History-Social Science Standard
6.2.2.
6 California Education and the Environment InitiativeVisual Aids
Agricultural Advancesin Ancient Civilizations
California Education and the Environment InitiativeApproved by the California State Board of Education, 2010
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Lesson 1 The Power of Agriculture
1 Focus Questions 3
Lesson 2 Radical Revolution: Ancient Agricultural Advancements
2 Map of Egypt 4
3 Map of Mesopotamia 5
Lesson 3 Subsistence to Surplus
4 Data Tables for Counting the Crops and Crowds 1 6
5 Data Tables for Counting the Crops and Crowds 2 7
6 Graphing the Crops and Crowds 1 8
7 Graphing the Crops and Crowds 2 9
Lesson 4 Crowding Out the Crops
8 Cities of Ancient Mesopotamia 10
9 Cities of Ancient Egypt 11
Contents
Lesson 5 Sinking Civilizations
10 Changes in the Fertile Crescent 12
11 Where Agriculture Began… 13
12 Clues in the Cuneiform 14
13 Salinization 15
14 Causes of Salinization 16
15 Why Some Soil is Salty 17
16 Salts Build Up on Soil 18
17 Back in the Fertile Crescent… 19
18 Crop Changes 20
19 Problem Solved? 21
20 Why Does Some Land Become Salinized? 22
21 Evaporation and Transpiration 23
22 How does Land Become Salinized? 24
23 Salt Reaches the Surface 25
24 Salinization Affects the Land 26
25 The Effects Can be Large 27
26 Salinization in the San Joaquin Valley 28
27 The San Joaquin River 29
28 Will it Happen Again? 30
29 CSI: Crop Science Investigation: Part 2 31
30 CSI: Crop Science Investigation: Part 3 32
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 3
VA #1 Focus Questions
Focus Questions
Visual Aid1
1. What are the most important crops grown in California’s Central Valley?
2. What natural resources (found in the Great Central Valley) do plants need to grow well?
3. What did people in California do to the natural water systems in order to irrigate their crops?
4. How did irrigation affect agricultural production?
5. Are these irrigation systems still in place today?
4 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
VA #2 Map of Egypt
Map of Egypt
Visual Aid2
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
ARABIAN
SEA
REDSEA
PERSIANGULF
Wh
it e N
ile
0 300 600
Miles
SAUDI ARABIA EGYPT
SUDAN
ETHIOPIA
YEMEN
OMAN
SOMALIA
IRANIRAQ
ERITREA
ISRAEL
JORDAN
LEBANON
NIGER
Amman
Jerusalem
NIGERIA
CAMEROON
GABON KENYA
DEMOCRATIC REPULIC OF THE CONGO UGANDA
CONGO
CENTRAL AFRICANREPUBLIC
CHAD
LIBYA
UNITED ARABEMIRATES
A N C I E N T E G Y P T
Kuwait
Riyadh
Asmera
Addis Ababa
BAHRAIN
QATAR
Blu
e N
il e
Ni l e
Lake Nassa
r
Khartoum
Cairo
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 5
VA #3 Map of Mesopotamia
Map of Mesopotamia
Visual Aid3
E u p hr a t e s
Tig
r i s
CASPIANSEA
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
BLACKSEA
PERSIANGULFRED
SEA0 150 300
Miles
SYRIA
TURKEY
ARMENIA
GEORGIA
AZERBAIJAN
AZER.
