What is history

What is History

Karina Fakhruddinova Professor Arguello

HIST 30

“The unknowable has become knowable”.

Due to the technological advances modern life has changed dramatically in the past few decades. There is no such domain of life that has not been

affected by the technological innovation. The advances in laser technology and engineering have made medical diagnostic more efficient while the

surgeries have become less invasive. Technological advances have made “the unknowable has become

knowable”…

Shroud of Turin Mystery Mystery of The Shroud of Turin, Jesus Christ's burial

cloth, has been one of the greatest mysteries of this century. It cloth been a religious relic since the Middle Ages as many people believed that it was proof that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the grave. For atheists it was "one of the greatest hoaxes in the history of art". Until very recently, no one has been able to prove that it is indeed the cloth in which Jesus was buried. Yet the scientists still not sure how the image of a wounded body made it on the cloth.

Thanks to the modern advances in technology this mystery was solved in 1988 when radiocarbon dating test was performed on small samples of the shroud. The scientists from the most respected universities such as University of Oxford, the University of Arizona, and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology did the testing and concluded that the cloth is between 1260 and 1390 years old. Carbon dating confirmed that the cloth could not have been Jesus Christ's cloth because it is not old enough.

Anastasia Romanov Mystery• Until recently any people were fascinated with the

story of Anastasia Romanov’s escape because the remains of two youngest Romanov children were not found until 2007 when two armature archaeologists discovered their grave. The first grave of the Royal family was discovered in the 1990s and DNA tests available back then confirmed that it is indeed the bodies of the Tsar, the Tsarina and three of their children.

More advanced forensic DNA testing using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), autosomal STR, and Y- STR testing was performed on the remains obtained from the second grave. The results of the tests confirm that the remains are the two missing children of the Romanov family, the Tsarevich Alexei and one of his sisters. The scientists believe that the evidence they got is irrefutable.

Amelia Earhart Mystery

Aviator Amelia Earhart disappeared 72 years ago when her plane went off the radar while she was attempting to fly around the world. Radio connection with the her plane was lost and no one knows what happened to her or where her plane crashed.

Due to the modern technology this mystery is also about to be solved. Recently, a satellite high resolution images of the coral atoll near Nikumaroro Island showed something that remained Amelia's plane. Right now the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery is preparing a new expedition to Nikumaroro Island. They hope that the satellite images will help them to locate the plane and obtain material for DNA testing. The remains that had been recovered from the island could have been Amelia Earhart too. The scientists hope to get more evidence and re-identify them.

DNA Study Reveals the Origin of Humanity

Currently, the most popular hypothesis regarding human origin is "single origin hypothesis" according to which humans come from Africa from which they dispersed to other continents around 60 000 years ago. As a geneticist, Spencer Wells was able to confirm this hypothesis by finding DNA evidence that supports it.

Wells was working with geneticist Dr. Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza who is known for his attempt to construct a family tree for the entire world by collecting DNA samples. Due to the large sample of DNA data that they had, Wells realized that he can figure out the origin of the early humans and their migration by analyzing their DNA. The data he had suggested that all humans living today come from one ancestor who lived in Africa around 60000 years ago. In his documentary Wells notes that "As often happens in science," he said, "technology has opened up a field to new ways of answering old questions-often providing startling answers."

Spencer Wells, is a geneticist and anthropologist who’s study of human DNA helped to trace the migration of early humans.

DNA Study Reveals the Origin of Humanity

Dr Well's research project revolves around the study of y-chromosome because it is passed on from a father to a son without being recombined. This chromosome remains unchanged for generations unless some random mutations happen. In genetics, the mutations are called markers because they can establish the most recent common ancestor. Once the mutation occurs, it will be present in all males who descend from the carrier with the mutated y-chromosome.

In his documentary Wells was able to trace migration of early humans that started around 60000 years ago when a small groups left Africa for Middle East and India. Second wave migration occurred around 40000 years ago when the population of humans in Africa grew and increased the competition for food and mates. The climate became warmer which gave them an opportunity to migrate to Central Asia, Europe, and even Siberia.

DNA Study Reveals the Origin of Humanity

There have been a lot of criticism of Wells study in the scientific community because the results of his study are valid yet inconsistent with the other evidence that has been found. Fossil evidence along with mitochondria DNA (it is another part of human genome that does not undergo recombination and being passed from a mother to a daughter) data. According to another study, first humans lived around 150000 years ago. In his documentary Wells addresses the counterargument and says that the results of his study do not disprove anything. They just give another perspective. He asserts that the mystery of human origin cannot be solved without more advanced science, technology, and collaborative work between disciplines like genetics, molecular biology, anthropology, paleontology, and archeology.

COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE

Exchange of Plants and Animals

This documentary argues that the life that we see now in the United States is only possibly because of the many exchanges that took place when and after Columbus discovered Americas.

The exchange of plants and animals changed lives of Europeans, Africans, and Americans.

The New world became an exporter of nuts, cocoa, potato, corn, fruits, tobacco, potato, tomato, and vanilla while crops like bananas, beans, pepper, coffee cotton, citrus, hemp, oats, onion, opium, rice, sugarcane, and tea were brought to New World.

Europeans brought horses, dogs, cattle, sheeps and chickens to the New World and took back fowl, lama, and guniea pig. There was a disease exchange too. Mostly Europeans brought theirs deceases like plaque, cholera, smallpox, typhoid and yellow fever that devastated local populations.

Potato Famine in Ireland

Potato was one of the most successful imports. It was growing well in Europe. What is more, Europeans liked potato so much that they quickly became dependent on it. Such dependence even caused a Potato Famine in Ireland in 1845 when fungus devastated the crops. A lot of Irish people got sick with cholera, dysentery, scurvy, and typhus. Irish relied on potato too much and could not afford to buy grain from other countries. It led to devastating years of hunger and suffering. Over 200,000 people died during the famine years.

The best Import: Horse

Until the invention of diesel horses played extremely important role all hard work and hunting was done by them. Yet horses we see now are not native to Americas. They were brought here By Columbus as the ancient horses had gone extinct when the last Ice Age came. Since the first hose arrival, they became largely incorporated in the lifestyle of South American Indians and Europeans. Then they were brought to Northern America with the migration. Horses enabled Native Americans to hunt more efficiently as well as travel longer distances. Locals were mostly using them in hunting and agriculture. The movie illustrates that everything that we have now, our culture and traditions, is a result of the exchange.

The Catastrophe

Evidence of the Catastrophe

In his documentary "The Catastrophe" David Keys presents the evidence that suggests that there was a big unprecedented around 535 A.D. The catastrophe resulted in a lot of dust and debris in the atmosphere that prevented sunlight from penetrating it for many years. The lack of sunlight, in turn, resulted in severe climate change, hunger, famine, and floods. Many populations almost went extinct. Keys argues it was the beginning of a new era for humanity...