Why the people of the 2nd global era had their confidence and optimism: melding fact & fantasy.

http://aeon.co/magazine/society/how-the-victorians-imagined-and-invented-the-future/

A way of doing global history that is even bigger than the trade/econ thread we followed

http://www.publicbooks.org/nonfiction/changing-climates-of-history

By the second half of this piece, you'll see why it's so key for me to post it!

http://m.chronicle.com/article/SlaveryCapitalism/150787/

Dropping the f-bomb in 1885

Usually the first recorded sound in considered to be from 1888. This one from 1885, 3 years earlier, has been coaxed into being audible with good scientific technique. The fact that it has an f-bomb in it highly amuses me.

http://firstsounds.org/sounds/volta/observations.php

Right before the amazements of the "coal city." Pretty grim.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/12/14/books/review/dirty-old-london-by-lee-jackson.html?referrer=

A marvel of the 2nd global economy

http://theappendix.net/issues/2014/4/flesh-made-wood-the-invention-of-artificial-refrigeration

Alcohol and the rise of the 2nd global economy

http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-11-26/blackout-wednesday-and-americas-boozy-past

"Between 1790 and the mid-1820s, alcohol consumption reached dizzying heights. In the 1820s, Americans 15 and older consumed the equivalent of 7 gallons of pure alcohol a year. This number, compiled by the historian William Rorabaugh, is even worse than it sounds, given that the vast majority of the booze was consumed by a single subgroup of the drinking-age population: white men. As Rorabaugh has dryly noted, "this rate of use is among the highest ever recorded in any society and is close to the human body's physiological maximum capacity for intake of alcohol."

And universities like SFSU?

https://hbr.org/2014/11/from-the-knowledge-economy-to-the-human-economy?utm_campaign=Socialflow&utm_source=Socialflow&utm_medium=Tweet

History can stir people sometimes

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/11/20/world/americas/a-hammer-comes-down-on-an-honor-for-britain.html

(Bonus points for noticing how the reason for the British defeat, somewhat downplayed here, hits one of our themes about the tropical regions of the Americas!)

Finally, something truly useful for you all

www.economist.com/news/business/21627649-how-thrive-work-minimum-effort-guide-skiving?fsrc=scn/tw_ec/a_guide_to_skiving

Find this the same week as we talked about the turmoil of regular people entering history...

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/11/07/world/asia/the-dead-of-delhi-unknown-and-unclaimed.html

A throwback to lecture 6: calling in the consols

"In 1888, Chancellor George Goschen converted bonds first issued in 1752 and used to finance the Napoleonic and Crimean Wars, the Slavery Abolition Act in 1835 and the Irish Distress Loan in 1847. This debt will be repaid through the redemption of the 4% Consols, the UK Treasury said in a statement."


http://www.ft.com/intl/fastft/229142/uk-repay-loans-from-wwi-south-sea-bubble

The nature of the American mix of peoples

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/26/world/americas/negro-prieto-moreno-a-question-of-identity-for-black-mexicans.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share

Second paper prompt

"What did the 1st global economy look like in the New World? Why did it start to collapse?"

Great video!

H/t: Veronica L!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_N7MAr98CI

Prompt for the Douglass paper

> How does Douglass argue that its difficult to be be a slave once you are educated? Do you agree? Has it been true for you in your educational career?

Nice story about Potosi today

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/17/world/americas/for-miners-increasing-risk-on-a-mountain-at-the-heart-of-bolivias-identity.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share

Interesting sidenote about malaria

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/16/science/among-malaria-parasites-real-feel-for-mosquitoes.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share

A link to download Douglass' Autobiography

Here's a link to the book. Just right click and chose "Save As" and it'll download to your computer.

 http://www.ibiblio.org/ebooks/Douglass/Narrative/Douglass_Narrative.pdf​

Hat/tip to Victoria!

Related to the article I linked to below.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/nyregion/students-inventing-programs-to-streamline-their-colleges-data.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share

Undergraduates are building apps that are faster, easier-to-navigate versions of campus systems such as the ones that manage course catalogs and class scheduling.

Good article

Some key lines:

-The average student now spends over $600 a year on textbooks and other course-related material, according to the National Association of College Stores.

-"The biggest issues in schools is they're in denial that students are consumers." Not only are students consumers, they're the generation of consumers that expect the web and modern technology to make their lives more efficient and connected. If higher education can't keep up, they'll find other options, and they've got an army of start-ups ready to help.

From here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/technology/personaltech/bringing-tech-culture-to-the-staid-college-quad.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share

Digital ways to lower the cost of textbooks and learn about other cost-saving options.

Well, hello, fall semester!

Back to school! :)