NPR: Excavations reveal sophisticated Mayan water filtration
A multidisciplinary team of UC researchers makes a startling find at Tikal
NPR's Weekend Edition talked to University of Cincinnati researchers about their amazing discovery that the ancient Maya created a sophisticated filtration system to keep drinking water clean.
A multidisciplinary team of biologists, anthropologists and geographers in UC's College of Arts and Sciences found evidence that the ancient Maya imported materials such as sand and zeolite for the express purpose of filtering water stored in the reservoirs that largely provided their only potable water during the dry season.
UC's findings were published this month in the journal Scientific Reports.
NPR host Scott Simon talked to one of the co-authors, UC biology professor David Lentz, about the team's discovery.
"The Maya were a very clever and inventive people. They had stunning architecture. They had beautiful sculptures. They were adept at astronomy. They had mathematics," Lentz said.
The project included lead author and UC associate professor of anthropology Kenneth Barnett Tankersley, UC geography professor Nicholas Dunning, UC assistant research professor Christopher Carr and UC professor emeritus of anthropology Vernon Scarborough.
Featured image at top: The ancient Maya city of Tikal. Photo/Jimmy Baum/Unsplash
UC biology professor David Lentz, pictured at UC's Center for Field Studies, talked to NPR's Weekend Edition about UC's startling discoveries about the ancient Maya. Photo/Joseph Fuqua II/UC Creative + Brand
Related Stories
Digital transformation continues to gain momentum at UC
February 9, 2026
UC Digital Technology Solutions (DTS) has released its January 2026 semiannual report, highlighting progress across the university’s digital transformation efforts and the many ways DTS is supporting innovation, operational excellence, and security across campus.
Will AI really replace your job?
February 6, 2026
As artificial intelligence seeps into more careers, some people wonder if any jobs will become obsolete in the coming years, according to 700WLW. Jeffrey Shaffer, director of Lindner College of Business’ Applied AI Lab, spoke with 700WLW on the future of AI in the workplace.
UC teams with historic landmark to preserve the past for the future
February 6, 2026
The landscape at Cincinnati’s historic Harriet Beecher Stowe House museum has settled in for winter, under a hard coat of frost and snow. But once spring rolls around, it will show a transformation, thanks in part to the history department at UC’s College of Arts and Sciences. The Beecher Stowe House, located at 2950 Gilbert Ave., serves as a hub for the community and historians interested in the life and political activism of the famed abolitionist. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote the groundbreaking “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” while living there, and the home was a stop for fugitive enslaved people on the Underground Railroad prior to the Civil War.