What is the Maya Civilization?
The Maya civilization is a historical Mesoamerican civilization, which extended throughout the northern Central American region which includes the present-day nations of Guatemala, Belize, western Honduras and El Salvador, as well as the southern Mexican states of Chiapas, Tabasco, and the Yucatán peninsula states of Quintana Roo, Campeche and Yucatán. Origins Archaeological evidence shows the Maya had started to build ceremonial architecture by approximately 1000 BC. There is some disagreement about the boundaries which differentiate the physical and cultural extent of the early Maya and their neighboring Pre-Classic Mesoamerican civilizations, such as the Olmec culture of the Tabasco lowlands and the Mixe-Zoque– and Zapotec–speaking peoples of Chiapas and southern Oaxaca. Many of the earliest significant inscriptions and buildings appeared in this overlapping zone, and evidence suggests that these cultures and the formative Maya influenced one other. The earliest monuments consist of simple burial mounds, the precursors to pyramids erected in later times. Eventually, the Olmec culture faded after spreading its influence into the Yucatan peninsula, present-day Guatemala, and other regions. The Maya developed the famed cities of Tikal, Palenque, Copán and Kalakmul, as well as Dos Pilas, Uaxactun, Altun Ha, Bonampak and many other sites in the area (see list of sites, below). They developed an agriculturally intensive, city-centered empire consisting of numerous independent city-states. The most notable monuments are the pyramids they built in their religious centers and the accompanying palaces of their rulers. Other important archaeological remains include the carved stone slabs usually called stelae (the Maya called them Tetun, or "Tree-stones"), which depict rulers along with hieroglyphic texts describing their genealogy, war victories, and other accomplishments. For more info see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_Civilization#Origins
Are there still problems today that stretch back to the rise of civilization?
Yes: Hunger, disease, abuse, theft, uneven distribution of resources...
Could a civilization more advanced than ours have existed on this planet millions of years ago? What evidence could we use to rule out the possibility?
It is certainly possible. How easy it is to name and find evidence to disprove, or prove, of the existence of a more advanced civilization hinges on what you mean by more advanced civilization.A group of sentient beings that could cooperate better than we manage to, avoiding racism and sexism and nationalism and all the other things that cause us to torture and murder each other - that could be called more advanced, even if they never forged a metal tool.Another way to think about the question: say you wanted to establish a colony on a world, but hide your presence from the distant future. How would you do it?Leave metals and minerals in the ground, or only retrieve them from inaccessible locations such as deep ocean, or tectonic subduction zones.Dispose of the results in a similar fashion. Recycle absolutely everything, to keep impact minimal. Living in these zones would help too, if you can manage it. Use biodegradable materials whenever possible; avoid glass, ceramics, and permanent plastics.Avoid permanent dwellings and other buildings that would survive a sudden collapse of civilization.Avoid interfering with flora and fauna distribution and evolution. Use forest gardens instead of agriculture.Given a choice, alter yourself instead of the environment. You could build a calculator, or change your physiology so you can do perfect calculating. Or change skin instead of clothes, improve your eyes instead of making flashlights.Stay fairly localized with small stable populations; don't urbanize or sprawl.Use limited amounts of renewable energy. No nuclear or petrochemical.Limit satellites and probes; design them to disintegrate.Eschew burial grounds, simply destroying the dead.Focus artistic expression on music, dance, theatre, and other ephemeral media in lieu of sculptures and paintings.From our perspective today, maybe a bit of a stretch. Humpback whales might find it all pretty plausible though.
If Indian civilization is as old as European, then why is one so underdeveloped and the other so developed?
For most part of human history all civilizations were walking in step with each other. Right until 1500 AD there was very little difference economically among major civilizations.That great propagator of knowledge "Printing Press" arrived in Europe in late 15th century and enlightenment gathered serious pace from then on. Europe started pulling ahead from that point onwards and really accelerated during Industrial era. What we need to appreciate is that last 300 odd years has been like a break out chapter in human history where West really took off like it has never been seen before.I have no doubt India would have caught up with western world much the way Japan did if India was under Hindu rule who were great patrons of knowledge. From 13th century onwards Islamic invasion kept India under serious pressure intellectually. India's finest learning centers/ world's very first universities set up by it's Hindu rulers were burnt to ashes by the Islamic invaders. So India's age old tradition of quest for knowledge was razed full 300 years before enlightenment took root in Europe. We see glimpses of what might have happened then now in what is happening in Middle East under ISIS. Islam's military success in India delivered a death blow to Hindu quest for knowledge.It's only after Indian Independence Indians are getting a chance to rediscover what they have always been naturally good at. Science and Engineering comes easily to Indians and this is being recognised all around the world especially in the west.
How far did the fertile crescent stretch from north to south?
Approximately 640 miles from the northern Syrian Desert to ancient Jericho in Israel following the arc. The same distance was to Ur at the southeast point following the arc. The Hittite Kingdom covered most of modern day Turkey south through modern day Lebanon. Click the link for a map. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:H... The north part of the Fertile Crescent arcs across the northern parts of the Syrian Desert. The southern ends of the arc are found in Jericho (southern Israel) to the west and the ancient city of Ur in southern Iraq to the east. Fertile Crescent Map http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Fertil...
Can someone help with History Question Please!!!!!?
Pretty good in general. A couple of points: You allude to the division of the Empire into East and West only at the end. The division itself was tied to the lack of succession rules and internal instability of the empire - perhaps you could draw this in (briefly) earlier on. You could mention the time period during which the empire reached its greatest extent and how efforts were made to draw back o nthe borders afterwards. You include a few events about the demise of Rome that actually happen pre-Empire or during the Empire's infancy - do those really contribute to the Fall hundreds of years later (if you think so, you might need to explain that a bit). Finally - funny error, there wasn't a tribe called the Sloths. I think you mean Goths. :)