Constantine Chou
Dr. Feinberg
Sociology 366
20 July 2016
Ivory Coast Shakespeare once cleverly articulated, “What, courage man! What though care killed a cat, thou hast mettle enough in thee to kill care.” Or put in a more modern sense: cheer up, for curiosity may have killed the cat, but you are smart enough to kill curiosity. Evident in our history, curiosity has always been second nature to man. Like for other animals too, curiosity has either led to new discoveries, or the demise of the investigator. Man has always pushed the limits given his environment, we can see rudimental beginnings in mathematics dating as far back as the Babylonians and the Egyptians, to a more systematic study in the classical antiquity of Greece and Rome. When …show more content…
Trade conquered, which encouraged the navigating of the sea, and the interaction with other societies led to intellectual discoveries. As a new civilization, and with without a dominant religion or theocratic traditions to hold them back, the Greeks flourished. From the times of Thales to Aristotle, science, art, thought, and culture overall reached heights at a tremendous rate. Eventually, overtime the fatal flaws of humans and societies began to take their toll. Myths of Gods, creation of man, and the supernatural became the dominant theocracy. The Hellenistic period began, and city-states formed. Wars broke out, people were sentenced to death over trivial laws, and political greed came about. The ancient Olympic Games were even known for a place where …show more content…
Portugal at the time faced an impeding problem with their spice trade, concerned that the Turks might occupy Constantinople, they worried this would effectively cut off their route to the Far East or that they might be charged exorbitantly. In 1419 Prince Henry set up a navigation school, as a “good Christian” he wanted to carry the Church’s message to the African natives and hoped to find the legendary Christian ruler of Central Africa, Prester John. In 1441 Portuguese interests in exploring the Africa heightened when the discovery of the African Gold Coast was made, rich not only with precious metals but equally with valuable slaves. With the Medieval Ages over, Italy was among one of the fastest countries to recover from the Black Plague, most likely due to bountiful environment, interaction with societies (being the center of trading, between northern Europe and the Near East), and, probably, most importantly the absence of a dominant theocracy to hinder the insights of academic achievement. Italians, particularly the Florentines, depended on mathematical discovery to foster trade, and in turn created an accounting system, which helped them retain their power and wealth. It was in Florence that Henry’s brother Dom Pedro would visit to pick up maps and materials for exploration. The Florentine interest in cartography was in large
Dr. Feinberg
Sociology 366
20 July 2016
Ivory Coast Shakespeare once cleverly articulated, “What, courage man! What though care killed a cat, thou hast mettle enough in thee to kill care.” Or put in a more modern sense: cheer up, for curiosity may have killed the cat, but you are smart enough to kill curiosity. Evident in our history, curiosity has always been second nature to man. Like for other animals too, curiosity has either led to new discoveries, or the demise of the investigator. Man has always pushed the limits given his environment, we can see rudimental beginnings in mathematics dating as far back as the Babylonians and the Egyptians, to a more systematic study in the classical antiquity of Greece and Rome. When …show more content…
Trade conquered, which encouraged the navigating of the sea, and the interaction with other societies led to intellectual discoveries. As a new civilization, and with without a dominant religion or theocratic traditions to hold them back, the Greeks flourished. From the times of Thales to Aristotle, science, art, thought, and culture overall reached heights at a tremendous rate. Eventually, overtime the fatal flaws of humans and societies began to take their toll. Myths of Gods, creation of man, and the supernatural became the dominant theocracy. The Hellenistic period began, and city-states formed. Wars broke out, people were sentenced to death over trivial laws, and political greed came about. The ancient Olympic Games were even known for a place where …show more content…
Portugal at the time faced an impeding problem with their spice trade, concerned that the Turks might occupy Constantinople, they worried this would effectively cut off their route to the Far East or that they might be charged exorbitantly. In 1419 Prince Henry set up a navigation school, as a “good Christian” he wanted to carry the Church’s message to the African natives and hoped to find the legendary Christian ruler of Central Africa, Prester John. In 1441 Portuguese interests in exploring the Africa heightened when the discovery of the African Gold Coast was made, rich not only with precious metals but equally with valuable slaves. With the Medieval Ages over, Italy was among one of the fastest countries to recover from the Black Plague, most likely due to bountiful environment, interaction with societies (being the center of trading, between northern Europe and the Near East), and, probably, most importantly the absence of a dominant theocracy to hinder the insights of academic achievement. Italians, particularly the Florentines, depended on mathematical discovery to foster trade, and in turn created an accounting system, which helped them retain their power and wealth. It was in Florence that Henry’s brother Dom Pedro would visit to pick up maps and materials for exploration. The Florentine interest in cartography was in large