CYPRUS
ISRAEL
EGYPT
JORDAN
KUWAIT
IRAN
RUSSIA KAZAKHSTAN
LEBANON
SAUDI ARABIA
M e s o p o t a m i a
Cairo
Jerusalem
Amman
Damascus
Beirut
Baghdad
Ankara
Tbilisi
Yenevan
I R A Q
6 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Data Tables for Counting the Crops and Crowds 1
Visual Aid4
VA #4 Data Tables for Counting the Crops and Crowds 1
POPULATION IN ANCIENT EGYPT CHART
Description of Time Period
Dates Population
Pre-Agriculture on the Nile
8000 BCE 100,000
Agriculture on the Nile begins; first permanent
buildings built 6000 BCE 200,000
Old Kingdom: Invention of the shaduf and irrigation canals
2650 BCE 1 million
Middle Kingdom 2030 BCE 2 million
New Kingdom 1550 BCE 3 million
Late Period 1295 BCE 4 million
Beginning of Common Era
0 5 million
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 7
Data Tables for Counting the Crops and Crowds 2
Visual Aid5
VA #5 Data Tables for Counting the Crops and Crowds 2
CROP YIELD IN ANCIENT EGYPT CHART
Description of Time Period
Dates of Time Period Crop Yield per Person (Average)
Pre-Agriculture on the Nile
8000 BCE 2 kilograms
Agriculture on the Nile begins; first
permanent buildings built
6000 BCE 100 kilograms
Old Kingdom: Invention
of the shaduf and irrigation canals
2650 BCE 350 kilograms
Middle Kingdom 2030 BCE 400 kilograms
New Kingdom 1550 BCE 450 kilograms
Late Period 1295 BCE 550 kilograms
Beginning of Common Era
0 600 kilograms
8 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Graphing the Crops and Crowds 1
Visual Aid6
VA #6 Graphing the Crops and Crowds 1
10000 9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE
Dates of Time Period
Population
POPULATION IN ANCIENT EGYPT GRAPH
6,000,000
5,000,000
4,000,000
3,000,000
2,000,000
1,000,000
0
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 9
Graphing the Crops and Crowds 2
Visual Aid7
VA #7 Graphing the Crops and Crowds 2
10000 9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE BCE
Dates of Time Period
Kilograms
Per Person
CROP YIELD IN ANCIENT EGYPT GRAPH
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
10 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
VA #8 Cities of Ancient Mesopotamia
Cities of Ancient Mesopotamia
Visual Aid8
E u p h r a t es
R .
Ti
gr i s
R.
CASPIANSEA
M E D I T E R R A N E A N S E A
B L A C KS E A
PERSIANGULFRED
SEA0 150 300
Miles
Babylon
Ur
Uruk Larsa
Nippur
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 11
VA #9 Cities of Ancient Egypt
Cities of Ancient Egypt
Visual Aid9
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
ARABIAN
SEA
REDSEA
PERSIANGULF
Wh
i te N
ile
Bl u
e N
i l e
Nile
GizaMemphis
Cairo
Thebes
Abu Simbel
KermaNepata
Meroe
Karnak
0 300 600
Miles
Lake
Victoria
12 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Changes in the Fertile Crescent
Visual Aid10
This presentation introduces the effects of salinization on the Fertile Crescent.
VA #10 Changes in the Fertile Crescent
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 13
VA #11 Where Agriculture Began…
Where Agriculture Began…
Visual Aid11
Where agriculture began…
…farming suddenly stopped. Lands in southeastern Mesopotamia were abandoned. The people of the area moved north, toward the Mediterranean Sea.
Why?
NubianDesert
Arabian Desert
Syrian Desert
LakeVictoria
Wh
i t e N
i l e
Bl u
e N
i l e
Ni le
R.
0 300 600
Miles
Ti g
r is R.
Euphra te s R
.
CASPIANSEA
M E D I T E R R A N E A N S E A
A R A B I A NS E A
REDSEA
PERSIANGULF
14 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Clues in the Cuneiform
Visual Aid12
Ancient cuneiform tablets tell of the soil becoming “salty” in this area. They also tell of times thousands of years before where the ancient people cut down trees and cleared land to plant more crops to feed more people. Without plant cover, the ground around the rivers eroded, and the fields flooded.
But what does this have to do with salt?
VA #12 Clues in the Cuneiform
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 15
Salinization
Visual Aid13
Salt buildup in soil is called salinization.
Many crops cannot grow in soils with too much salt in them.
Certain elements that are naturally in soil (like calcium and sodium) form salts when combined with other elements.
VA #13 Salinization
16 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Causes of Salinization
Visual Aid14
VA #14 Causes of Salinization
Salinization occurs when:
• The soil in an area contains many salts.
• Water used for irrigation in that area contains salts, too.
• The climate of the area is hot and dry; evaporation occurs at a greater rate than precipitation.
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 17
VA #15 Why Some Soil is Salty
Why Some Soil is Salty
Visual Aid15
When water and wind erode rocks and create soil, minerals are released. Some of these minerals form salts that remain in the soil.
