ORIGENS

Em “Origens - 14 bilhões de anos de evolução cósmica”, os autores traçam o roteiro de uma ampla jornada científica aos aspectos macro e micro do universo. Neil deGrasse Tyson e Donald Goldsmith nos conduzem tanto pelo surgimento das galáxias e da estrutura cósmica e pelo nascimento das estrelas e dos planetas quanto ao quase infinitamente microscópico começo da vida, nos ambientes da microbiologia.

Origens - 14 bilhões de anos de evolução cósmica.

Iniciando com o Big Bang, passando pelo início da vida na terra e a busca da vida extraterrestre, os autores avançam até a primeira imagem do nascimento de uma galáxia e seguem até a exploração de Marte pela sonda Spirit, sem deixar de fora eventos como a descoberta de água em uma das luas de Júpiter.

• ANO DA EDIÇÃO - 2015
• EDITORA - Planeta do Brasil
• NÚMERO DE PÁGINAS - 384

Veja a postagem: ORIGENS (2).

ROMAN EMPIRE / IMPÉRIO ROMANO

The rise and fall of Rome

In 500 BC, Rome was a minor city-state on the Italian peninsula. By 200 BC, the Roman Republic had conquered Italy, and over the following two centuries it conquered Greece and Spain, the North African coast, much of the Middle East, modern-day France, and even the remote island of Britain. In 27 BC, the republic became an empire, which endured for another 400 years. Finally, the costs of holding such a vast area together become too great. Rome gradually split into Eastern and Western halves, and by 476 AD the Western half of the empire had been destroyed by invasions from Germanic tribes. The Eastern half of the empire, based in Constantinople, continued for many centuries after that.

The Roman Empire Map.

The Roman empire was vast

At its height around 100 AD, the Roman Empire stretched from Britain in the Northwest to Egypt in the Southeast. To get a sense for how big that is, it's helpful to compare it to the contemporary United States. The Roman provinces of Britain and Egypt were about as far apart as the American states of Florida and Washington. One obvious difference is that the Roman Empire had the Mediterranean in the middle of it, which helped move people and supplies over vast distances. Still, it's remarkable that emperors operating many centuries before the railroad and the telegraph - to say nothing of airplanes and the internet - were able to hold together such a vast domain for so long.

Roman Empire and USA.

The provinces of Rome in 117

The Roman Empire reached its greatest size under the reign of Trajan in 117 AD. To aid in administration, it was divided into provinces. The number of provinces changed over time as territories were gained or lost, and as larger provinces were divided into smaller ones. There were 46 provinces under Trajan, a figure that would grow to 96 by the reign of Diocletian (285 - 305). In Trajan's time, provinces in the interior of the country were run by governors chosen by the Senate, a legislative body run by leading aristocrats. In contrast, border provinces were run by governors named directly by the emperor. This was a security measure. Border provinces needed armies to defend against invasion, and emperors worried that if these troops were put under the control of someone not personally loyal to the emperor, that person could try to seize power and proclaim himself emperor. This wasn't an idle concern - coups and civil wars were a recurrent problem for the empire.

The provinces of Rome in 117.

See the post: IMPÉRIO ROMANO NAS RUAS DE ROMA.

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