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Project Proposal: The Ancient History of Alcohol

Alcohol is among the top most popular beverages and drinks across the globe. Alcohol

has remained influential throughout history, leaving a mark on several cultures and civilizations,

particularly for the Chinese, Sumerians, Greeks, British, Egyptians, and Romans (Choi 67).

Since the ancient days, the beer recipes were written on tablets, and the recipes have been

significantly changed or tweaked over time to use the various uses and cultures. The prohibition

of alcohol by several states of the United States and the staggering modern rates of alcoholism

reflect the impacts of alcohol in many, which has in some cases brought people together while

torn people apart in others. The study on the discovery and evolution of alcohol over time will

help reveal ancient human interactions and livelihoods and the transformation that has taken

place over time.

Purpose of Research

The purpose of this project is to investigate historical interactions between alcohol and

humans. Notably, the project seeks to establish the ingredients used to brew or make alcohol in

ancient times and the impacts the alcohol l had on humans at the time. The research will help

determine the past and the present-day effects that will help show how any existing issues could

be resolved to reduce alcohol-related deaths and other negative impacts of alcohol. The
contributions of this project will help inform the health and policy professionals within the field

of anthropology to emphasize any specific changes in alcohol both in preparation use and effects

to be able to decipher best practices and guidelines that will help make current and future

interactions of humans with alcohol safe and better. The project provides a historical context for

multidisciplinary real of alcohol studies showing the types of ancient populations that brewed

and used alcohol, the links of alcohol and other factors that affect humans to date, and the range

of methods used in ancient times in alcohol preparation and consumption. The practical

implications of this project will be to help inform future regulations for the government and non-

government authorities and provide an anthropological perspective to guide future

experimentation of psychoactive drugs. The project will focus on the ancient history of alcohol,

particularly in ancient Europe, Greece, and Rome, with Italy as the primary focus.

Research Questions

The main research questions are, how was alcohol prepared and used in ancient Greece

and Rome, and how did it affect the users at the time?

Other questions to be addressed include:

a) What processes and ingredients were used in the preparation of alcohol in ancient times?

b) What were the side effects of alcohol on those who drank it for pleasure or nutrition?

c) What were the medicinal uses and impacts of alcohol in ancient times?

d) What were the long-term effects of alcohol use in ancient days? Were children and adults

affected differently?
 Hypothesis

In ancient times, alcoholic beverages were used primarily for nutrition, medicine, rituals,

and pleasure; the usage of alcohol was not defined as a problem in the ancient times, and

alcohol-related death was rare, making alcohol a key driver of reciprocal complementarity that

led to the innovation of other products and processes.

Research Objective

The objective of the study project is to determine the ancient history of alcohol, mainly

focusing on Greece, Rome, and Europe, with references to China and other ancient alcohol-

consuming regions. The study will be conducted with the following objectives:

a) To determine the frequency of regular drinking of small quantities or infrequent episodes

of excessive alcohol consumption in a single sitting.

b) To determine the ancient overarching drinking patterns for both men and women and the

number of typical drinks or quantities individuals consumed in ancient times.

c) To determine how alcohol was prepared or made in the past by highlighting the

ingredients and processes used for the different purposes of alcohol produced.

d) To determine the short and long-term effects that alcohol had on the consumers include in

the impacts of alcohol when used in medicinal contexts.

The Research, Anthropology and Other Disciplines

Anthropology research has been based on culture, society, and evolution, which help in

constituting the primary concepts helpful in describing, explaining, and understanding human
life. The study project draws inspiration from anthropology in consideration that alcohol affects

human interactions and their ways of life. Understanding the ancient contexts, uses, and issues

on alcohol could help explain the progression of different societies over the years and how those

changes and interactions affect the present-day ways of life. Anthropology provides useful,

pertinent information that highlights alcohol-related issues and cases that will help explain

several issues. Anthropology inspires this study such that it reflects significant generalizations,

facts, and information that can help the current decision-makers determine ways to curb and treat

deviant, dysfunctional drinking.

Anthropology also helps to highlight the issue of dependence as a physical origin and the

need for medical treatment. The aspects of anthropology underscore the importance of detailed

inquiry into the past and relationships with the present so that humanity can create a desired

future. The discipline thus inspires the current study, research, or project since it does indicate

any findings on the ancient history of alcohol could help determine previous problems and thus

planning for the future issues around alcohol to enhance human interactions and success. A

cross-cultural and behavioral approach to ancient alcohol preparation and use inspires the study

to delve into the issue of alcohol in the past. However, the study will not be just adding to the

already existing literature. The cursory review of ancient alcohol issues inspires a sporadic

detailed inquiry into the issue of preserving the discipline's character for future planning. The

archeological evidence of anthropology on alcohol that could have been consumed or used for

other purposes poses a reasonable likelihood of relating the issue with the study that can help in

future livelihoods. The anthropological findings reflect the possibility of discovery that could

further be improved with studies that focus on specific aspects of the ancient history of alcohol.
 Economics

When it comes to economics, alcohol plays a significant role in most global economies.

