Overview of Asia

Asia

Did you know?• Asia is located East of the Prime Meridian,

which puts it in the Eastern Hemisphere. – They are almost a FULL day ahead of us!

• The Middle East is considered Southwest Asia

Orient• Have you ever heard the word Orient?

• Do you know what it means?

Orient

• Orient- To determine the position of in relation to the points of the compass; get the bearings of.

• Explorers in this area were “obtaining their bearings” so they referred to the far east as The Orient.

• Today we refer to people from East China, Japan, Korea, etc. as Orientals

Monsoons• Definition- The season which

the Southwest monsoon blows, commonly marked by heavy rains; rainy seasons.

• The seasonal wind off of the Indian Ocean and Southern Asia, blowing from the southwest in summer and from the northeast in winter.

• Add this definition to your personal dictionary.

MonsoonsWinter Monsoons (Nov-Apr) Summer Monsoons (May-Oct)

Is the Monsoon a bad thing for India?

NOPE!• Though the word "monsoon"

often brings to mind images of torrential floods and landslides, the monsoon seasons are not bad times to come to India. Though it rains nearly every day, the downpour tends to come and go quickly, leaving behind a clean, glistening landscape.

Hinduism• Oldest religion• Many gods• Polytheistic- the belief

in more than one god.• Really monotheistic

(many gods morphed into one) Brahman

• Have over a million gods/goddesses

India Cow Suicide Story

Asian Brown Cloud• A layer of air pollution

that hangs over South Asia (mainly India)

• Appears as a giant brown stain hanging over much of South Asia.

• Most visible from January-March but is often times visible during earlier and later months.

What causes the “Brown Cloud”

• Growing population, cars, and the Indian people not wanting ANYTHING to hinder economic growth.

• Some of the fuel sources from cars and coal send carbon monoxide, soot and many different chemicals into the air as well.

• The air inside the home is often times just as bad as outside.

• This pollution forms brown clouds which reduce rainfall and temperatures.

Outsourcing• To obtain goods or

services from an outside source

• Many times when you call a cable company you are speaking to someone half-way around the world!

• McDonalds is next…?

Current Events In Asia• Japan Earthquake 2010

Another Big (6.6) Quake Affects Island on March 14, 2010.

• 6.6 quake rattled buildings in Tokyo

• Japan has state-of-the-art earthquake alert system that warned the country just before the quake hit. In 1995, a 7.2 quake near Kobe killed 6,400 people