WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.960 --> 00:00:03.960 Welcome. This is Marcia for Radio I, and today I 2 00:00:04.000 --> 00:00:08.359 will be reading National Geographic Magazine dated February twenty twenty five. 3 00:00:09.000 --> 00:00:12.519 As a reminder, Radio I is a reading service intended 4 00:00:12.519 --> 00:00:15.599 for people who are blind or have other disabilities that 5 00:00:15.640 --> 00:00:18.920 make it difficult to read printed material. Please join me 6 00:00:19.000 --> 00:00:23.320 now for the first article titled Inside the NFL's Football 7 00:00:23.480 --> 00:00:29.120 Factory by Terry Ward. Making iconic game balls requires more 8 00:00:29.160 --> 00:00:33.280 than one hundred craftspeople perfecting a century old design. Here's 9 00:00:33.359 --> 00:00:36.479 how they do it. Over a hundred million fans will 10 00:00:36.520 --> 00:00:40.320 be tuning in to watch opposing quarterbacks sling perfectly spiraling 11 00:00:40.439 --> 00:00:46.200 passes downfield during Super Bowl fifty nine this February. The 12 00:00:46.240 --> 00:00:49.280 Big Game has become an annual tradition, one that hinges 13 00:00:49.359 --> 00:00:52.600 on a design that has changed little since it originated 14 00:00:52.640 --> 00:00:56.000 back in the late nineteenth century. The size, shape, and 15 00:00:56.039 --> 00:00:59.200 texture of NFL footballs have stayed the same for more 16 00:00:59.240 --> 00:01:02.679 than one hundred years, with only one exception. They're technically 17 00:01:02.759 --> 00:01:06.280 not pig skins because manufacturers have shifted from using pig 18 00:01:06.319 --> 00:01:10.359 bladders to cowhide leather. Fans may not know that bit 19 00:01:10.400 --> 00:01:13.840 of trivia, but it still a mazes physicists. It's a 20 00:01:13.959 --> 00:01:17.560 historical accident that the original design still perfectly suits the 21 00:01:17.599 --> 00:01:22.840 modern needs of the sport, says Robindra Nata, former chief 22 00:01:22.920 --> 00:01:28.040 of the Experimental Aerophysics Division at nassau's Aims Research Center 23 00:01:28.079 --> 00:01:31.879 in California. Compared to a baseball, a football is a 24 00:01:31.959 --> 00:01:36.640 more aerodynamic shape by design. That's probably because the football 25 00:01:36.719 --> 00:01:40.519 is not actually a ball, but a prolate spheroid oblong 26 00:01:40.599 --> 00:01:43.439 with pointed ends that make it easier to grip. The 27 00:01:43.519 --> 00:01:46.719 manner in which air flows around that spheroid also helps 28 00:01:46.760 --> 00:01:50.280 it travel great distances. But no one knows the details 29 00:01:50.359 --> 00:01:55.239 of what makes each football so aero dynamic and so durable, 30 00:01:55.319 --> 00:01:59.640 better than those in charge of manufacturing the NFL's footballs 31 00:02:00.159 --> 00:02:03.840 that the Wilson's Sporting Goods Companies factory in Ada, Ohio, 32 00:02:03.959 --> 00:02:08.400 roughly one hundred twenty craftspeople hand make that time tested design. 33 00:02:09.400 --> 00:02:13.120 Here's what happens behind the scenes inside the facility. Large 34 00:02:13.199 --> 00:02:17.960 leather sheets from Chicago's Hoarween Leather Company are stamped to 35 00:02:18.000 --> 00:02:21.840 create a pebbly feel. They are also embossed with tiny 36 00:02:22.000 --> 00:02:25.280 ws at intervals to ensure the authenticity of the material. 37 00:02:26.360 --> 00:02:29.159 To achieve an oblong shape, the leather is cut into 38 00:02:29.199 --> 00:02:32.319 four individual panels that are leaf shaped and tapered at 39 00:02:32.360 --> 00:02:35.879 both ends. These are sewn together inside out, which makes 40 00:02:35.919 --> 00:02:39.280 the seam invisible and more durable. Then the leather is 41 00:02:39.360 --> 00:02:41.960 steamed so that it becomes soft enough to turn right 42 00:02:42.039 --> 00:02:45.319 side out. To make the job easier, a craft's person 43 00:02:45.439 --> 00:02:49.000 called a turner, uses a pneumatic hammer to make the 44 00:02:49.000 --> 00:02:53.000 pointed ends more pliable before the football is reversed forcibly 45 00:02:53.039 --> 00:02:57.280 by hand on a metal pole. An experienced turner can 46 00:02:57.319 --> 00:03:00.520 do this in about thirty seconds. An air ladder is 47 00:03:00.560 --> 00:03:03.520 then inserted and the football is laced together by hand. 48 00:03:04.080 --> 00:03:07.560 Nearly completed balls are placed inside a pressurized chamber that 49 00:03:07.719 --> 00:03:11.599 casts them to the uniform shape. All of that works 50 00:03:11.599 --> 00:03:15.240 in the quarterback's favor once a ball is thrown. Characteristics 51 00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:19.960 of the authorized football's surface, including pebbling stitching of the panels. 