The Great Rivers

Click on the following links to gain overviews about the river valleys that spurred and sustained the 'hydraulic civilizations' of the Ancient Near East:


Tigris-Euphrates (Mesopotamia)
Nile (Egypt)

Chicken or Egg?

Click here (NatGeo) for an article and pictures about a fascinating archaeological site in Turkey which is revolutionizing traditional theories about the origins of religion...


Is religion a cause or a consequence of civilization??

The Psychology of Ecology

Click here (NewYorkTimes) to read about the interface between mind and environment...


Do you think we are hard-wired to respond emotionally to our environment? Is there any validity to the notion of "solastalgia", in your opinion? Why/why not?

Whence Came Civilization?

Click here (ArtLine) to learn more about the likely origins of human urbanization...

Why do you suppose that cities, more than 5000 years after their invention, remain humanity's premier mode of cultural expression? What are the ecological benefits versus the costs?