Gibbon is able to make this claim since he shows that technological advances have skyrocketed since the Industrial Revolution, and he thinks this progress will continue thanks to the computer age.
In the Gibbon Passage, the natural disaster that struck the Roman Empire in 366 CE was a violent and destructive earthquake, followed by a huge tsunami which killed many people.
Galileo was an Italian scientist, who proved that the Earth moves around the Sun. The church believed that he was saying that God didnt create all things. Because of this the church took action against him and condemed him. Later on as time and technology improved the world along with the church realized that Galileo findings was true. Pope John Paul II argued that the manner in which the church treated Galileo was wrong. His reason is because they did not consider science and neglected to hear others opinion that was not those of the church.
The correct answer to this open question is the following.
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The commodity was precious rocks such as gold, and also other natural resources such as sugar, chocolate, tobacco, and potatoes.
When Christopher Columbus received the patronage of the Kings of Spain, Ferdinand de Aragon, and Isabella del Castille, the Spanish monarchs ambitioned new territories and to exploit raw materials and natural resources to get the kingdom richer. That is why the Spanish explorers ambitioned to exploit those raw materials found in the Caribbean Islands when Colon discovered America on October 12, 1492.