52 00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:24.159 The laces allow air floor flow to stay in contact longer. 53 00:03:24.719 --> 00:03:28.479 That thin layer of air skimming past the bowed surface, 54 00:03:29.159 --> 00:03:32.280 referred to as the boundary layer, is where its design shines. 55 00:03:32.840 --> 00:03:35.879 While the surrounding air may not directly hug a football's 56 00:03:35.919 --> 00:03:39.039 curves all the way around, it does continue over the 57 00:03:39.080 --> 00:03:42.319 apex of the ball, resulting in a minimal wake and 58 00:03:42.479 --> 00:03:46.400 less drag. That's different from purely spherical baseballs, where the 59 00:03:46.439 --> 00:03:49.919 air makes a connection on only half the ball, creating 60 00:03:49.960 --> 00:03:53.400 more of a wake and drag. Drag can be challenging 61 00:03:53.439 --> 00:03:56.599 to predict, particularly in odd shaped objects like a football, 62 00:03:57.039 --> 00:04:01.319 said Annette Pico Ho Soi on the CA canical Engineering 63 00:04:01.360 --> 00:04:04.080 professor at MIT, But some of it comes down to 64 00:04:04.120 --> 00:04:07.120 how the ball gets tossed. Drag depends on the shape 65 00:04:07.159 --> 00:04:10.039 of the wake, which with a football can vary depending 66 00:04:10.120 --> 00:04:13.400 on its orientation through the air, the velocity at which 67 00:04:13.400 --> 00:04:17.959 it's throne, and surface roughness density of the surrounding air. 68 00:04:18.040 --> 00:04:21.360 A function of air temperature also affects the boundary layer 69 00:04:21.480 --> 00:04:25.800 and in turn its aerodynamics. Possoy said, warm air is 70 00:04:25.879 --> 00:04:28.879 less dense than cold air. If the air is less dense, 71 00:04:28.920 --> 00:04:31.920 there is less drag, so footballs may fly further on 72 00:04:32.079 --> 00:04:35.759 warmer days, she explained, adding that the phenomenon has been 73 00:04:35.800 --> 00:04:40.160 well documented in baseball, which clocks more home runs during hot, 74 00:04:40.360 --> 00:04:43.959 humid days than the contrary. For many football lovers and 75 00:04:44.079 --> 00:04:47.639 Wilson's experts, a long bomb is indeed a thing of beauty, 76 00:04:47.680 --> 00:04:50.399 no matter the weather. The axis of the spin is 77 00:04:50.439 --> 00:04:53.519 aligned with the direction the ball will go, says Mata, 78 00:04:54.079 --> 00:04:56.399 likening a good pass to the way a bullet flies. 79 00:04:56.800 --> 00:04:59.439 That's what the quarterbacks are really good at doing. It's 80 00:04:59.480 --> 00:05:04.480 a perfect spiral by design. Next, meet the hidden keepers 81 00:05:04.600 --> 00:05:08.639 of the forest. The redwood ant is the unsung hero 82 00:05:08.879 --> 00:05:12.160 of the woods and perhaps its greatest social director too. 83 00:05:13.360 --> 00:05:19.839 By Eric Alt. Wildlife photographer Ingo Arnt discovered his first 84 00:05:20.000 --> 00:05:22.600 enormous ant mound as a child exploring the forest with 85 00:05:22.639 --> 00:05:26.079 his father near their home in Germany almost fifty years ago. 86 00:05:26.480 --> 00:05:28.920 They were bird watching and came around a bed in 87 00:05:28.920 --> 00:05:32.279 a densely wooded area. When there it was a five 88 00:05:32.279 --> 00:05:36.199 foot tall mound jutting upward like a large stalagmite. The 89 00:05:36.240 --> 00:05:38.800 mound was covered with a thick layer of spruce needles 90 00:05:38.800 --> 00:05:42.560 and throngs of tiny red ants. Aren't wanted to investigate 91 00:05:42.600 --> 00:05:46.160 more closely, but a very particular smell suggested he rethink 92 00:05:46.199 --> 00:05:50.000 that impulse. The air felt thick and pungent, stinging his 93 00:05:50.079 --> 00:05:52.600 nostrils like vinegar. All my life, he says, I could 94 00:05:52.600 --> 00:05:57.000 remember that smell as an adult. Aren't has spent much 95 00:05:57.240 --> 00:06:00.319 of his career traveling to photograph animals like the pools 96 00:06:00.720 --> 00:06:04.759 of Patagonia and kangaroos in Australia. Several years ago, he 97 00:06:04.800 --> 00:06:07.920 moved to the German countryside with his wife. While hiking 98 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:11.639 through the region's pine forests, the surroundings rekindled his fascination 99 00:06:12.160 --> 00:06:15.399 with the mounds and their armies of ultra small engineers. 