The characteristic of Columbus Exchange is that Europe is dominant; The content is rich; The scope is global; The result is twofold (positive and negative); Time is long-term.

The Columbus Exchange was a sudden exchange of creatures, crops, races (including slaves), cultures, infectious diseases, and even ideas between the eastern hemisphere and the western hemisphere. It was an important cross-racial event in human history. Columbus's first voyage to the American continent in 1492 was the beginning of a century-long large-scale voyage and the beginning of the connection between the old continent and the new world. It has caused all kinds of great ecological changes. Historian Avery crosby first put forward this concept in his 1972 book "The Columbus Exchange".

The Columbus Exchange has brought great influence to every society on the earth, and Europeans have also brought new diseases. The aborigines in America have lost many lives and lost a lot of culture because they have no antibodies. Before Columbus arrived, the population of America was unknown. However, it was initially estimated that at least 5-9% of the population died in this disaster, and it was estimated that there were about 15-16.5 million deaths at that time.

But from another point of view, this contact brought population increase and diverse new corn varieties and livestock to the two hemispheres. After the explorers at that time brought them back to Eurasia, corn, potatoes and tomatoes became important crops at that time. Similarly, Europeans introduced peanuts and cassava to South Asia and West Africa, which made the local area flourish and a large number of people settled on land.

This species exchange changed the lifestyle of Europeans, Americans, Africans and Asians. A large number of imported foods became the staple food of human beings, and new planting areas were developed for planting more crops.

Before 1 AD, potatoes were not planted outside South America. However, the Irish famine in the 184s was caused by the loss of potato harvest. In addition, in the 16th century, traders from Portugal introduced corn and cassava from America to Africa, replacing the original crops and becoming the main staple crops on the African continent. In the 16th century, the Spanish colonial rulers also introduced sweet potatoes and corn to Asia, which made the food abundant and stimulated the population growth in Asia.

Horse, one of the earliest species introduced to America in Europe, Turn native American tribes on the Great Plains into nomadic people who use horses to hunt bison. Similarly, tomatoes from America have become raw materials for making ketchup in Italy and become trademarks.