First Peoples (2015): Season 1, Episode 4 - Europe - full transcript

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AUSTRALIA,

ONE OF THE MOST MULTI-CULTURAL
COUNTRIES ON EARTH.

A NATION OF IMMIGRANTS.

BUT FOR 50,000 YEARS,
IT WAS THE VERY OPPOSITE--

A HOME TO AN ANCIENT PEOPLE

CUT OFF FROM THE REST
OF HUMANITY.

THEY WERE SO ISOLATED,

THEY COULD HAVE GONE EXTINCT.

SO HOW DID THEY BEAT
THE ODDS AND SURVIVE?



ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIANS ARE

DIRECT DESCENDANTS OF THE FIRST
MODERN HUMAN EXPLORERS.

ONCE HUMANS REACHED
AUSTRALIA, THERE WAS

VERY LITTLE, IF ANY, CONTACT
WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD.

THEY WERE REALLY IN IT
BY THEMSELVES.

WITH MODERN-DAY SCIENCE,

WE CAN FIND OUT
MY ANCESTRAL BACKGROUND.

THAT'LL BE GOOD TO FIND OUT.

ABORIGINALS
AUSTRALIANS HAVE SOME

OF THE MOST ANCIENT DNA
IN THE WORLD.

THEY MAY HOLD THE KEY

TO THE SURVIVAL OF OUR SPECIES.

THIS IS THE STORY
OF OUR ANCESTORS,

AS THEY SPREAD TO EVERY
CONTINENT OF THE WORLD.



WHAT WAS THE SECRET
TO THEIR SUCCESS?

THEIR STORY IS OUR STORY.

SOUTHEASTERN AUSTRALIA,

42,000 YEARS AGO.

A MAN IS BURIED BY A LAKESIDE.

HE IS A CLAN CHIEF
OR SOMETHING SIMILAR,

IMPORTANT ENOUGH TO BE BURIED
WITH CEREMONY.

HE'S KNOWN
TO ARCHAEOLOGISTS AS MUNGO MAN.

HERE, AT THE VERY ENDS
OF THE EARTH,

IS SOME OF
THE EARLIEST EVIDENCE

OF OUR YEARNING
FOR SPIRITUALITY.

MUNGO MAN WAS
DISCOVERED IN 1974

BY GEOLOGIST JIM BOWLER.

BOWLER CAME
TO NEW SOUTH WALES

LOOKING FOR EVIDENCE
OF PREHISTORIC HUMAN LIFE.

HE FOCUSED ON A SERIES
OF SANDY CRESCENTS.

HE REALIZED
THEY WERE ANCIENT LAKEBEDS.

TODAY,
THIS IS A HARSH,

OTHERWORLDLY ENVIRONMENT.

BUT THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO,

IT WAS WET AND LUSH...

A GREAT PLACE
FOR PREHISTORIC PEOPLE TO LIVE.

THE LARGEST DUNES MARK THE EDGE

OF A LONG, DRY LAKE

KNOWN AS MUNGO.

ONE SUMMER'S DAY IN 1974,

BOWLER WAS RIDING
HIS BIKE AT LAKE MUNGO

WHEN HE SAW SOMETHING UNUSUAL
ERODING OUT OF THE DUNE.

I SPOTTED, UM, A-- A TIP
OF-- OF WHITE BONE

EXPOSED ON THE SURFACE
OF THE SAND,

AND IT WAS OVER NEAR HERE...

JUST THE TOP OF THE CRANIUM
COMING OUT OF THE SAND.

AND WHEN I BRUSHED AWAY
THE-- THE LOWER PART,

THE JAW WAS THERE,
SO IMMEDIATELY I RECOGNIZED

I WAS STANDING ON THE BURIAL
OF, OF-- OF HUMAN REMAINS.

THE BONES WERE
42,000 YEARS OLD,

TWICE AS OLD AS REMAINS FOUND
ANYWHERE ELSE IN AUSTRALIA.

WHAT WAS MOST STRIKING WAS

THEY'D BEEN STAINED WITH
A NATURAL PIGMENT--

OCHRE.

THERE'S NO OCHRE

WITHIN A HUNDRED KILOMETERS
OR MORE FROM HERE.

THE OCHRE HAD TO BE BROUGHT IN.

IT HAD TO BE PREPARED.

ALL THAT PREPARATION FOR
THE MOMENT OF BURIAL,

THAT WENT ON FOR DAYS.

HUMANS HAD
ALREADY BEEN USING OCHRE

FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS
IN AFRICA,

AS A WAY TO DECORATE
THEIR BODIES

OR TREAT THEIR HIDES.

BUT HERE,
IT WAS AN INTEGRAL PART

OF AN ELABORATE RITUAL CEREMONY.

HE WAS LAID OUT
AS THE WAY WE WOULD

LAY OUT MY OWN FATHER
IN HIS FUNERAL COFFIN,

AND HE WAS THEN,

CEREMONIALLY, UM, FAREWELLED.

IT WAS NOT JUST
THE MOURNING OF DEATH,

IT WAS EVEN, PERHAPS,
SOMETHING OF A CELEBRATION

OF LIFE, REALLY.

MUNGO MAN
IS NOT THE ONLY BODY

JIM BOWLER HAS FOUND
BY THE LAKESIDE.

A QUARTER OF A MILE AWAY,

HE DISCOVERED FRAGMENTS
OF A FEMALE SKELETON

THAT BECAME KNOWN AS MUNGO LADY.

THIS IS
THE SORT OF HORIZON

IN WHICH I FOUND THE BONES

OF MUNGO LADY.

THE BEACH WAS JUST OVER HERE,
THERE WAS A SOIL THERE,

AND THE BODY WAS LOCATED HERE.

AND THEN THESE BONES
WERE CEMENTED

BY THIS WHITE, CHALKY CARBONATE.

THAT DIDN'T LOOK LIKE A BODY.

WHEN ANTHROPOLOGISTS
PUT TOGETHER ALL THE FRAGMENTS

FROM MUNGO LADY,
THEY HAD EVIDENCE

OF ANOTHER FUNERAL RITUAL

FROM THE SAME PERIOD--

42,000 YEARS AGO.

MUNGO LADY'S BONES
HAD BEEN BURNT,

PERHAPS TO MAKE THEM
MORE BRITTLE.

