How Visual Figures Speak: Narrative Inventions of "The Pastoralist" in East Africa

Through their media images, pastoralists have become "icons" of African traditionalism and unwitting symbols of resistance to the modernist values of development and conservation. Their pictorial fame bears political costs. Popular visual images convey tacit narrative presuppositions that shape public (mis)understanding of pastoral communities, as tacitly pejorative images of pastoralists--most notably of Maasai--proliferate in film, tourist brochures, and advertising, at a time when pastoral communities are faced with political marginalization and dispossession. This article examines the narratives implicit in ethnographic images of pastoralists, images that support the "fulfillment" of pastoral "characters" through policies detrimental to their future.     

Visualizing Marriage in Hong Kong

ABSTRACT

In this article, I propose using bridal photography and wedding video-recording to gain a better understanding of the meanings of romance and the ideal life among young generations and to consider how relevant images of getting married shed light on the changing social life in Hong Kong. Bridal photography and wedding videorecording not only play the role of documentation but also reflect the social change and values among new married couples in the society. By examining packaged bridal photography and the process of wedding video-shooting, I propose to state how visualization brings subtle influences into the new dynamism of marriage as a ritual and reflects the changing social contexts in today's Hong Kong everyday life.     

The anthropologist as photographer: The visual construction of ethnographic authority

“The Anthropologist as Author"—Clifford Geertz's formulation is emblematic of a theme of anthropology in the 1980s, ethnographic writing. Ethnographic photography, however, was barely a subject of consideration. Reviewing Evans‐Pritchard's The Nuer, a book widely re‐read in the writing culture debate, this article investigates not only the author's visual construction of ethnographic authority. It also reveals ethnographic photography as a medium, which can undermine this authority in a subtle yet compelling manner. Thus concentrating on the medium itself this paper investigates the uneasy relationship between photography and anthropology, and proposes an approach to ethnographic photography that goes beyond the questions of representation.¹     

Time-Lapse Photography in Archaeological Data Recording

Abstract

Archaeologists have made little use of motion picture techniques for basic data records, relying on still photography, notebooks and drawings. Since excavation is a continuous process, and the basic scientific experiment of digging destroys site evidence, it is proposed that simple but non-static techniques of time-lapse photography be used to document the excavation as process and to aid in laboratory “reconstruction” of site evidence.     

The Photograph and the Malanggan: Rethinking images on Malakula,Vanuatu

From the recent efflorescence of anthropological engagements with photography we are by now aware that photography is an embodied practice and that photographs are complex materialisations of the subjective and experiential as well as the objective and evidential. Despite discussions of ‘visual repatriation’ (e.g. Brown and Peers 2006 ), and of local responses to colonial photography and other kinds of archival images in the Pacific, little has been discussed regarding the status of photographs as particularly ‘Pacific’ artefacts—objects that make sense in indigenous terms as well as being understood in terms of the connections to other places that their production and circulation might signify. Following Wright’s exhortation to recognise ‘the provincial nature of Eurocentric notions of photography and … suggesting that a certain corporeality and materiality constitute elements of its identity’ (2004: 74) , I discuss the resonance of historical photographs in Vanuatu, building an analogy with Malanggan—funerary carvings from Northern New Ireland. I do not mean to suggest that photographs are complex ritual artefacts, but rather follow the ways in which Malanggan have been used as anthropological conceits, in order to discuss the representational efficacy and materiality of Melanesian images in facilitating the crystallisation of memory and history ( Küchler 1988 ), the enchantment of technology ( Gell 1998, 1999 ), and the consolidation of certain kinds of property relations ( Strathern 2005b ). As my title suggests, I draw on Strathern’s combination of Malanggan and Patents to rethink the potential utility of Malanggan as a ‘way to think’ about the meanings of photographs in Pacific communities.     

The tables are turned: an invasive species under potential threat

This study reviews the current distribution of the native Asian common walking catfish (Clarias batrachus) within Singapore, and compares the present distribution to its historical distribution in the last 90 years based on literature records and museum material. We record a severe decline in the distribution of C. batrachus in Singapore concomitant with a sharp increase in the distribution of the invasive African sharptooth catfish (Clarias gariepinus). We review evidence suggesting that the introduction and the establishment of the African sharptooth catfish in Singapore have adversely affected the Asian common walking catfish. The potential displacement by the African sharptooth catfish of the Asian common walking catfish—itself a widespread invader in other parts of Asia and North America—is particularly interesting as an example of a notorious invasive species becoming threatened by an exotic within its own native range.     

