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NEWS
Ancient World Uncovered By NOELLE NATIVIDAD Staff Writer
A recent discovery has had scientists buzzing since late July, and many have even endeavored to call it “Britain’s Pompeii”. The discovery happened in Fenland of Cambridgeshire, England, as a part of The Must Farm project. Founded in 1999 after archaeologists observed a few curious wooden posts jutting out from clay, The Must Farm has become a landmark for scientists, containing a treasure trove of preserved Bronze Age artifacts. The comparison to Pompeii is, of course, a slight exaggeration, seeing as the Roman town was far larger than the small riverside community discovered in England. Regardless, it is revered just as much by scientists for its age. Unlike Pompeii, this community was destroyed by fire and dipped into the river, where silt immortalized the homes and belongings of the Bronze Age men who resided in the village. This find has excited scientists the most; the new data that can be gathered about the primitive lifestyle is especially valuable. Among the numerous artifacts found, scientists uncovered beads, pottery, wooden plates, carved boxes, and a wheel, which is suspected to have belonged to a wooden cart. According to archeologists’ analysis, this community consisted of skilled carpenters who also farmed and hunted. Site manager Mark Knight called it “a genuine snapshot.” He told CNN, “Since the dig began last September, I’ve visited Must Farm three times. And with each visit the story has become more detailed, more enthralling.” CNN reporter Nick Glass commented, “You can easily imagine what it was like for our ancestors 3,000 years ago. Running across one part of the site is a narrow wooden causeway. Pre-dating the settlement, it rests there invitingly, waiting for us to follow in our ancestors’ footsteps.” Everything is there for archaeologists to infer what life was like, what people did, and even how the disastrous fire occurred. The one missing piece is the people who lived there. Glass wrote, “Inside the tent, watching the team of archaeologists working away on their hands and knees, I also sensed a feeling of unresolved mystery. This is a Bronze Age story without a happy ending. We now know that the oak trees used for building the roundhouses were felled in winter. The settlement burnt down the following summer barely six months later; it hardly had time to establish itself. Was it attacked? Had the settlers intruded onto someone’s else’s river bank? Was the settlement razed because of disease or out of superstition?” Glass’ questions may never be answered. However, a rare discovery like this only goes to show that nothing is ever impossible, because today, in 2016, scientists were just able to uncover a world that existed 3,000 years ago. nnatividad@apachepowwow.com
theapachepowwow.com
September 2016
Future Olympics in Asia
By BRANDON CHEN
Staff Writer
With the Rio Olympics now over, the excitement is slowly fading around the world, but Asian countries are busy preparing for the next Olympics. In 2018, the Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, will arrive. The 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics will be upon us shortly after, and following that, the 2022 Beijing Winter Games. All three countries have hosted Olympics before, giving them an upper hand in organizing major events. Pyeongchang is a small ski resort town on the east of South Korea’s mountains. Korea hopes that the Winter Games will allow Pyeongchang to become a major destination for winter sports. However, compared to the Summer Games they held before, the planning is going noticeably slower. Construction delays and local conflicts over venue construction have made it hard to attract domestic sponsorship, hindering progress. Despite a slow start, 90% of the domestic sponsorship target of $760 million should be reached by the end of the year. Even with these difficulties, six new venues are 80% complete, and a high-speed train connecting the Incheon Airport and Pyeongchang in 90 minutes is in progress. There have been concerns over the enormous cost involved for preparing and hosting the Games, as
well as maintaining facilities after the Games are over. Generating excitement is also a challenge, since South Korea is mainly competitive in speed skating only, yet optimists say the Olympics will bring infrastructure to South Korea’s less-developed regions, opening up a new winter sports destination for Asian tourists. The Summer Games are in a safe pair of hands, taking place in an economically stable country, Japan. Even with a stable economy, the government scrapped plans for the main Olympic Stadium by world-renowned architect Zaha Hadid due to the exponential cost, and some worry that a new design might not be ready in time. However, there is no mad
rush for infrastructure. The city already has subways and highways to alleviate traffic. To cut down on costs even more, events have been spread around to Tokyo’s suburbs where existing facilities can do the job. Being one of the safest cities in the world also doesn’t hurt when hosting the Olympics. This time, Japan hopes to increase tourism and show off the country’s technology to the world. Overall, things are going smoothly in Tokyo so far. After spending so much in 2008, Beijing plans to keep to the theme of “reuse”. It is already equipped with many of the facilities necessary for indoor events for the Winter Games, such as ice hockey and figure skating. Despite being so well prepared, there are problems. Natural snow is a rarity, and the surroundings lack steep mountains, forcing some events to be moved to the nearby province of Hebei, connected by a high-speed rail system. Also, pollution is the worst in the winter, but city planners say that closing factories and retiring older vehicles will help clear up the sky. Even with these challenges, Beijing’s expertise and facilities should allow the 2022 Winter Games to go smoothly. For the next three Olympics, we’ll be seeing more of Asia. Even with challenges, South Korea, Japan, and China all seem to have good plans in store for the world to see. bchen@apachepowwow.com Graphic courtesy of TOKYO2020.JP
Earthquake in Myanmar By MARUKO MYINT Staff Writer
On Aug. 24, a powerful earthquake tore through central Burma, leaving the area in a state of rubble and taking at least four lives. The earthquake primarily hit the city of Bagan, the past capital of Myanmar back during its imperial days. During the 11th to 13th century, the city was home to countless temples and religious buildings. More than 2000 of those pagodas and temples still exist, and serve as precious memoirs of ancient times in Burma. However the recent earthquake has changed the condition of many of these temples and pagodas. Damage to at least 171 pagodas has been recorded, but it is estimated that about 200 pagodas have been affected. The tremors came from the town of Chauk, which is 15 miles south of Bagan. Yet they were easily felt by both the tourists and locals. Maria Gomez was one of the many tourists that happened to be visiting the ancient city at the time of the tremor. She was walking to a river to view a sunset when she “felt the Earth moving.” “Everybody was very scared and everybody was shouting. Only after maybe 30 seconds we realized what was happening,” she told The Associated Press. On Aug. 25, the President, Htin Kyaw, arrived to Burma to address the disaster and talk with locals and officials on how to fix it. An official with U.N. Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization in Bangkok, warned Burmese residents and officials to carefully deal with the damaged temples “to make sure
the site is restored properly for the long-term enjoyment of future generations.” Soldiers and locals worked together to clean up the damage of the earthquake, sweeping and picking up broken red bricks from the ruins. Thankfully however, most of the bricks that had fallen off from the temples were from past attempts at restoration by the former military regime. With the temples damaged, the growing tourism industry of Bagan might be at risk as well. The ancient city is a top destination among the other cities of Myanmar, with its rich past and appealing weather. However, this may change due to the destruction left by the earthquake. Zaw Naing, a local whose job is de-
pendent on tourists, fears for his job. He is one of the caretakers at one of the many pagodas. “I’m very worried…there will be less tourists to Bagan,” Naing said, adding that he has three children to feed and take care for. While this earthquake may have caused major damage, there is hope. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is ready to support government and local organizations. This natural disaster is only a small step back in Myanmar’s current road to growth and recovery from the past regime. mmyint@apachepowwow.com
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