The Colombian Exchange
Autor: goude2017 • September 19, 2018 • 1,168 Words (5 Pages) • 591 Views
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It is difficult to say that the gains of the Columbian Exchange outweigh the losses because I believe that both the New and Old Worlds benefited and suffered from the Columbian Exchange. The New World was introduced to new crops and livestock from the Europeans. Horses provided a new way of transportation and communication in the New World. Europeans were introduced to the staple foods of maize and potatoes, which became a huge part of their daily diet. Unfortunately, the Europeans transmitted deadly diseases such as smallpox to the New World, which killed many natives. Some believe that the Columbian Exchange is a main factor in our current problem today, global warming. It is claimed that the natural evolution of plant species from the Americas could have been compromised due to new European species that came on the land. Yes, the Colombian Exchange could have played a factor in the rise of global warming, but I believe that there are many other factors that come into play when dealing with global warming. We should look at times like the Industrial Revolution where there was increasing carbon dioxide emissions that was needed to run factories and the Green Revolution where the emission of greenhouse gasses increased to transform and intensify agricultural practices (Laymen). There is a reoccurring pattern in history where we overuse carbon and other natural gasses that causes the emission of greenhouse gasses into our atmosphere, hence, global warming. Although we cannot pinpoint the blame of global warming on the Colombian Exchange, we, as a society, should be more aware of our environment and try our best to reduce waste and decrease the emission of greenhouse gasses.
Works Cited
Essays, UK. Columbian Exchange Yields Both Positive and Negative Effects History Essay. November 2013.
Gray, Sarah, Malone, Cory, Ross, Sean, and Ryan, Katie. The Colombian Exchange, Gettysburg College. 2014.
Layman, Emma. Feeding Global Warming: Assessing the Impact of Agriculture on Climate Change, PIT Journal (Cycle 6), 2015.
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