THEN THEY WERE BROKEN
INTO TINY PIECES.

LAKE MUNGO WAS CLEARLY A HOME

FOR A COMMUNITY OF PEOPLE

WITH A RICH, COMPLEX CULTURE.

BUT WHO WERE THESE PEOPLE

LIVING AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD?

WHERE DID THEY COME FROM?

WHEN DID THEY ARRIVE?

HOW DID THEY GET HERE?

LAKE MUNGO
IS TUCKED AWAY

IN THE SOUTHEAST OF THE COUNTRY,

AN ISOLATED CORNER

IN THE WORLD'S
MOST ISOLATED CONTINENT.

IT'S A MYSTERY HOW PEOPLE
EVER REACHED MUNGO

BECAUSE THERE'S SO LITTLE
ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE

FROM THAT PERIOD ANYWHERE
IN AUSTRALIA.

BUT THERE ARE CLUES
TO BE FOUND IN DNA.

AT THE START
OF THE 20th CENTURY,

BRITISH ANTHROPOLOGIST
ALFRED HADDON WENT TO AUSTRALIA

TO RECORD THE CUSTOMS OF
THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE...

AND COLLECT SAMPLES
OF THEIR HAIR.

HIS COLLECTION REMAINED
IN A MUSEUM,

GATHERING DUST,

UNTIL A DANISH GENETICIST,
ESKE WILLERSLEV,

GOT TO ANALYZE THE SAMPLES.

THE BEAUTY
ABOUT HAIR IS

THAT IT'S NOT POROUS
LIKE BONE AND TEETH,

SO IT MEANS THAT ALL
CONTAMINATION FROM ALL PEOPLE

WHO HAVE HANDLED IT
OVER THE YEARS

IS ALL SITTING ON
THE OUTSIDE OF THE HAIR,

SO YOU CAN BASICALLY
JUST PUT IT INTO BLEACH

AND THEN GET RID OF
THE CONTAMINATION,

AND THE DNA REMAINING IS THE ONE
FROM THE INDIVIDUAL HIMSELF.

THIS HAIR COLLECTION
FROM CAMBRIDGE HAS--

PROBABLY MANY TIMES,
PEOPLE HAVE ASKED THEMSELVES:

"WHAT SHALL WE USE
THIS HAIR FOR?"

AND THEN A HUNDRED YEARS LATER,
I MEAN, THIS TURNS OUT TO BE,

ACTUALLY, A-- A PIECE OF GOLD

FOR A GENETICIST.

THE HAIR SAMPLE
CAME FROM A MAN

IN THE OUTBACK
OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA,

WHICH HAD BARELY BEEN VISITED
BY EUROPEANS AT THAT TIME,

SO THE DNA WAS PURE ABORIGINE.

THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME
ANYONE HAD SEQUENCED

AN ABORIGINAL GENOME.

FROM THIS ONE SAMPLE,
IT WAS POSSIBLE TO UNLOCK

THE ANCIENT HISTORY OF A PEOPLE.

ARCHAEOLOGY TELLS US
THAT HUMANS WERE PRESENT

IN AUSTRALIA AT LEAST
40,000 YEARS AGO.

THE QUESTION IS, OF COURSE, WHO
WERE THESE PEOPLE?

HOW WERE THEY RELATED

TO PRESENT-DAY
ABORIGINE AUSTRALIANS

OR TO OTHER PEOPLES
IN THE WORLD, FOR THAT MATTER?

AND THIS IS, OF COURSE, WHERE

GENETICS COMES IN AS
A VERY POWERFUL TOOL.

YOU CAN START TRACING
THE ANCESTRY

OF ABORIGINE AUSTRALIANS.

YOU CAN ACTUALLY FIND OUT
WHEN DID THEY DIVERSIFY

FROM OTHER LIVING PEOPLE?

WHEN DID THEY COME OUT
OF AFRICA?

WE CAN LINK BIOLOGICALLY

THESE INDIVIDUALS
TO OTHER HUMAN BEINGS

IN SPACE AND TIME.

ANALYZING THE DNA
WAS LIKE LOOKING

INTO THE DEEP PAST,

BACK TO THE FIRST WAVE OF HUMANS
MIGRATING OUT OF AFRICA.

RATHER THAN EXPLORING ASIA,

THE FIRST AUSTRALIANS
HEADED SOUTH.

THEY SPLIT FROM
THE REST OF HUMANITY

60,000 TO 70,000 YEARS AGO,

AND THEN THEY WERE ON THEIR OWN.

ABORIGINE
AUSTRALIANS ARE DESCENDING

FROM THE FIRST PEOPLE
MOVING OUT OF AFRICA

AND GETTING INTO AUSTRALIA.

THEY ARE DIRECT DESCENDANTS

OF THE FIRST MODERN
HUMAN EXPLORERS.

THESE EXPLORERS
MUST HAVE REACHED

THE SOUTHERN TIP OF ASIA.

INSTEAD OF TURNING BACK,

THEY ADAPTED TO LIFE
AT THE COAST.

HUW BARTON IS
AN ARCHAEOLOGIST

AND AN EXPERT ON THE LIVES
OF COASTAL HUNTER-GATHERERS.

COASTAL ENVIRONMENTS
LIKE THIS WITH, YOU KNOW,

SORT OF WATER, LAGOONS,
SORT OF BACK SWAMPS,

UM, POTENTIALLY,
MUDFLATS, MANGROVES,

THEY'RE REALLY GOOD PLACES
FOR FOOD FOR HUNTER-GATHERERS.

THERE'S, UM, YOU GOT SHELLFISH,

FISH, CLAMS,

EGGS, WORMS,
AND GRUBS, YOU KNOW.

THERE'S LOTS AND LOTS
OF RICH, HIGH-ENERGY FOODS

THAT PEOPLE CAN TAKE
FROM THESE ENVIRONMENTS.

BUT IF YOU GOT A GROUP
OF, SAY, 5 TO 10 PEOPLE,

YOU MIGHT CLEAN OUT AN AREA
OF ITS SORT OF HIGH-RANK,

GOOD-QUALITY RESOURCES,
YOU KNOW, WITHIN--

WITHIN DAYS OR WEEKS.

SO THAT CAN BE A REAL TRIGGER
POINT FOR PEOPLE DECIDING,

"AND, WELL, WE NEED NOW
TO MOVE ON TO A NEW LOCATION."

