Emerging Neurotechnologies for Lie Detection and the Fifth Amendment

The article examines the legal implications and advantages of emerging Neurotechnological Lie Detection (NTLD). The self-incrimination clause of the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was taken into account, including its scope over NTLD. Key information about the reliability and privacy issues of NTLD is further presented

The Art of Ethnography in Troubled Times

Many of our longstanding set of methods and denotative conventions of representation are no longer in harmony with the state of contemporary social, political, environmental and economic dysfunction. How can we create a representation that goes beyond the academic communication in a troubled world? How can we create stories , which work as the glue that holds people together, in order to connect with them? This is the basic question in the Art of Ethnography, an idea that begins with Maurice Merleau-Ponty\u27s, in his essay Eye and Mind. This piece suggests that the work of art is a pathway to an embodied enlightenment that can enable us to practice what Michael Jackson has called the art of life . It is the result of several aspects. For example, space and place, which are alive with memory, or dialogue, which is a window into personality of the characters, since it defines the people we study and makes them particular. This is a moment of troubled times, but also a moment of adaptation to our modes of representation, and an opportunity to develop the Art of Ethnography

A Remarkable Convergence

This essay is about an ethnographic epiphany. It is a story of two men, who, separated by ethnicity, language, culture, profession, and personal circumstance, bridged their considerable differences to reach a remarkable point of existential convergence, a deep dialogue that brought on a moving moment of profound mutual understanding. Our stories recount adventures experienced along two distinct life paths. El Hajj Yaya’s path followed the twists and turns of contemporary commerce. My path followed the sinuous trails of anthropology. In time our winding paths finally crossed in New York City, where we met and built a friendship. Our mutual experience of cancer gradually transcended the profound differences that separated us. Through the telling of these stories, I attempt to reflect on themes—love and hate, health and illness, courage and fear, fidelity and betrayal—that form the foundation of the anthropological enterprise and define human condition, [ethnography, representation, epistemology]Cet essai est une révélation ethnographique. C'est l'histoire de deux hommes, séparés par leur identité ethnique, leur langue, leur culture, leur profession et leur contexte de vie personnelle, qui ont réussi à combler ces différences considérables pour parvenir à une exceptionnelle rencontre existentielle, à un dialogue fécond qui nous donne accès à un moment émouvant de compréhension mutuelle. Nos histoires racontent des aventures vécues le long de deux chemins de vie distincts. El Hajj Yaya’s suit les aléas des tours et détours propres au commerce actuel. Mon parcours personnel suit celui des pistes sinueuses de l'anthropologie. Avec le temps, nos parcours se sont croisés à New York où nous nous sommes rencontrés et où nous sommes devenus amis. Notre expérience mutuelle du cancer nous a permis progressivement de dépasser les profondes différences qui nous séparaient. En racontant ces histoires, j'essaye de réfléchir aux thèmes de la haine-de la vie, de la santé et de la maladie, du courage et de la peur, de la fidélité et de la trahison, qui forment les fondements mêmes de l'entreprise anthropologique et définit la condition humaine.Este ensayo trata de una epifanía etnográfica. Es la historia de dos hombres que, separados por la etnicidad, el idioma, la cultura, la profesión y las circunstancias personales, superaron sus considerables diferencias para alcanzar un punto remarcable de convergencia existencial, un diálogo profundo que conllevó un momento emotivo de profunda comprensión mutua . Nuestras historias cuentan aventuras experimentadas a lo largo de dos caminos de vida distintos. El camino de El Hajj Yaya siguió los giros del comercio contemporáneo. Mi camino siguió los sinuosos senderos de la antropología. Con el tiempo nuestros sinuosos caminos finalmente se cruzaron en Nueva York, donde nos conocimos y construimos una amistad. Nuestra experiencia mutua del cáncer transcendió gradualmente las profundas diferencias que nos separaban. A través del relato de estas historias, intento reflexionar sobre temas -amor y odio, salud y enfermedad, coraje y temor, fidelidad y traición- que forman el fundamento del proyecto antropológico y definen la condición humana [etnografía, representación, epistemología

La sauce épaisse. Remarques sur les relations sociales songhaïs

La sauce épaisseRemarques sur les relations sociales songhaïsDans cet article, nous examinons la relation entre le goût et les relations sociales chez les Songhaïs du Niger, et nous suggérons que la qualité des sauces indique le degré de proximité sociale. Au Songhaï, il faut servir des sauces épaisses et épicées aux invités qui sont socialement éloignés ; les proches ne doivent s'attendre qu'à des sauces légères et insipides. Cependant, les cuisinières brouillent souvent ces normes (en servant des sauces claires aux invités et des sauces épaisses aux proches) dans le but d'exprimer des thèmes à pertinence sociale. Dans cet article nous suggérons également aux anthropologues de pimenter leurs descriptions, de les amener à la consistance et à l'épaisseur voulues.Thick SauceNotes on Songhay Social RelationsIn this article, we examine the relationship between taste and social relations among the Songhay of Niger, suggesting that the qualifies of sauces measure degrees of social proximity. In Songhay, socially distant guests should be served thick zesty sauces; close relations should expect thin tasteless sauces. Sauce makers, however, often scramble these expectations (serving thin sauces to guests and thick sauces to relatives) to express socially significant themes. In this paper we also suggest that anthropologists should add more sauce to their descriptions, to make them really " thick "

Linear growth in preschool children treated with mass azithromycin distributions for trachoma: A cluster-randomized trial.

BackgroundMass azithromycin distributions have been shown to reduce mortality among pre-school children in sub-Saharan Africa. It is unclear what mediates this mortality reduction, but one possibility is that antibiotics function as growth promoters for young children.Methods and findings24 rural Ethiopian communities that had received biannual mass azithromycin distributions over the previous four years were enrolled in a parallel-group, cluster-randomized trial. Communities were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to either continuation of biannual oral azithromycin (20mg/kg for children, 1 g for adults) or to no programmatic antibiotics over the 36 months of the study period. All community members 6 months and older were eligible for the intervention. The primary outcome was ocular chlamydia; height and weight were measured as secondary outcomes on children less than 60 months of age at months 12 and 36. Study participants were not masked; anthropometrists were not informed of the treatment allocation. Anthropometric measurements were collected for 282 children aged 0-36 months at the month 12 assessment and 455 children aged 0-59 months at the month 36 assessment, including 207 children who had measurements at both time points. After adjusting for age and sex, children were slightly but not significantly taller in the biannually treated communities (84.0 cm, 95%CI 83.2-84.8, in the azithromycin-treated communities vs. 83.7 cm, 95%CI 82.9-84.5, in the untreated communities; mean difference 0.31 cm, 95%CI -0.85 to 1.47, P = 0.60). No adverse events were reported.ConclusionsPeriodic mass azithromycin distributions for trachoma did not demonstrate a strong impact on childhood growth.Trial registrationThe TANA II trial was registered on clinicaltrials.gov #NCT01202331