100 00:06:15.839 --> 00:06:18.279 How did insects roughly a quarter of an inch long 101 00:06:18.639 --> 00:06:22.279 build such huge structures and why did they emanate that 102 00:06:22.560 --> 00:06:26.759 astringent Odor Arn't now had the tools and experience to 103 00:06:26.759 --> 00:06:30.199 seek answers to his questions. Outfitted with a high resolution 104 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:33.600 camera and macro lenses that allow you to focus on 105 00:06:33.680 --> 00:06:37.279 small objects up close, he began photographing the bounds and 106 00:06:37.399 --> 00:06:41.959 sharing his midge imagery with researchers for a scientific perspective. 107 00:06:42.439 --> 00:06:45.800 It turned out the moundmakers were indeed special. They were 108 00:06:45.920 --> 00:06:49.519 red wood ants, scientifically classified as a group within the 109 00:06:49.560 --> 00:06:53.240 genus Formica, one of the smallest of all so called 110 00:06:53.360 --> 00:06:58.439 keystone species. Among conservationists, Keystone species such as elephants and 111 00:06:58.480 --> 00:07:02.160 sharks are watched close because their behaviors affect so many 112 00:07:02.199 --> 00:07:05.759 aspects of their ecosystem that if they disappeared, it would 113 00:07:05.759 --> 00:07:09.800 struggle to adapt. Red wood ants are typically found in 114 00:07:09.879 --> 00:07:14.079 Eurasia's temperate and boreal forests, but in recent decades more 115 00:07:14.120 --> 00:07:17.439 nests have been disappearing as the forests have fallen victim 116 00:07:17.519 --> 00:07:21.120 to logging, urbanization, and wildfires, as well as drought and 117 00:07:21.199 --> 00:07:25.199 higher temperatures that have become more frequent with climate change. 118 00:07:25.600 --> 00:07:29.399 This has led several countries across the ant's range, including Germany, 119 00:07:29.439 --> 00:07:32.839 to designate them as a protected species by law. Today, 120 00:07:33.000 --> 00:07:36.720 Arnt's photo quest has taken on new meeting. His images, 121 00:07:36.759 --> 00:07:39.079 which he has been producing for the past two years, 122 00:07:39.360 --> 00:07:42.720 put on display these creatures fascinating ability to forge a 123 00:07:42.800 --> 00:07:47.199 multitude of symbiotic relationships across a variety of plant and 124 00:07:47.279 --> 00:07:50.839 animal species. In doing so, he's revealed the wonders of 125 00:07:50.879 --> 00:07:55.160 a hidden insect world. The massive nests consists of two parts, 126 00:07:55.480 --> 00:07:58.920 one above ground and one below, which red wood ants 127 00:07:58.959 --> 00:08:03.000 create by both growing into the earth and gathering needles, leaves, bark, 128 00:08:03.079 --> 00:08:07.199 and twigs. As they rise, each mound gains new entrances 129 00:08:07.199 --> 00:08:12.079 and corridors, supporting anywhere from thirty thousand to upwards of 130 00:08:12.120 --> 00:08:15.279 sixteen million insects, the largest above ground nests of any 131 00:08:15.360 --> 00:08:18.279 ant species in the world. To learn more about this 132 00:08:18.360 --> 00:08:23.639 concealed society aren't enlisted. The help of entomologist Bernard Seifert 133 00:08:24.040 --> 00:08:28.639 of the Secondburg Natural History Museums Research Institute in Frankfort 134 00:08:29.079 --> 00:08:34.080 and zoologist Jorgen Teuts, Professor emeritus at the Julius Maximilian 135 00:08:34.559 --> 00:08:39.279 University of Vortzberg, the researchers helped explain how arns images 136 00:08:39.679 --> 00:08:43.080 showed the ants directing life within the forest and surprising ways. 137 00:08:43.639 --> 00:08:46.879 For instance, the ants generate formic acid in a venom 138 00:08:46.919 --> 00:08:49.639 gland at the rear of their abdomen. As they build 139 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:52.519 a nest, the insects will gather tree resin, which has 140 00:08:52.559 --> 00:08:56.600 been shown to possess anti microbial properties, and spray it 141 00:08:56.639 --> 00:09:01.279 with their acid, which has its own antimicrobial properties. The 142 00:09:01.320 --> 00:09:04.080 result is a more potent agent that the ants place 143 00:09:04.480 --> 00:09:08.120 throughout the structure to fight against bacterial and fungal pathogens. 144 00:09:08.720 --> 00:09:13.320 Formic acid also powers the species pest control roll. The 145 00:09:13.360 --> 00:09:16.320 fluid can be weaponized to take down other insects like 146 00:09:16.399 --> 00:09:19.320 wood boring beetles, one of the most destructive vermin in 147 00:09:19.399 --> 00:09:24.679 spruce forests. The fighting tactics Seiphered explains involves biting them 148 00:09:24.679 --> 00:09:28.120 and then spraying formic acid into the wounds. Reducing the 149 00:09:28.159 --> 00:09:31.879 number of beetles that weaken and destroy trees improves conditions 150 00:09:31.879 --> 00:09:35.720 for aphids living in them. The ant's milk the aphids 151 00:09:35.799 --> 00:09:41.080 to excrete honeydew, which becomes their primary food source. Using 152 00:09:41.159 --> 00:09:44.679 camera traps aren't also captured larger animals lining up to 153 00:09:44.679 --> 00:09:48.879 get sprayed voluntarily. A rear image shows a Eurasian jay 154 00:09:49.039 --> 00:09:51.960 landing on top of a mountain and calmly flattening out 155 00:09:51.960 --> 00:09:54.480 its tails to allow the ants to crawl up and attack. 