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Brain Boost - H2
Brain Boost - H2
Behind that cup of coffee is a global story that goes back to the collision that created the Moon and was responsible for the evolution of plant and animal life.
As this video progresses, key ideas will be introduced to invoke discussion.
Think about the following questions as you watch the video
What are the differences between what traditional history and Big History say about the Boston Tea Party?
Why were the British able to control a vast network of trade designed to move tea around the world, launching and era of unprecedented global trade?
What elements make up caffeine and what other chemical is caffeine similar to?
How did caffeine impact politics, and what are some examples of this?
How does Big History link caffeine addiction to the origins of life?
Why is caffeine a deadly poison for some things but not others?
Why did a booming caffeine trade develop all over the world in the seventeenth century?
How does caffeine relate to colonization?
Why did caffeine cause a huge surge in the population of Britain from 1700 to 1800?
: [tense music]
: ♪& ♪&
: >> A MISSION OF DESTRUCTION.
: THE TARGET: A SHIPMENT OF DRUGS.
: A MIND-ALTERING CHEMICAL WITH A
: MYSTERIOUS CONNECTION TO THE
: ORIGINS OF LIFE ON EARTH...
: A LINK THAT CAN ONLY BE REVEALED
: BY BIG HISTORY.
: WE THINK OF HISTORY AS
: A TIMELINE--A SERIES OF EVENTS
: STRETCHING A FEW THOUSAND YEARS
: INTO THE PAST.
: IT'S TIME TO THINK BIGGER.
: INSTEAD OF A LINE, IMAGINE
: A WEB OF INFINITE CONNECTIONS
: INTERACTING OVER BILLIONS OF
: YEARS, LINKED TOGETHER TO CREATE
: EVERYTHING WE'VE EVER KNOWN:
: OUR UNIVERSE, OUR PLANET, AND
: US.
: WHEN WE CONSIDER OUR MOST EPIC
: MOMENTS THROUGH THE LENS OF
: SCIENCE, WE UNLEASH
: A REVOLUTIONARY NEW IDEA.
: THE MOVEMENT OF ATOMS STEER
: THE MOVEMENTS OF MEN,
: CIVILIZATIONS, GALAXIES.
: HISTORY AS WE KNOW IT IS ABOUT
: TO GET BIG.
: THIS IS AMERICA'S FIRST DRUG
: BUST.
: BUT THESE AREN'T COPS.
: AND THIS DRUG ISN'T ILLEGAL.
: IT'S TEA.
: UNDER COVER OF DARKNESS, A BAND
: OF AMERICAN REBELS DUMPS NEARLY
: 50 TONS OF TEA INTO BOSTON
: HARBOR...
: A SHIPMENT WORTH AS MUCH
: AS $3 MILLION TODAY.
: TRADITIONAL HISTORY TELLS US
: THAT THE BOSTON TEA PARTY IS AN
: ACT OF AMERICAN RESISTANCE
: AGAINST A BRITISH TAX.
: BUT BIG HISTORY REVEALS THAT
: IT'S ONE LINK IN A CHAIN OF
: GLOBAL EVENTS THAT BEGINS WITH
: THE CHEMISTRY OF A SINGLE
: MOLECULE...
: CAFFEINE...
: A DRUG THAT GIVES OUR BRAINS
: A BOOST.
: >> IT ESSENTIALLY GIVES YOU AN
: ADRENALINE RELEASE, RIGHT?
: IT'S AN EXTRAORDINARY SORT OF
: RUSH.
: IT'S WELL-NAMED "THE RUSH."
: >> BECAUSE PEOPLE EVERYWHERE ARE
: HOOKED ON THIS RUSH, THEY'RE
: HOOKED ON TEA.
: TO REVEAL HOW POWERFUL THIS
: ADDICTION IS, BIG HISTORY TURNS
: TO GEOGRAPHY.
: IN THE 1700s, TEA ONLY GROWS IN
: ONE PLACE: CHINA.
: THE BRITISH CONTROL A VAST
: NETWORK OF TRADE DESIGNED TO
: MOVE THAT TEA AROUND THE WORLD.
: IT'S A MASSIVE UNDERTAKING.