The United States and the new law of the sea

Abstract

The official U.S. statement on the 32nd meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC termed the outcome a “modest success.”; However, from the point of view of conservationists—i.e., governments and private groups seeking greater protection for the world's endangered whales—the results of the 1980 IWC session can be described at best as satisfactory. The disappointing U.S. performance at this and other recent Commission proceedings strongly suggests the need for a reassessment of American cetacean policy and the way in which we pursue this policy in the IWC.

The discussion will begin with a review of U.S. objectives in the IWC in relation to national and international law governing cetaceans. The focus will then turn to the role played by the United States in the Commission's deliberations on selected issues in 1980. The conclusion will set forth recommendations for improvements in American policy and strategy in the IWC.     

The Ecstatic Journey

Photo Wallahs Photo Wallahs, an encounter with photography in Mussoorie, a north Indian hill station. Directed by David and Judith MacDougall; camera: David MacDougall; sound: Judith MacDougall; editor: Dai Vaughan. Distributed by Fieldwork Films, 12 Meehan Gardens, Griffith, Canberra, A.C.T. 2603, Australia. 1991, 58 minutes, color, 16 mm. and PAL.     

Primary Hyperparathyroidism and Vitamin D In African Americans

ObjectivesVitamin D deficiency is more common in African Americans than in the general population or other ethnicities. Vitamin D deficiency also occurs more frequently in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) than in the general population. Currently, the limited data on vitamin D deficiency in African Americans with primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is inconsistent as to whether the vitamin D deficiency observed in PHPT is yet even more pronounced in Africans with PHPT relative to non-African Americans with PHPT.MethodsOn the basis of biochemical, radiological, and surgical (adenoma weight) parameters, African Americans have been reported to have a more severe form of PHPT than non-African Americans. However, comparative clinical manifestations of PHPT in African Americans have not been well described.ResultsCurrent guidelines recommend vitamin D repletion in mild, asymptomatic PHPT when levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D are less than 20 ng/mL. Studies that reported vitamin D repletion with ergocalciferol or cholecalciferol in PHPT have not stratified data according to ethnicity. Discrepancies therefore exist between repleting vitamin D in African Americans who may potentially have a more severe PHPT profile, but simultaneously a more pronounced vitamin D deficiency.ConclusionEffectively designed clinical trials are necessary to evaluate the indications, efficacy, and safety of vitamin D in African Americans with PHPT. (Endocr Pract. 2012;18:947-953)     

Persistent Popular Images of Pastoralists

Pastoralists have long been recurrent figures in visual images and other representations of Africa and Africans. Whether seen in positive or negative terms, pastoralists have provided means for thinking about and imaging cultural difference and identity, with considerable continuity in representational forms and themes. As popular visual media proliferated and changed over the past two centuries--from postcards, trade cards, and live shows to Hollywood films and video games--African pastoralists have continued to appear in each new form, often replicating the types and stereotypes of Euroamerican understandings even as they register new and varied circumstances. The proliferation and reverberation of similar images through diverse visual media is one way these images have come to seem "natural" and to develop such remarkable persistence [Kratz 2002]. Using cases drawn from eastern and southern Africa, this collection of articles considers the multifaceted processes of representation involved in imaging African pastoralists. It invites attention to how such representations are produced in diverse visual media and through interconnections among visual and verbal media, examining the range of actors, interactions, and mediations involved in crafting representations of African pastoralists at different times and in different places.     

