Download Social Science Packet

The Social Science Packet
What Is History?
Noah Webster, in his 1828 dictionary defined "History" as:
An account of facts respecting nations or states; a narrative of events in the order in which they happened with
their causes and effects. History differs from Annals.










History is the discovery and interpretation of the human past.
It is an act of both investigation and imagination that seeks to explain the ways in which people have
changed over time.
For a child to appreciate history, they must be told a story that relates the heart-felt beliefs that led those
people to the actions they chose.
Without understanding what was in their hearts, there is no understanding of the history.
To know history is to know what people did and why, that is, to know their hearts.
Cold names without warm understanding of why they did the things they did, is no more useful than
learning the alphabet and not learning to form words.
It takes actual stories from their time to be able to understand them and their times.
It takes stories leading up to their times, as well as stories from their times.
If you aren’t getting outside reading material, that is, stories from the history you’re studying, then you are
only passing exams on lists of historical names and dates, with little or no understanding of what really
happened and why. (Annals)
That, When, or How something happened is far less important than Why it happened.
What Is Economics?

















Let’s start with what Economics is not.
Economics is not all about money, wealth, the stock market, etc.
Economics looks very carefully at WHY humans act the way they do when it comes to using raw materials
like oil, steel, wheat, etc. to make stuff like food, gasoline, swimming pools, toys, etc.
Economics is the study of how human beings allocate scarce resources in an effort to satisfy unlimited
wants.
Put simply, Economics is the study of human behavior when it comes to the stuff we have - to make the
stuff we want..
We don’t have enough raw materials to manufacture all the stuff we want and need, right?
After all, there’s only so much stuff in the Earth, so we’re limited in the amount of stuff we can make.
So, who gets what and how much do they get..
Everyday we make decisions that tells producers what we want and need.
We want it and they make it for us.
Economics deals a lot with money, buying, selling, trading, and deciding what stuff to make and sell.
Who makes all these decisions?
WE DO!
If we go to the store to buy Captain Crunch with Crunch Berries, we’re telling the cereal makers to make it
so we can buy it, right?
They make it and we buy it.
The question is, why?
Once you get that, you’ll get the whole idea of Economics.
1
What is Political Science?


















Political science is an ancient discipline that Aristotle characterized as the "queen of the sciences"
He felt that it is natural that human beings live in politically organized societies (i.e. the polis)
And that it was only through our political institutions that we are able to create those public policies (i.e.
politics) which enable every person to achieve their "highest good."
The Greek word idiot was used to refer to one who took no interest in the affairs of state.
Political Science primarily is concerned with the study of politics (i.e. the creation of public policy).
Political Science can be defined as:
A branch of social sciences which studies political and government affairs
The study of government and politics. . . concerned with the process of authoritative control of human
societies
Ultimately the discipline is concerned with how society creates the rules and institutions which people live
in ordered, stable, and relatively secure societies
As well as how states (i.e. nations) work to achieve peace and harmonious working relationships.
Political scientists now use a variety of techniques to study such diverse topics as:
International relations
The growth and evolution of democracy
Other forms of government worldwide
How public policy decisions are made
How people think and act politically.
There is a fundamental difference between Rule and Government. Rule is given below, followed by their
corresponding types of Government.
What are the five (5) Types of Rule, followed by the various types of Government?
Rule
Governments
Autocracy – Rule by One
Monarchy – Empire – Dictator
Oligarchy – Rule by Few
Aristocracy – Rule by Landed Elite
Democracy – Rule by Many
Representative – Republic – Direct
Anarchy – Rule by None
Theocracy – Rule by God
What Is Anthropology?







The word itself tells the basic story - from the Greek anthropos (human being) and logia (science), it is
nothing less than the scientific study of humankind, from its beginnings to the present day.
Nothing human is alien to anthropology.
Of the many sciences that study certain aspects of our species, only anthropology attempts to understand the
whole panorama of the human condition.
Anthropology is, at once, both easy to define but difficult to describe; its subject matter is both exotic
(marriage practices among Australian aborigines) and commonplace (the structure of the human hand); its
focus both sweeping and microscopic.
Anthropologists may study the language of a tribe of Brazilian Native Americans, the social life of apes in
an African rain forest, or the remains of a long-vanished civilization in their own backyard.
But there is always a common thread linking these vastly different projects.
The common goal is advancing our understanding of who we are and how we came to be that way.
2



In a sense, we all “do” anthropology because it is rooted in a universal human characteristic— curiosity
about ourselves and other people, living and dead, here and across the globe.
Everyday, as we look around us, we all ask anthropological questions:
Do men and women have different abilities? Is it human nature to be warlike? Peaceful? what is “human
nature”?
What Is Psychology?

















