re: #126 Birth Control Works

I love this stuff. Science is so freaking kewl!

We talk in class about how the Shang Dynasty is the oldest proven dynasty in China, but that ancient Chinese, and most notably the historian Sima Qian, held that there was a more ancient dynasty called the Xia. I tell my students that the Shang was a mythical dynasty until the late 19th century when evidence was found and that I fully expect evidence of the Xia to be found some day.

The importance of a find from 14,000 years ago with such riches can’t be exaggerated, I think. So much of the human record is missing, but I like that they emphasize the importance of giving credence to the oral histories.