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The History Of The Human Population
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Cultural Changes Hunting & Gathering Societies
gathering of edible plants and hunting and fishing normally composed of 50 or fewer people who worked together to get enough food to survive 3/4 of Homo sapiens existence (about 30,000 years)
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Cultural Changes Energy Sources sunlight captured by plants fire
own muscle power
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Cultural Changes Population Growth Controls Social Practices
sexual intercourse abstention herbal contraceptives abortion late marriage prolonged breast feeding High Infant Mortality Average Life Expectancy of 30 years
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Cultural Changes populations grew very slowly
their environmental impact was limited and localized due to… small populations nomadism dependence on their own muscle power to modify the environment
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Cultural Changes Agricultural Revolution 10,000 to 12,000 years ago
involved the gradual move towards settled agricultural communities, where people learned to domesticate wild animals and culture plants may have been the result of climate changes which forced humans to adapt or become extinct
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Cultural Changes Early Agricultural Techniques Subsistence Farming
growth of only enough food to feed themselves Slash and Burn Cultivation clearing of small patches of forest by cutting down vegetation and then burning the underbrush ashes fertilized the nutrient poor soils
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Cultural Changes Shifting Cultivation
abandoning a garden after several years of use (nutrient depletion) and then moving to a new patch abandoned areas remain unusable for years before soil becomes fertile enough to grow more crops resulted in sustainable agriculture these early techniques had little impact on the environment due to… dependence on muscle power crude stone and stick tools
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Cultural Changes Advances Metal Plow Irrigation
pulled by domesticated animals allowed… cultivation of larger plots cultivation of fertile grasslands Irrigation Allowed increased crop output
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Cultural Changes Significant Effects
increase in average energy use per person through use of domesticated animals increase in birth rates over death rates caused increase in population, mainly due to stable food supply cultivation of larger fields and use of irrigation systems
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Cultural Changes Significant Changes (cont.)
accumulation of material goods by people development of surplus food supply urbanization became practical increase in societal conflict due to value of economic resources (land and water) decrease in survival of wild plants and animals due to competition with domesticated forms
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Cultural Changes Industrial Revolution began in England in mid 1700’s
involved a shift from dependence on renewable wood and flowing water as energy sources to nonrenewable fossil fuels multiplied energy consumption per capita gave humans more power to shape the Earth
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Cultural Changes Characteristics of Industrial Societies
higher production and consumption of goods greater dependence on nonrenewable resources increased use of synthetic chemicals and materials huge increase in the amount of energy used per person
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Cultural Changes Benefits of Industrial Societies
creation and mass production on many useful and economically affordable goods sharp increase in the average agricultural production per person lower infant mortality and higher average life expectancy decrease in population growth rate better health, birth control methods, education, average income, old-age security
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Worldviews Definition how individuals think the world works
what they think their role is the world should be what they believe is right and wrong behavior (ethics)
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How We Think About Earth
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Historical Worldviews of North America
Frontier Worldview hostile wilderness needs to be conquered and cleared as fast as possible believe there will always be more view of European colonists
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Frontier Worldview
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Historical Worldviews of North America
Life Centered Worldview respect for land and organisms part of and work with nature view of native Americans
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Life Centered
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Modern Worldviews Human Centered / Planetary Management
humans, as the planet’s dominant and most important species, can and should manage the planet mostly for their own benefit other species have only instrumental value
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Modern Worldviews Basic Beliefs
humans are the most important species, and are apart from and in charge of the rest of nature there is always more, and it is all for us economic growth is good, and more is better, and potential growth is limitless a healthy environment is related to a healthy economy our success depends on how well we understand, control, manage the planet for our benefit
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Modern Worldviews Variations of this view: No Problem
Free-Market School Responsible Planetary Management / Enlightened Self Interest Spaceship Earth Stewardship
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Modern Worldviews Life Centered / Biocentric
believe all species have an inherent right to live and flourish or at least struggle to exist (evolve)
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Biocentric
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Modern Worldviews Earth-wisdom Worldview Beliefs
nature exists for all species, not just humans, and we are not separate from or in charge of it there is not always more and it is not all for us some economic growth is good, other growth is harmful a healthy economy depends on a healthy environment our success depends on learning to cooperate with each other and nature rather than trying to dominate and manage
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Earth Wisdom
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