Human+Sciences-History

Can we, as humans, learn from our mistakes based on past events studied in History? (This is a good question as is doesn't only study History itself but it also studies social behavior trends and how as we humans acted upon for the last thousands of years and it also tackles different human behavior through psychology - History) Why do we study History? (This is a good question as it not only evaluates the importance of History as a field in the Human Sciences but it is also significant in how we people evaluate ourselves in viewing the role of History - History) What is historiography? (It is a good questions as it gives a value judgement of the different historians' interpretation and it makes knowledge claims based on different evidences and then synthesizing all of it into an interpretation - History) Assuming food, shelter, water and other needs are taken care of, if you had $100, what would you spend it on? (It is a sort of a good question because it does not only evaluates and individual's answer but it also can be combined with other results and then come up with an sum up to know how a certain population responds to these kind of questions. - Psychology/Economics) What is cause of Global Warming? (It is a bad question because despite being a very scientific question, it limits the answers to only four choices may be forced upon some people who would see that none of the choices given may be right and it also classifies China not belonging to the Humans category thus making the choices given biased - Biology and Environmental Science) a) Humans b) Natural Climate Change c) Fossil Fuels d) China What is supply and demand? (It is a good question because it does not only require definition that is given impartially by economics experts but it also asks for a certain interpretation from the one answering the question too - Economics) Was Fidel Castro a totalitarian dictator? (It is a good question because one can either base his or her answers to someone's interpretation or create his or her own interpretation based on other existing interpretation or general knowledge to back up his interpretation - History) How many moles of atoms are there in the human body? (It is somewhat a good question and a bad question. It is a good question in the sense that it clearly requires the accurate answer to its question but the question cannot be answered accurately at this current time as we lack the technology and even measuring of a molecule may seem impossible as of now much more of an atom - Molecular Science/Chemistry) Does life exists beyond our planet? (It is a good question because it requires self-evaluation based on strong evidence provided by general knowledge or other people's interpretations to fortify it and it also may mean that one could just support or extend an existing interpretation - Astrobiology/Astronomy) What caused World War I? (It is a good question because the possible answers may differ and can be easily distinguished in a sense based on its evidences that were provided by each answer but again the question is if the answer is biased or objective - History/Historiography) Who started the Cold War? (It is a good question because the possible answers may differ and can be easily distinguished in a sense based on its evidences that were provided by each answer but again the question is if the answer is biased or objective - History/Historiography)

Choose 12 questions List problems with the questions -What are its methods? -What knowledge claims does it make? -What are the assumptions does it make? - Is it a good or bad question? -What field of H.S./N.S. is this?

Respond to the three interpretations of history reviewed by your group. Please list if you think these interpretations are well founded or if they are problematic. Explain why you think each interpretation is well found or problematic. Can you provide an example? Can you summarize the interpretation in one word?

I personally think that Hegel's belief of History being just a product of conflict is true to a certain extent and can be proven as well founded because as to every time we humans record a certain event in the past, we always record only negative news or events and we rarely see a positive event that was recorded in History. It is always about famine, war, economic failures, and social chaos. Such an example is the history of the 20th Century were throughout the 100 years, there were two World Wars, assassinations of different famous and notable people such as Archduke Franz Ferdinand, John F. Kennedy, Ninoy Aquino, Martin Luther King Jr., and many more. And if one is to summarize the quote in one word, it all means History is a "consequence" that is negatively influenced.
 * ** Hegel ** --Dialectic. Hegel's Theory of History says that for every old idea, there is a new one which conflicts with it. Out of the struggle a new idea is created (Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis). He felt that this was how God led us to perfection and revealed new truth. History is just the product of conflict

I personally think that Darwin's belief of victory being a necessity for a nation to be superior o as he calls it, "the survival of the fittest", is mostly what is seen throughout history were most of it are written only by the winners. The victors of World War I and World II are the Allied Powers and it was a clear sign that in history books, one can only find that most of the information given portrays the victories of the Allied forces and faults and downfalls of the Axis powers. I find this belief quite well-founded as all of it applies to most cases of events in History. And if one is to summarize all of what Darwin stated in one word, it is that "victory" is necessary.
 * ** Darwin. ** Not a historian, but he took Hegel's idea and applied them to science. His biological application led to the Origin of Species. Herbert Spencer and others then used his biological ideas to support their ideas that a struggle among races of people and differing nations led to the strongest and most able nations ruling the world. Victory in combat meant the superiority of a nation or people.

I personally think that Marx's belief of continuing conflicts between the old and new ruling class is always existent throughout History as different countries that emerged from their traditional way of living to a more modern and Westernized way always had arguments between them and that it is inevitable especially when the former has been well established for a very long time. I find this belief somewhat well-founded but also problematic as to some cases of histories of other countries or societies, there wasn't necessarily any conflict that occurred between them therefore making this interpretation possibly either a well founded or problematic one depending on how it was argued upon.
 * ** Marx ** --Material Dialectic. Marx used Hegel's ideas and applied them to classes of people throughout history. Any ruling class controlled the "means of production" which gave them wealth and power to rule. Whenever a new method of production occurred, there was conflict between the older ruling class and a newer class using the newer and superior means of production. An example is how the Businessman and his money destroyed the power of the old Aristocracy based on land and hereditary ownership.

Class Responses to the Problems of History
 * What do we study? (What is the nature of the subject?) || Problems ||
 * The Past - To benefit in the future || Only written by the rich and the powerful ||
 * Different interpretations - Views of other historians || It's open to interpretation ||
 * So History doesn't repeat itself || Conflicting views ||
 * To study/analyze/discuss the problems of history and solving them || Controlled by the government and the media ||
 * || Accuracy ||
 * || History is only written by the victors. ||
 * || Reliability ||
 * || Beliefs ||
 * || Conflicts in accuracy of information ||
 * || Assumptions about why events happen ||
 * || Very limited sources from people of certain timelines ||
 * || Knowledge gained solely form what someone else wrote down ||
 * || Confusion in dates ||