The Silk Road, International Trade, and Global Prosperity

How do goods, wealth, technology, and culture spread? What is gained or lost in the exchange? Does trade benefit all sides equally? Who sets the terms of international trade?
This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.
China’s ancient capital of Xian became a cosmopolitan melting pot because its position as a crossroad of the Silk Road trading network, a home to Buddhists and Muslims, where almost anything that was for sale in the ancient world could be bought or sold. (Xian, China, 2015.)

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The Great Wall and Borders Beyond Our Control

How and why do governments regulate the flow of people and information? Is the government’s interest always the same as the people’s?

This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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The Sandinistas

What happens after a revolution, when those who ceded power don’t want to admit it’s gone? What right do nations have to preemptively attack the governments of other nations?
This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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Augusto Sandino, National Hero

Is it heroic or foolish to fight against impossible odds, even if you know you are right? When is violence and revolt a justifiable strategy for change?
This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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William Walker, the Grey-Eyed Man of Destiny

Does might make right? If you can do something, should you? Who decides what history is worth learning?
This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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A Basic History of Nicaragua

How does a nation with colonial origins synthesize its own identity? How does a small nation assert its own will in the shadow of a much more economically and militarily powerful neighbor?
This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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The Khmer Rouge: Genocide in the Name of Utopia

How is history used to support ideology? Is violence by a government against its own civilian population ever justified? Why are certain events given priority over others in history books?
This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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The Aztec: Life Under the Fifth Sun in Old Mexico

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Cambodia in Splendor and Ruin

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China: Ancient History, Modern Nation

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