How do features such as rivers, lakes and mountains help unite people, or keep them isolated from each other?

Natural features, or landforms affect a lot on people being united and isolated from each other. Two landforms that affected Egypt the most were the Nile and the Sahara Desert that surrounds its banks. The Nile was a life giver, as well as well as a life taker. The Nile gave Egyptians farming land, which enabled them to grow many different crops. Nile also lead the people of the Nile to make amazing invantions. To travel along the Nile, Egyptians invented ships, that were made out of bundles of reeds, and later out of wood. the most important discovery was the first sun-based calendar. Egyptians used the calendar to keep track of the annual flooding. The Nile was the source of many religious beliefs for the Egyptians. The God of the Nile was called Hapi, and he was always portrayed as a man with a papyrus plant in Egyptian art. It was believed that he controlled the annual floods, and many celebrations were hel dto thank him. However, the Nile isolated people from each other. At first, Egypt was a set of tiny villages. As the population grew, villages turned into towns, and some towns became capitals of city-states, called nomes. Nubia represented the crossing line, between the two seperate kingdoms, Upper and Lower Egypt. However, that was also overcome, when some unknown king united the kingdoms, and created a civilization that laste for three thousand years. Another problem was the flooding that wasn't always consistent. Sometimes, the rain fell too lightly, preventing floods, and enabling crops to dry by the hot desert sun. The people of Upper and Lower Egypt worked together to create irrigation systems, and that also brought them together. Other times, there was too mich flooding, washing the crops away, and drowning people and their cattle. Egyptians were unable to do anything about this, however. Another isolation was the Sahara. Sahara surrounded the Nile River and its banks, making it very hard for the Egyptians to interact with other city-states, and participate in trade. Egyptians traded over the Red and Mediterranean Sea, because the Sahara prevented them from interacting with other African city-states.

The Nile River

The sun is fading in the horizon, turning an orange color, making the waters of the Nile glisten. As we sail downstream, I look over my shoulder, where my father and the landlord are standing, debating over whether the landlord should have the barley or the wheat. My mother and sister are looking over, as well, praying that we won't lose our land, and all our crops. My father can have quite a temper sometimes. My uncle is saying something, but we cannot hear him. He takes the throwstick, and aims at a couple of catfish swimming by. He catches a small one, and a smile of victory lightens up his face. My father and the landlord are way out of the view, and Mother has another worry. She doesn't want us to reach Nubia, and all the rapids and waterfalls. She tells my uncle to be careful, and since he accomplished what he wanted to, and got dinner for his family for tonight, we turn the sail carefully, and head back. The journey took quite a long time, and when we came back, dark surrounded the grassy plain in the distance. As I step onto the ground, my foot sinks into the silt, which was deposited by the annual flood, just a few months ago. Our crops bloomed since then, but our landlord wants much more rent then it was originally planned, so Father is very upset. We hardly have any barley left, and there is no more onions, whatsoever. But, we will manage. I hear a herd of elephants far away, and I rush into the straw house. Tomorrow, my sister is meeting up with her soon-to-be husband, and she seems okay with it. Mother says that she is surprised, but happy that she took it with such ease. She will be moving all the way north, to Lower Egypt. I think she will be happy there. She won't have to worry much, because a lot of silt is deposited there, so the soil is very fertile, and her family can raise lots of crops. Tomorrow, Father and I will go to the market, and trade some of our crops for the cedar and gold from Nubia. I hope all goes well. The smell of the fresh air fills my nostrils, and I look over the tall trees, and the lush green grass, thinking about one of our neighbors, who died a few days ago. He was a strange man, and didn't like children running around, carrying ducks and geese, for their parents to prepare for lunch. He will be mummified tomorrow, but people are saying that Hades won't accept him well. After all, the man wasn't one of the welathiest. Some of the sailing boats are still on the river, waiting for any fish to swim by. I take one last look at the beautiful scenery, and rush back inside the house. Tomorrow will be a long day.

Mummification (Part 2)

1. What is the relationship between mummification and the natural environment? Provide specific examples from what you read during the previous lesson.
The relationship between mummification and the natural environment is very strong when it comes to unintentional mummification. There are many ways that a cadaver can be preserved in the natural environment. One of the ways is by freezing. The cold, ice and snow can cause this in high mountaneous areas, which include the Alps, the Himalayas, etc. One of the examples of this kind of preservation is Otzi, the iceman. He was recovered by a pair of hikers, in the Alps, on the border of Austria and Italy. The hikers thought that someone was murdered, and called the police, but archaeologists realized that they actually found an amazing historical find, that will help historians a lot in their research. Another way of natural mummification is through very warm, desert-like climate. Some of the mummies found have been recovered in deserts, where they have been completely dried up by the sand and the dry desert air, and, in that way, prevented from decomposing. Another condition that bodies are preserved in are mossy bogs. Bogs are made up of decayed vegetable matter, and serve as  great natural preservers. Some bogs can even preserve the cadaver's brain, which can help historians learn more about the evolution of humans. Mummies are a great primary resource, and they have helped historians and archaeologists a lot, telling them more about the lifestyle, culture, and traditions of the ancient people.

