A Ton of Crap (8 page)

Archaeological Findings
In 1959, a site was excavated in the city of Yanshi. The site included large palaces, and archaeologists at the time believed that this could be the capital of the Xia Dynasty. Over the next twenty years, many sites were uncovered, revealing tombs, urban sites, and bronze implements. These were discovered in areas where the ancient texts claimed the Xia Dynasty to be, and radiocarbon dating places the site to be from around 2100 to 1800 b.c. The debate as to whether this is the Xia Dynasty, or whether the Xia Dynasty even existed at all, continues to this day.

PHONICS

Alphabetic Principle
In English, spelling is based on the alphabetic principle, in which letters are used to represent sounds, or phonemes, and then combined to create words. However, English is much more complicated than just following the alphabetic principle because the same sound can be spelled different ways and the same letters can have different sounds. This is because the language has absorbed several other languages into it, and traces of Classical Latin, Old English, Old Norse, Greek, and Norman can be found in English. For example, even though the words
though
and
enough
both end in
gh
, the words do not follow the same pronunciation rules.

ZERO

Other Rules of Zero
When using zero in math there are several basic rules beyond those mentioned in the Brahmagupta section. When a number is multiplied by zero, the answer will always be zero. A number cannot be divided by zero; this makes the solution undefined. When discussing exponents,
x
0 equals one, unless the quality of
x
is zero. In that case, the answer is zero.

CELLS

The Nucleus
The nucleus is responsible for regulating all activity in eukaryotic cells. It contains the hereditary information (DNA and RNA) and controls growth and reproduction. The most prominent structure in the nucleus is called the nucleolus. The nucleolus produces ribosomes, which play a critical role in protein synthesis. These proteins are used for a variety of purposes including, but not limited to, structural support and as enzymes to catalyze a reaction.

SPANISH

Useful Phrases
There are several basic things one should know how to say when traveling in a Spanish-speaking country.

Hello!
¡Hóla!

Good day.
Buenos diás
.

Thank you very much.
Muchas gracias.

Good night.
Buenos noches.

Goodbye.
Adiós.

Where is the bathroom?
¿Dónde está el baño?

Can you help me?
¿Me podría ayudar?

How much does that cost?
¿Cuánto cuesta?

Can I get on the internet?
¿Puedo conectarme con el internet?

1. What is Yu the Great most known for?
   

   1. Teaching methods on how to control flood water
      
   2. Questioning whether the Xia Dynasty existed
      
   3. Leading a revolt against Shang Tang
      
   4. Excavating the city of Yanshi
      

2. Yu the Great’s son, Qi, ended the abdication system and created:
   

   1. A hierarchical system
      
   2. A serfdom
      
   3. A hereditary system
      
   4. The Shang Dynasty
      

3. Ch
   ,
   sh
   ,
   th
   , and
   ph
   are
   examples of:
   

   1. The alphabetic principle
      
   2. Vowel patterns
      
   3. Analytical phonics
      
   4. Consonant digraphs
      

4. What is synthetic phonics?
   

   1. Words having two possible spellings based on how they sound
      
   2. An indistinct sound that single vowels produce in an unstressed syllable
      
   3. A method of teaching children unfamiliar words through translating the sounds of each letter and blending or synthesizing them together
      
