ROME, ITALY—According to a Science in Poland report, a new study of changes to the layout of the Roman Forum over time suggests that it may have been harder for large sections of the crowd to hear political speeches and see the gestures that accompanied them during the Imperial period. Orators delivered their messages from raised platforms called rostra with a combination of speech, gestures, and physical performance. “Gestures could indicate people or places, illustrate the course of events, emphasize the structure of arguments, and express emotions such as anger, indignation, or compassion,” said Kamil Kopij of Jagiellonian University. “In some cases, they even served as a substitute for words,...