156 00:09:55.120 --> 00:09:58.480 The ants spray the jays as an enemy, says touts. 157 00:09:58.879 --> 00:10:02.440 While the birds appear unharmed, the toxin is powerful enough 158 00:10:02.759 --> 00:10:06.240 to disperse or kill parasites such as mites and lice 159 00:10:06.440 --> 00:10:09.840 that they carry. For many bird species, this behavior helps 160 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:13.759 them stay healthy too. Some uninvited guests that are willing 161 00:10:13.799 --> 00:10:17.559 to wreak alongside the community have gained more benefits. As 162 00:10:17.559 --> 00:10:22.240 social insects, ants organize colonies and form complex societies, but 163 00:10:22.320 --> 00:10:27.200 they also cohabitate with a wide variety of species, including mites, spiders, 164 00:10:27.240 --> 00:10:30.240 and flies within their nests. One trick is that some 165 00:10:30.399 --> 00:10:33.360 of these interlopers may have grown up already doused in 166 00:10:33.440 --> 00:10:37.240 a familiar scent If a leaf beetle drops its eggs 167 00:10:37.279 --> 00:10:40.240 on or near the mound, the workers may inadvertently bring 168 00:10:40.279 --> 00:10:45.159 the eggs into the nest while collecting materials the larvae 169 00:10:45.320 --> 00:10:50.120 actually live inside. It aren't explodes. The eggs, then the larvae, 170 00:10:50.240 --> 00:10:53.720 and eventually the pulpie all smell like the nest. That's 171 00:10:53.759 --> 00:10:56.679 how they elude their host detection and exploit the shelter 172 00:10:56.799 --> 00:11:01.159 to survive. In one study, researchers confirmed that on average, 173 00:11:01.159 --> 00:11:03.600 more than a dozen different species can be found within 174 00:11:03.639 --> 00:11:07.879 a single mound. Arnt's project highlights the strange and amazing 175 00:11:07.919 --> 00:11:12.399 ways these often overlooked creatures are influencing the action around them. 176 00:11:12.840 --> 00:11:15.919 While he did his best to avoid disrupting the protected species, 177 00:11:16.240 --> 00:11:18.720 the ants at times had other ideas, and they'd hitch 178 00:11:18.720 --> 00:11:21.639 a ride back with him. I'll be out at dinner 179 00:11:21.639 --> 00:11:23.879 and they show up and walk over my pants, he says, 180 00:11:23.960 --> 00:11:26.399 laughing at the memory. But I always try and bring 181 00:11:26.480 --> 00:11:30.000 everybody back to the nest. The forest needs their collective 182 00:11:30.080 --> 00:11:35.320 power secrets to living. Super small bombadier beetle. When threatened, 183 00:11:35.440 --> 00:11:39.120 this insect has an explosive defense. It produces an internal 184 00:11:39.200 --> 00:11:43.240 chemical reaction that releases a scalding and irritating fluid that 185 00:11:43.320 --> 00:11:46.519 can reach two hundred twelve degrees fahrenheit. It sprays the 186 00:11:46.559 --> 00:11:51.240 liquid from its rear end to repel predators. Diving bell spider, 187 00:11:51.639 --> 00:11:54.000 the only spider to live its whole life under water, 188 00:11:54.320 --> 00:11:57.799 collects air bubbles from the surface using its abdominal hairs 189 00:11:58.120 --> 00:12:01.360 and carries them to a woven silk diving bell. The 190 00:12:01.360 --> 00:12:04.879 bell doubles as a gild, transferring oxygen from the water 191 00:12:05.000 --> 00:12:08.879 to help provide a twenty four hour supply. Tiger beetle. 192 00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:12.879 This beetle's long, thin legs help it reach unbelievable speeds, 193 00:12:13.200 --> 00:12:17.279 whether chasing prey or running from predators. In Australia, one 194 00:12:17.440 --> 00:12:19.919 less than an inch long species can run up to 195 00:12:19.960 --> 00:12:23.480 eight feet a second, among the fastest in the insect world. 196 00:12:24.440 --> 00:12:28.120 Peacock's spider. Instead of using a web, this jumping spiders 197 00:12:28.159 --> 00:12:31.879 stalks and pounces on its prey with incredible accuracy. Like 198 00:12:31.960 --> 00:12:36.639 most spiders, it has eight eyes that produce a nearly 199 00:12:36.759 --> 00:12:40.039 three hundred sixty degree view, but it is the two 200 00:12:40.200 --> 00:12:44.360 forward facing ones that create its high resolution color vision. 