The term psychology comes from two Greek words: psyche, which means “soul,” and logos, "the study of."
Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and the mind.
Psychologists study behavior, which refers to any action or reaction that can be measured or observed—such as the blink of
an eye, an increase in heart rate, or the unruly violence that often erupts in a mob.
Psychologists study the mind, which refers to both conscious and unconscious mental states.
These states cannot actually be seen, only inferred from observable behavior.
Many people think of psychologists as individuals who dispense advice, analyze personality, and help those who are
troubled or mentally ill.
But psychology is far more than the treatment of personal problems.
Psychologists strive to understand the mysteries of human nature—why people think, feel, and act as they do.
With its broad scope, psychology investigates an enormous range of phenomena: learning and memory, sensation and
perception, motivation and emotion, thinking and language, personality and social behavior, intelligence, infancy and child
development, mental illness, and much more.
Psychologists seek to answer a wide range of important questions about human nature:
Are individuals genetically predisposed at birth to develop certain traits or abilities?
How accurate are people at remembering faces, places, or conversations from the past?
What motivates us to seek out friends and partners?
Why do so many people become depressed and behave in ways that seem self-destructive?
Do intelligence test scores predict success in school, or later in a career?
What causes prejudice, and why is it so widespread?
Can the mind be used to heal the body?
What is Sociology?












Sociology is the systematic study of how human societies shape the lives of people who live in them.
The 6 billion people on earth are members of a single biological species: Homo sapiens.
But there are striking differences among the world's people.
The Chinese wear white at funerals while people in the United States prefer black.
People in England and the United States say a watch "runs" while the Spanish say it "walks" and the Germans say it
"functions."
Australians turn on lights by flipping switches "down." North Americans do the same by flipping them "up."
The Australians, British and Japanese all drive on the left side of the road, while people in the United States drive on
the right.
Most people in the United States kiss in public, the Chinese kiss only in private; the French kiss publicly twice (once
on each cheek), while the Belgians kiss three times (starting on either cheek); the New Zealand Maoris rub noses and,
for their part, few Nigerians kiss at all.
At weddings, moreover, U.S. couples kiss, Koreans bow and a Cambodian groom touches his nose to the bride's
cheek, as do many Native American people.
The world over, people wear much or little clothing, have many or few children, venerate or shun the elderly, are
peaceful or warlike, enjoy different kinds of art and music and hold different religious beliefs.
We may be the same people biologically, but we certainly differ in our tastes, behaviors and beliefs.
The capacity for such startling differences is human culture.
3




The study of how people live is the discipline of sociology.
People make lots of decisions in the course of living every day.
But we make these decisions within the context of "society;" our family, school, nation and the larger world.
The essential wisdom of sociology is; the social world guides our life choices just as the seasons influence our
selection of activities and clothing.
What Is Geography?

The word geography was invented by the ancient Greek scholar Eratosthenes and literally means "writing about the
earth."
 The word can be divided into two parts - geo and graphy. Geo means the earth and graphy refers to writing.
 Geography can be summed up by use of the Five Themes of Geography:
1. Location
 Relative Location -- Absolute Location
2. Place
 Human Characteristics -- Physical Characteristics
3. Human-Environmental Interactions
 Humans adapt to the environment -- Humans modify the environment -- Humans depend on the environment
4. Movement
 People -- Goods -- Ideas
5. Regions
 Formal -- Functional -- Vernacular (perceptual)
 LOCATION
 "Where are we?" is the question that the theme Location answers.
 Location may be absolute or it may be relative.
 These locations, whether relative or absolute, may be of people or places.
 An Absolute Location is a latitude and longitude (a global location) or a street address (local location).
Florence, AL is 34o46' North latitude and 87.40' West longitude -- Paris, France is 48o51' North latitude and 2.20' East
longitude -- Marshall Islands are 10o00' North latitude and 165o00' East longitude
 Relative locations are described by landmarks, time, direction or distance from one place to another and may
associate a particular place with another.
 PLACE
 What kind of place is it?
 What do you think of when you imagine China? Japan? Russia? Saudi Arabia?
 Places have both human and physical characteristics, as well as images.
 Physical characteristics include mountains, rivers, soil, beaches, wildlife, soil.
 Places have human characteristics also.
 These characteristics are derived from the ideas and actions of people that result in changes to the environment, such
as buildings, roads, clothing, and food habits.
 The image people have of a place is based on their experiences, both intellectual and emotional.
 People's descriptions of a place reveal their values, attitudes, and perceptions.
 How is your hometown connected to other places?
 What are the human and physical characteristics of Florence?
 How do these shape our lives?
 HUMAN/ENVIRONMENTAL INTERACTION
 How do humans and the environment affect each other?
 We change the environment and then sometime Mother Nature changes it back.
 For example, floods in the mid-West, Hurricane Emily (Hatteras), and earthquakes and mudslides in California.
 There are three key concepts to human/environmental interaction:
4









































