1. Economy and Trade
1.1. Shang/Zhou
1.1.1. jobs in shang were most workers were farmers,but there were also nobles, soldiers, bronze workers, sculptors, architects, painters, potters, priests, and slaves.
1.1.2. Shang currency is cowrie shells
1.1.3. New roads and canals allowed better transportation and communication.
1.1.4. fishing began to grow as an industry as more people start to fish in the fresh waters
1.2. Sumeria
1.2.1. The Sumerian economy was based on agriculture, which was influenced by major technological advances in their society.
1.2.2. Jobs were pottery makers, stone cutters, bricklayers, metal smiths, farmers, fishers, shepherds, weavers, leather workers, and sailors.
1.2.3. They traded with people from far lands to get things like wood which was scarce in their lands.
1.2.4. Discoveries of obsidian from far away locations in Anatolia and lapis lazuli from northeastern Afghanistan made it so long distance trading was used.
2. Science and Technology
2.1. Sumeria
2.1.1. They created the wheel to move resorces around
2.1.2. They made pottery to store grains they farmed
2.1.3. Used irrigation to keep crops healthy
2.1.4. Also invented the and plow to till crops
2.2. Shang/Zhou
2.2.1. Some of the first people to use metals for tools
2.2.2. Made weapons out of bronze
2.2.3. Figured out how to use fertilizers and pestasides in their crops
2.2.4. They successfully made a accurate calendar using the moons phases.
3. Government and Leaders
3.1. Sumeria
3.1.1. The government was a combination of democracy and monarchy
3.1.2. Kingdoms were organized into city-states and the Kings ruled each city-states for the gods
3.1.3. Each city state were assisted by priests, scribes, and nobles.
3.1.4. They all had a special building called a Ziggurat at the center.
3.2. Shang/Zhou
3.2.1. Leaders had the position of king
3.2.2. In 1100 B.C. were led by king Wen
3.2.3. Government bildings were located in the center of the village
3.2.4. Didn't have specific amount of time as ruler
4. Arts and Eduacation
4.1. Sumeria
4.1.1. the Sumerians invented there own writing system.
4.1.2. Sumerian art was very complex and primary used it for religious purposes.
4.1.3. Clay is there most abundant resource and used it the most for art.
4.1.4. As for education students copied lessons on clay tablets. Then memorized the lessons then recited them to their schools headmaster.
4.2. Shang/Zhou
4.2.1. They made art out of bronze like sacrificial jars and cups under the shang emperor.
4.2.2. More people learned to write and put long inscriptions on their jars.
4.2.3. People made special bronze jars for their ancestors, and wrote long inscriptions about their lives so their ancestors and descendants would know what they have done.
4.2.4. a lot of jars were in animal shapes like birds and dragons.
5. Social Structure and Family life
5.1. Sumeria
5.1.1. The top of he social structure was kings and priests followed by landowners and merchants
5.1.2. The middle and the bottom of the social structure was artisans farmers and then slaves
5.1.3. Most families lived in small houses made from clay bricks and reeds.
5.2. Shang/Zhou
5.2.1. On the top of the dynasty came the king or the emperor. Only sons or relatives of kings could become kings in the future so that the royalty could be maintained
5.2.2. The king was also referred to as the emperor and was the person with the highest power, highest wealth and highest respect in the kingdom.
5.2.3. Next in line in the social hierarchy of the Zhou dynasty was the Prince.
5.2.4. After the royalty of the kingdom came the level of the Nobles. The nobles were expected to serve the king throughout their life and were thus given special powers or responsibilities.
6. Geography and Agriculture.
6.1. Sumeria
6.1.1. Sumeria is located in Mesopotamia, in the fertile Cresent
6.1.2. By 5000 BC the Sumerians had developed large-scale intensive cultivation of land, monocropping, organized irrigation, and the use of a specialized labor force
6.1.3. The food surplus allowed by this economy allowed the population to settle in one place.
6.1.4. Sumeria is surrounded on both sides with rivers. The Euphrates and Tigris rivers
6.2. Shang/Zhou
6.2.1. The Shang period had its core area in the middle course of the Yellow River
6.2.2. Between 7700 and 5500 yr BP, the evidence of cereal crops remained strong and charcoal concentration and archaeological sites increased greatly
6.2.3. which all indicate increased agricultural activity and the expansion of human populations.
6.2.4. Buckwheat became an important crop from around 5500 yr BP
7. Religion
7.1. Sumeria
7.1.1. The Sumerians originally practiced a polytheistic religion
7.1.2. The sumerian Gods were Alu, Enlil, Enki, and Erishkigal
7.1.3. During the middle of the 3rd millennium BCE, Sumerians changed. Nature Gods transformed into city Gods
7.1.4. Sumerian religion has its roots in the worship of nature, such as the wind and water.
7.2. Shang/Zhou
7.2.1. The religion of the Zhou people was quite different from the Shang religion.
7.2.2. The Shang kings saw the universe filled with real ghosts and spirits of good and evil
7.2.3. The Zhou religion was much more abstract and transcendental.
7.2.4. The Zhou Dynasty is famous for the beginnings of two major Chinese philosophies,Confucianism and Taoism.