Worksheet: Crops
A)
Web site name: Advanced Biotech
Web URL: http://www.adbio.com/science/agri-history.htm
Scroll down to “History”, then “Prehistoric Agriculture”
1).
Where, in southeastern Asia, was an early Neolithic site? _______________
2).
Which three animals were domesticated first?
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3)
According to carbon dating, which two plants were domesticated in the
Middle East around 8,000 B.C.?
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4).
Which domestic animal is descended from aurochs?
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5).
What were Neolithic houses made from?
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6).
Which two animals were domesticated from the steppes of Europe and Asia?
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7).
Why did Neolithic villages have to move ?
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8).
Explain two improvements to agriculture when metals became widespread:
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B)
Web site name: About Archaeology
Web site URL:
http://archaeology.about.com/od/domestications/a/plant_domestic.htm
Read “Plant Domestication”. When you reach the table, click on two different
plants, and summarize the information about them below:
9).
Plant name: ___________________________________
10). Information about this plant: ______________________________________
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11).
Plant name: ___________________________________
12). Information about this plant: ______________________________________
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C)
Web site name: Vegetarians in paradise
Web site URL: http://www.vegparadise.com/highestperch43.html
Read “Peanuts – whada’ya mean it’s a bean?”
13)
What is unusual about the pods of the peanut plant?
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14)
Where was the peanut first cultivated? ___________________________
15)
Where and when is the earliest archaeological evidence of peanut shells?
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16)
Why were peanuts not popular in Europe and America before 1860?
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17)
Which three countries are the world’s largest growers of peanuts?
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18)
Scroll down to one other section of the website, and summarize the
information there:
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D)
Web site name: Fortune magazine
Web site URL:
http://money.cnn.com/2008/01/16/news/international/brazil_soy.fortune/index.htm
Read “How Brazil outfarmed the American farmer”
19)
Why are some American farmers starting to farm in Brazil?
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20)
How big is Brazil’s farm trade surplus? _____________________________
21)
Apart from human and animal food, what else is soy used for?
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22)
How do soybean yields in Brazil compare with those in the US?
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23)
Why did US soy plantings fall in 2007?
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24)
Why does South America have a clear competitive advantage?
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E)
Web site name: BBC News
Web site URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6294133.stm
Read “Quick guide: Biofuels”
25)
What are biofuels?
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26)
List the four main categories of biofuels:
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27)
Which biofuel can be used in aircraft? _______________________
28)
How did global output of biodiesel change from 2000 to 2005?
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29)
Which crops does Brazil use for making ethanol?
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30)
What are two problems with the increasing use of biofuels?
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31)
Which chemical will second-generation biofuels use?
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F)
Web site name: Lavazza Training Center
Web site URL: http://www.sovrana.com/libstory.htm
Read “The history of Coffee”
32)
When is the first definitive date mentioned for coffee? ________________
33)
In which three countries did coffee first become popular in daily life?
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34)
Why did dealers try to transplant coffee to other countries?
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35)
Where, in Brazil, is the ideal environment for coffee?
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36)
Which two plants made their appearance in Venice around 1570?
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37)
How many coffee shops were in Venice in 1763? __________________
38)
To which botanical family does coffee belong ? _______________________
39)
Why is it an advantage for cultivated plants to be less than 5 meters tall?
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40)
Summarize the information on the two species of coffee:
Coffea arabica: _______________________________________________
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Coffea robusta: ________________________________________________
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G)
Web site name: Economic Perspectives
Web site URL:
http://econperspectives.blogspot.com/2009/09/fair-trade-what-price-for-good-coffee.html
Read “What price for good coffee?”
41)
Which country is this article about? ______________________
42)
How many small coffee growers are there worldwide? _________________
43)
What is the aim of “Fair Trade”? __________________________________
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44)
How much does Fair trade pay a grower per lb? __________________
45)
Roughly how much is coffee (beans or ground) in your local supermarket,
or Starbucks per lb? ____________
46)
How much money does Antonio make per day? ____________
47)
What is the problem with raising the price paid to growers?
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48)
What options is the FLO reviewing instead of a major price hike?
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49)
Do you personally think that “Fair Trade “is a good idea? Explain.
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