Geekathon, part four

Archaeologists have discovered one of the oldest structures ever found in the Americas: a circular plaza 5,500 years old. It's located at the ruins of a site called Sechin Bajo, part of the Sechin Alto complex located some 366 kilometers, or 229 miles, north of Lima, Peru. The plaza is 500 years older than the ancient Peruvian citadel of Caral, previously thought to be among the oldest sites in the Western Hemisphere.

The plaza had not been discovered before because it was hidden under a later structure at the site. MSNBC has more:

"It's an impressive find, the scientific and archaeology communities are very happy," said Cesar Perez, the scientist at Peru's National Institute of Culture who supervised the project. "This could redesign the history of the country." ...

Scientists say Caral, located a few hours drive from Sechin Bajo, was one of six places in the world - along with Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, India and Mesoamerica - where humans started living in cities 5,000 years ago.

Now, Sechin Bajo may have to join that list - or even head it.