In Undark, Madeline Ostrander reviews a book on ancient Rome that suggests parallels to our own times. But instead of political analysis, Madeline (@madelinevo) writes, scientific evidence is the backbone of The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire by Kyle Harper. What can DNA sequencing tell us about the fall of Rome? More at madelineostrander.net image: pedtrojperez