FOR HUNTER-GATHERERS
LIVING AT THE COAST,

RELOCATING COULD MEAN
A TRIP OFFSHORE.

PERHAPS YOU CAN SEE
SMALL ISLANDS, YOU KNOW,

NOT TOO FAR AWAY,
SO PEOPLE WILL GO OUT AHEAD,

THEY'LL FIND OUT,
THEY'LL COME BACK,

THEY'LL COMMUNICATE TO
THE GROUP INFORMATION

ABOUT WHAT THEY FOUND,
AND THEY MIGHT MAKE, THEN,

A DECISION AS A GROUP TO
GO ON TO POTENTIALLY--

OR MAYBE HOP ACROSS
TO ANOTHER ISLAND.

ONCE PEOPLE STARTED
ISLAND-HOPPING,

BARTON THINKS IT WAS
ONLY A MATTER OF TIME

BEFORE THEY STUMBLED
ON A WAY TO REACH AUSTRALIA.

MOST OF US LOOK
AT THE OCEAN NOW,

KIND OF SEE THAT
AS A REAL BARRIER,

AND IT'S KIND OF TO BE AVOIDED.

YOU KNOW, YOU WANT TO BE
ON THE LAND 'CAUSE THAT'S OK,

THAT'S SOLID, YOU KNOW, BUT IF
YOU GOT A GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT--

MAYBE THEY GOT SOME
SIMPLE WATER CRAFT, THEY'RE OUT,

THEY'RE FISHING; YOU KNOW,
ONCE THEY'VE GONE OUT

AND THEY'VE GONE OUT,
WHO KNOWS?

MAYBE THEY WERE,
BRAVE ENOUGH

TO GO OUT OVERNIGHT.

BUT THEN SUDDENLY THEY START
TO PICK UP SIGNS THAT MIGHT

TELL THEM THAT POTENTIALLY
THERE'S A LANDMASS OUT THERE.

COULD BE CLOUD, COULD BE BIRDS,

YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE DRIFTWOOD.

YOU KNOW, THEY MIGHT THINK,
"YOU KNOW, ACTUALLY,

MAYBE IT'S WORTH KIND OF
PUSHING ON A BIT HERE."

MAYBE FOR 20 YEARS,
100 YEARS, YOU KNOW,

THEY DON'T REALLY GET THERE,
BUT AT SOME POINT,

YOU KNOW, SOMEONE GOES
THAT LITTLE BIT FURTHER,

JUST TAKES THAT FURTHER RISK,
WHATEVER THE CIRCUMSTANCES,

GETS ACROSS.

THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW,

THEY'RE BUMPING UP
AGAINST THE COAST OF AUSTRALIA.

YOU KNOW, IT BECOMES FEASIBLE.

YOU CAN CONCEPTUALIZE
HOW THAT KIND OF--

THAT VOYAGE, THAT JOURNEY
MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED.

TODAY, THIS WOULD BE
A 350-MILE JOURNEY,

BUT IN PREHISTORIC TIMES,

THE COASTLINES WERE
VERY DIFFERENT.

60,000 YEARS AGO,

THE PLANET WAS IN AN ICE AGE.

AS GREAT ICE SHEETS
WERE SPREADING

ACROSS THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE,

SO MUCH OF THE WORLD'S
WATER WAS FROZEN;

SEA LEVELS HAD FALLEN
BY 400 FEET.

THE GAP BETWEEN SOUTHEAST ASIA
AND AUSTRALIA HAD SHRUNK.

WHEN PEOPLE MADE THE CROSSING,
THE TWO CONTINENTS MAY HAVE BEEN

AS LITTLE AS 60 MILES APART.

NO ONE KNOWS HOW MANY PEOPLE
FIRST ARRIVED IN AUSTRALIA.

IT MAY HAVE BEEN
DOZENS, HUNDREDS,

PERHAPS A THOUSAND.

BUT ACCORDING TO THE GENETICS,

THERE WAS JUST A SINGLE WAVE
OF MIGRATION,

WHICH THEN STOPPED.

IT SEEMS LIKE
THERE IS ONE ENTRANCE

TO AUSTRALIA, AND THEN
PEOPLE ARE, SO TO SPEAK,

SPREADING ACROSS THE CONTINENT,
OCCUPYING THE CONTINENT.

AND THIS, AS FAR AS WE CAN SEE,
THAT ONLY HAPPENS ONCE.

AROUND 55,000 YEARS AGO,

HUMANS BEGAN EXPLORING
AUSTRALIA...

40,000 YEARS BEFORE
THEY REACHED NORTH AMERICA.

HERE, THEY WERE TRULY ALONE,

CUT OFF FROM THE REST
OF THE WORLD...

IN A VIRGIN CONTINENT.

A HUNDRED MILES FROM THE SEA,

IN NORTHEASTERN AUSTRALIA,

THERE'S STUNNING PROOF
OF THEIR EXISTENCE.

NAWARLA GABARNMUNG...

A MASSIVE SHELTER
SHAPED BY THE WIND,

BUT CARVED BY HUMAN HANDS.

IT MAY BE THE OLDEST MONUMENT
IN THE WORLD,

TEN TIMES OLDER THAN STONEHENGE.

THE LAND HERE HAS BEEN
IN THE CUSTODY

OF MARGARET KATHERINE
AND HER ANCESTORS

FOR GENERATIONS.

EACH TIME SHE VISITS,

SHE ASKS THEIR PERMISSION
TO ENTER.

MY ANCESTOR
LIVED IN THIS PLACE.

MY GREAT-GREAT-GRANDFATHER

AND MY NANA AND MY GREAT-UNCLE

AND MY-- ALL MY--
DAD AND NANA,

THEY STAYED IN THIS
GABARNMUNG FOREVER.

THE WALLS ARE COVERED
IN LAYER UPON LAYER OF ART...

DEPICTING ANIMALS TRADITIONALLY
HUNTED BY ABORIGINES.

HERE,

WE'VE GOT A BIG BARRAMUNDI.

ON TOP OF THE BARRAMUNDI,
THERE'S A BREAM

AND LITTLE, TINY FISH THERE.

I SEE A CROCODILE HERE.

THIS ONE HERE,
BIG PLAIN KANGAROO

THAT TURN
AND GO ROUND THAT WAY.

