TOW 9: Did Climate Change Kill the Mayans?

This article was about one of the biggest mysteries that surrounds us today, the end of the Mayan civilization. Anthropologist Douglas Kennett and his team of researches from the U.S. decided to figure out the Mayan enigma by looking at places where not many had looked before, in caves. By studying caves in the jungles of Belize, they were able to deduce some valuable information. The Mayan civilization was plagued with many, severe droughts which led to warfare and the break-up of political leadership. The Mayans thrived from 450 to 660, but then they were hit with droughts which led to a sharp decline in agricultural productivity. Researchers believe that these sporadic climate changes were a result of El Nino. 

Jeffrey Kluger is the senior editor at TIME Magazine, and oversees reports and articles on science and technology.

This article is important in context because it showed what could happen to us, the whole world. Although we have more resources to predict the weather, these natural phenomena cannot be escaped. It is possible that we could face similar circumstances in the near future, so it is important that we take some sort of action.

Although the fall of the great Mayan civilization is known, the reasons behind the fall are not. This article was written in order to clarify the most likely reasons for the disappearance of this thriving civilization. The purpose was to list and explain strong hypotheses that researches derived.

The text was written for the general public.

The article contained pathos. It appealed to the readers' emotions by instilling a sense of fear; that what happened to the Mayans could potentially happen to us. "If you want a look at what we could face in the decades and  centuries ahead, look at what one of the world’s greatest cultures suffered a millennium ago" (Kluger para 1). Although this may not necessarily have been the author's intention, his diction made me feel scared for our future.

The author's purpose was accomplished. He told the possible reasons for the Mayans' downfall in brevity and understandable terms. He added just enough information to make the article interesting, rather than bombarding us with scientific jargon.