The Great Acceleration
Teacher Resources
Driving Question: Why has change accelerated since 1945?
The environmental historian, J.R. McNeill argues that, since the end of the Second World War, the pace of change produced by human activities has accelerated at an unprecedented rate. During the era of intense globalization, technological innovation, population growth, and human impacts on the plant have all increased exponentially. Why did this dramatic acceleration start, and how will it impact life on Earth?
- Analyze how globalization has impacted the environment.
- Create and support arguments using historical evidence to communicate conclusions.
- Use the historical thinking skill of continuity and change over time to analyze historical events and processes across multiple units.
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Guiding Questions
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Note: For more detailed directions on completing the three close reads below, refer to the Three Close Reads – Introduction activity.
Skim
Before you read, you should quickly skim the article, by looking at the headings of each section and the charts. Read the questions below as well, so you know what to look for when you read!
Key Ideas
- What is a transistor and why is it an important part of the Great Acceleration?
- How has technology broken down boundaries in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries?
- Why do some scholars believe that technological acceleration can’t keep moving at these rapid rates?
Evaluate
- What do you think might happen to the pace of acceleration in the near future? What about in the distant future?
Green Revolution
Key Ideas
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Guiding Questions
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Before you watch
Before you watch the video, it’s a good idea to open and skim the video transcript. And always read the questions below so you know what to look and listen for as you watch!
While you watch
- Why did the US State Department official William Gaud coin the term “Green Revolution” in 1968, and what was he contrasting it to?
- A common saying in the US State Department during the Cold War was, “Where hunger goes, communism follows.” What does this mean, and how did this concern help launch the Green Revolution?
- How did the Green Revolution differ in different regions in its adaptation and its results?
- What were some of the methods and results of the Green Revolution?
- What are some of the critiques of the Green Revolution?
After you watch
- How was the Green Revolution political? How do you think food can be political? Can you connect the policies and impacts of the Green Revolution to the frame narrative of production and distribution? Is there any way for this kind of food aid and technology transfer to not be political?
- There is still ongoing debate about the policies and the legacy of the Green Revolution, and some new policies and technologies have continued to emerge in ways that are similar to the Green Revolution. Based on the video and your understanding of geopolitics in the Cold War and today, how do you think we can best measure whether it was a success?
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Guiding Questions
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Note: For more detailed directions on completing the three close reads below, refer to the Three Close Reads – Introduction activity.
Skim
Before you read, you should quickly skim the article, by looking at the headings of each section and the charts. Read the questions below as well, so you know what to look for when you read!
Key Ideas
- What have been the general trends in global population over the long span of human history?
- What has been the trend in the past two hundred years in terms of the percentage of people living in cities?
- How has industrialization changed atmospheric CO2 levels, and why does that matter?
- What have been some health effects of fossil fuel use?
Evaluate
- The author ends this article by arguing that humanity must cooperate to reduce our impact on the global environment. Do you agree? Why or why not?
- Given the environmental impact of the Industrial Revolution, do you think this was overall a positive transformation in production and distribution, or negative? Provide evidence for your position?
Eradicating Smallpox
Key Ideas
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Guiding Questions
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Before you watch
Before you watch the video, it’s a good idea to open and skim the video transcript. And always read the questions below so you know what to look and listen for as you watch!
While you watch
- What made smallpox the worst disease in history?
- What is variolation?
- Who created the first smallpox vaccine? According to Dr. Larry, how did that person discover and test vaccines?
- What was ring vaccination?
- According to Dr. Larry, what was the most important factor in eradicating smallpox?
After you watch
- After watching this video, what do you think is the single most important step that humanity could take to prevent another pandemic?