Cooking pot secrets
After analyzing starch from charred food residues in ancient pottery fragments, archaeologists determine that corn was part of South American diet much earlier than previously thought. The grain was likely a vital food crop for villages in tropical Ecuador at least 5,000 years ago. The starch analysis technique previously was used to track chili peppers in ancient diets (click 'See also').
University of Calgary; Sciencedaily 2008-03-24
Categories: ARTS, IDEAS & TRENDS, History & Archaeology
Index: archaeology, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Canadian Heritage, Caribbean, Central America, chili peppers, Deborah M. Pearsall, Dugane Quon, J. Scott Raymond, maize, Mary Ann Tisdale, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Scott Raymond, Sonia Zarrillo, South America, University of Calgary, University of Missouri