Overview
In this lesson you will ponder the miracle of the Nile through the eyes of the first civilizations to appreciate its waters: What causes the Nile River to flood? We will see how the scientific method of hypothesis-testing has been used, ignored, and applied successfully in turn to the solution of this important question.
The Nile River was one of the most fascinating phenomena of the early "civilized" world. Every great scientist and philosopher from the Greeks to the Romans to the Victorian British wanted to understand this amazing river. Through study of the Nile delta, the branch of mathematics known as geometry was first developed! In addition, the Nile played a key role in the ancients' understanding of world geography. We will see how graphical portrayals of the Nile and its environs evolved over the centuries. Interestingly enough, the mystery of the source of the Nile was not resolved until the 19th century. The tale of this adventure makes for wonderful reading.
Learning Objectives
By the end of Lesson 5, successful students should be able to...
- Describe the scientific method and evaluate its utility.
- Locate the sources of the Nile River on a map.
- Describe three incorrect interpretations of the sources of the Nile River and place them within a historical context.
- Interpret data tables to identify flood events, understand the relationship between timing and volume of rains, and identify flood crest peaks.
Reading Assignment from e-Reserves
Electronic course reserves, or "e-Reserves," are articles that are available online through the University Libraries. You can access our course reserves by clicking on the Resources tab in ANGEL and then clicking on the "Library Reserves" link within the "Penn State Library Tools" box. E-Reserves directions are also available to help you learn how to use the online system.
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Biswas, A. (1972). The origin and the rise of the river Nile, in History of Hydrology, North-Holland Publishing Company, 105-119.
READING GUIDE: This article chronicles thousands of years of ponderings about the Nile by some of the foremost scientists, philosophers and naturalists of their respective eras. How many of the names do you recognize? Who plays that sort of role in today's society? Why didn't anyone simply hike up the river to find out where it began?
Deliverables
The following items are due by the end of this lesson (see the Calendar tab in ANGEL for specific due dates). Detailed information about each assignment and submission directions are included in this lesson.
- Discussion Forum: Analyzing an Ancient Map
- Topic-Specific Assignment: Flows and Floods
Questions?
If you have any questions now or at any point during this week, please feel free to post them to the Lesson 5 Discussion Forum. (That discussion forum can be accessed at any time by clicking on the Communicate tab in ANGEL and then looking in the Discussion Forums box.)