For instance, alcohol is a leading beverage in the United States alone, sustaining 4 million jobs

and generating slightly above $ 70 billion annually in tax revenue (Khaderi 93). On the other

hand, the use of alcohol coupled with other drugs impacts household expenditures in many ways,

such as decreased productivity, law enforcement costs, and healthcare issues. The economic

outcomes of alcohol consumption can be severe, particularly for poor people, through the

excessive money spent on drinks. Moreover, heavy drinkers suffer lost employment

opportunities, decreased eligibility for loans, and lower wages. In addition, alcohol dependence

and non-communicable diseases like some cancers, liver cirrhosis, cardiovascular diseases

coupled with road crashes or collisions, and violence resulting from alcohol consumption are a

significant economic burden to both individuals and governments. The situation's negative and

positive economic effects on alcohol consumption and use inspire the study as it could help

answer some of the existing questions and issues surrounding the present-day use of alcohol. For

instance, the study may want to discover if the ancient users of alcohol also had family issues,

especially for heavy drinkers, if the medicinal use of alcohol helped to save lives at lower costs

and if the current society could borrow a leaf from the past in correcting the current problems.

Psychology

Alcohol affects the mental health of the consumers and those who live or closely

associate with them. As a depressant, alcohol slows down the changes in the brain's chemical

activity for those who drink alcohol and slows down their bodies. Psychology links alcohol with

involvement in risky behavior, increased aggression, increased suicide, and self-harm ideation

for people who aware already going through hard times. Additionally, alcohol leads to increased
anxiety and depression, development of tolerances, increased substance abuse, dependency, also

called alcoholism, and impaired memory capacity, and learning and interrupted brain

development. Drinking alcohol undoubtedly affects social behaviors through increasing

aggression, sexual adventuresomeness, and self—disclosure. These psychological effects stem

from the beliefs people hold about alcohol effects. Considering the psychological toll alcohol and

especially excessive or addictive consumption of it has on people of the way of lives and the risk

it poses to those around them, psychology inspires this study is checking historical patterns and

best practices that could be copied from ancient times to help changes things for the better.

Medicine

Today, drinking alcohol is generally an acceptable behavior globally. While some

medical experts encourage light drinking, recommending it for the good of one's heart, the same

experts warn against considering the benefit without checking the risks involved. The discipline

of medicine inspires the study as it reflects the several positive and negative impacts the alcohol

could have on people, thus the need to establish processes inv9olved that could be corrected to

get issues done. Furthermore, the dark side of alcohol is that most drinkers do not just stop at one

drink but indulge further, taking more and more alcohol which is addictive. Heavy alcohol

drinking has led to medical issues such as alcoholic hepatitis, cirrhosis, which involves i=the

scarring of the liver and other fatal diseases. A critical investigation and study of the historical

use of alcohol that has been since ancient time used for purposes such as for cultural adherence,

rituals, religious purposes, economics, medical benefits, and medical benefits is a worthy

endeavor as it may help improve the issues of alcohol that affect the field of medicine. The

therapeutic use of alcohol could also come into question enabling further scrutiny into the issue.
The drinking of alcohol over the years could shed light on the transformation of its use in

medicine the medicinal effects for both individuals and community environments.

Research in medicine also shows that some drinking habits could result in higher risks of

some cancers and recommend drinking one to three drinks weekly as the healthiest standard.

Health dietary guidelines also provide the recommended limits of alcohol consumption for both

men and women. Warning signs of medicines in consideration of alcohol use such as leading

effects of alcohol such as causing vomiting, nausea, loss of coordination, headaches, fainting,

and drowsiness with issues of risk for heart problems, difficulties in breathing, and internal

bleeding. Other health issues include cognitive impairment, psychosis, depression, liver damage,

memory loss, and psychosis.

The existence of fermented beverages since the early times and evidence of early

alcoholic drinks will help determine the issues affecting other aspects of life that can help guide

the decision-making. The use of ancient civilizations of beer, wine, and other alcohol can help

show the changes in preparation and usage over the years, such as for pleasure, medicinal

purposes, nutrition, payment, funerary purposes, and rituals. The findings from the research will

help psychologists who are dealing with alcohol-related issues to understand underlying and

historical issues better, which will help them make better decisions with more information on

human behaviors. The biochemists could use the information from the study or project to further

investigate the ancient alcohols components compared to the present day to determine the

effects. The findings by the biochemists could help reduce alcohol-related death and increase

options of using alcohol for the treatment of some diseases or infections based on how they were

used before the changing human genome and the current chemical composition of alcohol.
 The study will build on Wang et al. (82), whose significant findings were on alcohol use

in China. The researchers delved into determining the nutritional, medicinal, and leisure use of

alcohol in ancient china and what it meant for the locals. The work by the authors provides a

good foundation of checking similar and additional on the history of alcohol but this time with a

focus on Greece and Rome. Some of the lines I would be looking to complete are the effect of

alcohol in causing asthma or the burden of uncontrolled asthma resulting from effects of alcohol

and management strategies of caring for alcohol-dependent patients. Additionally, we will

further be looking to have the Covid-19 pandemic has affected people in their consumption and

uses of alcohol and the impacts these have had on stay-at-home patients, the initial Covid-19

surge, and the post-pandemic recovery issues. Finally, some nations banned alcohol use during

the prior d and how it relates to ancient pandemics and lifestyles whenever such problems arose

in those days. I will also be seeking to complete the line on health and economic effects of

alcohol on anc9ient humans in Rome or Greece and how they diagnosed issues arising from

alcohol, especially for heavy drinkers.

