A fascinating new study has produced ample evidence to show that after the Roman Empire conquered Britain in the year 43 AD, the occupied region experienced a period of sustained and intensive economic growth. This finding emerged from analysis of archaeological discoveries from all over the United Kingdom, which reveal a marked increase in economic prosperity and wealth distribution in Roman times. The research responsible for this eye-opening discovery was carried out by a team of anthropologists and behavioral scientists from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and the University of Colorado in the United States. They credit changes in technology, laws, and institutional structures for the accelerated economic growth, which they assert was quite substantial. “Over that period of about 350 years, you’re looking at roughly a two-and-a-half [fold] increase in productivity per capita,” study co-author Rob Wiseman, an anthropologist from the University of Cambridge’s McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, told New Scientist. As Wiseman explained, it has long been thought that economic growth in ancient times resulted from population growth and heavier exploitation of resources. But in the new study, the data obtained revealed that Roman Britain experienced a more intensive type of growth than that associated with simple population growth. In this case it seems people became more productive, not just more plentiful. Read moreSection: NewsHistory & ArchaeologyRead Later