2. What are some of the reasons,mummies have been made?Apart from people being naturally mummfied, there are a lot of cultures who intentionally mummified their dead. One of the reasons for that is an afterlife. People in ancient civilizations believed that once someone dies, their soul moves on to the underworld, where it lives forever. It was believed that the wealthier you are, the better afterlife you would have, because you would have more valuables to bring with you to the afterlife. Another reason people were mummified is because of sacrifices. In some civilizations, people were sacfriced, and then mummified, in honor of the gods. The last reason people were intentionally mummified is because they commited a crime. In ancient times, if you commited a crime, or broke a law, some ancient civilizations would sentence a death penalty, and then mummify the corpse afterwards.

Mummification

Today, we read an article written by John Roach, on July 9th, 2001. He wrote it for the National Geographic News, and the article was about mummies, and how they served, and still do, as a way to keep us immortal. Below are some of the words that were unfamiliar to me:
Cadaver- Cadaver is a dead body, usually human; a corpse.
Mossy bogs- A bog is wet, spongy ground with soil composed mainly of decayed vegetable matter.
Portal- A portal is a a door, gate, or entrance, especially one of imposing appearance, as to a palace. A portal can also be referred to as a portal in time. etc.
Cryonics- Cryonics is when a body is frozen just after the death, so that the body won't decompose.





What is a mummy?
A mummy is an ancient cadaver, whose soft tissue has partially or wholly resisted decay. A mummy can be made by the environmental conditions of a certain place, or it can be man-made.
In what parts of the world have mummies been found in?
You can find mummies everywhere, in bogs, ice-cold mountain peaks, as well as hot deserts. The oldest known mummies were recovered in Chile, South America, and date back to around 7,000 years ago. Those mummies are called "Chincorro", and were mostly non-decayed bodies of children. It is believed that the parents mummified their children, to make their lives longer. Mummies have also been recovered in the Andean peaks, and some were even found in the Alps (Otzi, the iceman). Another set of mummies was found in northwestern China, they were so-called Xinjiang mummies. They were 4, 000 years old. And, finally, probably the most famous place for recovering mummies, is Egypt, where numerous important finds were made.

How did the the Ancient Egyptians preserve their dead?

Ancient Egyptians had a very distinctive process of mummification, and they thoroughly described it on many of their hieroglyphic writings and recordings. Firstly, the vital organs of the body were taken out and placed into special jars, that were put inside the tomb, around the mummy. Then, the mummy was wrapped in a very special linen, and then put into a sarcophagus.  At the end, Egyptians put objects like boats, gold and weapons into the tomb, so that the mummy would have a peaceful afterlife. Of course, the richer you were the more objects were put into your tomb, and the better afterlife you would have.

Why do you think ancient Egyptians took such care to embalm their dead if the desert could do the job for them?
Just as I said above, the Egyptians believed in an afterlife. They thought that the better burial practice they performed, the person who died would have a better afterlife. Egyptians believed in immortality, or that your soul never dies, just moves on to the underworld. They put objects in the tomb so that the one who passed away would have gold, and other necessities in the underworld, and would live in the underworld in peace.
What features of the natural environment can cause bodies to be mummified unintentionally?
There are different environmental factors that cause the body to get mummified. Some bodies get frozen in cold areas, and the ice and cold stop them from decaying. In very warm areas, the body is completely dried up, and the sand protects it from decomposing. Bogs are a very natural preservers, and the mummies found in bogs can also have a preserved brain, which can be great help to historians and scientists. 
According to current scientific beliefs, what are some reasons people were intentionally mummified?
There are different reasons why mummies were intentionally mummified. One of the theories is that mummies were mummified   so that they could be immortal, or move on to the underworld, and have a peaceful afterlife. Another theory is that people were killed and then mummified as a sacrifice for the gods. Another theory is that when people broke a law, or committed a crime, they were executed, and then mummified.


List at least five questions that you would ask about a place to determine whether it might be a promising location to find human mummies. Your questions should related to climate, culture, religion and other factors that you think are important.
1. What is the climate of the area like, and does it have some distinct landforms, such as a desert, high mountains, bogs and swamps, etc?
2. What people lived at this area long ago, and what were their religious beliefs?
3. Is it common for mummies to be found in this area? If so, were the finds of mummies that were intentionally or unintentionally buried?
4. If there were any ancient civilizations in the area, how long ago did they settle there, and how long did they stay?
5. What were some of the traditions of the people living there? 




 

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