Breaking the Maya Code
by David Lebrun
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: CCH Pounder, Michael Coe, Richard AgurciaDirector: David Lebrun
Brand: First RUN Features
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 116 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-09-16
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: FIRST RUN FEATURES
Movie Reviews of Breaking the Maya Code
Movie Review: This is how science really works
Summary: 5 Stars
If you've ever wondered how the scientific community really attacks a problem, watch this video. There are occasional brilliant insights, but this shows the painstaking, behind the scenes work done by an array of professional (and amateur) researchers that lead up to that one big leap. Einstein didn't work in a vacuum, many researchers spent decades amassing the work that Einstein would ultimately tie together to develop relativity. So it is in some ways with the breaking of the Maya code. The Mayans left an incredibly detailed account of their history and culture right in front of us, and for centuries we hadn't a clue as to what it meant. A mystery that started with the Spanish conquest of central America several centuries ago, and only resolved (well, mostly resolved) in the past few decades. In this DVD, you'll watch how generations of researchers slowly put together bits and pieces of the puzzle. You'll listen to accounts of young researchers as they recall the high points of key conferences and key moments, as well as the arduous months in the jungles carefully photographing and drawing the Mayan symbols on temples, stelae, and other antiquities. The symbols are also reproduced graphically so that the viewer can see how the written Mayan language all fits together. You probably won't be reading the symbols on the temple walls by the end of the DVD, but you'll be able to recognize the symbols and how they all fit together! There are so many fascinating details presented in this outstanding documentary. One of the most famous, most knowledgeable Mayan scholars was completely wrong on one key aspect of the translation, and probably held up progress for decades, but quickly and graciously relented when shown convincingly that he was wrong. One thing that puzzled linguists for years about the Mayan language was that they were unsure whether is was an alphabetic language (like English) or a purely symbolic language (like Chinese). The alphabetic languages have several dozen characters, and symbolic languages have hundreds or thousands. The Mayan language had about 80 or so. The great breakthrough came when it was realized that some of the characters had the same meaning and that there were only 30 or 40 distinct characters - the language was alphabetic. Bottom line - great documentary - a no-brainer if you're even remotely into this sort of this.
Summary of Breaking the Maya Code
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