Rice: Then And Now Essay

2288 words - 9 pages

Rice by today’s standards is not an exciting food, but it is in fact one of the most important natural resources that humans have ever depended upon. Different cultures of people for thousands of years, spanning from India to China to Japan have used rice as their staple crop. Today especially, rice continues to be a vital grain for modern day human beings. Through this early dependency, rice became domesticated, which arguably is one of the most impactful events on the development of human agriculture and civilization. Rice now is farmed in different ways, including traditional, conventional and organic. Rice has become common processed food in supermarkets and one can easily find different foods that contain rice or its byproducts; through the increase in processing foods, rice has been transformed into an economic giant. With this higher demand for rice, scientists began to manipulate rice to become a higher yielding crop per acre, leading to the creation multiple hybrids of rice. This increase in hybridization led to what is now referred to as the Green Revolution. While rice is an incredibly important food nutritionally and economically, it has important non-food uses; current research has shown the possibility to use rice’s byproducts as an alternate source of fuel. With the present-day threat of global warming, this is an extremely important advance in green technology.
Rice began to influence humans thousands of years ago, with its range of two hundred thousand different varieties, the most of any grain crop. While the first culture to develop rice has been difficult to determine, the use of rice can be dated back to the Neolithic era, from 7150-4500 B.C.E. (Katz 194). The areas where rice may have originated from continues to be a debated issue. Some researchers argue that rice originated from Northern China, then spread south; on the other hand, other scientists believe that rice came from South or South East Asia, ranging from China, India, Thailand and Indonesia (Katz 194). The successfulness of rice can be attributed to its amazing versatility as a plant, possessing the ability to grow in dry or wet places and even fields at extremely high altitudes. The exact origin may still be a discussed topic, but the effects of its dispersion to different areas of the world can be chronologically listed. The spread of rice is chronologically listed as the following: China to areas of the Philippines around 2000 B.C.E., China to Korea and later Japan at approximately 200 B.C.E. After these locations, rice began to be seen in other parts of the world, such as the Mediterranean, Europe and Africa; the theory behind the spread of rice is credited to Persian traders and China’s trade routes. South America became introduced to rice due to Spanish conquistadors in the 1500s, followed shortly by North America in the 1600s. Australia became the last continent to be exposed to rice during the 1900s (Katz 195).
Rice’s impact on humanity can be seen in a...

Find Another Essay On Rice: Then and Now

Passover: Then and Now Essay

2651 words - 11 pages restriction that God had delivered to Abraham. Now, anyone who would come to trust in the Messiah could become part of the new covenant of grace. On the tenth day, of the first month, each large family was to select a lamb to slaughter. The ram must be perfect and without defect or blemish. The ram would come to signify their sins, and through the sacrifice of him, the Israelite’s sins would also be transferred . The perfect and healthy lamb would

Film Industry: Then And Now Essay

1103 words - 4 pages Film: Then and Now The film industry has always been somewhat of a dichotomy. Grounded firmly in both the worlds of art and business the balance of artistic expression and commercialization has been an issue throughout the history of filmmaking. The distinction of these two differing goals and the fact that neither has truly won out over the other in the span of the industry's existence, demonstrates a lot of information about the nature of

Women's History Then and Now

1734 words - 7 pages "That’s Equality?: Women Now Earn MORE Than Men Across US." Debbie Schlussel. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 May 2011. . Heathfield, Susan M.. "Women and Work: Then, Now, and Predicting the Future for Women in the Workplace." Human Resources - Business Management Development Jobs Consulting Training Policy Human Resources. N.p., n.d

Reference Librarians: Then and Now

1565 words - 6 pages Billeter begins her article highlighting the ways that reference has not changed. Some of the ways are people do not know how to ask questions, but they ask them because they need answers. They do not know that libraries provide free reference services not available elsewhere, but those who do know come with a wide range of expectations, knowledge, and understanding of information. (2010, p. 34) She then proceeds to clarify the ways that

Law Enforcement: Then and Now

1353 words - 5 pages ://www.chiefwalters.com/philosophy/). This new way of preventing crime has beenstrongly approved by many. Typically minority officers approve of community orientedpolicing more then white officers. So far community policing has made gains inimproving the safety of communities.Police abuse is a serious national problem. Both in the past and now police havebeen abusing their power. This especially affects young people and minorities. Whilemany police officers do

