Name ____________________________

 

Write a mini summary for each paragraph. Write the mini summaries on this shee. You can also visualize if you wish.

 

 

Story of Farming from http://www.historylink101.com

 

 

    "Over 80 percent of mankind's diet is provided by the seeds of less than a dozen plant species." Over the years man has invented new machines and techniques to increase the amount and variety of crop production.

 

The roots of farming began in the areas of present day Turkey and the Middle East about 10,000 years ago.  Two of the earliest settlements are known as Catal Hüyük and Jericho.   Catal Hüyük  had, by 6000 B.C., more then 1000 houses. It is at this place that we have discovered evidence of people taking wild grasses and using the seeds for food and planting for the next years food.  These seeds are now known as cereals and make up a large percentage of the worlds food supply.  (18F)

 

       Jericho, like many early cities, was located around a consistent water source, a spring which produced over 1000 gallons of water every minute. (#16, pg. 6)  Jericho consisted  of about eight to ten acres on which it is estimated that two to three thousand people lived.   These people were supported by farming of wheat, barley, peas, and lentils.  Archeologist believe the earliest settlers in this area were a small group of hunter-gathers.  Hunter - gathers  would live off the land forging berry and edible plants, as well as hunting wild animals.   These types of people lived in smaller groups because they had to be mobile to find more food.  It was not until man began to plant and harvest crops that large permanent settlements could be established, like at Jericho. 

 

    We find many of the early civilizations began along major river systems.  For example Egyptians settled along the Nile River, Harappa culture along the Indus, Chinese Empire along the Huang River and the Mesopotamian Countries along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.  The river systems provided these early civilizations with a consistent source of silt from the yearly floods and water for the crops.   The silt is like a natural fertilizer, bringing new minerals to enrich the crop depleted soil. 

 

Consequences of Farming

From http://ecohealth101.org/unbalancing/unbalancing2.html

 

Roughly 10,000 years ago, humankind had one of its biggest breakthroughs: the advent of farming. That may not sound glamorous, but agriculture changed everything. Freed from the constant search for food, humans could settle down and form communities. From there came the development of trade, then cities, then science, then technology, and then the world we know today.