SEE THE TAIL
AS HE GO ROUND HERE.

AND HIS FACE AND HIS TWO EARS.

THE ART ON THE WALLS
IS A MIX OF THE MODERN

AND THE VERY OLD...

BUT HOW FAR BACK DOES
THIS TRADITION GO?

SINCE 2010,

ARCHAEOLOGIST BRUNO DAVID
HAS BEEN WORKING HERE,

TRYING TO UNRAVEL THE HISTORY

OF NAWARLA GABARNMUNG.

PEOPLE HAVE COME
INTO THE SITE,

CAMPED ON THE GROUND,
SO THROUGH TIME, YOU HAVE HAD

A SERIES OF LAYERS OF SAND
AND ASH THAT HAVE BUILT UP,

GRADUALLY,
LIKE LEAVES IN A BOOK,

AND THOSE-- THOSE SEDIMENTS
THAT HAVE BUILT UP HAVE CAUSED

THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL MATERIALS
IN THE GROUND TO BE BURIED.

ARE 27.

SO WE STARTED ON THE SURFACE,
WHERE WE HAVE MATERIALS

THAT MIGHT BE A HUNDRED
YEARS OLD, 200 YEARS OLD,

GONE FURTHER AND FURTHER
BACK IN TIME, AND AT THE BOTTOM,

A PERIOD SOMEWHERE BETWEEN
48,000 AND 50,000 YEARS AGO,

WE HAVE THE OLDEST EVIDENCE

OF HUMAN OCCUPATION
AT THAT SITE.

THE DATES ARE BASED
ON FRAGMENTS OF CHARCOAL

LEFT BEHIND
BY EARLY AUSTRALIANS.

THEY SUGGEST PEOPLE WERE HERE
AT LEAST 6,000 YEARS

BEFORE THEY WERE AT LAKE MUNGO.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS HAVE YET
TO FIND ANY HUMAN BONES HERE,

BUT THEY HAVE FOUND
EVIDENCE OF ART

GOING BACK AT LEAST
30,000 YEARS.

IT'S ONLY A TINY FRAGMENT
OF THE ORIGINAL PAINTED SURFACE,

BUT WHAT WE CAN SEE ON IT IS
A SERIES OF LINES,

SO THERE'S A STRAIGHT LINE
CROSS-CUT BY A CURVED LINE.

WHAT THE ORIGINAL IMAGE WOULD
HAVE BEEN LIKE, WHO KNOWS?

THE PIGMENT USED
BY THESE PREHISTORIC ARTISTS

WAS OCHRE...

THE SAME PIGMENT USED
TO BURY MUNGO MAN.

IT SEEMS TO HAVE HAD
NO PRACTICAL VALUE FOR THEM.

ITS POWER WAS SYMBOLIC.

ON THE WALLS ARE
PAINTINGS OF SPIRITS

KNOWN AS MIMIS.

ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIANS BELIEVE
THE MIMIS TAUGHT THEIR ANCESTORS

HOW TO HUNT, COOK, AND PAINT.

HERE WE HAVE
A MIMI LADY RIGHT HERE.

THERE SHE IS, STANDING.

YOU CAN SEE HER THERE.

AND THE OTHER MIMI LADY HERE,
SHE'S GONE THAT WAY.

AND THAT ONE OVER THERE
IS A BIG ONE.

HE'S BY HIMSELF OVER THERE.

HE'S A GENTLEMAN.

WHEN I CALL OUT TO THEM, I CAN
FEEL THEIR PRESENCE NEARBY ME,

AND IT MAKE ME CRY,

'CAUSE I AM NOT WITH THEM.

I AM HERE, ALIVE.

BUT WHEN I AM GONE,
I'LL BE HERE WITH THEM.

6 MILES
FROM NARWALA GABARNMUNG,

THERE'S ANOTHER PAINTED
ROCK FACE.

IT ONLY HAS A COUPLE
OF PAINTINGS,

BUT THEY MAY BE OF AN ANIMAL
THAT NO LONGER EXISTS.

THE GENYORNIS, A KIND
OF GIANT EMU

THAT WENT EXTINCT
40,000 YEARS AGO.

THE PAINTINGS ARE
A VIVID GLIMPSE

OF THE ANIMALS EARLY AUSTRALIANS
WOULD HAVE ENCOUNTERED.

THE REMAINS OF SUCH ANIMALS
STILL EXIST...

AT NARACOORTE CAVES...

A LABYRINTH OF STALAGMITES
AND STALACTITES

IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

ROD WELLS HAS BEEN
EXPLORING IN THIS CAVE

SINCE HE WAS A TEENAGER.

SQUEEZING THROUGH
SOME OF THESE SPACES

REQUIRES A CERTAIN
MENTAL DISCIPLINE.

YOU HAVE TO REMAIN CALM
AND COLLECTED

AND RELAXED AND GRADUALLY
EASE YOUR WAY THROUGH.

HE DISCOVERED
HIS FIRST FOSSILS HERE IN 1969.

WE WERE ABOUT TO GIVE UP
ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON,

AND A DRAUGHT OF AIR CAME OUT
THROUGH THE ROCK PILE.

IT SIGNIFIES THAT
THERE IS A CAVE BEYOND,

PERHAPS QUITE
A LARGE CAVE BEYOND,

AND THAT IS THE EXCITEMENT
OF EXPLORATION.

AS I SWEPT THE LAMP ACROSS THE
SURFACE OF THE SEDIMENT HERE,

I SAW THESE FUNNY PATTERNS.

I THOUGHT AT FIRST THEY WERE
BITS OF BROKEN CAVE FORMATION

THAT HAD FALLEN TO THE FLOOR,
AND THEN I REALIZED

WHAT I WAS LOOKING AT
WERE TOOTH ROWS.

WHEN I LOOKED MORE CLOSELY
AND LOOKED AT THE SHADOWS

REFLECTED OFF THEM, REALIZED
THAT THEY WERE ACTUALLY SKULLS

OF EXTINCT ANIMALS

THAT HAD BEEN LYING THERE
FOR GOODNESS KNOWS

HOW MANY THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

IN A CONTINENT

WITH SO LITTLE
ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE,

THESE BONES ARE
A TREASURE TROVE...

EVIDENCE OF AUSTRALIA'S
EXTRAORDINARY ISOLATION.

