Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Secondary education

The Tale

The tale is a result of centuries of oral transmission, a short narrative aimed particularly at children's entertainment. It features fantastic characters.

Characteristics:

• Characters: Usually beings with magical powers; some items have supernatural virtue. The protagonist typically has a goal or mission, with an antagonist trying to impede them.
• Time and Space: Vague and distant.
• Structure: Simple and repetitive plot.
• Author: Anonymous.
• Language: Very simple.

The Legend

Legends are about the origin of a tradition, belief, or a known place. They seem real but contain elements of imagination.

Characteristics:

• Theme: Based on a true story, an extraordinary place, or known elements.
• Characters: Usually a protagonist who bears the brunt of the action

Understanding Environmental Impact

Appeal refers to anything that humanity uses to meet their basic needs and desires. These resources can be categorized based on their origin:

• Natural resources: such as water and air.
• Human resources: resulting from our activities.

Based on availability, resources can be:

• Renewable: capable of regeneration (e.g., solar, wind).
• Non-renewable: finite and not easily replenished (e.g., oil, minerals).

Several factors impact resource availability and environmental health:

• Demographic explosion: High population growth leads to increased demand and utilization of resources, resulting in overfishing and ecosystem changes.
• Uncontrolled development: Prioritizes the production of goods without considering environmental degradation.

Pre-Columbian Civilizations of the Americas

Christopher Columbus did not arrive in an empty land. Over centuries, great civilizations developed there, known as pre-Columbian cultures. While they had differences, they also shared many commonalities:

• Economy: Agriculture was the primary economic foundation.
• Craftsmanship: They produced intricate objects from ceramic, fabric, and gold.
• Urbanization: They built cities featuring significant architectural structures.
• Social Hierarchy: Priests and warriors occupied the top tiers of hierarchical societies.
• Expansion: They focused on territorial growth.
• Religion: All religions were polytheistic.
• Advancement: They achieved great cultural and scientific developments.

Some cultures, such as the Olmecs, Zapotecs,...

Structure of the Atom

Protons, Electrons, and Neutrons

Protons: Equal to the atomic number

Electrons: Equal to the atomic number

Neutrons: Equal to the atomic mass minus the atomic number

Bohr-Rutherford Diagram

Electron shells: 2, 8, 8, 18, 18, 32

Counting Atoms

Example 1: Na₂CO₃

• Sodium (Na): 2
• Carbon (C): 1
• Oxygen (O): 3

Example 2: 4Al₂(CO₃)₃

• Aluminum (Al): 4 x 2 = 8
• Carbon (C): 3 x 4 = 12
• Oxygen (O): 9 x 4 = 36
• Total: 56

Ions and Ionic Compounds

Ions are atoms that have either lost or gained electrons. While atoms are neutral, ions are charged particles.

Ionic Compounds are a combination of a cation (positive ion) and an anion (negative ion), typically formed between a metal and a nonmetal.

Example: Calcium Chloride (CaCl₂)

Calcium (Ca⁺²) has a charge of +2,...

Sound, Noise & Silence

Essentially, music is sound and the way it orders tones or sounds in succession, in combination, and in temporal relationships to produce a composition having unity and continuity. Sound is produced when an object vibrates, and it is what can be perceived by a living organism through its sense of hearing. It travels through physical mediums by sound waves, and it is normally a pleasant feeling.

Noise is a disagreeable auditory experience, but this is a subjective definition (for instance, most percussion instruments produce noises when they are played). Anyway, the physical difference between sound and noise is the sort of waves: sound waves are regular, while in noise, the wave is irregular.

Finally, silence is the...

Latitude: Temperature increases as you go south. Precipitation is higher in the north. Relief: Altitude causes temperature to fall and precipitation to rise. Mountain ranges are barriers that block air masses. The influence of the sea makes coastal temperature milder and increases the contrast in temperature in the interior.

Oceanic Climate: Galicia to País Vasco

Temperature is mild with no great contrasts, cool winters, and mild summers. There is abundant and regular precipitation with very few dry months. Vegetation is characterized by deciduous forests of oaks and beeches, meadows, and grasslands.

Mediterranean Climate: Mediterranean coast and interior

Precipitation is moderate (800-300) and irregular with droughts in summer. Temperature doesn'...

Philip V: The War of Succession and Its Consequences

Carlos II, the last of the Habsburg dynasty in Spain, died without children. Before his death, he had chosen the Bourbon prince, Philip, Duke of Anjou (later Philip V), as his heir. However, the Austrian Habsburg family, led by Archduke Charles (later Emperor Charles VI), also laid claim to the Spanish throne.

This dynastic dispute ignited the War of the Spanish Succession, which raged between 1701 and 1714. Spanish society was divided: one faction, primarily Castile, supported Philip V (Bourbon), while the other, mainly Aragon, supported Archduke Charles (Habsburg). The war concluded with the Peace of Utrecht (1713), which recognized Philip V as King of Spain on the crucial condition that...

Church

The Catholic Church soon realized that it needed to occupy a significant role in the feudal world.
Thus, clergymen came up with the Theory of the Three Estates (or the Three Orders), which divided the feudal society into:

• Bellatores (warriors): privileged noblemen and knights who defended the society by means of war.
• Oratores (prayers): privileged churchmen and churchwomen who prayed for the spiritual salvation of the world. They were the Pope, his bishops and millions of priests, monks and nuns.
• Laboratores (labouring people): non-privileged peasants who provided material sustenance to all three groups.

Pyramid

• King: top nobleman.
• High Nobility: dukes, marquises, counts.
• High Clergy: the Pope, his cardinals and bishops.
• Low Nobility: barons,