3 Things I have Learned
1. Mussolini was hung after he was dead and his corpse endured a brutal beating
2. Einstein was from Germany
3. The dust bowl was like a giant cloud of dust! woah!
2 things that interested me
1. Mussolini's death
2. Einstein's theory of relativity
1 question that I still have..
Could the stock market crash and/or the great depression have been prevented?
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Spotlight on... Mussolini's Execution
Here are the corpses of Benito Mussolini and his mistress in a morgue in Milan, Italy.Most textbooks (including ours) says that Mussolini was hung. Well, he was, indeed, hung.. but that's not the entire story. First, Mussolini and his fellow officers were shot by a firing squad and then hung up by their feet. They were then turned over to the crazed Italian citizens who then furiously beat the corpses until they could pretty much no longer be identified, as you can see in the gruesome picture above.
Major US Events
The Dust Bowl
The greatest human suffering of the Depression era might have existed in the Dust Bowl. For most of the decade, massive dust storms plagued the residents of Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and Texas. Farm production in these areas fell drastically for most of the decade, further diminishing morale as the economy continued to collapse. A severe drought was the major cause of the dust storms although poor farming practices (stripping the soil of any topsoil) also contributed to them. By the end of the decade, nearly 60 percent of all farms in the Dust Bowl were either ruined or abandoned. Many Dust Bowlers traveled to California to get agricultural jobs there and discovered that if an entire family picked grapes from sunup to sundown, it might barely scrape by. John Steinbeck's book The Grapes of Wrath, is based on this very idea.
The Dust Bowl was a very tough time for not only the "dustbowlers" but also the entire country, because the lack of agricultural production affected the economy drastically. Today, this is similar to the tomato shortage due to the cold front that ruined much of the crop this year. Some major fast food restaurants do not put tomatoes on their burgers unless people specifically ask for them. This lack of tomatoes has caused a major increase in the price of tomatoes and Italian restaurants are really being hit hard, because they require a lot of tomatoes for their recipes.
The Stock Market Crash of 1929
The Stock Market Crash, also known as "Black Tuesday," was October 29, 1929, the day the New York Stock Exchange crashed. This means that the prices for stock were too high, far higher than they were really worth. Then they fell sharply. People who had unwisely borrowed money to buy high-priced stocks (intending to sell the stocks at a profit and repay lenders), went bankrupt. (HOW FOOLISH OF THEM!) Black Tuesday marked the beginning of the Great Depression- a period of economic hardship in the United States that lasted from 1929 to 1939.
While we did not have a complete stock market crash in the United States during our current recession, our stock market was having major difficulties staying "afloat." Prices of stocks dropped dramatically, and people began to panic, such as they did during the Stock Market Crash of 1929, and lots of people sold their stock at once.
The greatest human suffering of the Depression era might have existed in the Dust Bowl. For most of the decade, massive dust storms plagued the residents of Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and Texas. Farm production in these areas fell drastically for most of the decade, further diminishing morale as the economy continued to collapse. A severe drought was the major cause of the dust storms although poor farming practices (stripping the soil of any topsoil) also contributed to them. By the end of the decade, nearly 60 percent of all farms in the Dust Bowl were either ruined or abandoned. Many Dust Bowlers traveled to California to get agricultural jobs there and discovered that if an entire family picked grapes from sunup to sundown, it might barely scrape by. John Steinbeck's book The Grapes of Wrath, is based on this very idea.
The Dust Bowl was a very tough time for not only the "dustbowlers" but also the entire country, because the lack of agricultural production affected the economy drastically. Today, this is similar to the tomato shortage due to the cold front that ruined much of the crop this year. Some major fast food restaurants do not put tomatoes on their burgers unless people specifically ask for them. This lack of tomatoes has caused a major increase in the price of tomatoes and Italian restaurants are really being hit hard, because they require a lot of tomatoes for their recipes.
