Task 1: Geography
Kayla Woerdeman

Part A
The Tigris and Euphrates River system was a significant physical geographic factor that contributed to the development of Mesopotamia. The fertile lands and water supply from the rivers permitted the development of many cities along the rivers. For example, the land was very fertile from the water supply, so inhabitants of the river occupied areas in groups (creating cities) and were able to plant and harvest crops. The crops included “barley, emmer (a kind of wheat), beans, olives, grapes, and flax” (Hollar, 2011). The waters were also used for travel, communication, and trade. Goods could be transported down the rivers by the use of boats, which allowed for trade and commerce. According to Hollar (2011), settlers in the plain created a civilization by tilling the fertile soil to plant crops, building their own houses, and creating irrigation systems, draining canals, dikes, and ditches to keep the land from flooding. The irrigations systems that were created allowed cities to successfully develop, thrive, and prosper along the banks of the rivers.

Part B
The creation of the chariot is an example of diffusion between civilizations. Plubins (2013) claims “the invention of the chariot in the steppe [Mesopotamia]—perhaps originally meant as an improved tool for …show more content…
The gold rush happened right after the United States acquired California from Mexico. Settlers had already started to slowly migrate west, but the gold rush was a big push to moving people that direction. The population in California dramatically increased “from less than 20,000 in 1846 to over 200,000 by the end of the 1850s” (The California, 2001). People were coming from all over the world to try to find gold. The gold rush not only expanded the country geographically and by settlers moving west, but it also developed the diversity of the nation by bringing more cultures into the United