Both the Chinese and the Portuguese sought involvement in the Indian Ocean trade but each group used methods that juxtaposed each other. The Chinese had a lot of goods that those involved in the Indian Ocean trade routes desired. On the other hand, the Portuguese did not really have any goods to trade; no one needed iron pots or the wool clothing that they produced. This led the Europeans to take a different approach; since they could not trade in the way others could, they had to use coerce their way in. Their methods involved the conquest of various Indian Ocean nations and therefore it was much more abusive than the ways of the Chinese. Following the descriptions of Malacca, Ceylon, and Hormuz as found in personal accounts by Ma Huan and…
Water. It’s the world’s single most important resource and without it life isn’t possible- it has the power to determine our future and its becoming scare. In South Asian countries we find that they deal with immense conflict over sharing river water supplies in both downstream and upstream regions. After watching the film “Blue Gold”, it has come to my realization there is an increasingly political issue and tension regarding the control of water supplies. In India and China water shortages pose a social and economic threat throughout areas such as India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh. The issue we find here is about distribution; there are regions where water is abundant, but others are unfortunately going dry and are in dire need of clean water. In addition to this problem there is an enormous amount of pollution being dumped in freshwater supply. “Blue Gold” presented controversy over infrastructure of dams and canals meant for good by providing hydropower ad irrigation, but only causes the rivers to dry. The Ganges River had been in a long dispute by India and Bangladesh because together they share a common river system. Furthermore, water projects have also caused problems by displacing people in these regions and have contributed to the destruction of the ecosystem. In short, the unfortunately poor region is not in favor of privatization because it doesn’t benefit them. Privatization helps higher classes in society, those who can afford water, but makes it harder on the low class.…
During the early 1700s, there was a time commonly known as, “The Golden Age of Piracy.” During these years the amount of pirates sailing our seas grew exponentially. Also during these years the inspired pirates usually came from a privateering career, who also inspired other privateers to join as well. They are well known for pillaging and/or plundering other ships at sea. One of the more popular ones during this time was a man known as Blackbeard.…
The Indian Ocean served as huge crossroads of trade during 650 through 1750. China and India proved themselves to be the biggest winners of the Indian Ocean trade. Both countries have a couple common dominant factors. These countries had a technological advantage over the rest of the world. Which made it easier for them to produce industrial goods faster, cheaper, and better than anyone else. China was known for their silk and porcelain production, while India had a vast cotton textile industry. From a consumer standpoint, both countries were producing the most popular mass-market items. Like cotton textiles and precious metals. They were producing the goods that the majority of the world craved, which kept them foremost. Likewise they were…
Meeting the world’s growing water needs will require far more effective use of available resources. By combining appropriate technology, strategic management and involving all the players water conflicts can be avoided.…
The Indian Ocean Trade spread diseases and created more feuds, but mostly, it linked cultures, spread new religions, enhanced trading skills, and increased economic growth in several different regions of the world. Before the Indian Ocean Trade, most regions knew nothing of their neighboring civilizations. This trade network united the world. Because of it, just about all civilizations are conversant with each other.…
Their contemporaries described them as “Robbers, Opposers, and Violators of all Laws, Humane and Divine.” Many viewed themselves as a more selfish reincarnation of Robin Hood, stealing from wealthy merchants, foreign traders, and abusive captains, and in doing so, threatening the hierarchical status quo of sixteenth and seventeenth English society by declaring “war against the world.” The Law considered them hostes humani generis, enemies of all mankind. In reality, pirates of the Golden Age, a period loosely covering the years 1660-1730, were none of those things, or perhaps more accurately, were not one but a combination. They were all robbers, since piracy in its most elementary definition is nothing more than a robbery at sea, something…
