Howdy, party people. Again,I asked the LLM’s what the topic for this week should be. Last week Chad (ChatGPT) suggested “Transformations,” so this week I leaned into Bard for some “Bardic Inspiration” (Where my D&D nerds at?). So, Bard suggested “Ancient Civilizations.” So here we are ready to answer 20 Questions (collected from Chad, Bard, Claude, Peter, and Some Other Guy) about Ancient Civilizations as suggested by the Bard itself. Some of these questions are super fun.

Onto the Questions:

1. Which lesser-known ancient civilization would you most want to learn more about? What are some lesser-known ancient civilizations that had significant impacts on the development of human history, and why are they often overlooked? What overlooked ancient civilization deserves more thorough study and understanding by historians? Can you name an obscure ancient civilization that deserves more recognition? (these are all questions asked by multiple LLM’s that basically are the same question.)

There are so many lesser civilizations that I would love to learn more about. The Hyksos, the Olmecs, the Silla, the Lapita, the Chavin, and the Mississipian Cohakian culture. These cultures are often overlooked because they are often overshadowed by the cultures that come after them. For example, no one cares about the Olmecs because the Aztecs seem more interesting due to their interaction with Europeans. The other reason is that the Euro-centric colonizer history doesn’t give a shit about non-european cultures like the Silla.

2. Do you think the Lapita people could be considered the first great maritime civilization?

I truly do. I did not know they existed until I saw the Nat Geo Lost Cities Revealed with Albert Lin Special about the area. It focused on the Saudeleur Dynasty, but indications are that the city of Nan Madol was initially settled by the Lapita.

3. How much truth is there behind the allegations of Ancient Aliens theorists like Giorgio Tsoukalos? What evidence exists for ancient civilizations interacting with extraterrestrial beings or possessing advanced technological knowledge?

There is no truth to it. It is an inherently racist theory that ancient brown peoples could not have possibly erected massive, extremely intricate and precise structures prior to the dirt farming Europeans without the aid of extra-terrestrial assistance. There is no evidence, only conjecture and racism.

4. In the Civilization game series, which civ has the most satisfying musical theme?

I kind of dig the Australians’ Theme. It is a nice blend of relatively modern European folk music with the underlying aboriginal didgeridoo humming underneath. It gets a little less compelling as the civ progresses through the ages, but I really dig the starting theme.

5. Was/is Atlantis real? How much historical truth might lie beneath the fantastical elements of the Atlantis theory? (Again, a multiple LLM-sourced question)

No. Atlantis was a thought experiment put forward by Plato that was latched onto and corrupted by Nazi’s to propagate Northern European superiority by equating the Atlanteans with a blonde-haired, blue-eyed uber-mensch highly advanced lost culture that was better and predated than the swarthy Greeks, the Middle Eastern Mesopotamians, or the sand-riddled Egyptians.

6. How might modern society be different if an ancient civilization like the Mayans or Khmer had achieved global dominance?

Well, the Khmer and Mayans were not influenced by the Feudal European history which was heavily influenced by the Greco-Roman ancient civilizations. So, Look at modern cultures such as China, Japan, or India for just how different a modern culture can be that is not based on the ancient Greco-Roman civilizations.

7. Do you find any merit in the theory that the Sphinx was originally an ancient Anunnaki monument?

Not specifically the Anunnaki culture, but I believe the base yardang of the Sphinx existed before the Egyptians carved it into what we see today. There are many indications that it has been a venerated rock structure for much longer than the Giza Plateau was a desert.

8. What wisdom or lessons from ancient civilizations could help guide humanity through our current crossroads?

Um… all of them? I think the more we learn about the fall of ancient civilizations the better off modern civilizations will be. I also think it is important to understand that culture is in a constant state of evolution, and that the pressures of that evolution are acted upon by the history of culture in general.

9. What are some of the most intriguing conspiracy theories surrounding ancient civilizations, and Why do you think they continue to captivate people's imaginations? What's the most compelling conspiracy theory surrounding an ancient civilization, and why does it persist? (these repetitive questions was also asked by multiple LLM’s)

The more intriguing theories to me have nothing to do with grand conspiracies as much as they have to do with the exaggeration of story over time. The stand of the 300 at Thermopylae? We supposedly have “good” historical records of the numbers of troops, but those are skewed by making the Spartans out to be the super soldiers as depicted in the graphic novel and movie 300. How real is that? Not-real-at-all real.

10. How did ancient civilizations adapt to their environments and overcome limitations such as geography and climate?

Ummm… the same way we do, with technology and effort. The technology was just less advanced than it is now.

11. What role did religion and spirituality play in shaping the beliefs and practices of ancient civilizations, and how did these beliefs influence their societies?

I think it is important to recognize that in ancient societies, technology and religion were not mutually exclusive things. Religion, religious stories, and folklore was a way to try and explain the (at the time) unexplainable. Thunder is caused by the wrath of a god, not the increasing build up and subsequent release of a static charge that causes the air to cavitate and create the peel of thunder. Many ancient religions were, in effect, the science of the day.