As water travels down a river, it can carry dissolved salts from one area to another.
18 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Salts Build Up On Soil
Visual Aid16
VA #16 Salts Build Up On Soil
In dry climates with low rainfall, there is not enough water to wash the salts out of the soil.
Salts build up on the soil surface where they stunt plant growth.
Water continues to evaporate from the land, leaving salts near the surface.
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 19
VA #17 Back in the Fertile Crescent…
Back in the Fertile Crescent…
Visual Aid17
In Mesopotamia, the climate was hot and dry. The soil contained some salt, and the river water, used to irrigate the fields, added more salt to the soil.
The fields did not drain well after being irrigated, so the salts built up in the top layer of the soil.
20 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Crop Changes
Visual Aid18
VA #18 Crop Changes
When the soil first started getting salty, Mesopotamians switched from growing wheat to growing barley, which grows better in salty soil.
This worked for a while, until the “earth turned white” with salt. Mesopotamians started growing date palms, the only plant that could handle the super-salty soil.
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 21
Problem Solved?
Visual Aid19
VA #19 Problem Solved?
But you cannot live on dates alone. Without wheat or barley, the people of southern Mesopotamia could not survive. They had to be able to raise grain for themselves and for their livestock.
There was no choice but to move. The cites in southeastern Mesopotamia were abandoned as the people moved north to lands with better soil.
22 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Why Does Some Land Become Salinized?
Visual Aid20
VA #20 Why Does Some Land Become Salinized?
Poor drainage of water (blue), combined with evaporation, leads to an increase in saltiness at the surface of the soil (brown).
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 23
Evaporation and Transpiration
Visual Aid21
VA #21 Evaporation and Transpiration
Together, evaporation and transpiration cause salts to build up on the soil’s surface.
24 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
How Does Land Become Salinized?
Visual Aid22
VA #22 How Does Land Become Salinized?
• Water from rivers, irrigation channels, and flood-irrigated fields seeps into the groundwater deep beneath the surface.
• The groundwater level rises.
• The groundwater has salts in it.
• The higher the groundwater, the more likely the salt will end up near the surface of the soil.
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 25
Salt Reaches the Surface
Visual Aid23
VA #23 Salt Reaches the Surface
The more shallow the groundwater (blue), the more likely the salt will end up near the surface of the soil (brown).
26 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Salinization Affects the Land
Visual Aid24
VA #24 Salinization Affects the Land
From this…
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 27
The Effects Can Be Large
Visual Aid25
VA #25 The Effects Can Be Large
To this…
28 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Salinization in the San Joaquin Valley
Visual Aid26
VA #26 Salinization in the San Joaquin Valley
The soil in California’s San Joaquin Valley contains salts.
The irrigation water used in this important agricultural area also contains salts.
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 29
The San Joaquin River
Visual Aid27
VA #27 The San Joaquin River
The groundwater is shallow and also adds salt to the San Joaquin River.
Water that runs over the surface of the land and drains into the San Joaquin River picks up salts.
Treated wastewater contains salt. These waters drain into the river, too.
Fertilizers, spread on soils to make plants grow, can also add salt to the soil over time.
30 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
Will it Happen Again?
Visual Aid28
VA #28 Will it Happen Again?
Soils are becoming saltier in places in the San Joaquin Valley, making some of the land impossible to farm. People are trying to solve this problem before valuable cropland in California is lost. Losing fertile land can affect our state’s economy and the people that live in the state.
Can we learn from the past and sustain our current political, economic, and social practices and systems?
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids 31
VA #29 CSI: Crop Science Investigation: Part 2
CSI: Crop Science Investigation: Part 2
Visual Aid29
Mesopotamia San Joaquin ValleyBoth
32 CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVE I Unit 6.2.2. I Agricultural Advances in Ancient Civilizations I Visual Aids
VA #30 CSI: Crop Science Investigation: Part 3
CSI: Crop Science Investigation: Part 3
Visual Aid30
1. Describe how agriculture changed the land of Mesopotamia and what effect those changes had on the civilization. (5 points)
2. What can California learn from the example of ancient Mesopotamia? (10 points)
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