News Archaeology

Barley elevated Central Asian farmers to ‘the roof of the world’

Hardy western crops allowed villagers to ascend the Tibetan Plateau

Tibetan Plateau

TIBETAN HIGH  A researcher examines dark-colored sediment bearing cultural remains at a roughly 2,800-year-old farming village located 2,800 meters above sea level on the Tibetan Plateau.

G.H. Dong

By Bruce Bower

- More than 2 years ago

A menu shift courtesy of the Fertile Crescent enabled farmers to live year-round at high altitudes on Central Asia’s Tibetan Plateau starting about 3,600 years ago, a new study finds.