50 MILLION YEARS AGO,

WITH THE SHIFT
OF TECTONIC PLATES,

AUSTRALIA SPLIT FROM ANTARCTICA.

EVER SINCE, IT HAS BEEN APART
FROM ANY OTHER LANDMASS,

AND ITS WILDLIFE EVOLVED
IN ISOLATION,

PRODUCING SPECIES
UNIQUE TO AUSTRALIA...

BEASTS LIKE THE GIANT
MARSUPIAL, DIPROTODON.

TO JUST GET AN IDEA
OF HOW LARGE THESE ANIMALS ARE,

HERE IS THE FEMUR,

THE THIGH BONE,
OF DIPROTODON.

WE'RE LOOKING AT AN ANIMAL
1.8 METERS TALL,

AND IT'S GONNA BE
THE BODY MASS OF SOMETHING

LIKE A BLACK RHINOCEROS,
SO THESE ANIMALS ARE WEIGHING IN

AT AROUND 11/2 TO 21/2 TONS.

EVEN AMONGST THE KANGAROOS,

WE SEE EXAMPLES OF GIANTS.

HERE IS THE SKULL AND JAWS

OF A MODERN WESTERN
GREY KANGAROO...

AND HERE,
THE SKULL AND JAWS

OF ONE OF THE EXTINCT
KANGAROOS.

QUITE A MARKED
DIFFERENCE IN SIZE.

TRULY A MEGA KANGAROO.

THE FIRST AUSTRALIANS
HAD DISCOVERED A PARADISE,

A VERDANT LAND WITH ANIMALS
TO HUNT AND FOOD TO EAT.

AND WITH SO FEW PEOPLE,

THERE WAS LITTLE, IF ANY,
COMPETITION FOR RESOURCES.

NOWHERE SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN
A BETTER PLACE TO LIVE

THAN LAKE MUNGO.

IT WAS FILLED WITH ENOUGH FISH
AND MARINE LIFE

TO SUPPORT A THRIVING COMMUNITY

FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

ABORIGINAL RANGER
TANYA CHARLES WORKS AT MUNGO

AND FINDS EVIDENCE
OF THE PAST EVERYWHERE...

SCATTERED AMONG
ANCIENT FIREPLACES.

THE SKELETON
OF MUNGO MAN PROVIDES

AN INSIGHT INTO LIFE
AT THE LAKESIDE.

MIKE WESTAWAY IS ONE
OF VERY FEW SCIENTISTS

ALLOWED TO EXAMINE THE BONES.

THERE'S A LOT
OF INFORMATION

THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY
RECOVER FROM THIS--

THIS FOSSIL THAT TELLS US A LOT
ABOUT THE LIFE OF MUNGO MAN.

IT'S VERY CLEAR
THAT HE'S AN ADULT MALE,

IN HIS 40s, PERHAPS OLDER.

HE WAS A VERY LIGHTLY BUILT,
UM, INDIVIDUAL,

BUT HE'S ACTUALLY
A VERY LARGE MAN,

AROUND 6 FOOT TALL.

EACH PART OF THE
SKELETON HAS A STORY TO TELL...

BUT NOTHING IS MORE
REVEALING THAN ITS TEETH.

THERE IS AN EXTRAORDINARY
PATTERN OF WEAR

ON HIS MOLAR TEETH,

AND THIS SEVERE ANGLE
OF WEAR PROBABLY RELATES

TO SOMETHING DRAGGED
REPEATEDLY ACROSS IT;

PROCESSING FIBER,
PERHAPS, TO MAKE A NET.

THE OTHER REALLY INTRIGUING
FACTOR ABOUT MUNGO MAN'S JAW

IS THE CANINE TOOTH AT THE FRONT
OF THE MOUTH HAS BEEN REMOVED,

INTENTIONALLY,
IT WOULD APPEAR.

IT COULD HAVE HAPPENED
FROM AN ACCIDENT, BUT WE DO KNOW

THAT TRADITIONALLY,
ABORIGINAL PEOPLE DID REMOVE,

THE INCISOR OR CANINE TOOTH
OF YOUNG MEN

THAT WERE ENTERING MATURITY.

SO THERE IS EVIDENCE
HERE THAT PERHAPS

THIS RITUAL REMOVAL OF ONE
OF THE FRONT TEETH

ACTUALLY OCCURRED IN MUNGO MAN
42,000 YEARS AGO.

HERE AT LAKE MUNGO,

HALF A WORLD AWAY FROM
THEIR AFRICAN HOMELAND,

THESE PEOPLE DID MORE
THAN FEED THEMSELVES.

THEY CREATED
A CULTURE AS ADVANCED

AS ANY WE KNOW OF
FROM THIS TIME...

WITH RITUALS
THAT STILL RESONATE

AMONG ABORIGINAL PEOPLE TODAY.

BUT THEIR WORLD WAS ABOUT
TO TURN TO DUST.

AT THIS TIME,

THE ICE AGE WAS
BECOMING MORE SEVERE.

SO MUCH WATER WAS
TRAPPED IN THE ICE,

THERE WAS LESS MOISTURE
IN THE ATMOSPHERE;

FEWER CLOUDS AND LESS RAIN.

PARADISE BECAME HELL.

AS RIVERS DRIED UP,
FORESTS DISAPPEARED,

AND GRASSLAND TURNED TO DESERT.

AUSTRALIA'S GIANT BEASTS
WENT EXTINCT.

HUMANS, TOO, BECAME
AN ENDANGERED SPECIES HERE.

ACCORDING TO THE GENETICS,

60% OF THE AUSTRALIAN POPULATION

DIED OFF DURING THE ICE AGE.

FOOD AND WATER WERE NOW
AT A PREMIUM.

AS THE CLIMATE STARTS
TO CHANGE AND THE CENTER

OF AUSTRALIA'S
BECOMING MORE ARID,

THEY HAVE TO SEEK OUT RESOURCES
THAT ARE HARDER FOR THEM TO GET.

IT TAKES MORE
SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE

FOR THEM TO FIND THE RESOURCES
THAT THEY NEED.

AT LAKE MUNGO,
THERE'S ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE

FOR THE RESOURCEFULNESS
OF ICE-AGE AUSTRALIANS.