   4. A combination of Classical Latin, Old English, Old Norse, Greek, and Norman
      

5. Which of the following is NOT one of the rules of Brahmagupta?
   

   1. The sum of a positive number and zero is the positive number.
      
   2. The sum of a positive number and a positive number is zero.
      
   3. The sum of zero with zero equals zero.
      
   4. The sum of a negative number and zero is the negative number.
      

6. In his book of a.d. 825, Persian scientist Khwarizmi stated that:
   

   1. Zero was to be expressed as a circle with a long overbar.
      
   2. A number cannot be divided by zero.
      
   3. Zero was to be used as a placeholder.
      
   4. When a number is multiplied by zero, the answer will always be zero.
      

7. What is the difference between prokaryotic cells and eukaryotic cells?
   

   1. Eukaryotic cells have a nucleus, prokaryotic do not.
      
   2. Prokaryotic cells have a nucleus, eukaryotic do not.
      
   3. Eukaryotic cells have a true nucleus and prokaryotic have a fake nucleus.
      
   4. Prokaryotic cells have a true nucleus and eukaryotic have a fake nucleus.
      

8. Which of the following is true?
   

   1. Animal cells are larger than plant cells.
      
   2. Only animal cells have DNA.
      
   3. Animal cells get their energy from sunlight.
      
   4. Animal cells do not have the rigid cell walls that plant cells have, allowing them to take on various shapes.
      

9. Who was the first to establish Castilian, a form of Spanish, as an official language instead of Latin?
   

   1. Charlemagne
      
   2. The Hittites
      
   3. Alfonso X, The Learned
      
   4. The Sumerians
      

10. How do you say “Where is the bathroom?” in Spanish?
    

    1. ¿Me podría ayudar?
       
    2. ¿Cuánto cuesta?
       
    3. ¿Puedo conectarme con el internet?
       
    4. ¿Dónde está el baño?
       

ANSWER KEY: a, c, d, c, b, c, a, d, c, d

HISTORY:
Ancient Egypt
Predynastic Egypt, Early Dynastic Egypt, The Old Kingdom, The Middle Kingdom, The New Kingdom, The Late Period

LANGUAGE ARTS:
Composition
Parts of Speech, Basic Parts of a Sentence, Modifiers, Prepositional Phrases, Adjective Clauses, Participle Phrases

MATH:
Inca Mathematics
A Language Found in Math, The Quipu, How the Quipu Works, The Color-Coding of the Quipu, Local Statisticians, The Yupana

SCIENCE:
The Nervous System
What Is the Nervous System?, Neurons, The Central Nervous System, The Peripheral Nervous System, The Somatic Nervous System, The Autonomic Nervous System

FOREIGN LANGUAGE:
French
The Origins, French Consonants, French Vowels, Articles, French Today, Useful Phrases

ANCIENT EGYPT

Predynastic Egypt
Egypt’s history began similarly to that of Mesopotamia. Civilizations congregated around the Nile River around 5500 b.c. The largest civilization, the Badari, inhabited the northern part of Egypt, and was most known for high-quality stone tools, ceramics, and pottery and their use of copper. In the southern part of Egypt, the Naqada civilization arose. Over the course of 1,000 years, the Naqada controlled the tribes along the Nile, and created a full system of hieroglyphics for writing.

COMPOSITION

Parts of Speech
Knowledge of parts of speech, or word classes, is critical in understanding how composition works. Parts of speech are nouns, such as people, places, or things; pronouns (words like
he
,
she
, and
it
that can replace nouns); adjectives (words that describe nouns); verbs (actions); adverbs (words that modify adjectives, verbs, or nouns by expressing place, manner, time, etc.); conjunctions (words used to connect phrases or sentences); articles (the word that is before the noun); prepositions (words that link nouns, pronouns, or phrases to other parts of the sentence); and interjections (words that show emotion and are not linked to the rest of the sentence).

INCA MATHEMATICS

A Language Found in Math
The Inca Empire — which in 1532 was extremely large, spanning from present-day Argentina to Ecuador — consisted of many diverse ethnic groups of people. As a result, more than twenty different languages were spoken. With so many different languages and ethnicities, the Incas turned to mathematics to unite their people and to act as a common language among everyone. Their mathematical system was developed before their written language.

THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

What Is the Nervous System?
The nervous system is a complex system that is responsible for sending every electrical impulse and signal throughout your body. These signals are what cause any and all actions, reactions, and thoughts you have, as well as anything you feel. The nervous system is made up of two systems: the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system.

FRENCH

The Origins
The roots of the French language date back to 154–125 b.c. when Gaul was conquered by the Romans. With the Romanization, Latin became the spoken language, causing the Gaulish language to be looked down upon and only used in more rustic areas. Eventually, the north would split from the south, leading to the creation of many distinct dialects. Over time, and due to the political prestige of the area, the dialect spoken in Paris would become the national language.

ANCIENT EGYPT