Yumi Liu - Week 11: Is It a “Fry” or a “Chip”?
Have you ever thought, what if you could change one event in history?
What if some people never existed within history? Adolf Hitler? Martin Luther King? Albert Einstein? Or certain places never existed on the map? What if the United States did not exist?
What if George Washington was never born? Would the United States still have won the revolutionary way? Would the country be able to break away from Britain? If the country never declared independence from Britain, then would everyone here call a french fry a "chip" instead of a “fry?”
Or
What if an entire country never existed? For example, China, if China never existed on the map we would have never witnessed the birth of Tiktok. China also created toilet paper, so if China never existed people would have continued using "rocks, leaves, grass, moss, animal fur, corn cobs, coconut husks, sticks, sand, and sea shell."
One thing I would be interested in changing is: what if California never joined the United States and became an independent country. As California is the fifth ranked in terms of global economy, we would be rivals with the US instead being a contributing factor. I think Hollywood, Silicon Valley, and the Golden Gate bridge would have been our national “must tour” spot.
History is so extremely fragile intertwined with each other that if something was missing it would cause a huge butterfly effect. In which I want to connect to how it is important to make decisions that you would not regret because of how small things could potentially completely change the future.
Hi Yumi!
ReplyDeleteYour blog really makes me consider how the world could be different with just a simple change in history. The part about China and toilet paper really made me laugh, and made me realize how thankful I am that we don’t use corn cobs instead. The part about picturing California as its own nation also really got me wondering what that would be like. I can totally picture it being filled with things like tech and Hollywood, and it makes me wonder if we would have something like the Golden Gate Bridge on our flag. The butterfly effect is something that I always think about, and your blog is a great way to show how small changes could lead to a completely different world. Great blog!
Hi Yumi! I completely agree that a simple change at one singular point in history could have huge effects years later and fundamentally alter the world we know today. Your rhetorical questions where you mentioned key figures and events that have shaped the world as we know it were incredibly thought-provoking. It's fascinating to think how Hitler, King, and Einstein were once children without any idea of how crucial they would be to shaping the future.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I disagree with some of your claims. I believe that even if China never existed and somehow disappeared into the oceans when Pangea was being formed, humans around the world would have been numerous enough to have devised an alternate form of toilet paper so that we wouldn't have to uncomfortably clean ourselves with rocks (ouch!). The human spirit is resilient and innovative enough to the point where even if one inventor was never born, multiple others could have come up with alternate innovations in their place. Ultimately, though, a different version of an invention is still a difference, and you're completely correct in saying that small things can change the future.
Hi Yumi,
ReplyDeleteI know I overthink immensely, but I do not recall the last time I thought about altering the history of the world through one event. The butterfly effect through the course of time has impacted so much of what we think in the present in order to be prepared for the future. As for California; ironically, California could designate a smaller piece of land to become its own independent state in a million years once enough earthquakes move the western half of the state away from the mainland, although the GDP would be severely reduced because of fewer acres of land for farming and other industrial purposes. For the absence of China, another broader example could be the fact that many businesses get their products made there, meaning that the country’s non-existence would lead to nearly all major businesses not existing. Great blog!
Hi Yumi,
ReplyDeleteYour blog caught my attention because of the name, of it reminds me of a similar discussion "are tacos burgers." And I think that the butterfly effect has impacted alot of what is currently present in our world. I agree with alot of the claims that you have made such as the fact that Britain would probably not call a "fry" a chip if we had not broken away from them. However, if California never joined the United States I don't think we would be a successful nation on our own. California is only successful because it has been under the rule of (mostly) smart and dedicated presidents uptill now. If California declared its independence, then we would be a very small country as well as a very broke and unfortunate country.