Collapse of Civilizations

The culture of the Mayans gradually uplifted, and the peak of their civilization appeared during the Classic Age of 250 to 900 CE. During this time, The Mayans created an abundance of art and amazing architecture that still inspire the architects of today. This civilization was on the road to greatness, but this greatness came to an end quickly. The Mayan city-states were in a constant feud and violence was constantly raging. Because of this, The Maya never became a single government unlike other major societies. Despite this, The Mayans achieved many remarkable accomplishments such as their calendar, architecture, marvelous trade system, and genius numerals that continue to be a template for the people of today.

They have found iconographic elements and works of pottery and tools that are not consistent with the Classic Mayan model, suggesting that foreign invaders drove the Mayan’s from the region . However, most scientists believe this phenomenon to be a symptom rather than a cause, and say this theory is highly debatable. With the vast number of Mayan people, coupled with its historical resilience, it seems unlikely that a singular military force could wipe out the entire region. Many who reject this theory believe it was not solely foreign controversy. Internal conflict coupled with outside invaders could have ultimately led to the fall of the empire. Although some scientists believe that it was not warfare at all that caused the decline.

One of the greatest civilizations ever born was the Roman Empire.  When it started off Rome was known as a “sleepy little town”(Background essay) that had awakened once the Greek empire began to fall.  During the time of Julius Caesar was when Rome turned from republic to an Empire with Caesar as its first emperor.  Soon over the years Rome became a powerhouse with its lands stretching all around the Mediterranean Sea.  However unlike other civilizations where they fell because of other civilizations, Rome fell from within its walls because of several possible reasons and theories.

The Roman Empire: one of the world’s greatest ever civilizations, was in existence from 700 BC to 476 AD. Although the empire was not ever an extremely weak world power, it’s “highest” point in time was from about 50 BC to 200 AD. During this time period, it was at its all-time high. The empire spanned across what is today 3 continents (Asia Minor, Europe, Northern Africa), was home to 50 million people, and had a its capital city, Rome, had a population of 1 million people. But what can make such a huge world superpower collapse? The “Fall of Rome” can be accredited to a weakened central government troubled by political assassinations, disease, and foreign invasion, during the empire’s last century of sheer existence.

civilization in the region at the time. They had developed political, religious, and social systems

The Maya society underwent a drastic climate change, and were given little understanding on how to live around it. Climate can do a lot to a population within hours of a day, as weather is what survival surrounds. The Classic Maya was well adapted to the heavy rainfall they received, in fact, much of their agriculture and culture surrounded. So it would seem ironic that a heavy drought would be the root cause of their disappearance, and yet this was the case. Peter deMenocal analyzed a wide range of data from all over the world, looking for a link which connected human communities with natural disasters especially droughts. He found that despite there being other possible situation to the collapse of the Classic Maya society, it wasn’t possible for them to be the sole reason and thus, reasoning that the enduring climatic situation which was presented to the society during the time was truly

purpose: Highlights the collapse of several historical societies and the factors that caused their collapse.

Many centuries before the birth of Christ, the city of Rome grew, prospered, and developed into a thriving Republic. As in most cultures, Rome's buildings became more elaborate and impressive. They developed fantastic building technologies and ideas. The feats of Roman engineers were groundbreaking, and many structures built by this culture still stand today. With knowledge borrowed from the Greeks, Rome made impressive architectural achievements, these were namely major attributes of buildings, colossal structures, and a legacy that would influence later buildings (Cornell and Matthews 11).

The word “collapse” has a number of connotations associated with it. Some view it exclusively the degradation of societies of the highest order. Others see it as the complete disintegration of economic prospects and commerce. Some even think of it political ruin with the demise of states and ruling factions that maintain order. The most general definition for collapse can includes elements from these three viewpoints. American anthropologist and historian Joseph A. Tainter is best known for his writings on societal collapses. In 1988 he published his most widely recognized work, The Collapse of Complex Societies.

The Roman Empire left a legacy that still continues to affect people with modern technology. The Romans’ technology might have not been as advanced as modern technology today, but they still managed to caused great impact over the ancient people. The Roman Empire’s inventions and innovations such as indoor plumbing, aqueducts, and construction of roads and buildings with their fast drying will always be notable attention because they managed to acquire extensive progress without modern methods. However, the Romans were not restricted to new inventions, they also managed to improve the existing fields of medicine, law, government and warfare.

Thesis: Although the many advancements in health and medicine greatly contributed to the growth of the Roman Empire, the advancements in construction and architecture played a larger role in the growth of the Roman Empire

The Mayan Civilization at its height was one of the greatest civilization to ever reign on the planet. Their advances in astronomy and mathematics well in advance has helped present civilizations to prosper. But one of the great questions is what happened to the Mayans? Why did they collapse? What caused them to collapse? It is a question that had gone unanswered for decades until some of the worlds great historians and scientist finally concluded to three reasons why the Mayan Civilization collapsed. The Mayans Collapse was fast and occurred due to Deforestation and Climate Change, Overpopulation, and Internal and Exterior Rivalry.

The fall of the lowland Maya can be seen as a result of many factors, coming together as a one catastrophe. Many scholars believe that one thing in particular did not lead to the claps of the Mayan civilization, but rather a combination of factors. Increased population, environment degradation led to malnutrition in population, which then led to epidemic diseases.

In ancient Rome, architecture and engineering were highly regarded. It contributed much to Rome’s development, power, as well as the longevity of such an immense and substantial empire. Architecture displayed an immense amount of workmanship as well as innovation. This is seen through Rome engineers as they created the concept of concrete, constructed the famous Roman aqueducts, and the luxurious Roman baths. Roman’s were clearly superior engineers compared to their competitors because Roman engineers developed new and innovative concepts that were never introduced before, therefore contributing to the success of the Roman Empire.

Architecture of the ancient Roman Empire is one of the most fascinating of all time. The city of Rome once housed more than one million residents. The Romans made great use of many architectural shapes like arches and columns. Using these they were able to build monstrous buildings of worship, entertainment and other services. The one building that comes in mind over the centuries, when you think of Rome is The Amphitheatrum Flavium or The Coloseum.