a. http://www.museo.org/inca-history.html

   Although brief, this site presents the reader with the Inca's relationship with stone. Much of Inca history revolves around the idea that stone has great inner powers, and the Inca's paid tribute to stone in its cities and sculptures. The story of the Inca's begins when a God becomes angered at the people living on the land and casts them into stone. The site goes into length describing the importance of stone to the Inca's, both in culture and religion.
   The site also discusses how the Inca's thrived, citing their roadways, government, and counting systems as reasons for Inca success. The only problem I have with this site is the ugly background color that makes the text a bit hard to read. I'd suggest cutting and pasting the text to a word processor to anyone having problems reading the text.

b. http://www.theincas.com/history/empire_map.htm

   This site includes a map of the Inca Empire, helping provide context to this ancient empire. Although this doesn't appear to be complete (many of the links have not been activated), it also includes a section on the Inca rulers and Ecuador's history. Although the information is brief, it is easy to read and provides valuable to individuals not familiar with the Inca Empire
   Once this site is expanded to include more information, I feel it will be invaluable to entry-level Humanities students. For now, it provides a few good tools that are easy to read and provide instant information. I must recommend it.

c. http://www.factmonster.com/ce6/society/A0858773.html

   This site provides information on Inca agriculture, including terracing, drainage, irrigation, and the use of fertilizers. It also looks at the production of roads, housing and textiles. Like the other sites, this site doesn't go into much depth, but provides the viewer with brief, to the point information that's very easy to read.
   While it doesn't provide much depth, stating that the Inca's were capable of" Metallurgical processes included the techniques of smelting, alloying, casting, hammering, repoussé, incrustation, inlay, soldering, riveting, and cloisonné" provides a starting point for further investigation. I'd recommend this site to anyone looking for a first look into the Inca civilization.

B)

Manco Capac: I must continue to grow stronger.

   With the stone given to my people by the mighty Tici Viracoha, I shall build roads that will unite my people. River, nor harsh land, shall block these roads, and by them I will rule over my people. No matter how many lands conquered, these roads will ensure fast passage to all of my territory. With safe passage, I will send my best men of agriculture to bring prosperity to the most barren land. I've been told that we are advancing in terracing and irrigation every year, and I'm confident that my people will continue to thrive with these abilities.
   I am thankful for these gifts, and I must continue to demand that my people pay homage to Tici Viracocha in every dwelling and town. He has given us the stone that grants us power, and we must never forget that we must not offend the Gods by taking anything for granted. I fear that many of the children are growing up arrogant, and are not learning the important lessons of my people. My first reaction is to punish, but after much thought I've decided that I will attempt education before striking out. If they still do not learn, they will face the wrath of their God.
   While I prosper at home, my thoughts are to the vast foreign land I have not yet conquered. I must continue growing my kingdom, until I have found the ends of this land that surround me. This worries some of my advisors, but they do not see the future as well as I. With every piece of land I control, my kingdom grows stronger. I will continue to grow stronger until I pass, and even then my sons will continue to build my empire.

C)

   I was surprised to find many of the sites I looked over to complete my own first assignment when looking over my classmates' sites. Search engines are a powerful thing, and the need to be listed high on a search engine page was well illustrated by comparing student pages. There are probably hundreds of pages on Latin America (many addressing family and culture), yet a large group of students were taken to many of the same sights using basic word searches.
   Although I had seen many of the pages, there were some I didn't. Some of my classmates focused on specific regions and themes of Latin America, and by reviewing the sites I was able to add much background. Context is such a large idea, and any additional time spent understanding context will provide foundation. While Google works well, specific examples from these student pages is much more efficient.