XMind

Topics in Cultural Geography

1. "Progress" and its Underlying Effects

   1. Human Evolution and Subsistence: Not the Direction You Would Expect

      1. Foraging

         1. scavenging

         2. hunting and gathering

         3. seasonal scheduling

         4. gathering was actually more plentiful in most places

         5. Up until about 10 kya this was primary method of human survival.

         6. Some evidence may exist that religion existed in H/G groups

      2. Agriculture

         1. Arose independently in a few odd places.

         2. Bioarchaeology shows a decrease in health since the advent of agriculture.

            1. less diverse diet

            2. less exercise

            3. more strain on the body

         3. "Disease of Development"

            1. Three ways "Progress" increases disease

               1. Increased rates of diabetes, obesity, and hypertension

               2. Disturbs environmental balances, increases certain bacterial and parasitic disease.

               3. When development is withdrawn, poverty increases.

         4. Nutritional Change

            1. Imported Food

               1. associated with powerful outsiders, status symbol

            2. decreased dental health / Malnutrition

            3. Micronesia

               1. 1958 - 1972

               2. Population: doubled

               3. Heart Disease: tripled

               4. Mental Disorder increased 8-fold

               5. Hypertension and Nutritional deficiencies become issues

2. Other Perspectives on Globalization: Could It be Good Overall?

   1. Good Globalization

      1. core

         1. benefit recieved

      2. periphery

         1. benefit taken

      3. World is Flat by Friedman

         1. It's amazing, but world is flat is dumb wrong-headed metaphor

         2. Criticisms

            1. focus on Business and "flatness" is uncritical nonsense

            2. what about the people?

      4. In Defense of Global Capitalism by Johan Norberg

         1. Cato Institute, 2003

      5. Film: Globalization is Good

         1. 2003

         2. What arguments does he use?

            1. all anti-globalization protestors are dangerous anarchists

         3. all countries used to be poor

         4. egomanical focus on himself

         5. Taiwan

            1. 30 years ago, Taiwan was poor

            2. Today, it's GDP is equal to Spain.

            3. Real Wages up 10x higher

            4. "This only happened because of global capitalism's embrace"

            5. Comparison to African Countries

               1. African Countries have little infrastructure

               2. African Countries actually have natural resources

               3. Taiwan has no natural resources.

         6. Laws necessary

            1. Land Capitalization

               1. Liberalize land use

               2. But Taiwan artificially bought the land from the Aristocracy

            2. The State encouraged the creation of factories

               1. Government Zoning decide where factories are.

               2. Rural Rags to Riches

                  1. What about the workers in the factory?

                  2. Early factories were sweat shops!

                     1. only early factories

                     2. not anymore clearly

                  3. Sweat shops are necessary.

            3. Encouraging Innovation

               1. Computers and Microchips

                  1. Created by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Department Research

            4. Regulation

               1. Deregulation provides the ideal environment for innovation

               2. "Reasonable" as said by the Taiwanese and then Johan takes it to the farthest it could be.

               3. Draw huge conclusions from small truths

            5. Education

               1. Universities is funded by the State

               2. Clearly, factory jobs mean that parents can educate their children.

         7. Democracy is a side effect of Globalization

            1. Cote D'Ivoire

            2. Tanzania is deep in debt.

3. Human Evolution Timeline

   1. Pre-Australopithecines

      1. Very Ape-like

      2. 6-7 mya

   2. Australopithicines

      1. More gracile than Pre

      2. 4 mya

   3. Homo Habilius

      1. 2 mya

      2. huge brain compared to Australo...

   4. Homo Erectus

      1. 2 mya

      2. huger brain than Habilius

   5. Archaic Homo Sapiens

      1. 350 kya

   6. Anatomically Modern Homo Sapiens

      1. 150 kya

         1. in the neighborhood