The Stock Market Crash of 1929
The Stock Market Crash, also known as "Black Tuesday," was October 29, 1929, the day the New York Stock Exchange crashed. This means that the prices for stock were too high, far higher than they were really worth. Then they fell sharply. People who had unwisely borrowed money to buy high-priced stocks (intending to sell the stocks at a profit and repay lenders), went bankrupt. (HOW FOOLISH OF THEM!) Black Tuesday marked the beginning of the Great Depression- a period of economic hardship in the United States that lasted from 1929 to 1939.
While we did not have a complete stock market crash in the United States during our current recession, our stock market was having major difficulties staying "afloat." Prices of stocks dropped dramatically, and people began to panic, such as they did during the Stock Market Crash of 1929, and lots of people sold their stock at once.
PEOPLE PEOPLE PEOPLE!
Now it's time for some important people! If you haven't heard of them, then I suggest you come out from under your rock for a little while..
Albert Einstein- turns out, this guy wasn't always considered a genius!
Albert Einstein was a German-born physicist whose ideas revolutionized how we view space, time, energy and matter. He developed an idea in 1905 known as the Theory of Relativity- an utterly brilliant, yet mind-boggling idea that basically stated that when objects move at a speed close to the speed of light relative to another object, time can change. Still confused? Don't worry, you're in good company. If you've ever heard of the twin paradox, this is Einstein's theory applied to an almost real life situation.
Here's the basic explanation of the twin paradox..
1) two twins
2) twin #1 stays on earth, twin #2 leaves Earth on a rocket traveling at almost the speed of light (this is not entirely possible, but say it was)
3) twin #2 travels in space for what he feels is ten years
4) when twin #2 returns to Earth after ten years, he is only ten years older, while his brother, twin #2 is much much older.
It's confusing and takes quite a long time to try to figure out. No matter how confusing his idea was, it is no doubt that he was a genius! It seems funny that he was considered a "slow learner" early in his life.
Einstein's ideas changed modern science and many of his ideas are still used today- in fact, I have learned about him in my physics class, and I don't know a single person who hasn't heard of Einstein, even if they don't know what he did.
Have you seen this guy before? If your answer is no, then perhaps you have heard of him before- Sigmund Freud, the father of modern Psychology.
Sigmund Freud was an Austrian "physician" who revolutionized the field of modern psychology with his theories. He believed that humans had an unconscious part of their being which was responsible for a large portion of their behavior. He theorized that if he could get in touch with this "unconscious" that he could fix what was wrong with some people, although it didn't quite work. He published his theories in an extremely controversial book called "Interpretation of Dreams" in 1900.
Freud was considered a pervert- seeing as a lot of his ideas were based on sex. Even today, Freud is extremely controversial. Most people view this man as either a hero in the field of Psychology or a disgusting excuse for a doctor and psychologist.
Adolf Hitler- one of the most infamous people in world history.
Adolf Hitler was born in Austria and gained power in Germany. He was the leader of Germany during the Third Reich (Nazi Germany). He is known as the primary instigator of the second world war. He is also responsible for the mass execution of millions of people deemed to be "enemies" or inferior to the Aryan ideal (blonde hair, blue eyes). Hitler was a very important person during this period because he was extremely powerful and used mainly fear to get people to do what he wanted. He changed the course of history immensely. His symbol was the Swastika- a symbol which is now illegal in Germany. Hitler was also a coward. When he was cornered and was at the point where he was about to be captured, he and his wife committed suicide, rather than be held responsible for all that he had done.
Albert Einstein- turns out, this guy wasn't always considered a genius!Albert Einstein was a German-born physicist whose ideas revolutionized how we view space, time, energy and matter. He developed an idea in 1905 known as the Theory of Relativity- an utterly brilliant, yet mind-boggling idea that basically stated that when objects move at a speed close to the speed of light relative to another object, time can change. Still confused? Don't worry, you're in good company. If you've ever heard of the twin paradox, this is Einstein's theory applied to an almost real life situation.
Here's the basic explanation of the twin paradox..