12. How did ancient civilizations communicate and record information, and what impact did their writing systems have on the transmission of knowledge?

Persistent writing changed everything. It made a record of the mundane things like accounting and inventories exist beyond the time of their immediate usefulness. It freed up storie tellers from having to memorize sooo much, and allowed them to tell more intricate and less sing-song stories. Written language was a game changer.

13. What were the major economic systems and trade networks of ancient civilizations, and how did they facilitate cultural exchange and globalization? How did trade routes and networks shape the development of ancient civilizations? (another set of q’s from multiple LLM’s asking basically the same thing).

There was tons of trade in the ancient world that we do not know about. The ancient world was waaaay more connected than I think we are ready to accept. The biggest trade network I can think of is the Silk Road, but that was less ancient and more just old. There are indictions that ancient bronze age cultures in the British Isles had lapis lazuli from Egypt, and that the nomadic tribes of the Asian Steppes had some iron tools from Western Europe. There are apocryphal stories of Polynesian goods being found in South America. I think the ancient world was a lot more connected than we give it credit for.

14. How did ancient civilizations contribute to the development of mathematics, science, and astronomy, and what impact did their discoveries have on subsequent generations?

Ancient civilizations are the foundational knowledge of modern maths (hey all my British peeps) and science. The Pythagorean Theorem is called that for a reason, and it is not to create some kind of anachronistic name for a concept created by a French guy named Guy in 1679. Science and math build on each other, when something is proven false in math or science it is jettisoned and new concepts emerge to take the place of the incorrect things. No one believes in the bodily humors any more, but we still understand how to bring down a fever.

15. What are some ongoing archaeological discoveries and research projects that are shedding new light on ancient civilizations and rewriting our understanding of history?

The stuff going on in Türkiye right now with Göbekli Tepe is really fascinating. The fact that archeologists are finding other sister sites dating to similar timeframes is really amazing.

16. What unsolved engineering feat from an ancient civilization continues to amaze us today?

The 2 that come to mind immediately are the precision of the rock cuts for Machu Picchu and the precision of the alignments for ancient monuments such as the Pyramids at Giza.

17. Amazons… Les rowl rowl, amiright?

The historical basis of the myths of the Amazons point toward some badass female horse warriors from Scythia (an area just to the north of the Black Sea {think Ukraine}). The Greek mythological versions are less interesting to me and the Martson “Wonder Woman” version of the Amazons was even less interesting. There is no need to mythologize the Amazons, they were badass enough in reality.

18. Do you believe any ancient civilizations possessed technologies lost to the modern world? If so, what are they?

There are some indications that there were some ancient medicinal concoctions that seem to kill off bacteria and infection without using what we consider as modern anti-bacterial medicines. If that is true there may be some avenues to create medicines that can combat the “super bugs” that do not react to modern antibacterial agents. If that is true that would be amazing…. But ancient people also used to drink mercury… soooo /shrug

19. So… the Trojans… How much of The Iliad, The Odyssey, and The Aeneid are actually rooted in history, and how much of it is just good story-telling?

Troy was a real city. There were multiple battles associated with the city of Troy. Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, probably did not exist. Agamemnon, Ajax, Odysseus, Achilles, etc… most likely did not exist, but wee archetypes used to tell a compelling tale. Aeneas did not exost and was a creation of Virgil to tie the founding of Rome to divine origins.

20. 2000 years from now, how will the American “Ancient Civilization” be regarded?

Like most ancient history, the time-frames will be truncated massively. There are 180-ish years between the time of Persues and the Trojan War. So Perseus is to Odysseus as George Washington is to Dwight Eisenhower (as William the Conqueror to Henry III, for my Britos, and as The High Republic Era to the Galactic Empire for my Star Wars peeps). Tales will be told how Lincoln ushered in our response to WWI.

To recap:

ChatGPT 4 is on its way as a free service to users
It looks amazing
I am almost halfway done with an interview
It has been tons of fun
I truly enjoy the interviews
If anyone wants to be interviewed, message me
If you want to help my lower legs and feet, massage me
I actually enjoy job interviews as well
Truly, they are fun
I tend to do really well on them as far as building a rapport with the people in the interview, but that doesn’t translate into anything
My sleep schedule is terrible at the moment
But I do get to nap on the couch with the doggos occasionally
Mapping user journeys seems to be a very sought after skill
A skill that I have done a few times over, but do not have any artifacts to show for it
It is a bit frustrating
Since I have a background in spatial analysis methods, I tend to look at user journeys as a map of a landscape
A journey through space and time
They are not just flow charts or decision trees
Subscribe to my substack if you want this drivel emailed to you
Read this on Medium, if that's your jam
mmmmm Black Currant Jam
Have a great week everyone