201 00:12:46.039 --> 00:12:49.200 Heating the hill, the sprawling mounds of the red wood 202 00:12:49.240 --> 00:12:54.320 ant and for Mica pellacentina are the largest above ground 203 00:12:54.399 --> 00:12:57.399 ant nests in the world. They are also heat retaining 204 00:12:57.440 --> 00:13:01.679 wonders thanks to the thermoregulating press of millions of ants 205 00:13:01.720 --> 00:13:06.840 devoted to sustaining themselves and their young in Europe's Chile Forest. 206 00:13:07.240 --> 00:13:12.559 The next article from National Geographic History Magazine Atlantic Odyssey, 207 00:13:12.720 --> 00:13:19.799 Life aboard the Spanish Galleons by Esteban Mira Caballos. Spanish 208 00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:22.360 migrants setting sail for the New World in the sixteenth 209 00:13:22.399 --> 00:13:27.080 and seventeenth centuries faced a hazardous Atlantic crossing and an 210 00:13:27.200 --> 00:13:31.639 uncertain future. For the people of sixteenth century Spain, the 211 00:13:31.679 --> 00:13:35.440 world was expanding right before their eyes. After fourteen ninety two, 212 00:13:35.519 --> 00:13:39.360 Spanish voyages of discovery revealed the Americas and the Pacific, 213 00:13:39.440 --> 00:13:42.679 while new Eastern routes were rounding Africa to reach Asia. 214 00:13:43.279 --> 00:13:47.000 To defend and expand Spain's new empire, galleons sailed on 215 00:13:47.080 --> 00:13:50.120 a growing network of sea routes and brought colonists to 216 00:13:50.159 --> 00:13:53.639 these lands. The crossings were grueling and long, testing the 217 00:13:53.679 --> 00:13:58.320 resolve of every passenger. In fall fourteen ninety two, Christopher 218 00:13:58.320 --> 00:14:01.320 Columbus was the first European to say site the Bahamas 219 00:14:01.320 --> 00:14:05.240 and Cuba. On December sixth, apparently believing he had landed 220 00:14:05.279 --> 00:14:09.759 in Chipango, Japan, he claimed for Spain the island he 221 00:14:09.840 --> 00:14:14.000 dubbed the East La Espanola location of modern Haiti and 222 00:14:14.039 --> 00:14:19.000 the Dominican Republic. More voyages followed, and Spain's geographic knowledge 223 00:14:19.000 --> 00:14:22.600 of the America's expanded rapidly. The islands of the Caribbean 224 00:14:22.639 --> 00:14:27.519 became a logical staging post for Spain's transatlantic ambitions, setting 225 00:14:27.600 --> 00:14:30.919 out from his base in Cuba. In fifteen nineteen, Hernan 226 00:14:31.080 --> 00:14:34.399 Quotez completed the conquest of the Balley of Mexico. In 227 00:14:34.399 --> 00:14:38.120 fifteen twenty one. Footholds gained in North and South America 228 00:14:38.240 --> 00:14:42.759 led to more gains. Francisco Pizarro pushed farther west into 229 00:14:42.799 --> 00:14:46.039 South America to topple the Inca Empire. In fifteen thirty three, 230 00:14:46.840 --> 00:14:51.320 span began seeking faster ways to reach Asian markets from 231 00:14:51.559 --> 00:14:55.000 Central America. In fifteen sixty four, a system of two 232 00:14:55.120 --> 00:14:59.200 annual trade fleets was consolidated. The New Spain Fleet would 233 00:14:59.240 --> 00:15:02.879 sail from the Spa Spanish port of Savigue for New Spain, 234 00:15:03.039 --> 00:15:07.039 docking in Veracruz in modern day Mexico. The galleons of 235 00:15:07.080 --> 00:15:13.440 the Tierra Fairmay Fleet would depart for Cartagena de Indias 236 00:15:13.480 --> 00:15:16.840 today in Columbia. An extension of the New Spain Fleet 237 00:15:16.919 --> 00:15:21.279 was established in the Pacific port of Acapulco, Mexico. From there, 238 00:15:21.360 --> 00:15:25.279 the Manila Galleon sailed for the Philippines to facilitate trade 239 00:15:25.559 --> 00:15:29.720 with Asia. With China and other Asian markets passage to 240 00:15:29.799 --> 00:15:33.639 the Americas. The huge expansion into the American possessions was 241 00:15:33.679 --> 00:15:37.480 fueled in part by Spanish immigration. Clergymen were sent by 242 00:15:37.480 --> 00:15:40.679 the Catholic Church not only to evangelize but also to 243 00:15:40.720 --> 00:15:46.720 project Spain's political supremacy. The state needed soldiers, administrators, merchants, farmers, 244 00:15:46.759 --> 00:15:50.399 and laborers. Many Spaniards saw passage on the galleons as 245 00:15:50.440 --> 00:15:53.960 an opportunity to gain wealth and prestige in the growing empire. 246 00:15:54.440 --> 00:15:58.600 Securing legal passage on a transatlantic galleon, however, meant a 247 00:15:58.679 --> 00:16:02.240 lengthy bureaucratic process. The first step was to obtain a 248 00:16:02.320 --> 00:16:06.279 license from the House of Commerce Casa de l Contrazion 249 00:16:06.840 --> 00:16:11.120 in Seville, a Spanish southern Spanish city that controlled maritime 250 00:16:11.200 --> 00:16:16.039 trade with America. Spain's discriminatory laws against people of Jewish 251 00:16:16.080 --> 00:16:19.320 and Muslim descent were extended to prevent them from traveling 252 00:16:19.360 --> 00:16:22.480 to the Americas. Anyone wanting to go had to prove 253 00:16:22.559 --> 00:16:27.480 that they were a Christiano viejo or old Christian. Whence 254 00:16:27.519 --> 00:16:30.320 the legal hurdles had been cleared, Immigrants had to purchase 255 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:33.799 a ticket from a shipowner and have it publicly notarized. 