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How Scientists Are Solving History's Riddles |
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Newfound technologies are bringing researchers closer to the lost cities |
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and the lost people whose fate lies only in imagination. |
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Sunday, August 19, 2001 The Los Angeles Times
By J. MICHAEL KENNEDY Times Staff Writer August 19 2001 |
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In an article published by The Los Angeles Times on August 19, 2001, staff writer Michael J. Kennedy states that Joe Nickell, the author of a book about historical mysteries, has used “everything from ancient inks to carbon dating to tackle the questions of long-ago events.” Scientific methods have been used to corroborate, as well as disprove, historical accounts that have been passed along through the ages. Years ago I saw a documentary on television about The Shroud of Turin. The investigator analyzed the chemical composition of the “blood stains” to verify the authenticity of the shroud and determined that it had been nothing more than a hoax. When dried, blood crystallizes in a manner discrete from paint: comparing dried blood and paint samples smeared on the same fabric side-by-side, he showed the glaring contrast between them in a manner that would defy all claims to the contrary. The red crystals on the shroud did, indeed, appear to be those of dried paint, not the blood of Jesus. Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid (DNA) Testing DNA testing has led to a number of discoveries, such as the possibility that Thomas Jefferson was not only one of the founding fathers of the United States of America, but perhaps the biological father of at least one of the offspring of his house slave, Sally Hemings, as well. A Matter of Life and Death Sometimes the interpretation of DNA test results belies the truth: Joyce Gilchrist, a forensic chemist working for the Oklahoma City Police Laboratory, erroneously identified numerous accused as the source of specific DNA lab samples, leading to their imprisonment for felonies they did not commit. More troubling was the fact that she helped send 23 people to death row. Eleven had already been executed before she was fired for incompetence and unethical behavior. DNA test results are only conclusive when the analyst doing the lab work ignores their purpose, thereby ensuring objectivity in the process. It seems |
that Gilchrist envisioned herself as being a member of the district attorney’s team responsible for prosecuting the defendant until found guilty, whether guilty or not. The Gilchrist scandal broke in May of 2001, when Jeffrey Todd Pierce was released from prison after serving fifteen years of a sixty-five-year sentence for crimes he did not commit, based largely on the testimony of Joyce Gilchrist. Subsequent DNA testing proved her testimony to be as flawed as her analysis. Carbon Dating The discovery of the Rosetta Stone and the Dead Sea Scrolls led to a much greater understanding of ancient languages and cultures, some of which were translated for the first time during the XX Century. The use of carbon-14 dating to determine the age of the hides and infrared technology to read the script from the Dead Sea Scrolls may have served to quell a raucous storm of controversy about whether the scrolls were a hoax. Satellites The use of satellite technology to search for the ruins of ancient civilizations has greatly increased our knowledge of the past. The discovery of Ubar in the middle of the Arabian desert was a case in point. Closer to home was the discovery of the mounds left by Amerindians who had settled along the Missippi and Ohio Rivers before the Europeans had discovered The New World. Remotely Piloted Vehicles Remotely piloted vehicles have enabled scientists to explore the wreckage of Roman ships in the Mediterranean, as well as the Titanic in the North Atlantic. The application of scientific methods of discovery can be an enormous asset to historians conducting research, if they are capable of examining the evidence through objective analysis. Let us hope that they are. |
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Contributed by Richard Wible |
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