Does African History Disprove Jared Diamond’s Theory That Guns, Germs and Steel Explain Western Dominance?

Cynical Historian: "There’s a question in the history profession that if sufficiently answered could not only reshape how we conceive ourselves, but reveal the best course of action for politics around the world. What makes the West strong? While there are many answers, the most popular of these has been Jared Diamond’s "Guns Germs and …

48 Crash Course Videos on Government and Politics

Craig Benzine hosted 48 free episodes -- less than 15 minutes in length -- of Crash Course Government and Politics, for PBS Digital Studios. "This course will provide you with an overview of how the government of the United States is supposed to function, and we'll get into how it actually does function. The two aren't …

A Close Look at Alexander Hamilton, the Musical

A PBS Great Performances documentary on the phenomenally popular Broadway musical about founding father Alexander Hamilton. It's a great introduction to the historical figure as well as how to make history come alive for contemporary students. Hamilton's America. Clips.Hamilton in the Classroom. The full documentary is available on Amazon Prime or PBS Passport for $5 a …

New World: The Story of All of US

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A9OTqlZJFo Mankind: The Story of All of Us: “New World” Vikings in America 00:00 – 7:26 1. When the Vikings arrived in America, what tribe did they find? 2. Describe what happened between the Vikings and the tribe in question 1. Who was Leif Erikson? Who was Thorvald Erikson? Tenochtitlan of the Aztecs 7:26 – …

What if the Khmer Empire Did Not Fall?

Visiting the vast temples of Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world, in present-day Cambodia, one cannot help but ask how history could have turned out differently. What if the Khmer Empire, which ruled much of Southeast Asia from the 1100s to the 1500s, did not fall? Many people have contemplated questions related …

What If The Industrial Revolution Never Happened?

It's difficult if not impossible to realistically imagine what if some huge historical trends like the industrial revolution did not happen. John Green of Crash Course World History explained its significance in three videos: Of all the revolutions of the 1700s, one of the most significant was "a less warlike revolution, the Industrial Revolution. You'll …

Can Guns, Germs, and Steel Explain Human History?

"Guns, Germs, and Steel," the documentary series and bestselling book by biologist Jared Diamond, offer a fascinating if a provocative theory of human development, a kind of geographical determinism that discounts individual human action or inaction. In this forum, historians discuss the pros and cons of Diamond's theories. Diamond's theories aren't quite so simple. He …

Thoughts on ‘Man in the High Castle’

I binge-watched "The Man in the High Castle" on Amazon.com Prime over the holiday. It's an alternative history in which the Axis Powers win World War II, conquer the United States and divide it into three zones -- Nazi States (East Coast), Japanese Empire (West Coast) and Neutral Zone (Midwest). The first couple of episodes …

Pop Culture Embraces Counter-Factual Scenarios

The hit television series "Big Bang Theory" features a game called "counter-factuals," with the culturally iconic nerd Sheldon Cooper and his girlfriend Amy playing and defending their conjectures.. The Anti-Defamation League uses counter-factuals to inspire social activism... Youtube.com measures millions of views for alternate history videos... Online game-makers such as Steam, with 25 million registered …

Youtube’s Alternate History Hub Attracts 1.5 Million Fans

The Alternate History Hub on Youtube.com, as of mid-July 2018, has, remarkably, more than 1.5 million subscribers and more than 160 million views. Started in 2013 with posts about once a week, the hub is headed for the five-year mark, with more than 150 videos, generally between two minutes and 11 minutes in length. The …