1. Geography & Agriculture
1.1. Shang/Zhou
1.1.1. The Shang and Zhou dynasties cultivated rice, wheat, millet, and corn.
1.1.2. Domesticated the horse as a beast of burden.
1.1.3. Watered by the Yellow River.
1.1.4. People began to raise and domesticate animals such as horses, dogs, pigs, chicken, cows, and sheep.
1.2. Sumerians
1.2.1. Around 600BC, people began to populate the Fertile Crescent, which was watered by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
1.2.2. The Sumerians practiced irrigation techniques.
1.2.3. The rivers Tigris and Euphrates nearly converged in Babylonia. Sumer was the delta of this river system.
1.2.4. The Sumerians grew emmer wheat, barley, chickpeas, lentils, wheat, dates, onions, garlic, lettuce, leeks and mustard. They also raised sheep, goats, pigs, and cattle for meat and resources.
2. Economy & Trade
2.1. Summerians
2.1.1. Jobs included pottery makers, stone cutters, bricklayers, metal smiths, farmers, fishers, shepherds, weavers, leather-workers, and sailors.
2.1.2. The Epic of Gilgamesh refers to trade with far lands for goods such as wood that were scarce in Mesopotamia.
2.1.3. The Sumerians used slaves, although they were not a major part of the economy.
2.1.4. The Sumerian economy was based on agriculture, which was influenced by major technological advances in Mesopotamian history.
2.2. Shang/Zhou
2.2.1. The serfs and slaves preformed all economic functions of society.
2.2.2. Main income came from farming or the harvest of crops.
2.2.3. Many farmers also knew how to cultivate the silkworm and weave its tread into beautiful cloth which would be used for clothing.
2.2.4. The artisans formed another group of the economic structure, many artisans manufactured weapons, ritual vessels, jewelry, and other items of interest.
3. Religion
3.1. Shang/Zhou
3.1.1. Worshipped Shangdi, the supreme God in their religion.
3.1.2. Made human sacrifices as offerings to their gods.
3.1.3. The Shang and Zhou dynasties believed in polytheism, meaning that they worshipped many gods.
3.1.4. These dynasties also majorly worshipped their ancestors, as well as their many gods.
3.2. Sumerians
3.2.1. Religion started with the worship of nature, and developed when the Sumerians formed the conclusion that everything is under the power of something greater.
3.2.2. The Sumerians believed that the universe consisted of heaven and earth.
3.2.3. Sumer's gods were in human form, and had human characteristics.
3.2.4. The Sumerians believed that mankind's purpose was to serve the gods. Their main places of worship were temples.
4. Science & Technology
4.1. Sumerians
4.1.1. Developed the first writing system, consisting of letters instead of hieroglyphics.
4.1.2. They created the first wheel, which lead to wheeled vehicles and wind mills.
4.1.3. Sumerians developed arithmetic, with the base number of 60.
4.1.4. Created the first known confided legal system. Complete with jails, courts and government records.
4.2. Shang/Zhou
4.2.1. Created maps of the sky, and some of the first geography maps.
4.2.2. Introduced the horse-drawn chariot.
4.2.3. They were advanced in mathematics and invented the decimal system.
4.2.4. They were also very advanced in bronze making.
5. Arts & Education
5.1. Sumerians
5.1.1. Sumerians created and cylinder seals that identified the political status, and occasionally the name, of the wearer.
5.1.2. Sumerians created figures of priests with materials such as limestone and alabaster.
5.1.3. Sumerian sculptures typically had large eyes, and long beards on men.
5.1.4. Sumerians created votive offerings displayed for broadly religious purposes.
5.2. Shang/Zhou
5.2.1. People of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties were skilled at working with Jade.
5.2.2. Bronze was used to make weapons, parts of chariots, and ritual vessels.
5.2.3. The earliest Chinese bronze was made by peace-mold casting.
5.2.4. The taotie decorated bronze vessels.
6. Government & Leaders
6.1. Summerians
6.1.1. The Sumerians first invented government.
6.1.2. The Sumerians needed government to organize labor and work on construction.
6.1.3. The Sumerian's government was a mixture of democracy and anarchy.
6.1.4. Sumer was organized into city-states ruled by kinds. These kings were assisted by people such as scribes, priests, and nobles.
6.2. Shang/Zhou
6.2.1. The Shang were ruled by a king which ruled the city capital and surrounding areas,
6.2.2. There kingdom was so vast that nobles would rule over parts of the land.
6.2.3. The Zhou believed there authorities got the right to rule from god.
6.2.4. The military strength determined the strength of the leaders.
7. Social Structure & Family Life
7.1. Summerians
7.1.1. The husband and father are master of the household and could even sell their wife and kids to slavery if in debt.
7.1.2. Boys would attend school while girls would be educated at home
7.1.3. The Sumerians took death very seriously but the only cemeteries they had were for the king and his very important nobles.
7.1.4. Men and women both shared a passion for cosmetics. Women would be covered in heavy makeup and henna.
7.2. Shang/Zhou
7.2.1. The oldest male was the head of the house hold.
7.2.2. If someone in the household did something wrong the entire house hold would be disgraced and could be punished.
7.2.3. There were very large distinctions between social classes.
7.2.4. Peasants were physically separated but played an important part of the society.