The History of Little Big History
Big History is a course where students study the entire history of our universe, divided into eight thresholds, which are events that take place for the first time in the universe and are turning points in history. In order for these to take place, the right ingredients and conditions must exist, which creates new complexity. Throughout the class, students learn about topics from the Big Bang to the complexity of the human race.
In the Little Big History project, students research about one specific object or topic, tracing it back to its origins and learning about its impacts on humanity. The object I have chosen is the whistle, which in its ancient form was a small hollow object (usually carved from bone) blown into to produce a shrill sound. This instrument’s modern counterpart, the smaller metal whistle, was first produced by Joseph Hudson in 1868 for the purpose of making loud, quick signals in a soccer match (as opposed to waving a handkerchief).
Despite this humble origin, the whistle has had many impacts on humanity. Its music has brought together communities for thousands of years, and its modern design has the capability to command people’s attention instantly with its sharp blast, creating a world in which machinery is safer, large crowds are more organized, and lives are saved by alerting them of danger quickly. The whistle has also become an international symbol for freedom of information in the form of whistleblowing.
In the Little Big History project, students research about one specific object or topic, tracing it back to its origins and learning about its impacts on humanity. The object I have chosen is the whistle, which in its ancient form was a small hollow object (usually carved from bone) blown into to produce a shrill sound. This instrument’s modern counterpart, the smaller metal whistle, was first produced by Joseph Hudson in 1868 for the purpose of making loud, quick signals in a soccer match (as opposed to waving a handkerchief).
Despite this humble origin, the whistle has had many impacts on humanity. Its music has brought together communities for thousands of years, and its modern design has the capability to command people’s attention instantly with its sharp blast, creating a world in which machinery is safer, large crowds are more organized, and lives are saved by alerting them of danger quickly. The whistle has also become an international symbol for freedom of information in the form of whistleblowing.
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In Big History, students study eight thresholds which are the topics of each unit. Since every new complexity of the universe requires the perfect conditions and ingredients to be present, these are outlined on a card for each threshold. The cards also list the complexities that form during these important points in history and their impact on the universe.