Download Food_lesson 2 ppt day1

From Gathering to Agriculture
The Mayans
Why Farming?
“In their twilight days, the Maya were a society
in deep trouble, according to the authors of
the new study. Densely populated cities
strained resources. Agricultural production
became crucial in order to feed the
people.” (Richardson B. Gill, author of The Great Maya Droughts: Water, Life, and Death)
Life in the Jungle
Maya diet: sapodilla fruit, jicama, sweet potatoes,
cacao tree fruit, tomatoes, avocados, macal (leaves,
•tubers,
Brainstorm
with
your group:
What
shoots) and
chili peppers
as well as corn,
beans—particularly black beans—and squash. Also
might
be some
foods
you aconitifolia).
could find
green
vegetables
like chaya
(Jatropha
in
this
forest?
Meat- in the lowlands, at least- included the ocellated
turkey (also the wild turkey), peccary, armadillo,
crocodile, spider monkey, turtles, deer, manatee, tapir
and howler monkey as well as various species of
saltwater fish, iguana and freshwater fish. A certain
kind of domesticated dog was also eaten.
Advice from a traveler
• Clothes: Use trousers, not shorts. There are snakes, tarantulas and
scorpions
•
Water is limited.
• Insect repellant: Have enough with you ! Expect heavy attacks ! In San
José, north of the Lago Peten, is an organization, that produces
traditional Mayan medicine. They sell a lotion against mosquitoes made
from the extracts of plants. The benefit is, that this is not washed down
when you sweat. I had it with me and used it during the five days. On the
third day after using this, the mosquitoes stopped to attack me.
• Light is attractive: It’s not bad to have a flash light with you, but don’t use
it when you eat in the night at the camp fire. You might be anxious that
some animals fall in you soup, tea or coffee. Don’t care, you cannot
change it. But if you try to light your dish to examine the content, you will
attract complete armies of insects of all sizes. Their only desire is to jump
in your spaghetti. So it’s better you eat in the darkness and allow the
insects to jump in the soup of your friends.
Hunter-Gatherer Challenges
• Brainstorm with your group: What
challenges might you face, finding
food in this forest?
So… Why farming?
One possible explanation for the downfall of the
Maya is drought. Central America is naturally
prone to drought, but one recent study suggests
that Mayan activities may have deepened the dry
conditions. In an effort to sustain one of the
highest population densities in history, the
Mayans
. They
removed nearly all of the forest and replaced it
with agricultural crops.
Through hunting and gathering, and then
agriculture, the Mayan people achieved an
advanced civilization. Take a
!