New data on Easter Island’s mysterious past is a game-changer

Excerpt from sciencerecorder.com



A study recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

suggests that harsh environmental conditions were the main source of

population decline for the native Polynesians of Easter Island,

potentially ending a long-standing debate over the exact cause.

Researchers of the study, led by Dr. Thegn Ladefoged of the

University of Auckland in New Zealand, analyzed obsidian artifacts

recovered from a number of habitation sites on the island to assess the

regional land-use of the local inhabitants, known as the Rapa Nui.

The team found a shift in human uses of different parts of the

island, suggesting an attempt to adapt to changing natural environmental

conditions. Because of this, the researchers believe that natural

barriers and climate extremes may have negatively impacted the islanders

enough to lead to population declines.


“The results of our research were really quite surprising to me,” said

Ladefoged, according to The Huffington Post. “In short, our research

does not support the suggestion that societal collapse occurred prior to

European contact due to physical erosion and productivity decline, but

it does indicate that use of less optimal environmental regions changed

prior to European contact.”

Source Article from http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AscensionEarth2012/~3/iNB08KL60A4/new-data-on-easter-islands-mysterious.html

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New data on Easter Island’s mysterious past is a game-changer