Tomb Raiding and Probability, Homeschooling Blog, Grade 7

Tomb Raiding

When studying ancient archaeological sites, particularly burial sites, like the Lady of Cao, or the tomb of King Tut, our desire for knowledge and understanding of history and humanity must be balanced with respect for the dead and the rights of the people who live in the modern day countries where the sites are located.

Archaeologists must be very careful not to damage artifacts, or the body, and also to understand the processes and customs practiced by ancient people. Everything must be recorded and documented. The Lady of Cao mummy was found in an undisturbed tomb and is an excellent source of historical and archeological information and artifacts.

Over 1500 years old, the Lady of Cao has no living close family, but it could be assumed that modern day Peruvians are among her descendants, and her remains and artifacts should remain in Peru. As scientists and historians, always we should balance what we do with respect for others.



Probability


I just completed the Data Analysis unit. It was on probability. I had to work out a series of strategy. They all equaled a part/whole. If you could figure that out, you could figure out any question. I also had to remember that probabilities were all between 0 and 1 when expressed as a decimal, and could not be negative.

As a percentage, they could not be more than a 100 or less than 0. As a fraction, the numerator had to be smaller than the denominator. I also learned about mean, mode, and median. Mode is the most common outcome, median was the middle number, and I could find the mean by adding up all the numbers and dividing by the number of outcomes.

Looking back at the whole year, I found percentages and ratios the most helpful because they help with shopping and running a business. You need to know what the best prices are and so you need to know percentages and rate prices. When you go out for dinner, you need to be able to calculate tip and tax. If you don't know these things well, people will take advantage of you and over charge you or steal your money.