: JUST ONE ROUND-TRIP FROM ENGLAND
: TO CHINA, THEN BACK TO ENGLAND
: AND ACROSS TO AMERICA IS A
: VOYAGE OF 37,000 MILES.
: >> THINK OF IT AS BEING
: SOMETHING LIKE A MOON SHOT.
: YOU HAVE TO MARSHAL SIGNIFICANT
: FORCES TO DO IT, AND THEY HAVE
: TO BRING BACK SOMETHING THAT
: PEOPLE WILL PAY A PREMIUM FOR.
: BECAUSE THEY'RE ADDICTIVE,
: PEOPLE FEEL PANGS IF THEY DON'T
: HAVE THEM.
: THEY CRAVE THEM.
: >> OUR ADDICTION TO DRUGS LIKE
: TOBACCO AND THE CAFFEINE IN TEA
: AND COFFEE LAUNCHES AN ERA OF
: UNPRECEDENTED GLOBAL TRADE.
: IT'S A MODERN WAY TO SATISFY AN
: ANCIENT NEED.
: EVER SINCE WE FIRST FERMENTED
: FRUITS AND GRAINS INTO PRIMITIVE
: ALCOHOL, WE'VE HAD A CRAVING FOR
: MIND-ALTERING CHEMICALS.
: >> WE INGEST FOOD NOT JUST TO
: GIVE OURSELVES ENERGY BUT
: BECAUSE OCCASIONALLY, SOME FOODS
: DO WEIRD THINGS TO OUR BRAIN
: THAT WE LIKE.
: >> TEA ISN'T THE ONLY SOURCE OF
: CAFFEINE IN THE COLONIAL ERA.
: THOUSANDS OF COFFEEHOUSES SPRING
: UP ACROSS EUROPE AND IN AMERICA,
: WHERE MEN GO FOR SOMETHING THEY
: CAN'T GET IN A PUB OR TAVERN.
: >> YOU'RE DOWN AT THE PUB HAVING
: A DRINK.
: WELL, IN ITS LONG-TERM EFFECTS,
: ALCOHOL IS A DEPRESSANT.
: ON THE OTHER HAND, WHAT IS IT
: ABOUT CAFFEINE?
: IT DRIVES YOU TO GREATER
: ACTIVITY.
: >> COFFEEHOUSES APPEAR THAT
: BECOME HOTBEDS OF POLITICAL
: DISCOURSE.
: UNLIKE ALCOHOL, WHICH TENDS TO
: DULL THE SENSES AND HELP RELAX
: YOU, HERE YOU'VE GOT PEOPLE'S
: MINDS BEING VERY SHARP, VERY
: CLEAR, AND WORKING VERY QUICKLY,
: DISCUSSING THE VERY REAL
: POLITICAL PROBLEMS OF THEIR DAY.
: >> WHY IS THIS DRUG SO
: DIFFERENT?
: BIG HISTORY ZOOMS IN TO THE
: MICROSCOPIC CHEMISTRY OF
: CAFFEINE.
: EACH MOLECULE IS MADE OF FOUR
: COMMON ELEMENTS: CARBON,
: HYDROGEN, OXYGEN, AND NITROGEN.
: CAFFEINE'S ATOMIC STRUCTURE IS
: VERY SIMILAR TO ADENOSINE,
: THE BRAIN CHEMICAL THAT TELLS US
: WHEN WE'RE TIRED.
: AS WE KNOCK BACK CUP AFTER CUP,
: CAFFEINE TAKES ITS PLACE,
: BLOCKING THE SPACE IN OUR BRAINS
: WHERE THE SLEEP CHEMICAL SHOULD
: GO.
: CAFFEINE ISN'T REALLY KEEPING
: US AWAKE.
: IT JUST STOPS OUR BRAINS FROM
: TELLING US IT'S TIME TO SLEEP.
: >> AND THIS IS STUNNING BECAUSE
: IT WASN'T UNTIL I BEGAN TO GET
: INTO BIG HISTORY THAT I ACTUALLY
: KNEW THE EFFECT.
: I THOUGHT THAT, YOU KNOW,
: CAFFEINE WAS LIKE AN
: AMPHETAMINE.
: IT JUST CREATED A--
: IT CAUSED ME TO SPEED UP.