1) two twins
2) twin #1 stays on earth, twin #2 leaves Earth on a rocket traveling at almost the speed of light (this is not entirely possible, but say it was)
3) twin #2 travels in space for what he feels is ten years
4) when twin #2 returns to Earth after ten years, he is only ten years older, while his brother, twin #2 is much much older.
It's confusing and takes quite a long time to try to figure out. No matter how confusing his idea was, it is no doubt that he was a genius! It seems funny that he was considered a "slow learner" early in his life.
Einstein's ideas changed modern science and many of his ideas are still used today- in fact, I have learned about him in my physics class, and I don't know a single person who hasn't heard of Einstein, even if they don't know what he did.
Have you seen this guy before? If your answer is no, then perhaps you have heard of him before- Sigmund Freud, the father of modern Psychology.
Sigmund Freud was an Austrian "physician" who revolutionized the field of modern psychology with his theories. He believed that humans had an unconscious part of their being which was responsible for a large portion of their behavior. He theorized that if he could get in touch with this "unconscious" that he could fix what was wrong with some people, although it didn't quite work. He published his theories in an extremely controversial book called "Interpretation of Dreams" in 1900.
Freud was considered a pervert- seeing as a lot of his ideas were based on sex. Even today, Freud is extremely controversial. Most people view this man as either a hero in the field of Psychology or a disgusting excuse for a doctor and psychologist.
Adolf Hitler- one of the most infamous people in world history.
Adolf Hitler was born in Austria and gained power in Germany. He was the leader of Germany during the Third Reich (Nazi Germany). He is known as the primary instigator of the second world war. He is also responsible for the mass execution of millions of people deemed to be "enemies" or inferior to the Aryan ideal (blonde hair, blue eyes). Hitler was a very important person during this period because he was extremely powerful and used mainly fear to get people to do what he wanted. He changed the course of history immensely. His symbol was the Swastika- a symbol which is now illegal in Germany. Hitler was also a coward. When he was cornered and was at the point where he was about to be captured, he and his wife committed suicide, rather than be held responsible for all that he had done.
Artwork from this VERY exciting time period!!
During this time period, there were many new forms of art being developed. Rather than just painting or sculpting what they see in real life, artists began to express themselves and create unique pieces of art that originated in their imagination.
Just a few examples..
Surrealism was a strong art movement that "sought to link the world of dreams with real life." This style was used by artists such as Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Max Ernst, and several others. In the 1920's and 30's, the proponents of Surrealism, a European visual arts and literary movement, explored the direct expression of the unconscious unobscured by rational thought. Surrealism was influenced by Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytical theories, but the movement was also very much a reaction against the "reason" that had led Europe into the tribulations and effects of World War I.
Cubism was pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. This style broke down a normal object into pieces and then rearranged the pieces into geometric forms.
Expressionism was dominated by painters such as Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky, who used bold colors and distorted or exaggerated shapes and forms in their art.
This piece is entitled "Woman with a Guitar" and was painted by the famous Cubist artist Georges Braque in 1913 and was popular during the time period leading up to World War II. It is clearly Cubism, as you can see the different parts of the original picture broken into geometrical shapes and rearranged into something new. Cubism was popular during the "years of crisis," because it was something new and different from previous forms of art.
This piece has many names... Some refer to this as "The Persistence of time" but it is also known as "The Persistence of Memory," "Melting Clocks," "Soft Watches" and "Droopy Watches." Officially, however, it is known as "La persistencia de la memoria," or, in English, "The Persistance of Memory."
Created in 1931 by Salvador Dali and owned by the Museum of Modern Art in New York since 1934, this seminal work of surrealistic art is certainly Dali’s and the Surrealist movements most recognizable icon. The painting represents Dali’s thoughts on softness and hardness, which was a theme of much of his work during that part of his life.
The imagery of The Persistence of Memory is often interpreted as an illustration of Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity, where gravity can be seen to distort time.
