Why Did Great Civilizations Fall?
How did it come about that the civilizations created by the Romans, the Maya, and the inhabitants of Easter Island came to an end? It is easy to conclude that there is no hypothesis too absurd for some scholar to have put forward.
By Kamil Kopij
At the end of September 2021, the prestigious scientific journal Scientific Reports published an article that fired the imagination of people around the world. A group of American researchers argued that the town of Tell el-Hammam, located in present day Jordan, had been destroyed 3,500 years ago by an asteroid. They also identified the site with Sodom, thereby confirming the biblical narrative. The authors were soon, however, accused of manipulating illustrations, offering incorrect interpretations, and tailoring their conclusions to fit a preconceived idea. Today the article is regarded as a scientific botch job and a stain on the journal's reputation.