256 00:16:34.159 --> 00:16:36.639 In the sixteenth century, the average price but ticket was 257 00:16:36.679 --> 00:16:42.279 around seventy five hundred maravedis equivalent to approximately three thousand, 258 00:16:42.600 --> 00:16:46.279 two hundred fifty dollars today, although the amount would vary 259 00:16:46.279 --> 00:16:49.360 depending on the final destination and the type of room 260 00:16:49.399 --> 00:16:52.799 and board would be. Migrants would need more funds than 261 00:16:53.360 --> 00:16:55.360 that if they were to have a chance of success 262 00:16:55.399 --> 00:16:58.000 in their new life. First, there were the costs of 263 00:16:58.039 --> 00:17:01.519 the initial stay in sevivor to sailing, a period that 264 00:17:01.559 --> 00:17:04.920 could be prolonged if fleets were delayed, as often happened. 265 00:17:05.440 --> 00:17:08.359 Then they needed to support themselves during the first weeks 266 00:17:08.400 --> 00:17:12.240 in the colonies as they looked for work. Expenses could 267 00:17:12.240 --> 00:17:15.599 easily quadruple to the equivalent of fifteen thousand dollars or more. 268 00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:19.400 Travelers raised funds in different ways. Some sold their Spanish 269 00:17:19.480 --> 00:17:23.119 properties or used their wives dowries. Others asked family for 270 00:17:23.240 --> 00:17:27.359 cash in exchange for renouncing a future inheritance. Some left 271 00:17:27.400 --> 00:17:30.200 their families indebted for years to come, with only the 272 00:17:30.240 --> 00:17:33.599 promise of future riches to sustain them. The total number 273 00:17:33.599 --> 00:17:36.160 of Spaniards who crossed the Atlantic in the sixteenth and 274 00:17:36.680 --> 00:17:41.359 seventeenth centuries is disputed among historians, but estimates rise as 275 00:17:41.440 --> 00:17:45.359 high as four hundred fifty thousand people. The profile evolved 276 00:17:45.400 --> 00:17:48.839 over time. During the earliest phase of Spain's expansion in 277 00:17:48.880 --> 00:17:53.240 the Americas, between fourteen ninety two and fifteen nineteen, men 278 00:17:53.400 --> 00:17:56.799 outnumbered women, who accounted for slightly more than five percent 279 00:17:56.839 --> 00:18:00.880 of passenger lists. The percentage rises progressive over the following 280 00:18:00.880 --> 00:18:03.720 two centuries to as high as twenty five to thirty 281 00:18:03.720 --> 00:18:07.920 percent in the seventeenth century. For the thousands of Spaniards 282 00:18:07.960 --> 00:18:10.559 who made this journey across the Atlantic, life on board 283 00:18:10.599 --> 00:18:15.000 a Galian or a smaller, even more cramped cara was difficult. 284 00:18:15.160 --> 00:18:18.400 In fifteen thirty nine, the Bishop Royal adviser and author 285 00:18:18.799 --> 00:18:24.079 Antonio de Guevera wrote in Arte de Morare The Art 286 00:18:24.119 --> 00:18:28.319 of Navigation, that all common hardships experienced on land, such 287 00:18:28.319 --> 00:18:31.440 as hunger, thirst, heat, and sickness, were twice as bad 288 00:18:31.480 --> 00:18:35.680 as sea threats of corsair attacks added to the danger. 289 00:18:36.119 --> 00:18:39.599 Terrible storms loomed, but if the seas weren't raging, passengers 290 00:18:39.640 --> 00:18:43.680 had to endure being becalmed for long periods. Sharing the 291 00:18:43.720 --> 00:18:47.319 ship with live animals such as chickens, pigs, sheep, and mules, 292 00:18:47.359 --> 00:18:50.839 and the vermin that accompanied them further degraded the situation 293 00:18:51.039 --> 00:18:54.599 on board. Not even the wealthy could insulate themselves from 294 00:18:54.599 --> 00:18:58.160 the dreary conditions. High ranking officials and their families could 295 00:18:58.160 --> 00:19:01.480 pay for private chambers in the stern, obtaining a certain 296 00:19:01.480 --> 00:19:05.319 degree of privacy, but most of the journey's discomforts were universal. 297 00:19:05.759 --> 00:19:09.400 Sewage arrangements were basic, with passengers sometimes having to climb 298 00:19:09.400 --> 00:19:12.200 overboard and cling tightly to the side of the ship 299 00:19:12.240 --> 00:19:15.920 as they relieved themselves in full view. Only later were 300 00:19:15.960 --> 00:19:19.359 Transatlantic ships fitted with latrines in the stern or bow. 301 00:19:20.279 --> 00:19:23.400 To distract themselves from the hardships and monotony of the crossing. 