I'm a student of the human condition: history, philosophy, art, and culture. I am a passionate educator. I am a lover of new technologies and its abilities to share knowledge
Although the Romans never actually went to ireland, confining themselves to the Big Island (and only making a brief foray into Scotland), it turns out that the Irish occupants did in fact interact with the Romans.
A new Irish Archaeological organization called the Discovery Programme is beginning to research how much of the Romans impacted and interacted with the Irish (including investigations into the possibility of a Roman invasion). While Irish archaeologists have uncovered Roman goods (ceramic-ware, beads, jewelry, etc), until now there has been little investigation into Ireland’s “Roman heritage.”
To read more about new archaeological investigations and the new Discovery Programme, see this article in the Irish Times: “So What Have the Romans Ever Done for US?“
The Smithsonian has a blog where you can read about the Civil War via contemporary newspapers. You can read how the country experienced the lead-up and break out of the war in a ll of its angst, propaganda, and agony. It’s a fascinating online exhibit!
Today, Discovery news highlighted that the fact that, contrary to the assertions of scientists a decade ago, human beings are not ‘naturally nasty.’ In fact, humans regularly engage in cooperate behavior
“… human children — and most higher animals — are “moral” in a scientific sense, because they need to cooperate with each other to reproduce and pass on their genes,” he said.
“Human morality is unthinkable without empathy.”
So, mean girls (and boys) of the world – sorry, you weren’t just born that way. Human begins are inherently cooperative and social. If you don’t believe me, check out the article in Discovery News.
Thieves robbed the museum at Olympia (the site of the ancient Olympic Games). Two armed masked men smashed display cases and grabbed priceless artifacts (at least 60) after overpowering guards at the museum.
In the wake of the chaos of Greece’s financial crisis, violent crime (targeting art) has skyrocketed. To read more about the theft, see the article at BBC News.
Valentine’s Day has long enjoy a seedy, scandalous history stemming from ancient times. Originally, the Romans celebrated a festival called the Lupercalia on February 13-15. During this annual festival, nearly naked young men would run and strike fertile young women with leather thongs to encourage their changes of successfully conceiving and birthing children.
Lupercalia, of which many write that it was anciently celebrated by shepherds, and has also some connection with the Arcadian Lycaea. At this time many of the noble youths and of the magistrates run up and down through the city naked, for sport and laughter striking those they meet with shaggy thongs. And many women of rank also purposely get in their way, and like children at school present their hands to be struck, believing that the pregnant will thus be helped indelivery, and the barren to pregnancy. (Plutarch).
Later, the Catholic Church banned the Pagan celebration and declared February 14th in honor of Saint Valentine (Valentinus). However, his history is also steeped in mystery. In fact, the Catholic Church removed him from their official calendar of Saints in the 1960s.
I played with digital storytelling in the classroom first semester and it went so well, I decided to do it again this semester as a project grade. To see my first experiment, see my previous post: “My First Attempt at Employing Digital Storytelling in the Classroom.” I followed along similarly to my first attempt but made a few minor adjustments. For example:
Students were given a list of potential topics (a person, an event, etc) and had to sign up for one, no two students could present on the same topic.
I modified my grading rubric.
I emailed the parents in advance to let them know we would be working on this project.
Overall, yet again, the students amazed me with their dedication and hard work. As per usual, we had a few technical difficulties (but far fewer this time than the last). I was also excited to see students helping one another to resolve their problems. Students who really struggled with the technology last semester seemed to be the ones most excelled this time around. I did this project for both my Ancient History and US History classes, so I will include some examples for each.
Here were the instructions for my Freshmen Ancient History Class:
And here are the instructions for the Civil War Project (pretty similar)
The students were also given a copy of the grading rubric in advance:
The students did a great job. Here are some great examples:
After the students finished their projects, we watched them in class. I also included questions from all of their projects on the next quiz. As a small extra-credit opportunity, they were encouraged to comment on their classmates’ videos.
The 14 new free online courses from Stanford University are getting underway this month at a website called Coursera. For those who missed the initial announcement, these are non-credit courses, which let you watch short videos and take embedded quizzes. If you sign up, do the homework and take exams, you will also a letter of completion signed by the course’s instructors. The new website doesn’t use the Stanford logo, although most of the instructors are from Stanford. Some online reports say that …
This edition of Archaeology Magazine highlights the quest of modern archaeologists and explorers in locating the original source of the famed Aqua Traina - built by the Emperor Trajan in the 1st century CE. Aqueducts were the key to sustaining the large population of the ancient city of Rome and even today, stand as a testament to Roman engineering and industrialization.
The quest to discover and navigate the Northwest Passage long enticed explorers and politicians throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. The Northwest Passage is a treacherous sea-route through the Arctic Ocean. It was seen as a potential trade route and not successfully navigated until the early 20th century.
The Northwest Passage
This month’s Archaeology Magazine highlights the dangers of the sea journey and the ill-fated voyage by the HMS Investigator, an expedition led by Robert McClure that was abandoned in 1853 after it was irretrievably trapped in the ice. The ship was rediscovered in 2010 and is subject to investigation and excavation by nautical archaeologists.
Due to the environment and frigid waters, the dangers posed to archaeologists are unique. You can read more about their endeavors and what they have discovered int he 2011 field season in this article: “The Saga of the Northwest Passage.”
Although the Romans never actually went to ireland, confining themselves to the Big Island (and only making a brief foray into Scotland), it turns out that the Irish occupants did in fact interact with the Romans.
