C ENV 110 Lecture Notes - Lecture 19: The Columbian Exchange, Columbian Exchange, Chickenpox

• School: UW
• Department: College of the Environment
• Course: C ENV 110
• Professor: Ray Hilborn

Document Summary

C env 110 lecture 19 the columbian exchange. A general term for the exchange of plants, animals, people, and diseases between the old world and the new world. Also applies to the major islands of the world: especially australia, new zealand, hawaii, and madagascar. Different countries were introduced to many new things. Vikings had been to the americas before. Chinese may have been to the americas. Potatoes didn"t become a staple until the english government began to officially encourage potato cultivation. Provides a lot of food per acre. Potato cultivation produced more food per area in almost any field: much less vulnerable to crop failure. Helped mitigate the effects of such diseases as scurvy, tuberculosis, measles, and dysentery. Lower mortality rates: europe, us, british empire. In then 18th century, famine was common in europe: food shortage limited population growth. Potato raised the carrying capacity of the farmland of europe (and other places)