prevented Germany from spending time on wars. i also believe the treaty led to the rise of Hitler because it gave him the strength to rise up and "defend" his people.

Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) and the Modernization of Turkey

2010-02-24T09:34:00.000-08:00

Secular means that of or pertaining to worldly things or to things that are not regarded as religious, spiritual, or sacred; temporal.:Mustafa Kemal was the first President of Turkey. He wanted Turkey to be more modernized. he forbid The fez because he says its a symbol of ignorance. He wanted them to be Muslim but not as Muslim as the other Muslim countries. He wants the Turkish people to dress like the Europeans with shirts and pants and shoes more westernised.

Film Lesson"Gandhi"

2010-02-11T09:28:00.000-08:00

Mohammad K. Gandhi was a Indian lawyer that fought for the Independence of India. He was born in the year of 1869. A religious extremest killed him. He had the Peaceful marches but the police brutality was the problem. He had the salt march were they walked all the way to the sea to make salt. they also boycott to buy the things the indian people make that the british sale.I believe indian independence happened because of Gandhi i don't think it would have happened anyways if Gandhi didn't have encourage the people to fight for their rights.

Causes of WWI

2010-01-13T17:16:00.001-08:00

WORLD WAR I was the result of the economic, imperialism and nationalism completions with countries. A major cause for the war was the Assassination of Francis Ferdinand, Duke of Austria-Hungary in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914 by a Serbian. they declared war on Serbia because the assassination of the Arch Duke was the spark that lid the fire.

Another cause of the war was Nationalism. Many ignored nationalism because they thought they would preserve peace. Nationalism unified Italy (1861) and Germany (1871). at the Franco-Prussian the French lost against the Germans and the French wanted revenge . Nationalism was a major problem in Austria-Hungary because they had man national groups and also the Germans supporting the Serbians with the Austrian- Hungarians.

The third cause was Imperialism. Imperialism created rivalry between the European Countries. Great Braitan Germany anf France conpeted for their economic expansion to Africa. Germany involved a war with Great Britain and Germany in North Africa. the Fall of the Ottam Empaire was attracting to the Austian-Hungarians , the Balkans and The Russians.

The Russian Revolution

2010-01-13T10:26:00.000-08:00

The Russian Revolution was in 1917. The Russians started the revolution because wanted equal rights now that the country is rapidly growing economically and socially. They had the idea of communism of Karl Marx,but the Czar, Nicholas II didn't want that to happened. The Revolution accrued on February and October. The leader of the revolution was Lenin. Czar Nicholas II involved Russia in WORLD WAR I. The first revolution was when the Bolsheviks ordered Czar Nicholas to leave the throne but he didn't listen so they executed the Czar and his family. Lenin lead the Bolsheviks (the Russians) to revolt against the landlords and factory owners and in October the creation of the Soviet Union was established.

Opium Wars- Imperialism in China

2009-12-18T10:20:00.000-08:00

The Opium Wars were wars fought by the Chinese and the British from 1839 to 1842. During the Opium Wars, the Chinese and the British began selling tea and opium. The Chinese government didn't allow their people to the westerns ideas. They are called the Opium Wars because they were selling opium to the Chinese at the time and the Chinese government forbid their people to buy Opium from the British. Eventually the wars continued and at the end the British won and the Chinese had to allow opium to be sold in China.

Film Lesson: "Mountains of the Moon"

2009-12-12T10:29:00.000-08:00

In the Film "Mountains of the Moon" Explorers John Speak and Richard Burton explored Africa. They faced a lot of hardships in their expedition in Africa. An example, is that they had trouble gaining the trust of the people they hired. Many of them ran away and betrayed them in the middle of the expedition. Another hardship they faced is the deceases the bugs carried like Malaria. Richard Burton also caught a decease that weakened his legs. The Europeans named the source of The Nile after a British queen. Its strange because an African lake is named after a British queen. its because the Europeans thought they discovered the Source first but the Native Africans already named it. That was the Europeans began imperialism. The Europeans had a lot of technological advantages. Like guns and powerful weapons. In a scene, Speak and Burton gave a handgun to a tribe's chief. The chief was amazed of the gun but the others were scared. Another technological advantage is that they had telescopes that allowed them to see things from far away. it was easy for Europeans to conquer Africa because of their weapons and ships. Their army had advantage and it was easy to take over the country.

imperialism Project

2009-12-10T10:20:00.000-08:00

We did the imperialism project to learn how the Europeans went around the world controlled of middle east, North and South America, parts of Asia and Africa. countries like France Spain Great Britain Italy Germany and Belgium. They had gold silver copper cotton tea canons and some slaves.

Karl Marx and communism

2009-11-19T10:20:00.000-08:00

Communism is the doctrine of the conditions of the liberation of the workers also know as Proletariat. The proletariat is a class in society which lives from the sale of its labor and does not draw profit from any kind of capital. There was one person who hated the treatment of the proletariat by the bourgeoisie(or factory owners/landlords), his name was Karl Marx.
Karl Marx didn't like capitalism. He imagined a world where everyone could be treated equally. He didn't want social classes to exist, he wanted every person to have the same amount of everything. Karl Marx believed that the governments wouldn't exist anymore because of the equal sharing and responsible society. Marx's idea was a great, but when it was brought out to the world people failed to accomplish what Karl Marx wanted communism to be.

Marx believed that the good guys were communists(or the workers) and the bad ones were the people who wanted capitalism(or the Factory workers and the land lords) . He thought that his ideas were the ideas of the future. a good example is Russia.