: BUT ACTUALLY WHAT IT DID WAS IT
: PREVENTED ME FROM SLOWING DOWN.
: >> BY BLOCKING THE SLEEP SIGNAL,
: CAFFEINE TRICKS OUR BRAINS,
: AND THAT TRIGGERS THE BODY TO
: RELEASE THE EXTRA BOOST OF
: ENERGY WE NEED TO KEEP US GOING.
: ADRENALINE, SUGAR, AND
: DOPAMINE--THE KEY TO THE
: BRAIN'S REWARD CENTERS.
: HYPED UP ON CAFFEINE INSTEAD OF
: DRAGGED DOWN BY ALCOHOL, WE HAVE
: THE ENERGY TO THINK BIG.
: >> PEOPLE IN THE COFFEEHOUSES
: WERE BEING STIMULATED BY THIS
: PRODUCT AND THEN STARTING TO
: THINK ABOUT QUESTIONS OF SOCIAL
: JUSTICE.
: >> BIG HISTORY SHOWS US THAT
: THEIR IDEAS START REVOLUTIONS...
: IN PARIS AT THE CAFE PROCOPE,
: THE COFFEEHOUSE WHERE FRENCH
: REVOLUTIONARIES MAKE THEIR
: PLANS...
: AND AT THE GREEN DRAGON, WHICH
: A U.S. SENATOR WILL CALL "THE
: HEADQUARTERS OF THE AMERICAN
: REVOLUTION," WHERE A GROUP OF
: REBELS PLANS THE BOSTON TEA
: PARTY.
: SO THE CHEMISTRY OF CAFFEINE
: ALTERS THE CHEMISTRY OF OUR
: BRAINS.
: BUT HOW CAN A PLANT CHANGE
: A HUMAN?
: >> IF THERE'S A CHEMICAL THAT
: ALTERS HOW THE BRAIN WORKS, IT'S
: ALMOST CERTAINLY THE CASE THAT
: THE BRAIN ALREADY HAS A CHEMICAL
: INSIDE IT THAT IT USES FOR SOME
: SORT OF SIMILAR PURPOSE.
: >> BIG HISTORY LINKS OUR
: CAFFEINE ADDICTION TO THE
: ORIGINS OF LIFE.
: THIS IS EARTH, 1.6 BILLION YEARS
: AGO--A TIME WHEN THE PLANET HAS
: ONE HUGE OCEAN.
: IT'S FILLED WITH LIFE, INCLUDING
: A SINGLE-CELLED CREATURE THAT IS
: THE ANCESTOR OF EVERY PLANT AND
: EVERY ANIMAL, INCLUDING US.
: WHILE WE SHARE OVER 90% OF OUR
: DNA WITH CHIMPANZEES, WE ALSO
: SHARE HALF OF OUR DNA WITH
: COFFEE AND TEA.
: THAT'S WHY THE CHEMICALS IN
: PLANTS AFFECT OUR BRAINS.
: BECAUSE IF YOU GO BACK FAR
: ENOUGH, WE'RE RELATED.
: >> FROM A BIG HISTORY
: PERSPECTIVE, WE ALL REALLY
: EVOLVED FROM THE SAME ONE-CELLED
: CREATURES THAT LIVED IN
: THE OCEAN AND BECAME ALL OF
: THE LIFE AROUND US.
: >> BUT THE LINK BETWEEN MAN AND
: CAFFEINE DOESN'T JUST REACH BACK
: TO THE FIRST TINY FORMS OF LIFE.
: BIG HISTORY REVEALS THAT IT ALL
: CONNECTS TO SOMETHING EVEN
: BIGGER: A COSMIC COLLISION THAT
: SHAKES THE EARTH TO ITS CORE.
: >> BIG HISTORY IS A NEW WAY TO
: SEE THE WORLD.
: IT REVEALS A SURPRISING
: CONNECTION BETWEEN OUR FOUNDING
: FATHERS AND A REVOLUTIONARY
: DRUG--
: A CHEMICAL LINK THAT TIES BACK
: TO THE COMMON ANCESTOR OF ALL
: ANIMALS AND PLANTS.
