Name: First Horse Warriors
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Nova

Anthropologist and filmmaker Niobe Thompson attempts to milk a horse, and discovers that the process is a lot more difficult than it sounds. Milking a mother horse, he explains, is all about tricking her. The process begins by having her foal suckle. Then, the foal is taken away and a human rushes in to take its place. But if the mother horse suspects anything is different, things can go awry.

To milk a horse, one must trick a mother horse—and trick her well.

Milking a Horse is Harder than You Think

United States

Northern Mariana Islands

Puerto Rico

American Samoa

Guam

U.S. Virgin Islands

U.S. Minor Outlying Islands

US & Territories

Horse riding played a key role in human expansion and civilization. But when and how did people first master these animals? Scientists use archeology and genetics to uncover clues about the first horse riders and how they shaped the world.

The advent of horse riding changed the course of human history and our genetic makeup.

First Horse Warriors

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Koch Foundation

NOVA Science Trust Logo

Brilliant.org

The advent of horse riding was a momentous step in human history. But when and how did our ancestors first learn to master these animals? In a spectacular adventure, NOVA unlocks the mystery on the vast, grassy plains of Kazakhstan, where wild horses still roam free, and nomadic herders follow their traditional way of life. Investigating clues from archaeology and genetics, researchers reveal vivid evidence of the very first horsemen. They also discover warriors who swept across Europe, and turn out to be the ancestors of millions today. (Premiered May 15, 2019)

The advent of horse riding changed the course of human history and the genetic makeup of humankind.

Eberhard Karls University,T&iacute;¼bingen

Anthropologist

Natural History Museum of Denmark

The advent of horse riding changed the course of human history and the genetic makeup of humankind.

Ancient Worlds

Canada

US, US Territories, Canada

Follow along as NASA launches the Mars 2020 Mission, perhaps the most ambitious hunt yet for signs of ancient life on Mars. In February 2021, the spacecraft blazes into the Martian atmosphere at some 12,000 miles per hour and lowers the Perseverance Rover into the rocky Jezero Crater, home to a dried-up river delta scientists think could have harbored life. Perseverance will comb the area for signs of life and collect samples for possible return to Earth. Traveling onboard is a four-pound helicopter that will conduct a series of test flights—the first on another planet. During its journey, Perseverance will also test technology designed to produce oxygen from the Martian atmosphere, in hopes that the gas could be used for fuel—or for humans to breathe—on future missions. (Premiered February 24, 2021)

NASA launches its most ambitious search yet for traces of ancient life on Mars.

Looking for Life on Mars

A person is tested for COVID-19 at a drive-thru testing site in Florida in July 2020. Image Credit: Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto, Getty Images

Figuring out when to get tested after exposure requires understanding what happens once the virus enters your body. We’ve got you covered.

Figuring out when to get tested after exposure requires understanding what happens once the virus enters your body. We’ve got you covered.

I’ve been exposed to Covid-19. When should I get tested?

A statue of Zheng He at the Sam Poo Kong Temple in Java, Indonesia. Image Credit: Budianto Santosa, Shutterstock

In the 1400s, Zheng He sailed thousands of miles around Asia and Africa in ships the size of soccer fields, spreading Chinese innovations like compasses and gunpowder in the process.

In the 1400s, Zheng He sailed thousands of miles around Asia and Africa in ships the size of soccer fields, spreading Chinese innovations like compasses and gunpowder in the process.

First Horse Warriors

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Transcript

Credits

Participants

Support Provided By

Explore More

Chinese Chariots Revealed

Secrets of the Viking Sword

Domestic horses have existed for millennia. Modern breeding reduced their genetic diversity in just a few hundred years

Scientists Discover that Horses Are More Expressive Than Chimps

First Horse Warriors

Milking a Horse is Harder than You Think

Building Pharaoh's Chariot

Saving the World’s Only True Wild Horses