Unit 3 - Ancient Rome Flashcards
QUESTION:
What river formed much of the northern boundary of the Roman Empire?
Rhine River
The Danube River also forms much of the northern border, but this is the answer that she is looking for.
QUESTION:
Which body of water was known as the main Roman trade route for Rome?
Mediterranean Sea
QUESTION:
Which mountain range is at the top of the Italian Peninsula?
Alps
QUESTION:
Describe how the Roman and American systems of government are similar? Give 2 examples of similarities.
The branches of the American government were like different positions in the Roman government like the consuls (Executive), the senate (Legislative), and the praetors (Judicial). We have a republic in the United States and there was a republic in Rome, both with three branches in order to have checks and balances. Also, some modern government practices evolved from Roman law, like trial by jury, contracts, wills, corporations and rights.
QUESTION:
Define republic
It is a form of government in which the people elect their representatives and leaders to represent them.
QUESTION:
Explain the 2 chemical reactions that happen to make Roman concrete last for thousands of years.
First, the pozzolana that the Romans put in the concrete mixture contains alumina and silica. These two elements react with the saltwater and when the water fills the cracks, it creates Aluminous Tobermorite, which is a crystal. The crystal then fills the cracks in the concrete. Second, lime clasts are formed in the concrete from the Romans’ use of quicklime and hot mixing, which made the construction faster and it made it so that the concrete could heal itself. If any cracks appeared in the concrete, the lime clasts would react with the water to make calcium hydroxide, which from there would react with the surrounding carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to create calcium carbonate. These previously appeared as bad mixing, but later they were discovered to be intentional.
QUESTION:
Explain the impact of learning about Roman concrete for modern engineers.
By learning about what made Roman concrete so strong, long-lasting, and durable, modern engineers can use or adapt some of their techniques to improve modern concrete and continue building reliable and environmentally responsible structures. It helps the environment by reducing our emissions, since we have to create less concrete, overall reducing our carbon footprint.
QUESTION:
Name 3 things that were constructed in Rome using concrete:
The Romans used concrete to make the roads, aqueducts, harbors, the Roman Republic, and structures (such as the Pantheon and the Colosseum).
QUESTION:
Explain the political purpose of the Colosseum
Since the Colosseum was clearly expensive to build and demonstrated an amazing feat of construction, it proved that Rome was politically powerful and could do anything they wanted. Since the events were dramatic and people came from all over to see them, the rulers could show off to their citizens. The Colosseum was also a way to control the people of Rome, since he keeps them happy so they don’t see what the government was actually doing behind the scenes.
QUESTION:
Describe how the elevators worked and where they were located.
There were 88 elevators in the hypogeum (tunnels running all throughout underneath the Colosseum) that were accessible through trap doors. The elevators were operated by men who would spin a capstan (a system of pulleys and ropes) to raise or lower the elevator which were carrying props, scenery, animals, cages, or gladiators to or from the arena. The cage would stop right below the trap door and the trap door would unfold into a ramp, making it so the animal or person appeared to be emerging from the surface.
QUESTION:
Identify the writing challenges that caused the Romans to create the Codex. What does the word derive from?
Before Codex, Romans used scrolls to write on. Scrolls were way too long and were not ideal for efficiency. Scrolls could only be written on one side of it unless the information was unnecessary on one of the sides, because reading double-sided scrolls were hard to read. This caused scrolls to be even longer. Codex is from the word caudex (tree trunk), since it was similar to the writing tablets made from wood.
QUESTION:
Why were baths so important to the Romans?
Romans valued being clean and it made them think that they were better than others and they showed off. Political leaders could also gather there to have discussions and make political agreements. This is because the baths were soothing, so you were more likely to get what you wanted if the other person was calm.
QUESTION:
Name 3 types of rooms they have at the Roman baths? What are they used for?
The three main bath chambers were the frigidarium that often had a swimming pool (the cold room), the caldarium (the hot room), and the tepidarium (the warm room).
QUESTION:
What kind of heating technology did they use in the Roman bath houses? And how did they work?
One of the Roman’s heating methods was called Hypocaust, where hot air was circulated through the floors of the baths (It was the furnace itself). Another was Hollow walls, where the walls were hollow and hot air moved around inside of them. This made it so windows could be added without too much heat being lost. Next, special bricks were when bosses at the corners of bricks trapped hot air inside so that it increased insulation. Finally, solar energy was a heating method where radiant heating and solar energy were mixed to heat the bathhouse.
QUESTION:
Explain how infrastructure and building projects helped tie the Roman Empire together and create a common culture.
Once the Romans began to conquer more places, the creation of roads spanning from one place to another connected everyone and allowed for culture to be shared.