Using named examples, assess the contribution of large scale water management projects in increasing water security. 15 Water security means having access to sufficient, safe, clean and affordable water. Theoretically, the world’s poorer countries are the most water insecure, suffering from both physical and economic water scarcity. One solution to tackle water insecurity is through large scale water projects for example the Three Gorges project in China, the South-North transfer project also in China and the restoration of the Aral Sea. However there is much controversy over whether these schemes are actually sustainable and therefore beneficial in the long run. The Three Gorges da project in China blocks the Yangtze River; it cost $50 billion just for the construction, and was fully operational on the 4th of July 2012. This cost doesn’t account for the environmental and social costs that also came with the scheme. The dam drains 1.8million km2 and will supply Shanghai’s population of 13 million along with Chongqing’s population of 3 million with sufficient supplies of water. Not only has it provided people with water but it’s also the worlds’ largest hydroelectric scheme generating 18000MW of electricity, instead of using 50 million tonnes of coal each year. As well as this, it is seen as a flood protection and can save many lives and cut financial costs created by flood damage. When the operation is looked at from this perspective, it is seen to be a success and suggests that large scale projects increase water security, however when analysed from a different view, many problems being to arise. An example of these costs are factors such as the dammed waters drowned 100,000 hectares of arable land, along with 13 cities, many smaller settlement and 13 factories. 1.9 million people have been displaced from their homes and land because of reasons. As well as social impacts, many environmental issues were raised such as ecological impacts on fisheries, biodiversity…
For twenty-four years the acts of piracy off the coastlines of Somalia have been the greatest concern of the international community with its ever growing fear of threat to international shipping. Within these concerns comes the heated debated as to why these acts of piracy began. Many believe that the absence of government and the lack of natural resources have played a major role, along with the illegally fishing and dumping of toxins in the waters of Somalia. With the ongoing plague of war since the 1980s, Somalia has become one of the most underdeveloped and chaotic countries in the world. Due to these hardships many of the countries individuals who have been displeased with the current status quo have turned to piracy to improve their…
4. Trade in the Mediterranean Sea Lanes was much different from trade in the Indian…
To what extent did piracy in its “Golden Age” offer hope of a better life to those who embraced it?…
The Silk Road, once a popular trade route, slowly was overshadowed by the growing Indian Ocean trade. The Indian Ocean trade route was more efficient, easier to travel, and much faster. Meanwhile the Silk Road became less traveled because of its harsh geography, the spread of disease, and the fall of the empires that supported the trade.…
In the 19th century, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison sent the U.S Navy into the Mediterranean to defeat the Barbary pirates. Piracy was a major concern for decades but it took a long time for military action to be taken due to insufficient funds. Barbary pirates from the northern coast of North Africa "preyed on commerce in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean." They terrorized people for ransom money and blackmail. Just like today, religion is an important determinant of victims. Pirates were Muslims so who they would capture would depend on the captive's religion. Christians were their favorite. If a prisoner decided to convert to Islam, their work load would be lightened. On the other hand, if a prisoner refused to convert, he risked being burned alive or impaled. Three months into Jefferson's presidency, he sent four warships to bombard Tripoli, one of the corrupted pirate states. There were battles for the next thirty years. France finally cleared piracy out of North Africa completely by attacking and conquering Algiers, Tunis, and Morocco, the other pirate states. Lewis Lord said, "A key element in America's war on terrorism is a willingness to overthrow regimes that wage convert war." That is exactly what happened then, and what is happening now.…
38. Silk: it was usually sold and traded to the wealthy, because less fortunate people could not afford it all the time.…
The crusades were a tough time to be in Asia Minor, the Western Europeans were engaging in religious wars. Christianity was being spread using propaganda while engaging in war against the Muslim religion. Typical fighting wasn’t the norm during the Crusades, each side was trying to figure out a way to get a leg up on the competition. When the Christians figured out they could use pirates as an advantage they were more than willing to commission them. Piracy during this time became a big business for the crusades. Pirates were hired as privateers on both the Christian and Muslim sides of the spectrum to fight one another. Both religions were constantly against each other; in an attempt to wipe the other one out. For both religions, it was a matter of making attacks on one another, and justifying the attacks on each other in order to make a statement. Initially individual cities and lords commissioned the Pirates. First it was the Christians who commissioned the pirates as privateers. Doing so, their ultimate goal was to use the pirates as a tactic to invade from the ocean and destroy the Muslim Cities. Under the watchful eye of the crown, the pirates would do as they were told, raiding and looting the cities. In this situation, the pirates could attack the Muslims and catch them off guard, when coming from the sea. This gave the Christians a huge advantage in their conquest of the holy wars.…