AN INTERESTIG VIDEO TO THINK ABOUT

While I was seeing a video about the Mith of the Cave (Mito de la Caverna), Platón,  I saw this interesting film about education and the educational systems that the States institute in the schools.

I think that this video is a good way to start thinking about what is neccessary to change!

Quotes from the Roman Empire

Source: http://www.celebquote.com/11986

Here you have some quotes by Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. Apart from his political career, he was an outstanding stoic philosopher and wrote a book with his thoughts called Meditations. A good reading to learn from our ancestors the Romans.

Source: http://marcusaureliusquotes.blogspot.com.es/2013/08/if-you-are-distressed-marcus-aurelius.html

Source: http://meetville.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/page1

 Source: http://www.pinterest.com/aikolactaotao/philosophy/

Source: http://www.quotesvalley.com/everything-we-hear-is-an-opinion-not-a-fact-everything-we-see-is-a-perspective-not-the-truth-38/

If you want to read Marcus Aurelius Meditations, here you have two links to his book. Its text is in the public domain:

- In English:

http://www.imperivm.org/cont/textos/txt/marco-aurelio_meditaciones.html

- In Spanish:

http://classics.mit.edu/Antoninus/meditations.html

DON´T FORGET

Should we intervene in evolution?

Today's lesson has been very interesting and I've thought that maybe some of you (or all. Surprise me!) would like to think a little more about some of the challenges science poses to the evolution of our species. The main difference with respect to Prehistory is that we can intervene now and strenghten some specific features or eliminate what we consider useless or harmful for our species.  The hominids in Atapuerca show that, in their world determined by the fight for survival, they were able to care for the weakest members of their group (old people or disabled children). Nowadays, the advances in medicine and our knowlegde about genetics allow us to change what nature provides, but this possibility creates a lot of ethic dilemmas. Should we intervene in the improvement of the species? What are the limits of eugenics? Can abortion be considered as an intervention in evolution? Are disabled people a burden for society? What could be considered a life worth being lived? Do you think disabled/ handicaped/ special/seriously ill people contribute to our improvement as species? In what sense? 

This is the reconstruction of a 45 year old H. heidelbergensis who lived in Atapuerca 430,000 years ago. He was seriously handicaped, he could barely walk and couldn't hunt. He was an old person for that period and couldn't contribute to the survival of his fellows, but he wasn't left behind and died naturally. The same happened with a young girl who was born with craniosynostosis, a very rare illness, and survived for 12 years, with the help of his tribe. What can these two cases teach us about our species?

 

Source: http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/840238/0/fosiles/atapuerca/cuidados/

The same happened with a young girl (called Benjamina by the Atapuerca team), who was born with craniosynostosis, a very rare illness, and survived for 12 years, with the help of her tribe. 

Source: http://josepgmaynou.blogspot.es/1238526900/

What can these two cases teach us about our species?

If you want to answer to these questions, you can do it here or write a short essay on paper with your thoughts. Maybe Prehistory seems to be too far from us, but I think we can extract interesting conclusions from it. What do you think?

If you want to read more about these two cases in Atapuerca, here you have some more links: 

http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/840238/0/fosiles/atapuerca/cuidados/

http://www.publico.es/214486/hace-500-000-anos-ya-se-cuidaba-a-los-discapacitados

http://gara.naiz.eus/paperezkoa/20101012/225857/es/Los-hominidos-Atapuerca-cuidaban-discapacitados

http://www.pnas.org/content/107/43/18386.abstract?sid=5ded3c20-df28-4e10-a043-e0b1b556352c

http://www.pnas.org/content/106/16/6573.abstract?sid=82d46e3b-5104-4f7d-96c7-065bbd9773b4

Welcome!

Source: http://www.estoeshispania.com/2009_02_01_archive.html

Welcome to our new blog!

After an endless wait, we finally have the chance to learn the history of Spain in English together. I hope this will be a good year for all of us.  

Here you will find all the materials and projects we're going to prepare together. I'll also include all the sources, bibliography and resources we're going to use in class and all you need to prepare the damned PAEG exam ;)

I've also created some tabs, so that you can easily find what you're looking for. This is the list of books in Spanish I've showed you in class: 

- Gil Andrés, Carlos, 50 Cosas Que Hay Que Saber de la Historia de España, Barcelona, Editorial Ariel, 2013

- Aróstegui Sánchez, J, García Sebastián, M, Gatell Arimont,C, Palafox Gamir,J, Risques Corbella, M, Historia de España, Barcelona, Editorial Vicens Vives, 2009. 

And here you have the links to the information for the PAEG exam: 

- Guidelines to prepare the exam: 

http://www.uclm.es/preuniversitario/orientadores/pdf/materias/HistoriaEspana.pdf

- Exam models: you can have a look to this year exams and all the History exams since 1999:

http://www.uclm.es/preuniversitario/paeg/modelos1314.asp 

Finally, this is my first contribution to the quotes' collaborative project. It belongs to Albert Camus, the French philosopher and writer:

In the end, man is not entirely guilty: he did not start history. Nor he is wholly innocent: he continues it. 

See you tomorrow!