Karl Marx and The Industrial Revolution

2009-11-17T10:46:00.000-08:00

Karl Marx felt that the hard working people in factories and farms should have control of everything instead of the factory owners or the landlords. He didn't like the way the Industrial Revolution was turning out to be. The Industrial Revolution was the reason Karl Marx decided to united the workers to go against the laws of the factory owners and landlords. That action was the beginning of Communism. Karl Marx believed that if workers had a same job they would get paid equally. He was an inspiration to many. Communism still exists today and it all began off one man trying to improve workers laws during the Industrial Revolution.

Nationalism and the Creation of Italy

2009-10-27T10:18:00.000-07:00

Nationalism is the belief that nations will benefit from acting independently rather than collectively, emphasizing national rather than international goals.We can show nationalism by speaking our nations language, by wearing our countries colors. A way to show we are nationalistic is when we celebrate our Independence on the 4th of July. Another way is when we celebrate Thanksgiving in November because the Pilgrims and the Natives. by simply saying the pledge every morning in school and saluting the pledge you show nationalism.

The creation of Italy is a great example of nationalism. Italy wasn't a free country. a part of Italy was ruled by Austria in 1815. nationalism brought the people of Italy together to unite and be free. the group called "young Italy" which was led by Giuseppe Mazzini were some of the ones that help unite Italy. Camillo di Cavour was another leader that help led Italy to nationalism. then he helped Napoleon the Third, when he went to war against the Austrians and won the northern part of Italy. Another leader was Giuseppe Garibaldi. he united the northern part of Italy. Because of all this man Italy became one nation with the help of their leaders and their people.

Simon Bolivar And Latin American Revolutions

2009-10-22T10:19:00.000-07:00

Simon Bolivar was born in Caracas,Venezuela in the year 1783. He fought for Liberty. Simon Bolivar is named El Liberator and the George Washington of South America. He was famous because of his victories over the Spaniards won independence for Bolivia, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. Bolivia is named after Simon Bolivar because in the year 1824 he led the Peruvian forces to fight for their independence and was elected President in 1825. He then made southern Peru into a new republic and was named Bolivia in his honor. The French Revolution led by Napoleon Bonaparte was what influenced Simon Bolivar's quest for Revolution. Seeing what Napoleon accomplished, He says that he wouldn't stop untill the Spaniards are defeated. He had some defeats But he eventually won the Revolutions and freed Latin America from European power. He died in December 17, 1830 of tuberculosis.

John Locke ant "The Enlightenment"

2009-10-01T10:26:00.000-07:00

The Enlightenment thinker John Locke was one of the most famous Enlightenment thinkers. His ideas influenced Thomas Jefferson by making the U.S. Constitution. Jefferson believed that all men were created equal. Also that every person had the right of life, liberty and happiness. John Locke said that the people were born with natural rights. The government gets its power by the vote of the people. The people are able to change or put an end and introduce a new government.

Copernicus and the Trail of Galileo

2009-09-18T10:24:00.000-07:00

There are two theories about the Solar System. They are the geocentric and heliocentric. The heliocentric theory is said that the sun is stationary and that the planets revolve around it. On the other hand, the geocentric theory was believed b the catholic church which said that the Earth was the center of the universe and the planets and the sun revolved around it because they thought the earth was special. The geocentric theory came first because the church made the followers of the Church believe in the theory. The heliocentric theory came out of the Scientific Revolution ans was the cause Galileo was sent to trail. The heliocentric theory is the correct theory because The sun is stationary and the planets revolve around it.

The trail of Galileo was a famous trail in the Scientific Revolution time period. This trail was in 1633 because Galileo was opposing the Geocentric theory so the Church send him to trail and Galileo was sentenced to House arrest. Galileo believed that the sun was the center of the universe and that the planets revolved around it , which is the heliocentric theory and the Church believed in the geocentric theory which was that the sun was the center of the universe and the other planets revolved around it.

Scientific revolution: the scientific method

2009-09-17T10:34:00.001-07:00

The Scientific Method is the strategy we use to solve a theory or question with tests. The scientific method has the following procedures: observation, hypothesis, predictions, and tests. Scientists use the scientific method to conduct tests or experiments by having a theory or a question. Then make a hypothesis and predictions. Next, a scientists has to make tests to see if the hypothesis is correct, if not they had to make another hypothesis and predictions of the test and repeat the procedure if the hypothesis isn't correct. finally conclude the theory or question with an answer.

An example using the Scientific method is the theory of Charles Darwin. He made his hypothesis and predictions. Darwin traveled to find information to proof his theory on evolution. He tested his hypothesis and predictions. Darwin also observed all the prediction. for example finches and the different type of becks can grab different amount of food.

Evolution Vs. Creation

2009-09-15T10:38:00.000-07:00

The on going debate on how living organisms came to exist stems from two different theories ; The scientific explanation of Evolution and the religious explanation of Creation. The theory of Evolution was explained by Charles Darwin and other scientists. Charles Darwin's theory of evolution is based on 5 inferences. The inferences are Variation, Completion, Offspring Genetics and Natural Selection. Organisms ass said by Charles Darwin have a common ancestor. There are variations in every population and organisms compete for limited resources such as water, space and food. Organisms are able to produce more offspring that are able to survive. Organisms are able to pass genetic traits on to their offspring. Organisms that have favorable traits are able to survive and reproduce more offspring this is called Natural Selection.

On the other hand the Theory of Creation is seen in the Bible. The bible says That God made the Earth and heaven. Then the day and night. Next the plants and animals. Finally, created man and woman and gave them all the authority to control everything on Earth and to produce more offspring.

In my opinion I believe in both theories, because if creation didn't exist then living organisms wouldn't be able to evolve and change in characteristics and physical change.