AS PEOPLE TRAVELED
FURTHER IN SEARCH OF FOOD,

THE POPULATION SPLIT
INTO SMALLER GROUPS,

CUT OFF FROM HUMANITY

AND CUT OFF
FROM EACH OTHER.

AUSTRALIA WAS

A TREMENDOUSLY
CHALLENGING ENVIRONMENT.

HUMANS HAD TO USE ALL OF THEIR
ADAPTABILITY TO MAKE IT THERE.

BUT AUSTRALIA PROVIDED
ANOTHER CHALLENGE

THAT THEY COULDN'T ADAPT
THEIR WAY OUT OF--

IT'S TREMENDOUSLY ISOLATED.

THERE WAS VERY LITTLE,
IF ANY, CONTACT

WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD.

THEY WERE REALLY IN IT
BY THEMSELVES.

A POPULATION
THAT'S TOO ISOLATED

FACES EXTINCTION.

WITHOUT NEW GENES,
THE GENE POOL DRIES UP.

PEOPLE BECOME PRONE
TO THE DANGERS OF INBREEDING.

EVENTUALLY, THEY DIE OFF.

TODAY, ONE OF AUSTRALIA'S
BEST-KNOWN ANIMALS

IS IN A SIMILAR SITUATION.

CAREFUL WHEN YOU
JUMP IN THE WATER.

ECOLOGIST
JOSH GRIFFITHS IS TRYING

TO CATCH A DUCK-BILLED PLATYPUS

AND TAKE A SAMPLE OF ITS DNA.

PLATYPUSES ARE FOUND ONLY IN
THE CREEKS OF EASTERN AUSTRALIA.

BUT NOW, THEIR EXISTENCE
IS THREATENED

BY A SERIES OF WEIRS
THAT HAVE BEEN BUILT

ACROSS THE RIVER SYSTEM.

IF YOU THINK
OF THE CREEK LIKE A ROAD,

IT'S LIKE PUTTING
A ROAD BLOCK THERE

THAT ANIMALS CAN'T GO PAST.

IT FRAGMENTS THE POPULATION
BELOW AND ABOVE THE WEIR,

AND THAT STOPS ANIMALS
MIGRATING, IT STOPS THE FLOW

OF GENES ACROSS
THOSE POPULATIONS.

SO THEY'LL LOSE
GENETIC DIVERSITY,

WHICH IMPACTS THEIR ABILITY
TO ADAPT IN THE FUTURE.

PLATYPUSES
COME OUT AT NIGHT

TO FEED ON THE CREEK'S
INSECT LIFE.

THIS IS THE BEST TIME
TO CATCH ONE

AND RUN A GENETIC TEST.

THERE'S MOVEMENT.
WE'VE GOT SOMETHING.

THERE HE IS.

HERE SHE IS--

ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING
CREATURES ON THE PLANET,

THE, THE PLATYPUS.

YOU CAN SEE
THE ICONIC DUCK-BILL

THAT THEY'RE
WELL-RECOGNIZED FOR.

WE'RE JUST GONNA TAKE
HER WEIGHT

AND A FEW BODY
MEASUREMENTS AND,

TAKE A LITTLE DNA
SAMPLE FOR OUR, UM,

OUR SURVEY
INVESTIGATIONS.

SHH, SHH, SHH, SHH, SHH.

OK. WHAT I'LL DO IS
I'LL GET YOU

TO RECORD THE DATA
FOR ME AS WELL.

LOOK THERE.

FOR PLATYPUSES TO THRIVE,

THEIR GENE POOL NEEDS TO BE
AS VARIED AS POSSIBLE,

JUST LIKE HUMANS.

ISOLATED FROM EACH OTHER,
THEY'RE IN TROUBLE.

INSTEAD OF HAVING
THIS NICE, CONNECTED,

LARGE POPULATION
OF PLATYPUSES, WE END UP

WITH THESE SMALL,
ISOLATED ONES.

NOT ONLY ARE-- ARE THE SMALL ONES
MORE VULNERABLE TO EXTINCTION,

BUT THEY CAN ALSO,
END UP WITH GENETIC PROBLEMS.

THERE CAN BE PROBLEMS WITH
INBREEDING BECAUSE THEY'VE,

YOU KNOW, GOT TO THEN BREED
WITH RELATED INDIVIDUALS.

A SMALL PIECE OF SKIN
IS ALL THAT'S NEEDED

TO ANALYZE THIS ANIMAL'S DNA
AND COMPARE IT

TO THAT OF OTHER PLATYPUSES
IN THE SAME AREA.

THAT'S HER ALL DONE.

LET'S GO PUT HER BACK
IN THE WILD.

IF DIVERSITY
IS RUNNING LOW,

GRIFFITHS AND HIS TEAM
WILL INTRODUCE NEW PLATYPUSES

FROM ANOTHER GROUP

AND GIVE THE CREEK
A GENETIC BOOST.

WHAT ABOUT EARLY AUSTRALIANS?

HOW DID THEY DEAL WITH
THE SAME RISKS OF ISOLATION?

THE SECRET TO THEIR SUCCESS...

CONTACT.

THROUGHOUT THE ICE AGE,

PEOPLE CONTINUED
EXCHANGING BEADS,

TOOLS, AND OCHRE

ACROSS HUNDREDS OF MILES.

THESE TRADING NETWORKS
WERE A GENETIC LIFELINE.

AS PEOPLE SPLINTER
INTO SMALL LITTLE GROUPS,

EACH OF THOSE LITTLE GROUPS
BECOMES GENETICALLY

SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT
FROM EACH OTHER.

THAT'S CREATING
DIVERSITY.

BUT IN ORDER FOR THAT
DIVERSITY TO SURVIVE,

IT HAS TO BE TRANSMITTED
FROM ONE GROUP TO ANOTHER,

AND THAT TAKES CONNECTIONS.

THESE NETWORKS
ARE SO IMPORTANT

BECAUSE THEY'RE ALSO
MATING NETWORKS.

WHAT THEY DID
WAS THAT THEY SPREAD OUT

INTO SMALLER GROUPS THAT,
TO A LARGE EXTENT,

HAVE BEEN LIVING ISOLATED
FROM EACH OTHER,

BUT NOT COMPLETELY ISOLATED
FROM EACH OTHER,

SO THERE HAS BEEN GENETIC
EXCHANGES BETWEEN THEM,

YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE
THAT YOU ARE GETTING FRESH BLOOD

INTO YOUR POPULATION.