Evaluation of photography using head-mounted display technology (ICAPS) for district Trachoma surveys

BackgroundAs the prevalence of trachoma declines worldwide, it is becoming increasingly expensive and challenging to standardize graders in the field for surveys to document elimination. Photography of the tarsal conjunctiva and remote interpretation may help alleviate these challenges. The purpose of this study was to develop, and field test an Image Capture and Processing System (ICAPS) to acquire hands-free images of the tarsal conjunctiva for upload to a virtual reading center for remote grading.Methodology/Principal findingsThis observational study was conducted during a district-level prevalence survey for trachomatous inflammation—follicular (TF) in Chamwino, Tanzania. The ICAPS was developed using a Samsung Galaxy S8 smartphone, a Samsung Gear VR headset, a foot pedal trigger and customized software allowing for hands-free photography. After a one-day training course, three trachoma graders used the ICAPS to collect images from 1305 children ages 1–9 years, which were expert-graded remotely for comparison with field grades. In our experience, the ICAPS was successful at scanning and assigning barcodes to images, focusing on the everted eyelid with adequate examiner hand visualization, and capturing images with sufficient detail to grade TF. The percentage of children with TF by photos and by field grade was 5%. Agreement between grading of the images compared to the field grades at the child level was kappa = 0.53 (95%CI = 0.40–0.66). There were ungradable images for at least one eye in 199 children (9.1%), with more occurring in children ages 1–3 (18.5%) than older children ages 4–9 (4.2%) (χ² = 145.3, p<0.001).Conclusions/SignificanceThe prototype ICAPS device was robust, able to image 1305 children in a district level survey and transmit images from rural Tanzania to an online grading platform. More work is needed to improve the percentage of ungradable images and to better understand the causes of disagreement between field and photo grading.     

The Lens of Science: Anthropometric Photography and the Chippewa, 1890–1920

ABSTRACT

Nineteenth-century anthropologists struggled to establish themselves as scientists in a cultural milieu of enthusiasm for “curiosities.” Because commercial photographers appropriated the “authenticity” of photographic realism, the need increased for ethnographic photographers to distinguish between such realism and the “scientific authority” of their own visual productions. Through a case study of anthropometric photography of the Chippewa, this article examines the tension between, on the one hand, ethnographers' exploitation of the technological and symbolic attributes of photography to promote the scientific and political goals of the discipline, and on the other hand, the influence and function of visual genres and visual allegories in conditioning and framing what viewers accepted as “real” and “true.”     

A bee’s eye view of remarkable floral colour patterns in the south-west Australian biodiversity hotspot revealed by false colour photography

Background and AimsColour pattern is a key cue of bee attraction selectively driving the appeal of pollinators. It comprises the main colour of the flower with extra fine patterns, indicating a reward focal point such as nectar, nectaries, pollen, stamens and floral guides. Such advertising of floral traits guides visitation by the insects, ensuring precision in pollen gathering and deposition. The study, focused in the Southwest Australian Floristic Region, aimed to spot bee colour patterns that are usual and unusual, missing, accomplished by mimicry of pollen and anthers, and overlapping between mimic-model species in floral mimicry cases.MethodsFloral colour patterns were examined by false colour photography in 55 flower species of multiple highly diverse natural plant communities in south-west Australia. False colour photography is a method to transform a UV photograph and a colour photograph into a false colour photograph based on the trichromatic vision of bees. This method is particularly effective for rapid screening of large numbers of flowers for the presence of fine-scale bee-sensitive structures and surface roughness that are not detectable using standard spectrophotometry.Key ResultsBee- and bird-pollinated flowers showed the expected but also some remarkable and unusual previously undetected floral colour pattern syndromes. Typical colour patterns include cases of pollen and flower mimicry and UV-absorbing targets. Among the atypical floral colour patterns are unusual white and UV-reflecting flowers of bee-pollinated plants, bicoloured floral guides, consistently occurring in Fabaceae spp., and flowers displaying a selective attractiveness to birds only. In the orchid genera (Diuris and Thelymitra) that employ floral mimicry of model species, we revealed a surprising mimicry phenomenon of anthers mimicked in turn by model species.ConclusionThe study demonstrates the applicability of ‘bee view’ colour imaging for deciphering pollinator cues in a biodiverse flora with potential to be applied to other eco regions. The technique provides an exciting opportunity for indexing floral traits on a biome scale to establish pollination drivers of ecological and evolutionary relevance.     

Jewish children under the camera: An ethnographic study of Jewish children in Britain

This article seeks to explore the use of photography as a tool for ethnographic research, having regard to the nature of participant observation as the primary method involved. A study of Jewish children in the center of England highlights a range of creative possibilities for the use of photography. An examination of the Jewish tradition reinforces the need for depth of understanding if one is to forge a truly empathetic relationship that links subject and object in photographic exploration.     