Women's Roles Then and Now

1093 words - 4 pages Women's Roles Then and Now Bob Dylan once wrote, the times they are a-changin', I beg to differ. The 1960's were defiantly a time of dramatic change with the introduction of the women's liberation movement. But has all that much changed? Are all western women really liberated or are they simply being told so and believing every word, like the good little housewives men want them to be? A comparison between the Elizabethan era view of

The Declaration Then And Now

1333 words - 5 pages The Declaration Then and Now      The year was sixteen hundred and eighty-nine and a man by the name of John Locke wrote Second Treatise on Government (Zinn 73). In it, Locke wrote that in a natural state everyone, all people, are born free and equal, and possess certain rights. He said that these “natural rights” were life, liberty, and property. He also said that the evildoers who conspired to deprive others of their

Sigmund Freud Then and Now

1115 words - 4 pages hysterical paralysis, under hypnosis Freud would tell them that they could. He discovered that these were not permanent cures, and the patient would return to the hysterical state after hypnosis. Freud's colleague Breuer realized that if the patient could be hypnotized into reliving the initial experience that caused the hysterical symptom, the symptom would then disappear. Freud and Breuer concluded that hysterical people suffered mainly from reminiscing

Witch Hunts: Then and Now

3111 words - 12 pages severe punishment from both church and court was inflicted. The concept of witchcraft drifted from Europe to colonial America mostly due to the overwhelming amount of agriculture and farming where it was known that farmers and peasants sometimes used charms in hopes to bring about a bountiful harvest. Over time, across many cultures, the idea of white magic transformed into dark magic and then eventually dissolved into just demons and evil

Gender Roles: Then and Now

1705 words - 7 pages stating that he will still love her even if she goes through with the operation. “‘It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig,’ the man said. ‘It’s not really an operation at all.’” Jig responds by stating, “‘And you think then we’ll be all right and be happy.’ ‘I know we will. You don’t have to be afraid. I’ve known lots of people that have done it’” (Hemingway 115). The dialogue between the two characters confirms the American’s dominance over

Treatment of Common Ailments: Then and Now

928 words - 4 pages What if you went to the doctor for a cold and the doctor told you the cause were evil spirits? In medieval times this would have been the case. It is now known that these illnesses are caused by bacteria and viruses; but, back then the concept would be considered witchcraft or insanity. The Treatment of common ailments has drastically changed from medieval Europe to modern times. A common practice was bloodletting, for any

Similar Essays

Then And Now Essay

1651 words - 7 pages Racism a problem in the 1930’s. It is also a problem now. In America we have the attitude that our rights supersede the rights of anyone different then us. We don’t have the right to make laws for any other race. The Jim Crow laws are gone but have they been replaced by new laws? Is saying that your racially paranoid any different then saying your racist? How is scanning the Middle eastern man before he gets on a plain any different from

Automobiles Then And Now Essay

1349 words - 5 pages Automobiles Then and Now The automobile has become an important part in our nations economy. In fact such an important part that is has called for many changes through out its history. One of the main changes is the body. In the 1950's the body was made mostly of steel. This was okay if you like bulky, heavy, gas guzzling cars. The main reason why steel was so widely used is that the steel industry was so huge and steel was so cheep

Homeless Now And Then Essay

851 words - 3 pages Homeless Now and ThenThere is an ancient proverb that states "Judge not, lest ye be judged" (King James Version, Matt.7.1). There is a lot of truth to that statement. However, I would contend that it should say "Judge not, because you don't have enough information." Just as old as the proverb is a sub-culture in human society known as the homeless. I have my own experience with this group of people that has mingled through the fabric of humanity

Cuba: Then And Now Essay

2294 words - 9 pages Cuba: Then and Now In the Treaty of Paris of 1898, Spain relinquished all sovereignty over Cuba. For a time, the policy of the United States toward Cuba was somewhat ambivalent. The Teller Amendment at the beginning of the Spanish-American War had pledged the restoration of Cuba to the Cubans. However, at the same time the United States was determined that it would not be placed after the war with Spain in a worse position in regard to