Boldy Explore
the African Scientific Research Institute (ASRI) and launched its first major project: to piece together the past of Jean Baptiste Pointe de Sable, a fur trader of African descent who is now regarded as the founder of Chicago. ASRI chose de Sable because of his importance to American history and because very little was known about the man, his life and the settlement he built on the western shores of Lake Michigan. Using scientific tools such as DNA profiling, Computerized Tomography (CT) scans and laser analysis, ASRI researchers identified de Sable and other individuals of historic significance. Then they used advanced forensic techniques — facial reconstruction, for example — to put flesh on skeletal remains. And, finally, they conducted an archaeological investigation to find artifacts, tools and buildings of the era in which de Sable lived. The result was a clear picture of the man: how he lived, where he lived and why he made certain decisions.