AND THAT IS REALLY THE RECIPE

OF, GENETIC SUCCESS

OVER A LONG PERIOD
OF TIME IN ISOLATION.

WITHOUT REALIZING IT,

THESE EARLY AUSTRALIANS
FOUND A BALANCE

BETWEEN BEING SEPARATE
AND CONNECTED...

AND THAT HELPED THEM FACE DOWN
THE THREAT OF EXTINCTION.

A SENSE
OF CONNECTEDNESS IS

STILL ENGRAINED WITHIN
ABORIGINAL CULTURE.

GALI YALKARRIWUY IS
AN ELDER OF THE YOLNGU PEOPLE

AND THE KEEPER OF THEIR
CEREMONIAL KNOWLEDGE.

HE'S USING OCHRE TO PREPARE
FOR THE ARRIVAL

OF THE SPIRIT, BARNUMBIRR.

ACCORDING TO YOLNGU TRADITION,

SHE CARRIED THE FIRST PEOPLE
TO AUSTRALIA,

FLYING ACROSS THE LAND,

SINGING HER SONG.

BARNUMBIRR IS ALSO KNOWN

AS THE MORNING STAR...

THE PLANET VENUS.

GALI WILL DANCE ALL NIGHT

UNTIL VENUS RISES,
JUST BEFORE DAWN.

FOR THE YOLNGU PEOPLE,

THIS SONG AND DANCE
ARE A TYPE OF MAP...

CONTAINING INFORMATION
ABOUT HUNTING SITES

AND WATERING HOLES.

BUT THIS SONG DOESN'T BELONG
ONLY TO THE YOLNGU.

THERE ARE VARIATIONS
OF IT SUNG ACROSS AUSTRALIA,

CONNECTING DIFFERENT TRIBES
THROUGH A SHARED CULTURE.

RITUALS LIKE THIS HAVE
HELPED ABORIGINAL GROUPS COPE

WITH THE IMPACT OF ISOLATION...

AND ISOLATION HAS HELPED
THE RITUAL SURVIVE.

WITHOUT AN INFLUX
OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE

WITH DIFFERENT IDEAS,
THERE'S LESS PRESSURE

FOR A CULTURE TO CHANGE...

SO THE SAME RITUALS GET PASSED
DOWN THE GENERATIONS,

INTACT AND UNALTERED.

THESE CONNECTIONS
BETWEEN ABORIGINAL GROUPS

ARE KNOWN AS SONGLINES.

NO ONE KNOWS HOW OLD THEY ARE,

BUT THEY MAY DATE BACK
TO THE ORIGINAL TRADING NETWORKS

THAT HELPED PEOPLE
SURVIVE THE ICE AGE.

FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS,

ABORIGINAL CULTURE FLOURISHED

AND THE POPULATION BOOMED...

UP TO A MILLION PEOPLE

LIVING IN 300 DIFFERENT
LANGUAGE GROUPS.

BUT IN 1606,

EUROPEANS ARRIVED.

COLONIZATION WAS A DISASTER

FOR ABORIGINAL PEOPLE.

THEIR LAND WAS TAKEN,

THEIR FAMILIES WERE SEPARATED,

AND THEIR CONNECTION
TO THEIR ANCESTORS--

WHICH HAD BEEN SO FUNDAMENTAL--

WAS SEVERED.

BUT IT'S POSSIBLE THAT SCIENCE
CAN NOW HELP THEM RECONNECT.

IN 2013,

AN ANCIENT SKELETON WAS
FOUND HERE,

AT THE VERY BEACH WHERE
EUROPEANS FIRST ARRIVED

400 YEARS AGO.

THE FIND WAS SO POIGNANT,

THE LOCAL TRIBE CALLED IN
MIKE WESTAWAY

TO ANALYZE THE BONES.

IN THE PAST, A LOT
OF ABORIGINAL GROUPS

WEREN'T SO HAPPY ABOUT
THIS SORT OF RESEARCH;

A LOT OF THE REMAINS
HAD BEEN TAKEN

WITHOUT THEIR PERMISSION
OR CONSENT.

BUT THINGS ARE CHANGING
AND, IN THIS INSTANCE,

THE ABORIGINAL COMMUNITY
WANTED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT

THE ANCIENT REMAINS; THEY WANTED
TO KNOW ABOUT THE, UM, THE AGE,

HOW OLD THIS PERSON WAS,
WHEN DID THEY LIVE,

WHAT SEX WERE THEY, AND ANYTHING
ELSE THEY COULD FIND OUT.

THE EXCAVATION
OF THE SKELETON HAPPENED

AS A CYCLONE WAS HEADING
FOR NORTHERN AUSTRALIA.

WESTAWAY AND HIS TEAM HAD
TO BATTLE THE ELEMENTS

AND RESCUE AS MANY BONES
AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.

THE MOST IMPORTANT FIND
WAS THE SKULL.

THE INITIAL DISCOVERY
OF THE REMAINS REVEALED

A FAIRLY COMPLETE INDIVIDUAL
AND COULD SEE

THAT THE SKULL WAS ACTUALLY
QUITE LIGHTLY BUILT.

THE BROW RIDGES WERE VERY FINE,
NOT HEAVILY BUILT,

AND GENERALLY THE-- THE OVERALL
ANATOMY OF THE SKULL INDICATED

THE REMAINS ARE FROM A WOMAN,
PROBABLY IN HER EARLY 30s.

BY CARBON-DATING
SHELLS IN THE SEDIMENT,

THEY WERE ABLE TO WORK OUT
THE AGE OF THE SKELETON.

IT IS 31/2 THOUSAND YEARS OLD.

THE LAND HERE IS OWNED
BY THE FAMILY OF THOMAS WALES.

IT'S LIKE A CONCRETE
PLATFORM HERE, THOMAS.

YEAH.

HE'S BEEN CLOSELY
INVOLVED IN THE EXCAVATION WORK

SINCE IT BEGAN.

WE WERE LUCKY
WHEN WE CAME OUT.

A WEEK AFTER WE EXCAVATED
THE REMAINS,

A CYCLONE CAME ALONG
AND...DEMOLISHED

SOME OF THIS BEACH DOWN BELOW.

WE WOULD HAVE LOST
THE SKELETON.

