Nagaland University conducting archaeological research on prehistoric life of Naga communities
Guwahati: The
Nagaland University
is conducting archaeological research of the prehistoric life of
Naga communities
, seeking climate change mitigation strategies that can aid in providing food security in Nagaland.
A University official said that the study covers the Holocene and Anthropocene geological time periods. He said that to respect the heritage and traditional knowledge of Indigenous communities associated with
Naga
ancestral sites, the researchers are working with indigenous populations and are actively engaging in community-based participatory research.
These practices not only acknowledge local ownership rights but also deeply enrich the scientific inquiry.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Live Comfortably: 60 m² Prefab Bungalow for Seniors in El Bouni
Pre Fabricated Homes | Search Ads
Search Now
Undo
The core of this project is archaeology and palaeoclimate research towards establishing a basic understanding of the history of Naga life from earliest times to the recent past.
To date, little work has been done in this field, and the story of the deep Naga past is fragmentary, lacking details and a well-dated chronology.
Live Events
The team is studying two kinds of sites -- Prehistoric sites, where they hope to find clues to the pre-agricultural past and the Naga ancestral village sites, mostly lying beneath modern village settlements.
These ancestral sites represent pre-colonial indigenous occupation and serve as a collective memory for groups of descent, for example, as part of narratives of group migrations from prominent sites of dispersal.
This community-driven multi-disciplinary study is funded for four years (2025-2028) by the Australian Research Council, a Commonwealth organisation within the Australian government.
It is a collaboration between Nagaland University, University of Sydney, La Trobe University, University of York and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, with the local government support from the Department of Art and Culture under the state government, the official said.
The outcomes of this project would include targeted information for the communities in which the team works, a large number of scientific publications, and wide-ranging community dissemination of key recommendations for actions towards sustainability across Nagaland.
This project is being led by a team of researchers headed by Prof. Tiatoshi Jamir, Department of History and Archaeology, Nagaland University and also includes researchers from various universities.
Elaborating on the importance of this research, Prof. Alison Betts, The University of Sydney, said, 'We work with communities to uncover the deep history of their villages, to see how their food systems have changed through time and to identify any past adaptations they may have made to altered climatic conditions.'
'Using this knowledge and wider scientific studies, our research will include suggestions and advice that may assist Indigenous communities towards further adaptation in the face of an increasingly environmentally unstable future,' he said.
Prof. Tiatoshi Jamir, who led the research team, further adds, 'We have already conducted a pilot study at the village of Langa (Shamator District).
Langa was abandoned at some point in the historical past and has only recently been reoccupied. The village elders provided their own oral history of the first establishment and the reasons for abandonment.' He said that excavations have uncovered the remains of an earlier village settlement.
'As part of our work targeted towards public outreach, we have produced a short community archaeology film documenting the traditional oral history of the village and the archaeology of this ancestral site with the collaborative efforts of the local communities of Langa, Kuthur, and Yimkhiung Tribal Council (YTC).
Further study of a similar nature is also ongoing at New Phor (Burakha), Meluri District, with the support of the local community of New Phor and Pochury Hoho,' Prof Jamir said.
The project is a pioneering multi-disciplinary approach to the study of the past, community engagement, agriculture and sustainability. It is innovative and unique in its structure, but it may act as a model for similar work elsewhere.
The study of the past to inform the future is an increasing trend in academic research, particularly in light of diminishing ecosystems, the loss of traditional knowledge, and the urgent need to develop sustainable food security in the face of impending dramatic environmental change.
The varsity official said that Nagaland has a long, rich history of sustainable agricultural practices, built on hundreds of years of complex management and a wealth of traditional knowledge.
'Today, changes are coming with younger generations leaving the villages and long-term agricultural systems under increasing threat from unpredictable and potentially damaging climatic events,' he said.
The age-old 'jhum' system (slash-and-burn method farming) has been criticised for its supposed environmentally damaging practices of forest clearance and burning.
This viewpoint has recently been challenged through new scientific studies, which suggest that cyclical cultivation systems are vital for natural biodiversity, genetic agro-diversity, resilience to extreme weather, mitigation of crop homogenisation and social stability.
Archaeological research will be paired with fieldwork to reconstruct thousands of years of environmental change.
Mapping shifts in ancient economic practices to climatic sequences will show how people have responded in the past to challenges of fluctuating climatic conditions.
Team members will study the residues of ancient pottery to determine past culinary practices. Soil studies will recover phytoliths, unique microscopic silica bodies formed in vegetation that can indicate the presence of identifiable plant species.
