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Understanding the world as it was 5,000 years ago just may provide some answers about the world today.
At least that's what UNLV geosciences professor Matthew Lachniet and his team of researchers say about their work studying stalagmites in the southwest.
The team was recently awarded a three-year grant from the National Science Foundation to study drought cycles in the region. The work will help to better understand climate change and water resources from a time that had a similar climate.
Most of the research on climate change has, to this point, been on a smaller time scale, roughly studying the last 150 years. By studying caves in Nevada and New Mexico, Lachniet says will yield a better knowledge of climate change over a longer time scale.
Matthew Lachniet, geosciences professor, UNLV