ABSTRACT
To early man, fire was survival. He was a hunter-gatherer who used fire to cook his food, keep him warm, and ward off predators. About 10,000 years ago, a change came about in man’s cultural patterns. He had learned to domesticate animals and to cultivate wild grains; and these new technologies anchored him. Like the Assyrians, the Romans were also master hydraulic engineers. They constructed aquaducts that transported water from sources located at great distances from Rome. With the rise of Christianity, the magnificent water supply and sewer technology of the Assyrian and Roman Empires disappeared. By the Middle Ages, cleanliness and sanitation had somehow become theologically suspect. Nineteenth century industry and urbanization brought increasing air pollution as well. The discovery of microorganisms and the introduction of waste treatment and water sterilization helped to mediate water problems by the 1880s, but air pollution worsened.
