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34. Food – a catalyst for change

Did the ability to feed babies porridge help to fuel the population explosion seen in the Neolithic period? Did people take to the seas far earlier than previously thought to chase whales and seals? What is the difference between a flourishing desert frontier fort and one that dwindles into dust? We take a look at three times when food was a catalyst for change.

Insights and ideas Food makes or breaks communities: a change in the source of the food; a supply of nutritious prey within reach if you can just get to it; innovations in agriculture, and sophisticated means of irrigation that turn desert into pasture – all have had far-reaching impacts. Our three guests, with the help of support from the EU, tell us how food was a driver for social change for three very different communities in antiquity. Bettina Schulz Paulsson(opens in new window), an associate professor of Archaeology at the University of Gothenburg(opens in new window), Sweden, specialises in research related to the Stone Age. Her interests encompass seafaring, megaliths, prehistoric whaling and scientific dating and methods, which she explored through the NEOSEA project. Corinna Rossi(opens in new window) is associate professor of Egyptology at the Polytechnic of Milan(opens in new window). Her research focuses on the relationship between architecture and mathematics in ancient Egypt. Rossi’s L.I.F.E. project explores the antiquities of Egypt’s Western Desert. Sofija Stefanović(opens in new window) is professor of Physical Anthropology and Bioarchaeology in the Department of Archaeology at the University of Belgrade(opens in new window), Serbia and the coordinator of the BIRTH project. She is interested in the prehistoric patterns of fertility and the influence of the duration of breastfeeding on children’s health in the Neolithic period.

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