Oil and the Silk Road
The global supply of oil is depleting at unprecedented levels despite the efforts of many developed nations to deal effectively with the problem. National dependencies on oil have created ripple effects in the global economy that are manifested primarily by restructured world oil markets and the political aspirations of producer and consumer nations with regard to oil exploration, refinement, transportation, and pricing ("Annual Energy Review," 2012).
Just as the historic Silk Roads were the hubs of economic exchange across Eurasia, so too is oil in the Central Asian oil pipelines is core to economic trade (Waugh, 2009). For centuries, silk was a major currency that fueled long-distance trade (Waugh, 2009). Today, oil has eclipsed silk in long-distance international trade (Waugh, 2009). From 400 BC to 1600 CE, the goods traded on the Silk Roads could not be had through any other methods than trade with the diaspora of merchants who traveled the trade routes (Waugh, 2009). The same dynamics are at play in the world today as the systems that enable oil to be transported and traded over long-distances...
One of these issues is Central Asian archaeology. Towards the end of the chapter, the author notes that there may be whole cities buried beneath the desert sands in Central Asia. Because the author also mentions the importance of tourism for the economic empowerment of the region, it is clear that archaeology may become a major tourist draw. In 1997, the author notes, an expedition on foot was undertaken to
21st century unfolds, we are told that the world is embracing globalism -- a key change in the economic, political and cultural movements that, broadly speaking, move the various countries of the world closer together. This idea refers to a number of theories that see the complexities of modern life such that events and actions are tied together, regardless of the geographic location of a specific country (political unit).
Geopolitical Energy Competition One hundred years ago, oil supplies were a non-issue. There was limited demand for oil, and hence limited supply. Today, oil is the most important factor shaping the geopolitical landscape. Global demand for oil is estimated to be 84.6 million barrels per day (OPEC, 2009). OPEC produces 24.845 million barrels per day, and non-OPEC nations produce a further 50.7 million barrels per day for a total production of
" It seems perfectly apparent that this was the original policy of the U.S. In Afghanistan specific to the Soviet Union. The CSR Report for Congress entitled: "Afghanistan: Current Issues and U.S. Policy" Kenneth Katzman, Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs writes that the policy objectives of the United States in Afghanistan have: "...long gone beyond establishing political stability and combating terrorist groups operating in Afghanistan." (Katzman, 2005) IV. PRESENT U.S. INVOLVEMENT
Chinese Inventions The ancient Chinese were an innovative people who were able to independently develop the ideas for many of the things we take for granted today. Even though these ideas originated in the East they have proven valuable throughout the world, disseminated by such explorers as Marco Polo and others who realized the importance of the things they had seen. Francis Bacon viewed many of these Chinese inventions as crucial
One of the most brilliant contributions of the Byzantium is its contribution to modern music and the development of what the world has come to appreciate as the foundations of classical music. The Byzantine "medieval" (Lang, 1997), in fact, the Byzantium influence is considered to be critical to the development of the Greek music and the relative genius behind Greek music (Lang, 1997) The quoted sovereign melody (Lang, 1997) is the
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