302 00:19:23.759 --> 00:19:27.119 On board entertainments were devised. There would be singing under 303 00:19:27.160 --> 00:19:31.160 the stars, ballads accompanied by trumpet, flute, guitar or schalm 304 00:19:31.599 --> 00:19:35.599 and oboe like instrument. There were certain to be sham 305 00:19:35.720 --> 00:19:38.039 on board every ship, as they were used not only 306 00:19:38.079 --> 00:19:42.079 to transmit orders, but also to play battle anthems. Although 307 00:19:42.079 --> 00:19:45.880 most passengers were not literate, those who were might entertain 308 00:19:45.920 --> 00:19:49.759 the others by reading aloud from books. Cockfights and games 309 00:19:49.759 --> 00:19:52.680 of chance also helped pass the long hours, as these 310 00:19:52.680 --> 00:19:57.720 diversions kept the long suffering crew entertained. Ship officials usually 311 00:19:57.759 --> 00:20:01.279 turned a blind eye to gla even though it was 312 00:20:01.319 --> 00:20:05.960 officially prohibited. Sometimes the captains even joined in. Other passengers 313 00:20:06.000 --> 00:20:09.640 opted for quieter pursuits, such as fishing over the side 314 00:20:09.640 --> 00:20:12.359 of the ship, a pastime that might yield the reward 315 00:20:12.400 --> 00:20:17.160 of an extra meal from time to time. Dining during 316 00:20:17.160 --> 00:20:20.559 the months long Atlantic crossing was no picnic either. Nutrient 317 00:20:20.680 --> 00:20:25.480 rich fruits and vegetables were concerned, consumed within the first 318 00:20:25.519 --> 00:20:28.839 few days of the trip before spoiling. Much of the 319 00:20:28.920 --> 00:20:32.200 non perishable food was lacking in rich nutrition and flavor. 320 00:20:32.599 --> 00:20:35.519 The primary food were hardcakes made with wheat flour and 321 00:20:35.599 --> 00:20:38.400 no yeast. They were baked twice to make them durable, 322 00:20:38.680 --> 00:20:41.160 but this process made them very dry and almost too 323 00:20:41.240 --> 00:20:45.000 hard to chew. Every month, each passenger was allowed about 324 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:49.519 six pints of vinegar and two pints of civilian olive oil. Meat, 325 00:20:49.640 --> 00:20:52.759 typically pork, was usually served at least twice a week, 326 00:20:53.119 --> 00:20:56.640 and on the remaining days, the passengers and crew consumed beans, rice, 327 00:20:56.720 --> 00:20:59.680 and fish. Sometimes the pork was fresh if a pig 328 00:20:59.720 --> 00:21:03.319 had been recently slaughtered on board, but more often it 329 00:21:03.480 --> 00:21:07.559 was kichina, a pork preserved by salting and drying. Cheese 330 00:21:07.599 --> 00:21:11.160 was another essential component in the Gallean diet. Hard cheese 331 00:21:11.160 --> 00:21:14.519 traveled well without spoiling and was a calorie rich meal 332 00:21:14.559 --> 00:21:18.599 for passengers. Occasionally, nuts and dried fruits such as almonds, chestnuts, 333 00:21:18.599 --> 00:21:22.799 and raisins were included. To drink, passengers received daily rations 334 00:21:23.079 --> 00:21:25.480 of ford liters of water in one liter of wine, 335 00:21:25.799 --> 00:21:28.519 but the water ration could be drastically reduced if the 336 00:21:28.559 --> 00:21:32.480 ship was becalmed for long periods of time. Water shortages 337 00:21:32.559 --> 00:21:35.680 struck the most fear into the hearts of passengers. Even 338 00:21:35.799 --> 00:21:39.480 under normal conditions, the water could be contaminated. Accounts from 339 00:21:39.519 --> 00:21:43.799 several voyages described it churning green. The poor diet on 340 00:21:43.880 --> 00:21:47.400 the ship could have deadly consequences for passengers. A lack 341 00:21:47.480 --> 00:21:51.200 of fresh fruits and vegetables often caused scurving, a deadly 342 00:21:51.240 --> 00:21:55.839 disease caused by a deficiency and vitamin CEA symptoms including fatigue, 343 00:21:55.880 --> 00:21:59.680 bruised limbs, aching joints, and bleeding gums would set in 344 00:21:59.720 --> 00:22:03.079 any time after one to two months, whence the body's 345 00:22:03.119 --> 00:22:07.440 store of the vitamin were depleted. During the Age of Exploration, 346 00:22:07.720 --> 00:22:10.559 historians estimate that scurvy was the leading cause of death 347 00:22:10.559 --> 00:22:15.119 at sea, surpassing deaths due to enemy attacks, storms, shipwrecks, 348 00:22:15.160 --> 00:22:19.759 and other illnesses. Although all ships were required to carry 349 00:22:19.799 --> 00:22:23.160 medicines and a surgeon or barber on board, if passengers 350 00:22:23.200 --> 00:22:26.240 fell seriously ill, it was very little that could be done. 351 00:22:26.480 --> 00:22:29.480 The chances were high they would die before reaching their destination, 352 00:22:30.119 --> 00:22:32.519 and if death did come, there was no choice but 353 00:22:32.599 --> 00:22:35.519 to throw the body overboard. The body was first wrapped 354 00:22:35.559 --> 00:22:38.759 in coarse cloth and then weighted down with stones or 355 00:22:38.799 --> 00:22:42.640 small cannon balls so that it would sink. The clergyman, 356 00:22:42.839 --> 00:22:46.839 who was always on board, conducted a funeral surface. Passengers 357 00:22:46.839 --> 00:22:50.480 embarked on these voyages with high expectations of a better life, 358 00:22:50.720 --> 00:22:54.000 but the soaring mortality rates on these voyages, which barely 359 00:22:54.079 --> 00:22:57.599 dropped until the mid nineteenth century, ire a reminder that 360 00:22:57.640 --> 00:23:00.720 the dangers of transatlantic travel in the sixty in seventeenth 361 00:23:00.759 --> 00:23:05.400 centuries were higher still. Lives and hopes dashed on the waves. 362 00:23:05.680 --> 00:23:09.400 Disease and starvation took the lives of many colonial Spaniards 363 00:23:09.440 --> 00:23:12.359 crossing the Atlantic Ocean, but pirate attacks were also a 364 00:23:12.359 --> 00:23:16.039 great danger in the Spanish Empire. The case of Miguel 365 00:23:16.200 --> 00:23:20.319 Vasquez is just one tragic story among many. Miguel was 366 00:23:20.359 --> 00:23:26.880 the only son of Haasito Vascaz and Maria Ramira's inhabitants 367 00:23:26.920 --> 00:23:31.440 of Zafra in southwest Spain. The family lived in extreme poverty, 368 00:23:31.519 --> 00:23:36.119 so in sixteen fifty four, fifteen year old Miguel decided 369 00:23:36.160 --> 00:23:38.720 to travel to the America's to seek his fortune. He 370 00:23:38.799 --> 00:23:40.880 planned to return to Spain with money to help his 371 00:23:40.960 --> 00:23:43.759 family to poor. To pay for his passage, he enrolled 372 00:23:43.759 --> 00:23:47.119 as a cabin boy on the voyage. Over six years later, 373 00:23:47.200 --> 00:23:50.960 Miguel booked return passage on the El Soul de la Esperanza, 374 00:23:51.319 --> 00:23:54.359 The Son of Hope, But tragedy struck on the journey. 375 00:23:54.759 --> 00:23:58.920 After departing from Campese in present day Mexico and drawing 376 00:23:58.960 --> 00:24:02.519 nearer to Gibraltar, Miguel was killed in a clash with corsairs. 377 00:24:02.880 --> 00:24:04.599 The hope of a new life for him and his 378 00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:10.440 desperate family was dashed. Round trips every year two fleets 379 00:24:10.519 --> 00:24:14.839 set sail from Spain to provision its colonies with agricultural products, food, 380 00:24:14.880 --> 00:24:19.119 and manufactured goods. The New Spain Fleet's ultimate destination was 381 00:24:19.200 --> 00:24:24.000 Vera Cruz, Mexico, and the Tierra Fiermey Fleets was Cartagena 382 00:24:24.359 --> 00:24:29.839 de Indias, Columbia. Another fleet applied the Pacific between Acapulco 383 00:24:29.880 --> 00:24:33.039 and the Philippines to stockop on Asian goods. Later, the 384 00:24:33.079 --> 00:24:37.240 New Spain and Tierra Fiermey fleets joined in Havana to 385 00:24:37.319 --> 00:24:40.599 return to Spain laden with goods. They returned under convoy 386 00:24:40.680 --> 00:24:44.000 to protect them from corsairs. They carried back silver and 387 00:24:44.039 --> 00:24:48.640 cocoa from the Americas and silk from Asia. Live stock 388 00:24:48.759 --> 00:24:51.519 like chickens, pigs, goats, and sheep shared space with the 389 00:24:51.599 --> 00:24:55.160 human passengers on Spain's transatlantic galleons in the sixteenth and 390 00:24:55.200 --> 00:24:59.400 seventeenth centuries. In addition to these invited animals were stowaways 391 00:24:59.640 --> 00:25:04.359 rodents like rats and mice. Nineteenth century naval historian Cesario 392 00:25:04.559 --> 00:25:09.680 Fernandez Duro lauded ships rats as exemplary seafares because they 393 00:25:09.720 --> 00:25:12.720 adapted better than anyone else to life at sea, never 394 00:25:12.759 --> 00:25:16.079 got seasick and never abandoned their posts. Rats and mice 395 00:25:16.119 --> 00:25:19.960 contaminated food supply, nibbled on ropes and sails, and were 396 00:25:19.960 --> 00:25:22.720 hosts for other vermin, such as fleas and ticks that 397 00:25:22.759 --> 00:25:26.079 could spread disease among the crew. To control these past, 398 00:25:26.200 --> 00:25:29.359 European explorers drew on a long tradition, going back to 399 00:25:29.400 --> 00:25:32.839 the Vikings and ancient Romans, of employing ship cats as 400 00:25:32.920 --> 00:25:36.359 mousers who earned their keep by protecting the passenger's food supply. 401 00:25:37.519 --> 00:25:40.279