Subsistence and Economy

Part 1:

1. The benefits of agriculture: Locally grown, healthier, enrich land with crop rotation, didn't have to depend on the market as the only means for food, variety, biology with learning how to breed plants, respect for the land and plants, pay attention to the small things like weather and seasons, be more involved in your food, a family job, and creating towns and cities do to having to stay and tend and prepare your crops.
2. The benefits of hunter gathers: Do not own a lot since you are constantly on the move, learning to share resources, coming together as a group to get something done, and you learned to develop trust for your fellow hunter gathers due being in small groups and needing to depend on them at all times.
3. The disadvantages of agriculture: Using more and more land to accommodate a growing town, which means less habitat for wildlife, use of pesticides and fertilizers harm animals, humans, and the planet, animals are treated poorly (except in the case of organic) and fed poorly which causes many diseases such as E. Coli and rising cholesterol, you remain in one place, and lack of knowledge about soil and nitrogen can lead to ruining the soil.
4. The disadvantages of hunter gathers: Small population which may not be able to protect themselves from another tribe or animal attack, always moving, seasons dictate what animals and plants are out and may have to go weeks without food, fighting other hunter gathers over territory or a kill, and unable to grow larger into a village or town due to constant moving
5. Which one is healthier?: I believe hunter gathers were healthier, but only by a few points. In an agriculture society, drought, fires, and simply not being able to produce enough for the population could lead to many deaths, sicknesses, and a high infant mortality rate. While hunter gathers, due to being such small groups were able to feed their entire 'population'. As well, living on a grain based diet is healthier than living on this agriculture diet. Even today, statistics show that people (hunter gathers) in Kenya are less likely to suffer from heart disease compared to their Western agriculture neighbors who are twelve times more likely to die from things like cancer simply because of what we eat.
6. Why did some populations make the transition to agriculture?: I believe a lot of populations made the transition because it was easier; you could settle down, have a family, get a job, create laws, and be a part of a large group of people compared to hunters and gathers who were always on the move and simply focused on their own group. Being in one place enables us to complete a lot of tasks and focus on things that have nothing to do with simply surviving, like politics, education, and philosophy.

Part 2:

1. There is a direct relationship between the availability of surplus and the ability to trade.: This quote is saying there is a relationship between the availability of the item and the ability to trade because, if you don't have the item you cannot trade it! As well, having a surplus means you are able to trade since you have more than what your population means so, you can sell the extras to a population that lacks that resource in order to make a profit.
2. Two social benefits of trade: Being able to experience another's culture (food, customs, and language), as well as cooperating together in creating or working on one project or business instead of competing against each other in the global market.
3. Two negative social results of trade: The Westernization of countries, which is crippling local cultures and being replaced by Western ideals and customs and corporations taking advantage of the people and violating human rights in other countries, i.e sweatshops.
4. Relationship between the development or agriculture and trade: Both of these developments sprang up around the same time because once you have farmers farming and feeding their town, there will be another town doing the same thing, and another and with this, the towns can trade their resources for another and to each other. You cannot have one without the other, because there will always be someone who does not have what you have and you want something they have, meaning a trade is a perfect agreement to come upon. With trading (at least fair trading) everyone will be equally apart of the trading process; the producer, seller, and buyer.