The Gold of the Wangara (3)

 Processing the data took much longer that I expected. While doing this, I felt that some info is missing from my future article. I had to do additional search to realize what the problem was. 

Now, when I have completed this bypass, I am more certain in what I am doing. 

This week, I have started writing the third part of my research titled "The Quest for the River of Gold". 

I found evidence that the contacts across the Sahara desert had preceded the classical  trans-Saharan trade. I realized the role of the Wangara intermediaries in the commerce across West Africa. I learned about the popularity of kola nuts and the purchase of Arab horses for the imperial armies. I estimated the investment of Muslim geographers to the knowledge about Western Sudan. 

My latest uploaded article, A Kernel of Truth, 

https://www.academia.edu/44328510/A_Kernel_of_Truth

arose an interesting discussions. The academics denied my cautious remark that the wheel might be invented by the nomads. Most of them point to the Tripolye culture of the IV millennium BCE as the possible birthplace of the wheel and the wheeled vehicles. From there, it was radiated to the entire world. In my view, this is not quite certain. 

Tripolye is a gigantic settlement in modern-day Ukraine, though the namesake culture covers a large part of Ukraine and Romania. The dig produced wheeled items that look like toys, e.g. a cow on wheels. However, I still don't see the technology leading to the breakthrough. 

I decided to check data about the early wheeled vehicles. I'm not sure yet whether it would be  a new project. Unlike the previous approach in my first book, "The Enchanting Encounter with the East", I will check a wider band of info. 

I have launched a new discussion of my paper   https://www.academia.edu/39779482/What_If_the_Earth_is_the_Sphere

This is a maiden chapter of my second manuscript and asked many researchers to join in the discussion. You are also invited to give your comments about this paper and the rest uploaded to the site https://independent.academia.edu/BaizermanMichael