The Domestication of Maize in America

The Domestication of Maize in America Maize (Zea mays) is a plant of enormous modern-day economic importance as foodstuff and alternative energy source. Scholars agree that maize was domesticated from the plant teosinte (Zea mays spp. parviglumis) in central America at least as early 9,000 years ago. In the Americas, maize is called corn, somewhat confusingly for the rest of the English-speaking world, where corn refers to the seeds of any grain, including barley, wheat or rye. The process of maize domestication radically changed it from its origins. The seeds of wild teosinte are encased in hard shells and arranged on a spike with five to seven rows, a spike that shatters when the grain is ripe to disperse its seed. Modern maize has hundreds of exposed kernels attached to a cob which is completely covered by husks and so cannot reproduce on its own. The morphological change is among the most divergent of speciation known on the planet, and it is only recent genetic studies that have proven the connection. The earliest undisputed domesticated maize cobs are from Guila Naquitz cave in Guerrero, Mexico, dated about 4280-4210 cal BC. The earliest starch grains from domesticated maize have been found in the Xihuatoxtla Shelter, in the Rio Balsas valley of Guerrero, dated to ~9,000 cal BP. Theories of Maize Domestication Scientists have put forward two main theories about the rise of maize. The teosinte model argues that maize is a genetic mutation direct from teosinte in the lowlands of Guatemala. The hybrid origin model states that maize originated in the Mexican highlands as a hybrid of diploid perennial teosinte and early-stage domesticated maize. Eubanks has suggested a parallel development within the Mesoamerican interaction sphere between lowland and highland. Recently starch grain evidence has been discovered in Panama suggesting the use of maize there by 7800-7000 cal BP, and the discovery of wild teosinte growing in the Balsas river region of Mexico has lent support to that model. The Xihuatoxtla rockshelter in the Balsas river region reported in 2009 was discovered to contain domesticated maize starch granules in occupation levels dated to the Paleoindian period, more than 8990 cal BP. That suggests that maize may have been domesticated by hunter-gatherers thousands of years before it became a staple of peoples diets. The Spread of Maize Eventually, maize spread out from Mexico, probably by the diffusion of seeds along trade networks rather than migration of people. It was used in the southwestern United States by about 3,200 years ago, and in the eastern United States beginning about 2,100 years ago. By 700 AD, maize was well established up into the Canadian shield. DNA studies suggest that purposeful selection for various traits continued throughout this period, leading to the wide variety of species today. For example, 35 different races of maize have been identified in pre-Columbian Peru, including popcorns, flint varieties, and varieties for specific uses, such as chicha beer, textile dyes, and flour. Agricultural Traditions As maize was spread outside of its roots in central America, it became part of already existing agricultural traditions, such as the Eastern Agricultural complex, which included pumpkin (Cucurbita sp), chenopodium and sunflower (Helianthus). The earliest direct-dated maize in the northeast is the 399–208 cal BC, in the Finger Lakes region of New York, at the Vinette site. Other early appearances are Meadowcroft Rockshelter Archaeological Sites Important to Maize Archaeological sites of importance to the discussion of maize domestication include Central America:  Ã‚  Xihuatoxtla Shelter  (Guerrero, Mexico), Guila Naquitz (Oaxaca, Mexico) and  Coxcatlan Cave  (Tehuacan, Mexico)Southwest USA:  Bat Cave  (New Mexico),  Gatecliff Shelter  (Nevada)Midwest USA: Newt Kash Hollow (Tennesee)Northeast USA: Vinette (New York), Schultz (Michigan), Meadowcroft (Pennsylvania) Some Recent Maize Studies This glossary entry is a part of the About.com Guide to  Plant  Domestications,  and part of the  Dictionary of Archaeology. Carpenter Slavens J, and Snchez G. 2013.  Los cambios ambientales del Holoceno Medio/ Holoceno Tardà ­o en el desierto de Sonora y sus implicaciones en la diversificacià ³n del Yuto-aztecano y la difusià ³n del maà ­z.  Dilogo Andino  41:199-210. Ellwood EC, Scott MP, Lipe WD, Matson RG, and Jones JG. 2013.  Stone-boiling maize with limestone: experimental results and implications for nutrition among SE Utah preceramic groups.  Journal of Archaeological Science  40(1):35-44. Freeman, Jacob. Crop Specialization, Exchange and Robustness in a Semi-arid Environment. Human Ecology, John M. Anderies, Andrea Torvinen, et al., Volume 42, Issue 2, SpringerLink, January 29, 2014. Gil AF, Villalba R, Ugan A, Cortegoso V, Neme G, Michieli CT, Novellino P, and Durn V. 2014.  Isotopic evidence on human bone for declining maize consumption during the little ice age in central western Argentina. Journal of Archaeological Science 49(0):213-227. Grimstead DN, Buck SM, Vierra BJ, and Benson LV. 2015.  Another possible source of archeological maize found in Chaco Canyon, NM: The Tohatchi Flats area, NM, USA.  Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports  3:181-187. Haas J, Creamer W, Huamn Mesà ­a L, Goldstein D, Reinhard KJ, and Vergel Rodrà ­guez C. 2013.  Evidence for maize (Zea mays) in the Late Archaic (3000-1800 B.C.) in the Norte Chico region of Peru.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences  110(13):4945-4949. Hart JP, and Lovis WA. 2013. Reevaluating What We Know About the Histories of Maize in Northeastern North America: A Review of Current Evidence. Journal of Archaeological Research  21(2):175-216 Killion TW. 2013.  Nonagricultural cultivation and social complexity.  Current Anthropology  54(5):596-606. Matsuda, Masahiko. Upland Farming Systems Coping with Uncertain Rainfall in the Central Dry Zone of Myanmar: How Stable is Indigenous Multiple Cropping Under Semi-Arid Conditions? Human Ecology 41, ResearchGate, December 2013. Reed PF, and Geib PR. 2013.  Sedentism, Social Change, Warfare, and the Bow in the Ancient Pueblo Southwest.  Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues, News, and Reviews  22(3):103-110. Snchez-Pà ©rez S, Solleiro-Rebolledo E, Sedov S, de Tapia EM, Golyeva A, Prado B, and Ibarra-Morales E. 2013.  The Black San Pablo Paleosol of the Teotihuacan Valley, Mexico: Pedogenesis, Fertility, and Use in Ancient Agricultural and Urban Systems.  Geoarchaeology  28(3):249-267. Shillito, Lisa-Marie. Grains of truth or transparent blindfolds? A review of current debates in archaeological phytolith analysis. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, Volume 22, Issue 1, SpringerLink, January 2013. Thompson V, Gremillion K, and Pluckhahn T. 2013.  Challenging the Evidence for Prehistoric Wetland Maize Agriculture at Fort Center, Florida.  American Antiquity  78(1):181-193. VanDerwarker A, Marcoux J, and Hollenbach K. 2013.  Farming and Foraging at the Crossroads: The Consequences of Cherokee and European Interaction Through the Late Eighteenth Century.  American Antiquity  78(1):68-88. Warinner C, Garcia NR, and Tuross N. 2013.  Maize, beans and the floral isotopic diversity of highland Oaxaca, Mexico.  Journal of Archaeological Science  40(2):868-873.