Research Methodology: Plan A

The research will leverage three anthropological data collection methods of participant

observation in areas where the Covid-19 related movement has not been restricted. First, the

study will use in-depth virtual interviews and focus groups with experienced experts within the

United States. Second, the method to be used is people-centered and holism. Using holism, the

researcher will seek to find ancient humans' behaviors in preparation and consumption of alcohol

and the effects of the same evident through the ancient interconnections of people, events, and

things of the time. Third, references to the whole will be made considering holistic

contextualization by a subset of the whole coupled with reductionism and parsimony.

 The evidence to be collected includes human remains and artifacts, tools such pottery,

ruins of buildings, cave paintings, ancient beers, or alcoholic drinks that have been preserved,

such as in cases where they were buried with the dead those drinks that have survived the wear

and tear without being lost. The evidence collected will be analyzed to compare the customs,

history, habits, and cultures of the people in the ancient eras. The evidence will be collected from

registered organizations and individuals who research for and keep the artifacts through

participant observations, textual analyses to determine the likely location of some other evidence,

and focus groups with experts who understand where to get the evidence. If this evidence cannot

be collected in person due to Cpovid-19 restrictions, arrangements will be made to collect them

virtually, or they will be sent through courier means.

Research Methodology: Plan B

The second option will be to use ethnography and multi-sited. The researcher will use

ethnography; empirical grounding will be done for regions where physical fieldwork is feasible

considering the current Coivid-19 movement restrictions in most parts of Europe and the world.

The methods will involve engagements with people and items inductively and reflectively that

are focused although flexible. Triangulation of tools and practices will be done, which is

collaborative and participatory. The focus will be on the inter-site flow and coordination to

access necessary available artifacts that help tell the story of ancient alcohol use in historical

societies. Examination of linkages of the sites using partial and temporal scales will be done. The

ethnographic fieldwork across the selected geographic areas, communities, and institutions will

provide pertinent data on the issues. The study will also consider the patterns and frequency of

alcohol consumption by ancient Europe, Rome, and Greece, which are considered slightly

different from the modern brewed beer of our times in 2021. The checks on alcohol use
throughout history and how it impacts many cultures and civilizations will become more

transparent with such data and information as the historical records and artifacts will provide

helpful information. The beer recipes in ancient times recorded on tablets will be checked

together with past alcohol prohibitions with their influence on the current modern rates of

alcoholism. To adhere to ethical standards of researching during times of public health

emergencies, and in a bid to cover the research questions fully, authoritative guidance will be

followed to the letter to ensure that the lives of responders and researchers are not at risk or very

minimal risk. The universal ethical standards will be adhered to by checking the best available

means provided by other researchers, publishers, review bodies, manufacturers, funders, and

renowned scholars.

Researcher and the Project

I have a particular interest in alcohol for its diverse uses and different formulations that

have been used over the years for alcohol used for different purposes. My previous research

focused on the historical impacts of alcohol on family structures, particularly how alcohol

consumption in ancient times affected family cohesion and the likelihood of past marriages

outliving their fifth anniversaries. Moreover, I have done several papers on varying aspects of

alcohol considering today's effects and past influences. The experience and background

knowledge coupled with a strong interest in alcohol and its related products. The skillset,

research connections and contacts, and the information I have acquired over the years on alcohol

will help me efficiently and effectively focus the research questions and stick to determining

relevant information, and these will be an asset to this project. The pre-requisite knowledge and

information I have on where to find relevant information, the people to interview, the library to
check, the sites to investigate, the artifacts to consider other related project issues will help

reduce otherwise overhead costs that would come with uncertainty or too many generalizations.

Contribution of the Project to Anthropology

The project is essential to anthropology, primarily because even though humankind has

since experimented with several psychoactive drugs, ethanol in the form of alcohol stands out as

the longest used and most widely used. The production of alcohol through the natural

fermentation process and high concentrations achieved through simple distillation processes

reflect the changes in the past simple chemicals used in the past that have over time from in

complex eliciting varying patterns of belief and behaviors. The study is relevant to anthropology

as it will help study alcohol as part of human existence and provide helpful information that

would otherwise be unknown. The information will help answer questions about ourselves as

humans, our past, present, and future, regarding alcohol's preparation, usage, and effects.

Understanding, facts, and information from the research will help build the field of anthropology

by helping people to connect around the globe, especially in the present day when technology

has made it possible for people to communicate and interact easily across the globe and an era

when globalization is at its best.

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