: A LINK WE STILL EXPERIENCE EVERY
: DAY.
: THIS DRUG HAS THE POWER TO
: CHANGE THE WORLD.
: BUT WHY DID IT EVOLVE IN SOME
: PLACES AND NOT OTHERS?
: BIG HISTORY CONNECTS THIS TINY
: CAFFEINE MOLECULE...
: TO A MASSIVE COSMIC EVENT.
: THIS ENORMOUS BALL OF FIRE IS
: EARTH 4.5 BILLION YEARS AGO.
: WHILE THE PLANET IS STILL
: FORMING, IT COLLIDES WITH
: SOMETHING ABOUT THE SIZE OF
: MARS.
: THE IMPACT THROWS OFF
: 81 QUINTILLION TONS OF DEBRIS.
: THAT GRAVITY PULLS TOGETHER TO
: FORM THE MOON.
: ALONE, THE EARTH'S MOVEMENT IS
: CHAOTIC...
: [thunder]
: AND THE CLIMATE IS VOLATILE.
: BUT THE MOON BRINGS ORDER.
: ITS GRAVITATIONAL PULL SLOWS
: DOWN EARTH'S ROTATION, WHICH
: CALMS EARTH'S WINDS AND WEATHER,
: CREATING A CONSISTENT
: ENVIRONMENT, WHERE LIFE ON
: THE SURFACE CAN EVOLVE.
: THE SAME IMPACT THAT CREATES
: THE MOON ALSO KNOCKS EARTH
: SIDEWAYS, GIVING OUR PLANET
: A PERMANENT TILT.
: BECAUSE OF THE TILT, PLACES LIKE
: EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA GET
: VARYING AMOUNTS OF LIGHT AND
: HEAT AND SEASONS THAT CHANGE
: THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
: BUT IN THE BAND THAT STRETCHES
: AROUND THE CENTER OF THE EARTH,
: STEADY AMOUNTS OF LIGHT AND HEAT
: CREATE A UNIQUE ENVIRONMENT.
: WELCOME TO THE TROPICS--
: RICH SOIL, PLENTY OF MOISTURE,
: LOTS OF SUN ALL YEAR ROUND.
: PLANTS THRIVE...
: BUT SO DO THE ANIMALS THAT EAT
: PLANTS.
: IF PLANTS ARE TO SURVIVE,
: THEY'LL NEED TO FIGHT BACK.
: >> IF YOU'RE A PLANT, YOU SIT
: STILL.
: YOU CAN'T RUN AND HIDE.
: SO YOU NEED OTHER FORMS OF
: PROTECTION.
: THORNS ARE ONE, BUT POISONS
: ARE ANOTHER.
: >> 49 MILLION YEARS AGO, SOME
: TROPICAL PLANTS EVOLVE A DEADLY
: NEW POISON.
: IT PROTECTS THOSE PLANTS FROM
: HARMFUL INSECTS, EVEN WEEDS
: AND RIVAL PLANTS.
: IT'S CALLED CAFFEINE.
: BUT ONE CREATURE'S POISON IS
: ANOTHER'S PLEASURE.
: THE SAME DOSE OF CAFFEINE THAT
: CAN KILL A BUG JUST GIVES US
: A BOOST.
: >> HUMANS EVENTUALLY DISCOVERED
: THAT THESE THINGS THAT ARE
: POISONS FOR SOME POTENTIAL
: PREDATORS ARE ACTUALLY RATHER
: NICE TO USE.
: >> SO CAFFEINE IS A NATURAL
: PESTICIDE THAT EVOLVES IN
: THE EARTH'S SUNBELT...
: WHICH IS BORN IN THE COLLISION
: THAT MADE THE MOON.
: BUT HOW DOES A POISON BECOME
: YOUR MORNING PICK-ME-UP?
: BIG HISTORY CONNECTS FORWARD...
: TO THE 17TH CENTURY...
: WHEN A BOOMING CAFFEINE TRADE
: TRANSPORTS TEA AND COFFEE ALL
: OVER THE WORLD, TO THE EMPIRES
: OF EUROPE AND THEIR COLONIES IN
: THE NEW WORLD.
: >> TRADE IN THOSE DAYS IS SLOW,
: SO YOU CAN'T CARRY PERISHABLE
: STUFF.
