In chapter 6, Strayer talks about how several important second-wave civilizations developed outside of Eurasia. Many of them continued to influence the cultures of societies of today. The people that developed alternatives to civilizations have made contributions that deserve a place in the account of human history. On each of the different continents, there were agricultural revolutions, complex societies, and uneven distribution of humans and animals. Each continent also had their own variation of metallurgy and literacy. In Africa, Meroë was continuing to live in civilization in Nile Valley. Axum was the emergence of a new civilization that had a very productive economic foundation because they used a plow-based farming system. I thought that it was cool that people from the Sahara would move to the areas around the Niger River so that they can have more access to water.  In Mesoamerica, the Mayans had writing and warfare. They had urban centers, mathematics, and astronomy. The Mayans faced a sudden collapse after 840 B.C.E. Teotihuacán was considered "The Americas' greatest city" because it had a large population and a wide influence. I found it really interesting that someone could plan a city and it become very successful. Chavin, a religious movement in the Andes, was a village that became a center for religion. Moche, on the other hand, became very popular for their rich rich fisheries and river-fed irrigation. They had elite warrior-priests and fine craftsmen. Wari and Tiwanaku were empires in the lowlands. They had many distinctions, but very few conflicts. The remains from their collapse was used for the creation of the Incas. In Central and East Africa, bantu was beginning to be spread. The strengths of Bantu were the numbers, disease, and iron. I really liked how Bantu Africa had a less patriarchal gender system because it gave women more freedom. They had localized faiths and rituals that consisted of believing in no creator God.

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