Suez+Canal+Project

You will break up into five groups to research the questions below. Your group should post their findings under question.
 * I. SUEZ CANAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT**

1. What is the general history of the canal? (Alix, Pilar, Leigh, Hee-Young)
 * Who conceieved of the idea of builing the canal?
 * Napoleon Bonaparte was the first person to try to build the canal, but he quickly gave up when he realized that the heights between the Mediterranean and the Red Seas were too great. (The Egyptians had thought of this before too)
 * Why did the canal get built?
 * transportation and irrigation
 * to increase world trade
 * How long did it take to build?
 * It took ten years to build by excruciating and poorly compensated labor by Egyptian workers, who were drafted at the rate of 20,000 every ten months from the ranks of the peasantry.
 * Who financed its construction?
 * La Compagnie Universelle du Canal Maritime de Suez started to build it, but when they ran into financial problems, Pasha Said purchased 44% of the company to keep it in business.
 * Include a map:



2. What developments in science and technology allowed the canal to be built?
 * Post images

3. Why is the canal important to Egypt? (Ben, Victor, Tyler) The canal is important because 1. it is extensively used by ships 2. Taxes on shipping is an important source of revenue for Egypt 3. It is the shortest link from the West to the East 4. It saves time, money, and distance for ships 5. It is a source of foreign exchange to the country.

4. What impact does the canal have on the global economy? (Alessandra, Frenchie, Allegra)

· In comparison to the rest of the globe, Egypt is a small player. However, the country has an advantage with the Suez Canal being that it is considered one of the most important transport routes that makes it even comparable to the other states. o The geographical position is ideal because it achieves in saving fuel and ship operating costs in terms of distance between the ports north and south of the Canal. So, because if its efficiency and ideal location it makes it an ideal route to be used by the entire world. § About 8% of the world seaborne trade passed through the Suez Canal in 2009 · [] · Why Egypt is vital to the global economy is due to the Suez Canal o It’s one of the main oil choke-points in the world · With all that is going on right now, there is contemplation that they might close down the traffic in the Suez Canal. Even a temporary blockade of the flow of oil would cause prices to go up immediately and Egypt’s already weak economy would go into recession. o Europe is also very affected by a possible shutdown of the Suez Canal.

5. What are the concerns about the recent protests in Egypt in relation to the canal?

**Describe the nature of the protest**s. -Tens of thousands of people protesting -Protesters set fire to government buildings -Inspired by Tunisia uprising -Protesters wont stop until the government fails -Government banned public meetings -Police using tear gas, riot gear, hoses and rubber bullets -over 100 people have been killed and over 2000 have been injured

http://www.examiner.com/political-buzz-in-national/a-quick-and-simple-breakdown-of-the-crisis-egypt http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12289475 http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/363935,egypt-protest-summary.html

 **Where are the protests in relation to the canal?** The protests are blocking the canal from trade and especially oil. The canal is also the main source of income for the Egyptian government. Not only will Egypt and neighboring countries' economy be brought down due to the shutting down of the canal but it will also take a great deal out of the international economy. The military of Egypt is currently keeping the Suez Canal secure and not shut down because they still have the support of the people. Without the Suez canal, the oil industry would be in trouble, effecting most of the world and bringing the economy of everyone generally lower.

<span style="font-family: Calibri; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 1in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: -0.25in;">http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/egypt/110201/egypt-protests-suez-canal-oil-price

· What has been the impact of the protests on the canal (if any)? · What are potential consequences of the protests on the operation of the canal? [] - Canal’s website [] - Analysis of canal’s significance. You could/should search for other major news sources such as Wall Street Journal, other articles in the NYT's, or othe major newspapers. [] – Egyptian Maritime Databank [] - History [] The Science Reference Center (RE online database) - search under "Technology"
 * II. SOME POTENTIAL SOURCES:**

<span style="display: block; font: normal normal normal 20px/normal Times; margin: 0px; text-align: center;">__**The Suez Canal**__
 * PERIOD 4 - Enter your information below each question by creating space.**
 * 1. What is the general history of the canal? By Claudio Miro, Nico Arango, Geoffrey (Skye) Cole, and Paul Bott**
 * Who concieved the idea of the Suez Canal? Leibniz advised Louis XIV, the King of France, to reconstruct the Suez canal to have monopoly on trade. Ancient Egyptian Pharoahs also attempted to link these to seas.
 * Why did the canal get built? They built it to link the Red Sea and the Meditarranean. It was the first artificial canal that linked the Red Sea to the Meditarranean Sea and was open for navigation on November 17, 1869.
 * How long did it take to build? Excavation started on April 25, 1850, and ended in November 1869, which totaled in nineteen years of production.
 * Who financed its constrution? The Egyptian and French governments financed this in a collaboration effort. It costed 100 million dollars total, but it ended up to be three times as much because of repairs.

http://www.emdb.gov.eg/english/inside_e.aspx?main=suezcanal&level1=history __http://__www.suezcanal.gov.eg http://ncvpsapwh.pbworks.com/f/1243009535/Suez.gif http://library.thinkquest.org/c007680/suezcanal.html


 * 2. What developments in science and technology allowed the canal to be built?**

· The universal company of the maritime Suez Canal used new machine power and international negotiations. · They built through already existing lakes, which helped make it easier. · The company used manual workers under forced labor to build it. · They used state of the art steam power dredgers and excavators and other machines. · Supporting infrastructure was constructed, including roads, irrigation, and water supply canals. It’s a safe passagway for shipping. http://www.suezcanal.gov.eg/ It’s one of the worlds most important waterways. http://www.suezcanal.gov.eg/ It’s the fastest crossing from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean. http://www.suezcanal.gov.eg/ It runs north to south across the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt to connect the Meditteranean and Red Sea. [] It’s one of the worlds most heavily used shipping lanes. [] It connects markets in Egypt with those in India making for better comerce. [] It is considered to be the first artifical canal to be used in travel and trade. [] Egypt gets a large revenue from the suez canal. http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/Egypt/Background.html Egypt benefits from it because it’s an important point for oil shippments out form the Persian Gulf. [] Since it’s the shortest route between east and west, not only does it save time while shipping it also lowers fuel consumption and ship operating costs. [] Navigation is possible throughout both day and night in the Suez Canal. [|http://www.suezcanal.gov.eg]
 * 3. Why is the canal important to Egypt? By Jillian Blumenthal, Liza Kanter, and Chandler Precht**
 * 4. What impact does the canal have on the global** economy

- 87 different ship flags were represented in the Suez Canal traffic this year, against 99 ship flags in 2008

also. On the top of these flags were Panama, Liberia and United Kingdom.

-In the beginning, peasants that were drafted as forced labor did the digging by hand with picks and baskets. -Dredgers and steam shovels operated by Europeans took over later on. ([])
 * 5. What are the concerns about the recent protests in Egypt in relation to the canal?**
 * PERIOD 8 - Put your informatiuon under each question.**
 * 1. What is the general history of the canal?**
 * 2. What developments in science and technology allowed the canal to be built?**