The Mayan people still speaking Mayan and still making their traditional clothes in the traditional way would be surprised to know they disappeared under mysterious circumstances.
Posted on 07/24/2012 7:54:00 PM PDT by Sir Napsalot
For almost as long as we've had civilization, we've lost it. There are records going back hundreds of years of explorers discovering huge temples encrusted with jungle, or giant pits full of treasure that were once grand palaces. Why did people abandon these once-thriving cities, agricultural centers, and trade routes? Often, the answer is unknown. Here are ten great civilizations whose demise remains a mystery.
1. The Maya
The Maya are perhaps the classic example of a civilization that was completely lost, its great monuments, cities and roads swallowed up by the central American jungles, and its peoples scattered to small villages. Though the languages and traditions of the Maya still survive up to the present day, the civilization's peak was during the first millennium AD, when their greatest architectural feats and massive agricultural projects covered a vast region in the Yucatán — today, an area stretching from Mexico to Guatemala and Belize. One of the largest Mesoamerican civilizations, the Maya made extensive use of writing, math, an elaborate calendar, and sophisticated engineering to build their pyramids and terraced farms. Though it's often said that the Maya civilization began a mysterious decline in roughly the year 900, a great deal of evidence points to climate change in the Yucatán combined with internecine warfare, which resulted in famine and abandonment of the city centers.
2. Indus Valley Civilization
One of the great civilizations of the ancient world is called simply the Indus or Harappan civilization. Thousands of years ago, it may have boasted up to 5 million people, almost 10 percent of the world's population, spread over a region that encompassed parts of today's India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. ...
(Excerpt) Read more at io9.com ...
Most of farming is “side income” today. We have people here who work 12-15 sections in wheat. Some cotton farmers work 1,000-1,500 acres. Some peanut farmers work 600 or more acres in peanuts. All of it needs to be rotated, especially the peanuts.
Those boring with a big auger take huge risks and have huge bank notes. High risk with high potential rewards, sometimes mother nature surprises you and the crops fail. When they do it takes years to recover, if ever.
In my opinion the diversified low risk approach is more sane. And companies who practice that survive.
bfl
Giorgio A. Tsoukalos
(aka Hair Guy)
I recently visited Angkor. They say the capital was abandoned after the decline of the Khmer Empire as too vulnerable to the Thais.
The Mayan people still speaking Mayan and still making their traditional clothes in the traditional way would be surprised to know they disappeared under mysterious circumstances.
Hey, Joe.
Yeah, yeah, and I suppose you were out of town when it happened.
Ring toss?
As they moved in, they sang “Angkor’s away”.
OMG! They were wiped out by Shrek?
Exactly. Out of town. Off planet. Not even in theh same universe.
Yeah, that’s the ticket.
Besides, how was I supposed to know that the shiny red button labeled “Warning: Will be the end of civilization as the ___________ know it.” was properly labeled?
For an additional charge, we can install this little blue button to get you down.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.