The+fighting,+technology,+total+war,+and+the+soldiers.

The Technology: Several new types of technology were created during World War I to aid in the war. One of the most creative new weapons was the use of different types of gases and mixtures that were designed to create an incapacitating or deadly gas. The first gas weapon was invented in 1915 by Fritz Haber and it was called Poison Gas. Through more research the product advanced into a more deadly gas known as Mustard Gas, which he had created in 1918 more close to the end of the war. Another item of technology that had been introduced was the first Tank. It was dubbed "Little Willie" on December 15, 1916 by the British. They were designed to bring in more heavy weaponry but also to act as a shield from bullets and gas. However, The tanks were pretty crude and were mostly too unreliable to be used for actual fighting. Oftentimes they were used to carry water and supplies to the soldiers. Another problem was that toward the end of the war there was a shortage of fuel. People abandoned their cars and tanks in favor of horses. A final major Technology made was the airplane, however they were used more as spy planes rather than transportation, passenger, or fighter planes.



The Soldiers (U.S.A.): The soldiers of the U.S. Army were mostly drafted into the army because the U.S. didn't have a big enough army to deal with a world war. In 1917 there was only about 200,000 soldiers in the army before they started drafting. Many of the soldiers had left families to fight in the war and almost all who were fighting were men. Soldiers had carried into battle with them several provisions to help them survive in the trenches and on the front lines. These provisions usually included 200 rounds of ammunition, 2 cans of corned beef, 6 boxes of hard tack, and a 1 quart canteen. Most platoons did not have many veterans in them to warn the new soldiers about the dangers of filling their canteens with alcohol. The rookies would get sick from the dehydrating effects of alcohol.



Total War: Total war is when a country uses all of its materials and resources to win a war. When the U.S. first joined the war they had the smallest resources which is one reason why they weren't incredibly enthusiastic about joining in the war. We had a small army and less advanced weapons had put the us behind other countries, however the U.S. fixed those problems in multiple ways. The first piece of action that was taken was through music, arts, and advertisements to get people to join the war. As if those who joined wasn't enough a draft was also created to increase the size enough more so that they could stand an even bigger chance during battles. A problem which needed to be addressed, with already low resources, was providing provisions and weapons toward the increasing army. This was solved by multiple actions taken within the homes of the citizens most of who were women at the time. When the men were out fighting the war the women took over the mens jobs and production rate of supplies for the war effort were increased.



Podcast

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Sources
 * Yockelson, Mitchell. "Prologue: Selected Articles." National Archives and Records Administration. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. 
 * "The National Archives Learning Curve | The Great War | Trench Experience | Warfare & Weapons." The National Archives. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. .
 * "The First World War 1914-1918: The Western Front | First World War Poetry Digital Archive." Oxford University Computing Services (OUCS) Home Page. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. .
 * "Main Page." World War I Document Archive. Web. 17 Feb. 2011. .

<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">//2nd and 3rd paragraphs by David. 1st paragraph, pictures, and general layout by Steph//