: YOU CAN'T CARRY LETTUCE OR
: THINGS LIKE THAT THAT ARE GONNA
: ROT.
: WHEREAS COFFEE, WHERE YOU HAVE
: THESE DRIED BEANS, IS ACTUALLY
: PRETTY GOOD IN THIS REGARD.
: AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN
: TAKE FOR A LONG WAY.
: AND THEN PEOPLE GRIND IT UP,
: THEY DRINK IT, THEY GET A BUZZ,
: THEY'RE HAPPY, AND THEY'LL PAY
: YOU FOR IT.
: SO ADDICTIVE SUBSTANCES ARE
: REALLY GOOD TRADE ITEMS, BECAUSE
: YOUR CUSTOMERS NOT ONLY LIKE IT,
: THEY HAVE TO HAVE IT.
: >> LIKE ANY AMBITIOUS DRUG
: DEALERS, THE EUROPEAN TRADERS
: LOOK FOR AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE
: MORE MONEY BY GROWING THEIR OWN
: SUPPLY.
: THE COUNTRIES THAT GROW TEA AND
: COFFEE SELL DRIED LEAVES AND
: ROASTED BEANS.
: BUT IN ORDER TO KEEP CONTROL
: OVER THEIR PRODUCT, THEY DON'T
: TRADE ITS SOURCE--
: LIVE COFFEE AND TEA PLANTS.
: THE PLANTS ARE LIKE STATE
: SECRETS.
: SO THE EUROPEAN TRADERS BECOME
: DRUG SMUGGLERS.
: THEY STEAL LIVE COFFEE PLANTS
: AND BEANS.
: BUT BECAUSE EUROPE IS IN
: THE NORTH, IT'S FAR TOO COLD FOR
: A PLANT FROM THE TROPICS TO
: SURVIVE.
: EUROPE'S CAFFEINE ADDICTS WILL
: HAVE TO FIGURE OUT ANOTHER PLAN.
: THEIR SOLUTION WILL SHAKE UP
: THE BALANCE OF POWER AROUND THE
: WORLD.
: >> BIG HISTORY USES SCIENCE TO
: SEE THE WORLD IN A NEW WAY.
: IT SHOWS HOW CAFFEINE GIVES OUR
: BRAINS A JOLT, BLOCKING
: THE CHEMICALS THAT TELL US TO
: FEEL TIRED...
: THAT OUR NEED FOR THIS JOLT
: TURNS EUROPEANS INTO DRUG
: SMUGGLERS.
: BUT THEIR EFFORTS FAIL,
: BECAUSE THE EARTH'S TILT
: PREVENTS TROPICAL PLANTS FROM
: GROWING IN THE COLD.
: AS WE'VE SEEN, CAFFEINE HAS
: A POWERFUL PULL.
: SO IF THEY CAN'T BRING THE PLANT
: TO EUROPE, THEY'LL BRING EUROPE
: TO PLACES WHERE THE PLANT CAN
: GROW.
: >> SO IS THE EXISTENCE OF THESE
: ADDICTIVE SUBSTANCES AND THE
: FACT THAT THEY CAN ONLY GROW IN
: CERTAIN ENVIRONMENTS A KIND OF
: SPUR TO COLONIALISM AND
: PREDATORY MERCANTILE ACTIVITIES?
: I THINK THE ANSWER'S CERTAINLY
: YES.
: >> EUROPEAN POWERS IN SEARCH
: OF A CAFFEINE FIX CLAIM AND
: COLONIZE TROPICAL PARTS OF
: THE WORLD, BUILDING FARMS TO
: FEED THEIR HABIT.
: THEY ENSLAVE NATIVE PEOPLES
: ACROSS THE TROPICS TO WORK
: THE VAST PLANTATIONS WHERE
: CAFFEINE-MAKING PLANTS SPREAD
: LIKE WILDFIRE.
: >> SO HERE'S THE HUMAN BEING,
: SERVING, LIKE, ALMOST THE BEE
: THAT'S POLLINATING PLANTS.
: SO THE HUMAN BEING NOW BECOMES
: AN ANIMAL THAT IS GOING TO
: SPREAD THE COFFEE PLANT INTO
: PLACES THAT IT WAS NOT NATIVE.
