1. Science & Technology
1.1. Shang/Zhou
1.1.1. Shang astronomers created a calendar based on the cycles of the moon.
1.1.2. The Zhou also made a technological advancement by building huge, stable tombs.
1.1.3. Population grew, and so did the cities and roads. Therefore there was better transportation and communication through out China.
1.1.4. Zhou started to use iron instead of bronze to increase the strength of their weapons for their army.
1.2. Sumerians
1.2.1. The Sumerians invented the wheel to make pottery and vehicles.
1.2.2. They also invented the plow and learned how to use bronze to make tools and weapons.
1.2.3. They built sewers and learned how to perform basic surgery with an impressive amount of medical knowladge.
1.2.4. Sumerians learned how to use geometry to build elaborate structures and irrigation systems.
2. Economy and Trade
2.1. Shang/Zhou
2.1.1. Planting with fertile soils allowed Shang economy and civilization to thrive,.
2.1.2. The Shang was known to have invented one of the world's first systems of money.
2.1.3. The Zhou's ability to work with iron became the backbone of their economy.
2.1.4. Zhou introduced coins to China.
2.2. Sumerians
2.2.1. River trade across the Euphrates River, one of the two main rivers here.
2.2.2. Sumerians got their materials for buildings and art through trade.
2.2.3. Men held political power and made laws. Women took care of the house and children.
2.2.4. Sumerians lacked things like wood and metals, so they traded woven textiles for metals, timber, and stone.
3. Social Structure
3.1. Shang/Zhou
3.1.1. Wealthy members enjoyed collecting items made of bronze or jade. Others spent their free time hunting as a sport.
3.1.2. Shang was a huge agricultural society. Many people spent their time in the fields tending to crops.
3.1.3. Shang farmers were sometimes called to fight in the army or work alongside slaves.
3.1.4. Chinese philosophers wanted to create a more peaceful society. So they looked at the world in different ways.
3.2. Sumerians
3.2.1. At the top of the social hierarchy, were kings, priests, and their principal agents.
3.2.2. The middle ranking had the landowners, and wealthy merchants.
3.2.3. Below them were the farmers, artists, and laborers.
3.2.4. At the bottom were the slaves, many of which were captured in battle.
4. Arts and Education
4.1. Shang/Zhou
4.1.1. Shang asked questions by actually writing on the bones of themselves. They used texts and picture symbols to represent objects and ideas.
4.1.2. Shang learned and were able to build huge structures that are called tombs.
4.1.3. During the period of the Zhou, there were two philosophers, one was Confucius. Confucius believed everyone should have an education regardless of their social class, and tried to make that happen.
4.1.4. The other philosopher was Laozi. Laozi encouraged people to retreat from the laws of society and yield to the laws of nature.
4.2. Sumerians
4.2.1. The Sumerian sculptures were statues with large wide open eyes, and had small objects carved out of ivory.
4.2.2. They made small stone cylinders shaped as seals, with many detailed designs all over it.
4.2.3. Sumerian writing is called cuneiform. They use styluses, which is a sharp tool, to engrave symbols onto clay tablets.
4.2.4. Sumerians paid scribes to write documents. Most scribes were men, and took years of schooling.
5. Religion
5.1. Shang/Zhou
5.1.1. The ruler was buried with hundreds of prisoners of war and riches like jade or bronze. We can presume the Shang thought the ruler would need his servants and riches in his afterlife.
5.1.2. The Shang would ask their ancestors for advice, using oracle bones, which were inscribed bits on animal bone or turtle shell. This was used often in the Shang religion.
5.1.3. Their religion was centered by ancestor worship. They commonly offered gifts to their ancestors in hope of a good afterlife.
5.1.4. The Shang would prepare ritual meals with their ancestors in mind, and believed the steam from the food they ate would nourise the ancestors spirits.
5.2. Sumerians
5.2.1. Sumerian people practiced Polytheism, the worship of many gods.
5.2.2. They believed the gods they worshipped controlled all natural forces. For example the god Entil ruled the air and storms.
5.2.3. The Sumerians built many temples and ziggurats for their gods. Priests would offer food and drink to the gods and hold ceremonies there.
5.2.4. Sumerians thought of the gods having human behaviors, like fights or falling in love, but they also upheld them with much respect for their power.
6. Government & Leaders
6.1. Shang/Zhou
6.1.1. The Shang king appointed the governor to rule distant parts of the kingdom.
6.1.2. Shang kings were surrounded by a gathering of wealthy nobles, who preformed rituals.
6.1.3. The Zhou ruled by the "Mandate of Heaven" which meant that the Gods would support a just ruler.
6.1.4. The Zhou overthrew the Shang because the people believed the Shang lost God's favor.
6.2. Sumerians
6.2.1. The Sumerian leaders were initially run by priests, who had much respect in the community for their connection with the gods.
6.2.2. In Sumerian cities, they engaged in a kind of communist government, where the farm workers contributed their crops to their temple, from which workers were paid by the priests the food they needed to survive.
6.2.3. Each Sumerian city formed its own city-state, and each were very independent from each other, so warfare was frequent.
6.2.4. The cities revolved around the temples; it acted as the distributor of food and goods, receiving, storing, and disbursing them.
7. Geography and Agriculture
7.1. Shang/Zhou
7.1.1. The Shang/Zhou Civilization occurred in-between two rivers, the Chang Jiang (Yangzi) and the Huang He (Yellow River). Both rivers flow East.
7.1.2. The land by these rivers were very fertile because the rivers would flood and deposit loess, a fine, dusty soil.
7.1.3. In southern China along the Chang Jiang The warm, rainy weather was better at growing rice.
7.1.4. Further north along the Huang He it was better for growing grains like wheat and millet because of its cool, dry climate.
7.2. Sumerians
7.2.1. Mesopotamia was located between two rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates.
7.2.2. It was very dry in between the two rivers, and the only way to sustain a farm was by irrigation, which proved to be very successful.
7.2.3. Near the rivers themselves, the land was very fertile for farming, containing rich mud brought down from the mountains.
7.2.4. The marshy land near the sea (which the rivers flow into) make very productive farmland once drained. The diet was also better here for they could fish.