Humans adapt to the environment.
Humans modify the environment.
Humans depend to the environment.
People depend on the Tennessee River for our water and transportation.
People modify our environment by heating and cooling buildings for comfort.
People adapt to the environment by wearing clothing that is suitable for summer and winter; rain and shine.
All places on Earth have advantages and disadvantages for human settlement.
One person's advantage may be another person's disadvantage.
Some like the excitement of large cities whereas others prefer remoteness.
Environment is not just trees, spotted owls, and rain forests.
Environment is a feeling.
What is the environment of a big city? Boston? Los Angeles? Dallas?
Given the choice, where would you live? Why? What is the environment? How do people interact with the
environment? How do the physical features affect us? How have we adapted to or changed our landscape?
For example, in the Sudan even though everything is seemingly barren, the land sustains farmers and nomadic
herders.
People and animals have adapted to a hot, dry climate.
MOVEMENT
The movement of people, the import and export of goods, and mass communication have all played major roles in
shaping our world.
People everywhere interact.
They travel from place to place and they communicate.
We live in a global village and global economy.
People interact with each other through movement.
Humans occupy places unevenly on Earth because of the environment but also because we are social beings.
We interact with each other through travel, trade, information flows (E-Mail) and political events.
Not only do humans move but also ideas move; fashions move; fads move.
What is an example of an idea that moves? Fashion? Fad?
How do we depend on people in other places?
How would our lives change if our movement options changed?
What would happen if we traveled by camel or horse?
How do we move from place to place?
How do we actually get food?
REGION
A region is the basic unit of study in geography.
A region is an area that displays a coherent unity in terms of the government, language, or possibly the landform or
situation.
Regions are human constructs that can be mapped and analyzed.
There are three basic types of regions.
Formal Regions are those defined by governmental or administrative boundaries (i. e., United States, Birmingham,
Brazil).
These regional boundaries are not open to dispute, therefore physical regions fall under this category (i. e., The
Rockies, the Great Lakes States).
Functional Regions are those defined by a function (i. e., TVA, United Airlines Service area or a newspaper service
area).
If the function ceases to exists, the region no longer exists.
Vernacular Regions are those loosely defined by people's perception (i. e., The South, The Middle East).
What region do we live in?
5





What type of region is it?
What are its characteristics?
South, North Alabama, the Shoals, the University community?
What states do you define as the South?
The Northeast? The Bible Belt? What characteristics and perceptions go along with these regions?
The Social Sciences - At A Glance
A. Anthropology
The scientific study of humankind, from its beginnings to the present day. Nothing
human is alien to anthropology. Of the many sciences that study certain aspects of
our species, only anthropology attempts to understand the whole panorama, in time
and space, of the human condition.
B. Sociology
The systematic study of how human societies shape the lives of people who live in
them.
C. Economics The study of how human beings allocate scarce resources in an effort to satisfy
unlimited wants. Put simply, Economics is the study of human behavior when it
comes to the stuff we have - to make the stuff we want..
D. Political Science
Political Science primarily is concerned with the study of politics, or the creation of
public policy. Ultimately the discipline is concerned with how society creates the rules
and institutions which people live in ordered, stable, and relatively secure societies, as
well as how states (i.e. nations) work to achieve peace and harmonious working
relationships.
E. Geography
The study of the world, its physical features, its culture, and it’s problems. The five
themes are used to study Geography: Location, Place, Human Environment
Interaction, Movement, and Regions.
F. History
The discovery and interpretation of the human past.. It is an act of both investigation
and imagination that seeks to explain the ways in which people have changed over
time.
6
G. Psychology Applies to those scientific studies of individuals which help us understand conduct,
thoughts, and feelings through the interaction of behavior and mental processes. More
simply, psychology attempts to show us how and why we act as we do.
7