Hunting vs. Farming
Name 3 negatives of farming?
More work for less output, less diverse food, more health consequences (other answers may be acceptable)
Explain 3 reasons why farming still spread.
Climate change, sedentism, population growth
What are the two possibilities for why agriculture spread to every part of the world?
Demic Diffusion: farmers spread out and displaced hunter-gatherers.
Cultural Diffusion: Hunter-Gatherers began to farm as their neighbors began to as well.
Why are the dangers of farming?
Deforestation, environmental destruction, displacement of wildlife, soil degradation, increased greenhouse gases, and pollutants
Elaborate on why diets are restricted under farming.
People become reliant on staples like wheat and maize that have less nutritional value.
Why did farming spread more in certain regions?
Regions that settled near rivers and resource pools made it easier to grow with farming.
What are the effects of the spread of farming? ("wave of advance")
Farmers began colonizing and moving into different regions around the world. For example, farmers colonized Greece. Also, farmers from China arrived in Japan to introduce rice.
Why is farming considered unnatural?
Many crops, like wheat, rice, and maize, are products of thousands of years of selective breeding and are eaten in their natural form
List some of the health consequences of farming and potential effects.
Nutrient deficiency, infectious diseases (tubercolosis and malaria) - shorter height, arthritis in females, and tooth decay
Explain why sedentism promoted farming.
They settled near regions rich in resources, technology improved, and they were able to establish long-lasting farms, needed to maintain food supply
How did population growth facilitate the spread of farming?
As birth rates increased and populations grew, people migrated to areas with more land and resources to farm and expand.
According to the book, if agriculture was created today, would it be accepted and why?
No, because of the numerous consequences that it has on the ecosystem and to humans
Explain some positives to hunting and gathering
Explain the Basque vs. Anatolian Study and what it showed?
The study sought to see if farming in Europe originated from indigenous hunter-gatherers (Basques) or immigrant farmers (Anatolians)-
What was the dynamic between hunter-gatherers and incoming farmers?
Many were forced to assimilate, relocate, or adopt farming practices. Others think that many hunter-gatherers lived alongside farmers, trading goods with them.
Why is it thought that food might exploit humans?
Humans have become extremely dependent on and base their lives on staple crops that have spread widely. Farming made it so that humans could no longer rely on hunting and gathering their own food. Farming has also pushed humans to employ certain behaviors, like labor and social systems, to ensure dominance and survival.