: >> THE BIG HISTORY PERSPECTIVE
: REVEALS THAT SOMETHING AS SIMPLE
: AS COFFEE CAN TRIGGER AN EPIC
: TRANSFORMATION IN HUMAN
: HISTORY--
: THAT COLONIES ARE BUILT ON
: CAFFEINE.
: AND WITH COFFEE-GROWING
: PLANTATIONS SPREAD ALL ACROSS
: THE TROPICS, AMERICAN
: REVOLUTIONARIES CAN TOSS THEIR
: TEA OVERBOARD AND KICK THEIR
: TEA-DRINKING HABIT FOREVER,
: BECAUSE THEY CAN GET THE SAME
: RUSH FROM COFFEE GROWN CLOSER TO
: HOME ON PLANTATIONS IN
: THE CARIBBEAN.
: TEA QUICKLY BECOMES UN-AMERICAN.
: BUT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC,
: THIS STEADFAST SYMBOL OF BRITAIN
: KICK-STARTS YET ANOTHER
: REVOLUTION.
: BIG HISTORY REVEALS HOW OUR
: CAFFEINE ADDICTION TRANSFORMS
: THE MODERN WORLD.
: WE ARE NOW IN BRITAIN IN 1850,
: WHERE THE POPULATION HAS BOOMED
: TO 22 MILLION, UP FROM JUST
: 5 MILLION A CENTURY AND A HALF
: BEFORE.
: AND THE SECRET DRIVING THE SURGE
: COULD BE TEA.
: THE BRITISH START DRINKING TEA
: AROUND 1700.
: BY 1800, BRITAIN IS THE BIGGEST
: TEA-DRINKING NATION IN THE
: WORLD.
: IT'S A HABIT THAT SAVES LIVES
: BECAUSE OF THE WAY TEA IS MADE.
: [kettle whistling]
: >> YOU CAN ONLY INFUSE THIS
: SUBSTANCE IF YOU ADD BOILING
: WATER.
: AND OF COURSE, BOILING WATER IS
: GOING TO KILL MANY OF THE
: WATERBORNE PATHOGENS THAT WERE
: OTHERWISE KILLING PEOPLE.
: >> AFTER BRITAIN STARTS DRINKING
: TEA, DEATHS FROM WATERBORNE
: ILLNESSES FALL BY 50%.
: BECAUSE CAFFEINE IS ADDICTIVE,
: THE BRITISH DRINK A LOT OF TEA.
: AND THAT MEANS THEY'RE DRINKING
: A LOT MORE BOILED WATER.
: SO THEY LIVE LONGER AND HAVE
: MORE CHILDREN, GIVING BRITAIN
: ENOUGH MANPOWER TO FUEL A MASS
: PRODUCTION MACHINE THAT LAUNCHES
: THE MODERN AGE...
: AN AGE WHERE PEOPLE DOWN
: 5.9 BILLION CUPS OF TEA AND
: 2.2 BILLION CUPS OF COFFEE
: EVERY DAY.
: >> WHY HAS CAFFEINE BEEN SO
: SUCCESSFUL AS A GLOBAL
: MIND-ALTERING SUBSTANCE?
: IT PROVIDES A SORT OF CHEAP AND
: QUICK FUEL.
: IT CAN HELP YOU OPERATE BETTER
: IN A COMPLEX SOCIETY.
: >> AND IT ALL CONNECTS BACK TO
: THE MOON THAT SLOWS DOWN OUR
: PLANET...
: GIVING US THE MOLECULE THAT
: SPEEDS UP OUR WORLD.
: BUT THE STORY OF CAFFEINE IS
: JUST THE BEGINNING.
: THERE'S A MUCH BIGGER PUZZLE
: HIDDEN IN BIG HISTORY.
: EACH EPISODE UNLOCKS A CLUE.
: EVERYDAY THINGS LIKE BEEF,
: THE SUN, AND WATER HOLD THE KEY.
: WATCH THEM ALL, AND YOU'LL SEE
: THIS GRAND MYSTERY REVEALED--
: THE BIG HISTORY OF TIME, OF