For those fascinated by the rise and fall of the Roman Empire, there is a compelling connection between ancient climate change and outbreaks of infectious diseases. Harper previously suggested that the First Plague Pandemic, along with decreasing global temperatures, contributed to the weakening of the Roman Empire. The latest research supports the notion that climate variations can impact the emergence and transmission of infectious diseases, according to Princeton University historian John Haldon. However, it remains uncertain whether various factors in the ancient Roman world, such as long-distance trade networks and densely populated settlements, increased susceptibility to disease outbreaks. To reconstruct the ancient climate, marine palynologist Karin Zonneveld and her team examined a large collection of fossilized dinoflagellates. These single-celled algae were preserved in radiocarbon-dated slices from a sediment core extracted in the Gulf of Taranto in southern Italy.
2024-01-26 14:00:00
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