History of the Roman Empire

Please answer the following question. Try and keep the original response essay to the question to between 250 and 300 words. Please use historical examples from your readings (lecture lessons and common reader) in this original essay.  You are required to cite your textbook or outside sources using parenthetical citation (author, page number) or using Turabian style footnotes. Please put your source(s) at the end of your essay (if using footnotes) and always include a bibliography. Finally, please try to support your essay using examples or sources different from your fellow classmates. I have put one verified source below for a reference of material.

Why was the Eastern half of the Roman Empire able to survive after the fall of the West? How did they encourage intellectual and commercial advancement? How did the increasing conflict between Sassanid Persia and Byzantium shape their development? Why do you think Byzantium was such a desirable target for conquest? 

Berger, Eugene, et al. World History: Cultures, States, and Societies to 1500, Dalhonega, GA: University of Georgia, 2016. http://oer.galileo.usg.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=history-textbooks