8.9M views · Oct 11, 2016 · 1:10:18 · 5 HN recommenders · 10 mentions · discussed 2017–2025
Archaeologist Eric Cline lectures on the Late Bronze Age collapse around 1177 BC, when interconnected Mediterranean empires fell in rapid succession. He discusses the Sea Peoples and the combined causes of the collapse.
Why Hacker News points people here: Recommended as an informative and funny hour that serves as a good substitute for his book.
“Excellent informative and hilarious talk about his (at-the-time) new scientific hypothesis”HN comment, 2019
“I recently stumbled upon this lecture, definitely recommended it”
Lecture on the Late Bronze Age collapse and Sea Peoples.
I recently stumbled upon this lecture, definitely recommended it (Sea Peoples introduced @ 08:20): this video -1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Eric Cline, PhD)
“Excellent informative and hilarious talk about his (at-the-time) new scientific hypothesis”
Informative, funny hour on the Bronze Age collapse.
Not a talk from 2019, but discovered it this year: "1177 BC, the year civilization collapsed (Eric Cline, PhD)" this video Excellent informative and hilarious talk about his (at-the-time) new scientific hypothesis to explain the end of the Bronze Age ca. 1200 BC. Multiple civilizations collapsed within a few decades of each other with the ability to read, write and make high buildings being lost all across the Eastern Mediterranean simultaneously . The Bronze Age is magical and interesting of itself, the talk gives a great introduction as to why we know much more about it than we think.. definitely recommended. Duration ~1 hour (feels like 20 minutes)
“here is a good talk on the various contributing factors”
Good talk on factors behind the Bronze Age collapse.
If your interested then here is a good talk on the various contributing factors: this video . Looks like youtube has quite a few more as well.
“Did you also watch that informative YouTube lecture [0]”
Informative lecture on the Sea Peoples.
Wow haha, only on HN would I read a sea peoples joke. Did you also watch that informative YouTube lecture [0] or did you find out about them elsewhere? [0] this video
“for most folks the YouTube lecture is probably enough detail”
Lecture version of Cline's book, enough detail for most.
There is also this video by Eric Cline, an (alternative) accompaniment to his book "1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed". - I do recommend the book, but for most folks the YouTube lecture is probably enough detail :)
“The vast majority came from Afghanistan.”
From a 2016 talk: "Possible some came from Cornwall though I rather doubt they went up there more than once in a blue moon. There are some tin mines in southern Turkey but not enough. The vast majority came from Afghanistan. Specifically the Badakhshan region of Afghanistan." this video
“One of the author's hour long lectures on youtube”
One of the author's hour long lectures on youtube 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Eric Cline, PhD) this video
“I've heard of another civilization and broken supply chains”
As armchair academic I kind of understand you. People live in all sort of horrible conditions today - famine, malaria, diseases. As living person I ask myself what if my home was destroyed by flood? What if there is no water to grow food? What if person from the country which caused most of CO2 emissions [1] expects me to be contempt? Shouldn't I blow them up? Maybe all I need to commit is a good preacher. Last mass migration caused by ISIS. COVID caused reduced oil consumption is enough to make a trouble for oil exporters. Global warming is worse - drought, flood, fires. World is extremely fragile, resources supplied from another part of the world, even today cobalt mining is horrible, what would be then? I've heard of another civilization and broken supply chains [2]. [1] link [2] 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Eric Cline, PhD) this video
“Bronze Age merchants exchanged clay tablets with remarkable throughput.[2]”
My family watched Miracle on 34th Street a couple years ago. Aside from being generally impressed with how well it's aged, I was particularly impressed with the office technology on display (pneumatic tubes etc). In Victorian London, mail could be posted up to 12 times per day.[1] That's about as often as e-mail can be turned around. Bronze Age merchants exchanged clay tablets with remarkable throughput.[2] On the consumer side... I live in Silicon Valley. My grandparents had better access to services than I do — fresh milk delivery, an MD that came to their bedside, and an electric trolley — in the 1930s in a town of 12k ppl. My grandfather was a driver for a laundry service, my grandmother taught piano. [3] But maybe the most fundamental issue here is that productivity is 'measured' by dividing GDP by hours worked. But work seems better characterized as a mechanism that distributes, rather than creates, GDP.[4] [1] link [2] this video [3] link [4] link
“also famine mixed with other stuff resulting in multi-civilizational collapse”
link yay cannibalism! also famine mixed with other stuff resulting in multi-civilizational collapse this video food is not web-scale. you people are not scared enough.