Charred plant remains will provide samples for radiocarbon dating to establish a historical timeline of change and development. The nutritional value of various elements of the Naga diet will be studied to examine the health implications of traditional techniques for preserving foods.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
United News of India
3 hours ago
- United News of India
Australian scientists mark breakthrough in astronomy via images at Chile's Rubin Observatory
Melbourne, June 23 (UNI) Australian scientists are marking a significant breakthrough in astronomy as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile unveils its first images from a revolutionary new telescope, according to the University of Melbourne. The observatory, featuring the world's largest digital camera and a powerful eight-meter mirror, will scan the entire southern sky every few nights, capturing unprecedented detail and enabling real-time detection of cosmic events, a release from the University of Melbourne said on Monday. The Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time, named for pioneering astronomer Vera Rubin who first measured dark matter in galaxies, will gather around 20 terabytes of data each night, producing an unparalleled, high-resolution time-lapse of the universe over the next decade, the release said. Scientists expect to receive up to 10 million alerts daily for changes in brightness or position of celestial objects, paving the way for discoveries of potentially unknown phenomena, it said. Australian software engineers and data specialists from 15 institutions have been instrumental in developing advanced code and artificial intelligence tools for the project, it added. "Almost 30 years after the idea was first conceived, and after a decade of construction, the telescope represents a truly exciting leap forward in astrophysics," said Rachel Webster, science lead for the Australian collaboration from the University of Melbourne. The telescope will shed light on dark matter, dark energy and galaxy evolution, while complementing research with Australia's Square Kilometre Array, Webster said.
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
Chinese researchers achieves internet 5 times faster than Starlink using 2-watt laser: Report
Representative image (Source: Reuters) A team of Chinese scientists has reportedly developed a new way to improve satellite laser communication from space to Earth, achieving faster data speeds despite atmospheric interference. According to a South China Morning Post, researchers led by Wu Jian of Peking University of Posts and Telecommunications and Liu Chao from the Chinese Academy of Sciences have managed to transmit data to a ground station at speeds of 1 gigabit per second using a 2-watt laser from a satellite over 36,000 kilometers above the Earth. This, the report says, is significantly faster than current systems such as Starlink , which offers speeds in the megabit range. The team tested the method using a 1.8-meter telescope at a research facility in Lijiang, southwest China. The system targets the challenges of atmospheric turbulence, which weakens and distorts laser signals as they pass through the Earth's atmosphere. How China achieved faster internet speed than Starlink To address this, the scientists combined two existing techniques—adaptive optics (AO) and mode diversity reception (MDR). The combined AO-MDR method helped correct the shape of distorted light beams and captured multiple signal modes simultaneously, improving both signal strength and reliability. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Free P2,000 GCash eGift UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo In their paper – published on June 3 – in the journal Acta Optica Sinica, the researchers said the technique reduced transmission errors and increased the chance of receiving usable signals from 72% to over 91%. The method was tested using advanced components such as 357 micro-mirrors inside the telescope to reshape the laser's wavefront and a multi-plane converter that split the signal into eight channels. A custom-built algorithm selected the three strongest channels for data transmission in real time. China has been expanding its research and development in laser-based satellite communications. In 2020, its Shijian-20 satellite achieved a record 10Gbps laser downlink from geostationary orbit. The power level used on that satellite remains undisclosed. JOB SCAM ALERT! Don't Let Fake Recruiters Steal Your Money AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Mint
4 hours ago
- Mint
Nobody taught them: Scientists are stunned by how these tiny insects use the Milky Way as a guide to travel 1,000 km
A small insect, the Bogong moth, travels 1,000 kilometres every year at night across Australia. These moths leave the heat of southeastern Australia in spring to rest in cool caves in the Australian Alps. They return in autumn to mate and die. A new study shows that these moths use the stars to guide them, just like birds and humans. This is the first time such a skill has been found in insects. The Bogong moth, now endangered, has a wingspan of about 5 cm. They sense Earth's magnetic field, which gives them a backup if the sky is cloudy. Scientists studied around 400 Bogong moths to understand how they travel 1,000 km at night. Now, they are amazed at how these small-brained creatures manage such complex navigation. These moths can see dim stars 15 times brighter than humans, helping them use the Milky Way as a guide. Other animals like monarch butterflies and dung beetles also use light for navigation, but not for such long, exact journeys. What's truly special is that Bogong moths make this journey only once in their life and learn it by instinct. Their parents are dead before they're born. Yet, they know where to go. Australian researcher Eric Warrant tested if they also used stars for guidance. He set up a special lab at his home, near the moths' destination in the Alps. Using a light trap, he caught moths and fixed them to thin rods that allowed them to fly while recording their direction. The lab projected the southern night sky, just like it looked outside. Amazingly, the moths flew in the correct migratory direction, south in spring and north in autumn. The experiment showed how they used star patterns to guide their way. 'It is an act of true navigation. They're able to use the stars as a compass to find a specific geographic direction to navigate, and this is a first for invertebrates,' CNN quoted Warrant as saying. 'With a very small brain, a very small nervous system, they are able to harness two relatively complex cues and not only detect them, but also use them to work out where to go,' Warrant said.