10 Fiery Muhammad Ali Quotes

10 Fiery Muhammad Ali Quotes In 1964, when  Cassius Clay took on the indefatigable Sonny Liston, nobody realized that a star was born. Cassius Clay had just shaken up the world with his fighting spirit. Not that he was painfully shy about his talent. His announcement to the press just before his winning bout with Sonny Liston that he was the greatest failed to strike a chord with many  skeptics. In fact, his over-the-top arrogance tinged with narcissism made the world wary of this new wannabe. The Megalomania of Muhammad Ali: The Worlds Greatest Sports Star Just before the fight, Cassius  Clay aimed several taunts at the seasoned and dominating Liston, perhaps to intimidate his opponent. He shouted at Liston saying, Someone is going to die at ringside tonight. That evening would probably be the most unforgettable event for many boxing enthusiasts for two reasons. One, they saw a reigning heavyweight boxing champion go down. Two, a 22-year-old underdog with a motormouth and a fetish for trash-talking had just made history. Cassius Clay, who became known as Muhammad Ali after he changed his religion, took the world by storm. Each time Muhammad Ali won, he reminded the world that he was the greatest. He didnt say that he was the best, strongest, finest, or richest. He declared, I am the greatest! He pronounced it with  Ãƒ ©lan. He could work up a frenzy in the ring and announce his greatness to the world. Never before had anyone seen a sports figure so brazen, so in-your-face, and so brutally honest. When Muhammad Ali Went Against the US Government Most sports fan admire Muhammad Ali as the greatest boxer that ever lived. He took on many fights inside the ring and outside the ring. Those that he fought inside the ring were easy matches. He literally called the shots there. However, the ones he fought outside the ring were the toughest fights he ever had. Most of them were against the establishment. The man who could float like a butterfly and sting like a bee often got on the wrong side of the ruling class. His vitriolic statements sent the press into a tizzy. His witty comebacks and sarcasm pushed buttons of many a politician. When asked about whether he would serve in the army for the Vietnam War, he cockily replied,   Man, I aint got no quarrel with them Viet Cong. No Vietcong ever called me n****r. He had an uncanny sense of humor, a quick temper, a big mouth, and a soft heart. One of his wicked comments that often grab headlines is: I am America. I am the part you wont recognize, but get used to me. Black, confident, cocky. My name, not yours. My religion, not yours. My goals, my own. Get used to me.   Ali once said, Allah is the greatest. Im just the greatest boxer. And indeed, he was. As three times winner of the linear world heavyweight championship, a title held by no other boxer, Muhammad Ali was a nightmare for his opponents. He was awarded the Sportsman of the Century by the BBC and Sports Illustrated magazine in 1999. Muhammad Ali Never Minced His Words: 10 Quotes Prove His Indomitable Spirit Muhammad Ali was not just one of the greatest sporting icons that ever lived, he was also a great orator. Some of his quotes are legendary.  These 10 reveal what it takes to have a winning attitude. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. His hands cant hit what his eyes cant see. Now you see me, now you dont. George thinks he will, but I know he wont. These words made one of the best quotes in sporting history. Ali spoke these words just  before his fight with George Foreman in 1974. These words catapulted Muhammad Ali to instant fame.   Its lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believe in myself. You think I was shocked when Nixon resigned? Wait till I whup George Foremans behind. I done something new for this fight, I done tassled with an alligator! Thats right. I have tassled with an alligator! I done tussled with a whale! I done handcuffed lightning, throwed thunder in jail! Only last week I murdered a rock, injured a stone. Hospitalized a brick. I’m so mean I make medicine sick. Champions arent made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them: a desire, a dream, a vision. If they can make penicillin out of moldy bread, they can sure make something out of you. If you ever dream of beating me... you better wake up and apologize. Joes gonna be smokin an I aint even jokin but Ill be peckin and a pokin and Ill pour water on that smokin. Now this might astound and amaze ya but I will destroy Jo Frazier. There are two things that are hard to hit and see, thats a spooky ghost and Muhammed Ali. Like The Beatles, there will never be anything like them. Like my man, Elvis Presley. I was the Elvis of boxing. Im not the greatest, Im the double greatest. Not only do I knock em out, I pick the round. Im the boldest, the prettiest, the most superior, most scientific, most skilfullest fighter in the ring today.