WE WOULD HAVE LOST A PERSON.

SO WE CAME OUT HERE
JUST IN TIME.

AND SHE'S IN, YOU KNOW,
MUCH SAFER PLACE NOW,

BEHIND ME IN THE BUSHES THERE.

THE BONES WERE REBURIED,

ACCORDING TO TRIBAL CUSTOM.

BUT NOT BEFORE A FEW
FRAGMENTS WERE REMOVED

AND SENT AWAY
FOR GENETIC TESTING.

WE'RE TRYING
TO GET ANCIENT DNA

FROM ONE OF THE ROOTS
OF THE TEETH.

THE INITIAL SIGNS ARE
QUITE POSITIVE.

IF WE'RE ABLE TO RECOVER
THE GENOME, OR THE FULL GENOME,

IT WILL GIVE US A REALLY
IMPORTANT INSIGHT INTO

UNDERSTANDING POPULATION HISTORY
TO THIS PART OF AUSTRALIA.

THE WORK IS OVERSEEN
BY ESKE WILLERSLEV,

THE DANISH GENETICIST
WHO SEQUENCED

THE FIRST ABORIGINAL GENOME

FROM A SAMPLE OF HAIR.

THE DNA FROM DUYFKEN POINT IS

MORE THAN 3,000 YEARS OLDER

AND MUCH HARDER TO READ.

BUT BECAUSE IT'S SO OLD,
IT CAN PROVIDE MORE DETAIL

ABOUT THE INTERCONNECTEDNESS
OF EARLY AUSTRALIANS.

WE WANT TO BUILD UP
A MUCH MORE COMPLETE PICTURE

OF HOW WAS AUSTRALIA POPULATED:

HOW QUICKLY DID THEY SPREAD
THROUGH THE CONTINENT

AND HOW OFTEN DID THEY MEET;
HOW MOBILE WERE THEY;

HOW MANY PEOPLE CAME IN--

ALL THESE QUESTIONS, YOU KNOW,
THAT STILL REMAIN UNANSWERED.

MOST OF US
ABORIGINAL PEOPLE IN AUSTRALIA

HAVE BEEN DISCONNECTED
FROM THEIR ANCESTRY

AND THEIR ROOTS
BECAUSE OF COLONIZATION.

AND SOME OF US
HAVE LOST THEIR...

OUR WAY A LITTLE BIT.

WITH MODERN-DAY SCIENCE,
WE CAN FIND OUT

A BIT MORE ABOUT THAT PERSON.

THEN THEY CAN SEE HOW,
MAYBE, CLOSE

ME AND THE ANCIENT SKELETON ARE.

THAT'LL BE GOOD
TO FIND OUT THEN.

FOR ABORIGINAL PEOPLE
TO DISCOVER HOW THEY'RE RELATED

TO THE WOMAN ON THE BEACH,
THEY NEED TO HAND OVER SOME DNA.

IF YOU CAN SPIT IN THIS TUBE
AND THEN SEAL IT UP,

THAT WILL GIVE US
A SAMPLE.

UNTIL RECENTLY,

MOST OF THEM REFUSED TO DO THIS

BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T
TRUST THE SCIENTISTS.

THAT ENOUGH OR MORE?

BUT THERE'S
BEEN A CHANGE OF HEART

SINCE THE SEQUENCING
OF THE FIRST ABORIGINAL GENOME.

FOR MANY
OF THESE COMMUNITIES,

THEY HAVE LOST
THE MAJORITY OF THEIR CULTURE

AND THEIR ORIGIN STORIES,

AND THEY ARE INTERESTED
IN GAINING INFORMATION

ABOUT THEIR OWN PAST,
AND ONE OF THE WAYS TO,

YOU CAN SAY, REGAIN
SOME OF THIS INFORMATION

IS THROUGH, YOU KNOW,
SCIENCE AND-- AND GENETIC WORK.

ALL DNA SAMPLES
END UP HERE--

IN A FRIDGE IN DENMARK.

THIS IS SAMPLES OF
LIVING ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIANS--

I MEAN SPIT SAMPLES-- AND IN HERE
IS ALSO THE SAMPLE OF THOMAS.

AND, IT'S SO USEFUL,
THE MODERN SAMPLES,

BECAUSE IF YOU COMPARE IT
WITH THE ANCIENT SAMPLES,

YOU CAN GET AN IDEA
ABOUT HOW PEOPLE WERE

MOVING AROUND IN
THE LANDSCAPE THROUGH TIME

AND ALSO HOW ISOLATED THEY WERE.

SO IF WE COMPARE THOMAS' DNA

TO THE SKELETON FOUND
IN THE SAME AREA,

BEING 3,000 YEARS OLD,
WE CAN DETERMINE

WHETHER IT'S THE SAME PEOPLE
OR NOT THAT HAS STAYED

IN THE SAME AREA
DURING THAT TIME SPAN.

SO IT'S REALLY THE COMBINATION
OF THE MODERN GENOMES

AND THE ANCIENT GENOMES
THAT GIVES YOU THE POWER

TO, UNCOVER THE PAST.

THE GENETIC
STORY OF AUSTRALIA

HAS ONLY STARTED TO BE TOLD.

WHEN THE WORK IS DONE,
ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIANS WILL KNOW

HOW CLOSELY RELATED THEY ARE
TO THOSE THAT HAVE COME BEFORE.

BUT IT'S ALREADY CLEAR

THEIR DNA IS UNIQUE...

ANCIENT, YET UNDILUTED.

WHILE THE REST OF HUMANITY
WAS MIXING GENES,

AUSTRALIANS STAYED
IN SPLENDID ISOLATION.

IN THEORY, THEY SHOULD
HAVE GONE EXTINCT,

A HUMAN MIGRATION
THAT REACHED A DEAD END.

THEIR SURVIVAL WASN'T DUE
TO ANY SPECIAL TECHNOLOGY.

IT WAS THEIR ABILITY
TO CONNECT WITH EACH OTHER,

BUILDING NETWORKS
ACROSS A CONTINENT.

WHAT WAS TRUE THEN IS TRUE NOW.

WE ARE SOCIAL BEINGS.

WE SEEK OUT OTHERS
AND FIND COMMON CAUSE.

IT'S WHAT MAKES US HUMAN

AND HAS BROUGHT US SO FAR.