Research shows that a people’s knowledge of their family history correlates to higher self-esteem, lower anxiety, stronger familial cohesion, and a better sense of control over one’s life. / Photo by Gideon Mendel, Getty Images A growing body of evidence points to the mental health benefits of oral storytelling. By Liz Brazile / 10.16.2018 As Joe Clemons was[…]
To an anthropologist, it means the patterns of human behaviour, and all that that entails. 01.01.2018 Introduction The word “culture” is used in different ways by different people. To some, it might mean a string quartet and the use of multiple utensils at dinner. To others, it might be used in a vague way when planning[…]
A massive mural of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump engaged in a passionate kiss was unveiled Sunday morning, October 29, 2017, painted on the West Bank security barrier near the West Bank city of Bethlehem. REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma Street art is a contemporary culture that is ever-growing and transitioning in significance and meaning.[…]
1952 Democratic Convention / Wikimedia Commons People gain an understanding and acceptance of the political culture of their nation through a process called political socialization. Edited by Matthew A. McIntosh / 09.25.2018 Historian Brewminate Editor-in-Chief Introduction Americans have strong positive feelings about the country’s flag. Government leaders and candidates giving speeches often are flanked by[…]
A particularly fruitful moment for technological innovation? Viktor M Vasnetsov Not all technologies are created equal. Researchers devised a new model to explain why, after eons of nothing much new, we sometimes see an explosion of innovation in the archaeological record. By Dr. Nicole Creanza and Dr. Oren Kolodny / 11.24.2015 Creanza: Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Kolodny: Postdoctoral Research Fellow in[…]
Partition 31, 2015, Christiane Feser. Pigment print, cut, folded, and layered, 55 1/4 × 39 1/2 in. Collection of Trish and Jan de Bont. © Christiane Feser Why these six artists fold, cut, layer and shape paper in different ways as part of their photographic practice. By Laura Hubber / 05.22.2018 Content Producer, Interpretive Media[…]
Iranian fine art photographer Mehrdad Naragahi’s photography is the visual embodiment of Gabriel García Márquez ‘s magical realism. “We can be anywhere in our dreams.” Photo untitled from “The Fairyland” series. Provided by Naraghi through his website and used with permission. 04.16.2018 How does an artist tackle the questions of identity and home when they’re[…]
What can a modern-day Creole language tell us about its first speakers in the 1600s? M M, By Dr. Nicole Creanza (left) and Dr. André Ché Sherriah (right) / 03.02.2018 Creanza: Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Sherriah: Postdoctoral Associate in Linguistics, University of the West Indies, Mona Campus Often, you can tell where someone[…]
By Dr. Constantine Sandis[1] Professor of Philosophy University of Hertfordshire Introduction Heritage is that which has been or may be inherited, regardless of its value. Unfortunately, the term ‘heritage’ (the thirteenth-century English word is derived from the Latin haeres, meaning heir or heiress) is nowadays frequently used for purposes best described as touristic, to sell everything[…]
Edited by Matthew A. McIntosh Historian Brewminate Editor-in-Chief 1 – The Role of Socialization 1.1 – Introduction Socialization prepares people for social life by teaching them a group’s shared norms, values, beliefs, and behaviors. 1.1.1 – Overview The role of socialization is to acquaint individuals with the norms of a given social group or society.[…]
“These women really represent their culture. They are the vessels that carry this culture forward.” / Photo by Juana Mari Moya, Getty Images A New York City restaurant does more than serve home cooking from around the world. It prepares each dish with the love that only a grandmother can provide. By Shaima Shamdeen / 02.20.2018[…]
Creative Commons Edited by Matthew A. McIntosh / 02.15.2018 Historian Brewminate Editor-in-Chief 1 – Culture and Society 1.1 – Culture and Biology 1.1.1 – Overview Culture relates to nature (our biology and genetics) and nurture (our environment and surroundings that also shape our identities). Human beings are biological creatures. We are composed of blood and[…]
Model Aliyyah Abdul-Raul wearing designs from Ohio-based designer Chimiwear poses in front of the camara at a past Beautifully Wrapped Headwrap Expo. During the event, fashion shows take place every hour and features different looks from designers. Credit: Courtesy of Felicia Tolbert By Public Radio International / 11.27.2017 There’s no shortage of glam at a[…]
By Mike Larcombe / 10.31.2017 Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len About 10 years ago, I came across the story of Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len, a psychologist who took a job in a facility in Hawaii for 30 prisoners with mental health problems. The story goes that he never saw any of his patients face to face,[…]
By Raya Bidshahri / 11.08.2017 The Underestimated Role of Collectivity Many of us intuitively think about intelligence as an individual trait. As a society, we have a tendency to praise individual game-changers for accomplishments that would not be possible without their teams, often tens of thousands of people that work behind the scenes to make[…]
