After reading Course Lectures 1-4 and completing activities 1.2 - 1.4 in the textbook, compare and contrast the societies of West Africa, Europe, and the Americas at the time when Christopher Columbus made his first voyage to America in 1492. How were they different? How were they similar? Why was there conflict when these cultures interacted? What can we in the 21st century learn about cross-cultural interaction from the experiences of these societies over 500 years ago?