The Sizes of Elephant Groups in Zoos: Implications for Elephant Welfare

This study examined the distribution of 495 Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) and 336 African elephants (Loxodonta africana) in 194 zoos, most of which were located in Europe (49.1%) and North America (32.6%). Cows outnumbered bulls 4 to 1 (Loxodonta) and 3 to 1 (Elephas). Groups contained 7 or fewer: mean, 4.28 (σ = 5.73). One fifth of elephants lived alone or with one conspecific. Forty-six elephants (5.5%) had no conspecific. Many zoos ignore minimum group sizes of regional zoo association guidelines. The American Zoo and Aquarium Association recommends that breeding facilities keep herds of 6 to 12 elephants. The British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums recommends keeping together at least 4 cows over 2 years old. Over 69% Asian and 80% African cow groups—including those under 2 years—consisted of fewer than 4 individuals. Recently, Europe and North America have made progress with some zoos no longer keeping elephants and with others investing in improved facilities and forming larger herds. The welfare of individual elephants should outweigh all other considerations; zoos should urgently seek to integrate small groups into larger herds.     

The Enantioselective Synthesis of Marmelo Oxides A and B and the Assignment of the Absolute Configurations of Marmelo Oxides

(+)-Marmelo oxide A and (—)-marmelo oxide B were stereoselectively synthesized from d-glutamic acid via (—)-marmelo lactones A and B. The absolute configurations of marmleo oxides were thus determined to be the (+)-oxide A having the (2R, 4R) and (+)-oxide B having (2S, 4R) configurations.     

THE SPECIFIC NAME OF THE SNAKE CATFISH,CLAXIAS THEOWRAE WEBER 1897

SUMMARY

Workers revising Southern African freshwater fishes have endeavoured to provide brief information on those persons who have had fish named after them. The provenance of all such patronyms in currently valid species has been established with one exception: Clarias theodorae M. Weber 1897. This was named after a niece of Professor Weber's wife, who accompanied him on his South African visit.     

Hemoglobin A1C Criterion for Diabetes Diagnosis Among Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Populations

ObjectiveTo report on the performance of the recently recommended hemoglobin A1c (A1C) criterion for diabetes diagnosis in comparison with the standard fasting plasma glucose and 2-hour post-glucose challenge (PG) test criteria across racial and ethnic groups.MethodsWe evaluated local and national survey data from 689 Dominican, 4, 862 Hispanic, 4, 694 African American, and 6, 883 white study subjects. We compared rates of diabetes classification by diagnostic criteria, agreement and disagreement between A1C and PG criteria for diagnosing diabetes, and differences in cardiometabolic risk among the 3 diagnostic groups across racial and ethnic stratifications.ResultsThe A1C-based diabetes diagnoses were higher among Dominican and African American study subjects (81.6% and 67.0%, respectively), and lower among Hispanic and white subjects (46.0% and 37.9%, respectively). Among those not meeting any PG criterion for diabetes, the A1C criterion identified diabetes in 8.3% of Dominican, 3.5% of African American, 0.9% of Hispanic, and 0.5% of white study subjects. The A1C criterion, however, did not identify diabetes in 64.5% of white, 46.1% of Dominican, 44.0% of African American, and 41.9% of Hispanic subjects who were diagnosed with diabetes by a PG criterion. For single tests, the agreement was greatest between A1C and fasting plasma glucose test criteria among Dominican, Hispanic, and African American study populations—76.9%, 65.6%, and 60.7%, respectively. There was no clear difference in selected cardiometabolic risks between A1C and PG-only diabetes diagnoses across racial and ethnic groups.ConclusionThe A1C criterion yields racialand ethnic-specific differences in diagnosing diabetes and in test agreements with PG-based criteria. Furthermore, diagnostic differences were observed between the Dominican subgroup and the Hispanic study population, of whom 91.5% were Mexican American. (Endocr Pract. 2011;17: 210-217)     

The identity of Leucaspis gigas (Homoptera: Diaspididae), with descriptions of four similar species in New Zealand

Leucaspis gigas (Maskell, 1879) and 3 other endemic species which have been confused with it— L. ohakunensis Brittin, L. morrisi (Brittin), and Salicicola maskelli (Brittin)—are redescribed; L. mixta de Boer, also endemic, is described as new. All species are illustrated. Lectotypes are designated where appropriate.