Creative Commons By Dr. Katherine W. Phillips / 09.18.2017 Paul Calello Professor of Leadership and Ethics Management University of California, Berkeley The first thing to acknowledge about diversity is that it can be difficult. In the U.S., where the dialogue of inclusion is relatively advanced, even the mention of the word “diversity” can lead to anxiety and[…]
The festival of Rani Kajal Mata / Screenshot from YouTube By Sangeeta Rane / 06.06.2017 Thousands of people have gathered in Verwada village in Barwani district to celebrate the newest festival in Madhya Pradesh – the festival of Rani Kajal Mata, an ancient, indigenous deity. The deity, a sacred rock, is the guardian goddess of the[…]
A Pirahã family. / Photo by Caleb Everett By Dr. Caleb Everett / 04.25.2017 Andrew Carnegie Fellow Professor of Anthropology University of Miami Numbers do not exist in all cultures. There are numberless hunter-gatherers embedded deep in Amazonia, living along branches of the world’s largest river tree. Instead of using words for precise quantities, these[…]
With our attention diverted, we’re no longer in the moment. ‘Concert’ via www.shutterstock.com By Rebecca Macmillan PhD Candidate in English University of Texas at Austin At a conference on June 14, Facebook’s head of operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Nicola Mendelsohn, predicted that the social networking site would be “all video” within[…]
Fisherman are silhouetted against the rising sun in the waters of the Ganges river. / Jitendra Prakash, Reuters By Atul Gawande / 06.19.2016 EDITOR’S NOTE: In his new book, surgeon and writer Atul Gawande talks about the biggest checklist that relatives and an aging family have to make — what conditions should occur in which a family[…]
Photo by Unsplash (courtesy of Pixabay.com) By Sonja Trifuljesko Doctoral Candidate, Social and Cultural Anthropology University of Helsinki Prologue When the fireworks in the Senate Square in Helsinki announced the beginning of 2015, they also marked the start of a special year for the adjoining University of Helsinki: its 375th anniversary. Though this jubilee per se might[…]
David Isay TED Presentation Over thousands of archived and broadcast interviews, StoryCorps founder Dave Isay has created an unprecedented document of the dreams and fears that touch us all. David Isay Story Collector Filmed March 2015 Dave Isay opened the first StoryCorps booth in New York’s Grand Central Terminal in 2003 with the intention of[…]
WE GOT THIS. Sonny Abesamis/Flickr By Dr. Andre Spicer Professor of Organisational Behaviour City University London The gap between expert analysis and public opinion seems to be widening by the day. In the US, there is significant popular support for the policies of Donald Trump which the vast majority of experts regards as questionable, to[…]
Yap Day Festivities / Creative Commons By Dr. C. Jason Throop Associate Professor of Anthropology University of California, Los Angeles Abstract This article advances an analysis of those affective, mooded, and worldly happenings that define the limits, contingencies, and possibilities of happiness. More specifically, drawing from sustained ethnographic research, ambivalent orientations to experiences of happiness[…]
By Dr. Timothy Rayner Former Professor of Philosophy, University of Sydney Writer/Author Philosophy for Change It is early morning. A chorus of birds filters through an open window. A young woman lies in bed with her boyfriend. It is a quotidian scene, almost perfect, yet something is off. The boyfriend is checking his smartphone, a[…]
By Ben Koerber / 05.16.2016 Egyptian novelist Ahmed Naji is serving two years in prison: guilty of having written the playful, language-rich, genre-crossing novel Using Life, he will be given the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award, today, in absentia, in New York City. When Naji was charged with “violating public morals” for an excerpt of his novel published[…]
By Mark Manson / 05.22.2016 Why You Should Stop Trying to Discover Your Purpose Remember back when you were a kid? You would just do things. You never thought to yourself, “What are the relative merits of learning baseball versus football?” You just ran around the playground and played baseball and football. You built sand[…]
By Amalini De Sayrah / 05.23.2016 All Photos from Amalini De Sayrah, Groundviews The skies overhead were overcast. Strong winds played with the hair of those walking along the ramparts. A light drizzle came and went as it pleased. Far away, there was music. It was coming from the recent Galle Music Festival, which brings together performers from the Northern[…]
By Dr. Carlos Severi Director of Research, Professor of Anthropology Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales Abstract Forms of thought, from what Lévi-Strauss called the “systematization [of] what is immediately presented to the senses,” to the causal theories studied by Evans-Pritchard in witchcraft, have generally been interpreted as an expression of a specific language[…]
theodysseyonline.com By Dr. Anthony McCosker Professor of Media and Communications Swinburne University of Technology Social Media+Society 1(2), July-Dec. 2015 Abstract This article is concerned with social media activism at the margins and deals with the problem of managing visibility and voice and the role of affect in the emergence of contested publics over time. While[…]