This painting titled "Woman Before a Mirror" was painted by Pablo Picasso, a famous surrealist artist. While Picasso was mainly known for his surrealist artwork, this is considered an example of Cubist artwork, as the different parts of the woman is somewhat broken up and rearranged. Picasso was a well-known artist from Spain and his artwork was revolutionary and remains extremely popular.
Painted by Max Ernst, "The Blessed Virgin Chastises the Infant," shows an irrational and unique interpretation of The Virgin Mary and the baby Jesus. Max Ernst was one of the leaders in Surrealist artwork.
Just a few examples..
Surrealism was a strong art movement that "sought to link the world of dreams with real life." This style was used by artists such as Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Max Ernst, and several others. In the 1920's and 30's, the proponents of Surrealism, a European visual arts and literary movement, explored the direct expression of the unconscious unobscured by rational thought. Surrealism was influenced by Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytical theories, but the movement was also very much a reaction against the "reason" that had led Europe into the tribulations and effects of World War I.
Cubism was pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. This style broke down a normal object into pieces and then rearranged the pieces into geometric forms.
Expressionism was dominated by painters such as Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky, who used bold colors and distorted or exaggerated shapes and forms in their art.
This piece is entitled "Woman with a Guitar" and was painted by the famous Cubist artist Georges Braque in 1913 and was popular during the time period leading up to World War II. It is clearly Cubism, as you can see the different parts of the original picture broken into geometrical shapes and rearranged into something new. Cubism was popular during the "years of crisis," because it was something new and different from previous forms of art.
This piece has many names... Some refer to this as "The Persistence of time" but it is also known as "The Persistence of Memory," "Melting Clocks," "Soft Watches" and "Droopy Watches." Officially, however, it is known as "La persistencia de la memoria," or, in English, "The Persistance of Memory."Created in 1931 by Salvador Dali and owned by the Museum of Modern Art in New York since 1934, this seminal work of surrealistic art is certainly Dali’s and the Surrealist movements most recognizable icon. The painting represents Dali’s thoughts on softness and hardness, which was a theme of much of his work during that part of his life.
The imagery of The Persistence of Memory is often interpreted as an illustration of Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity, where gravity can be seen to distort time.
This painting titled "Woman Before a Mirror" was painted by Pablo Picasso, a famous surrealist artist. While Picasso was mainly known for his surrealist artwork, this is considered an example of Cubist artwork, as the different parts of the woman is somewhat broken up and rearranged. Picasso was a well-known artist from Spain and his artwork was revolutionary and remains extremely popular.
Painted by Max Ernst, "The Blessed Virgin Chastises the Infant," shows an irrational and unique interpretation of The Virgin Mary and the baby Jesus. Max Ernst was one of the leaders in Surrealist artwork.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
ARE YOU READY TO LEARN?!
Welcome to Professor Becca's blog on Chapter 15 for Dummies! Now, if you're reading this, this does not mean that I am calling you a dummy. I'm sure you're very smart! Now back to the topic at hand..
This blog is about Chapter 15: The Years of Crisis (1918-1939) which was a very significant time period in World history!
Some Important events, people and ideas that you might be familiar with that were present during this period:
-Great Depression
-Albert Einstein
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
-Adolf Hitler
-Benito Mussolini
-Francisco Franco
-Munich Conference
-Third Reich
Sound familiar? It should! Hopefully this blog will help to inform you of things that you did not know about this time period, as well as refresh your memory of details you might have forgotten! So.. are you ready? Fasten your seat-belt and get ready for an exploration into history!
This blog is about Chapter 15: The Years of Crisis (1918-1939) which was a very significant time period in World history!
Some Important events, people and ideas that you might be familiar with that were present during this period:
-Great Depression
-Albert Einstein
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
-Adolf Hitler
-Benito Mussolini
-Francisco Franco
-Munich Conference
-Third Reich
Sound familiar? It should! Hopefully this blog will help to inform you of things that you did not know about this time period, as well as refresh your memory of details you might have forgotten! So.. are you ready? Fasten your seat-belt and get ready for an exploration into history!
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