Traditional Maize Processing Techniques in the New World

Katz, Solomon H.; Hediger, Mary L.; Valleroy, Linda A.

doi:10.1126/science.184.4138.765

Cited by 253 publications

(135 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…There are dietary reasons why maize, beans, and chili peppers would be cooked together. Whereas maize is deficient in the essential amino acids lysine and tryptophan, and in niacin, legumes contain these essential dietary components and the consumption of maize and beans together complement each other and are nutritionally complete; chili peppers are high in vitamin C, which increases the absorption of iron (44,45).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Directly dated starch residues document early formative maize ( Zea mays L.) in tropical Ecuador

Zarrillo

Pearsall

Raymond

et al. 2008

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

132

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The study of maize (Zea mays L.) domestication has advanced from questions of its origins to the study-and debate-of its dietary role and the timing of its dispersal from Mexico. Because the investigation of maize's spread is hampered by poor preservation of macrobotanical remains in the Neotropics, research has focused on microbotanical remains whose contexts are often dated by association, leading some to question the dates assigned. Furthermore, some scholars have argued that maize was not introduced to southwestern Ecuador until Ϸ4150 -3850 calendar years before the present (cal B.P.), that it was used first and foremost as a fermented beverage in ceremonial contexts, and that it was not important in everyday subsistence, challenging previous studies based on maize starch and phytoliths. To further investigate these questions, we analyzed every-day cooking vessels, food-processing implements, and sediments for starch and phytoliths from an archaeological site in southwestern Ecuador constituting a small Early Formative village. Employing a new technique to recover starch granules from charred cooking-pot residues we show that maize was present, cultivated, and consumed here in domestic contexts by at least 5300 -4950 cal B.P. Directly dating the residues by accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon measurement, our results represent the earliest direct dates for maize in Early Formative Ecuadorian sites and provide further support that, once domesticated Ϸ9000 calendar years ago, maize spread rapidly from southwestern Mexico to northwestern South America.ceramic residues ͉ microfossil analysis ͉ AMS radiocarbon measurement ͉ crop dispersals ͉ agricultural origins

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Directly dated starch residues document early formative maize ( Zea mays L.) in tropical Ecuador

Zarrillo

Pearsall

Raymond

et al. 2008

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

132

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“…For example, Katz et al (1974) show how Native American populations incorporated an alkali, in the form of lye, ash or lime, into their maize cooking procedures in a manner that balances the essential amino acids and frees the otherwise unavailable niacin. Without such procedures, maize-dependent populations would face widespread malnutrition, including niacin deficiency (pellagra) and a lack of certain essential amino acids.…”

Section: Theoretical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolution of cultural adaptations: Fijian food taboos protect against dangerous marine toxins

2010

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The application of evolutionary theory to understanding the origins of our species' capacities for social learning has generated key insights into cultural evolution. By focusing on how our psychology has evolved to adaptively extract beliefs and practices by observing others, theorists have hypothesized how social learning can, over generations, give rise to culturally evolved adaptations. While much field research documents the subtle ways in which culturally transmitted beliefs and practices adapt people to their local environments, and much experimental work reveals the predicted patterns of social learning, little research connects real-world adaptive cultural traits to the patterns of transmission predicted by these theories. Addressing this gap, we show how food taboos for pregnant and lactating women in Fiji selectively target the most toxic marine species, effectively reducing a woman's chances of fish poisoning by 30 per cent during pregnancy and 60 per cent during breastfeeding. We further analyse how these taboos are transmitted, showing support for cultural evolutionary models that combine familial transmission with selective learning from locally prestigious individuals. In addition, we explore how particular aspects of human cognitive processes increase the frequency of some non-adaptive taboos. This case demonstrates how evolutionary theory can be deployed to explain both adaptive and non-adaptive behavioural patterns.

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“…One striking example is found in the ancient American practice of alkali processing of corn: Katz et al (1974) have argued convincingly that this process has been adopted in areas in which the local population would otherwise be subject to outbreaks of pellagra. Pellagra (described in Table 1, above) is caused by a dietary deficiency of niacin; corn is very low in niacin, but treatment (boiling the corn with calcium oxide) greatly increases the amount of biologically available niacin.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The McDonald?s Equilibrium. Advertising, empty calories, and the endogenous determination of dietary preferences

Smith

2004

Soc Choice Welfare

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Traditional Maize Processing Techniques in the New World

Cited by 253 publications

References 17 publications

Directly dated starch residues document early formative maize ( Zea mays L.) in tropical Ecuador

Directly dated starch residues document early formative maize ( Zea mays L.) in tropical Ecuador

The evolution of cultural adaptations: Fijian food taboos protect against dangerous marine toxins

The McDonald?s Equilibrium. Advertising, empty calories, and the endogenous determination of dietary preferences

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