It is probably fair to say that The Global Journal’s Top 100 NGO ranking had a bit of a bumpy start. When it launched the first edition in 2012, Dave Algoso’s critical post and editor Jean-Christophe Nothias’ harsh critique quickly dominated the virtual perception in the aid blogosphere. So when the second edition was published in January 2013, vaguely hinting at ‘innovation, impact and sustainability’ as key new criteria to assess NGOs, I was sceptical and mentally preparing for more critical comments. Luckily, the researcher in me won over the potentially ranting aid blogger and I sent out some messages to a variety of organizations featured in the ranking as well as the editorial team asking for more details on process and methodology. I received open and positive feedback all around and one 20 page methodology paper, a couple of email exchanges and a 25 minute phone conversation with one NGO later, a much more nuanced picture had emerged about the ranking, learning processes and the space for discussions the ranking could facilitate further. The Global Journal did its homework The background paper ‘Evaluating non-governmental organisations – An overview of The Global Journal’s Top 100 NGOs methodology in 2013’ by researcher Cecilia Cannon currently based at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva basically consists of two parts. The first part is a more conventional and broader political science analysis about conceptualizing NGOs and evaluation of NGO work. In my academic opinion, this part focuses a bit too much on ‘traditional’ organizations and well-known global civil society debates which does not take the range of innovative organizations into consideration that the actual ranking features. Acumen Fund, Wikimedia Foundation or Root Capital do not really fit into traditional NGO categories and it would be interesting to discuss some of the broader philanthropical changes further. The second part engages more specifically with the ranking and its criteria and sets the tone on the first page: By clearly articulating what each criterion is based upon and developing a more focused overall scope of analysis, The Global Journal sought to better address this challenge in 2013. Like any study, there are limitations and room for alterations to the methodology. (p.10)My main question for this post was how well the methodology corresponds with the aims and objectives of the ranking to ‘showcase diversity’, ‘evaluate NGOs comparatively’, ‘stimulate constructive debate’ and ‘present a range of good NGO practice’. All in all, I believe that the ranking addresses these issues well and with the right mixture of ‘hard facts’ and the necessary openness when addressing contested or hard to define terms like ‘impact’. I will comment more in detail on the process in the next paragraph, taking NGOs perceptions into consideration as well. Every theme comes with clearly defined sub-categories and a scale which all contribute to a weighted final score. To me, this looks like good practice for establishing a ranking and Cecilia Cannon also identified some ways to improve them further: Assessing an NGO on an ordinal scale of 1-20, for example, presents the challenge of differentiating between 20 possible scores against criteria that require some level of qualitative judgement. A smaller scale for scoring would enable less scope for subjective inconsistencies. This would improve the quality of future evaluations and would enable independent reviewers to potentially replicate the results when using the same criteria for evaluation.(p.17)Most importantly at this point is that The Global Journal clearly asked for external advice, is open for discussions and seems willing to fine-tune its methodology further, given that there will never be such a thing as a ‘perfect ranking’. The view from the NGOs: ‘It felt like a grant application’ I selected a random sample of 11 organizations from across the ranking, controlling for size, ‘brand recognition’ and location. Until today, I have received 5 responses (2 large international, 1 medium-sized & 2 small NGOs). Again, these were open and friendly exchanges and a picture seems to emerge as to the amount of information that those organizations turned over to The Global Journal: They requested a fair amount of due diligence information regarding [the organization], similar to what funders frequently request of us, including financials, our impact data, annual reports, etc. (small NGO A) We were asked to deliver rather detailed information and documentation based on two questionaries. The material included all parts of the operation as well as all annual reports – budgets, staff, donors, concrete operations, strategies, accountability set up etc. (medium-sized NGO)[T]his year’s nomination e-mail did include a link to a lengthy online questionnaire (I don’t have a copy of this, but it should still be online), and a shorter PDF questionnaire (attached). We politely explained that we did not have time to fill out the questionnaires, and referred them to the answers we provided them for the 2012 edition, and to the fairly extensive information publicly available on our website and in our annual report. We also provided them with a selection of photos that they requested. (large NGO A) Balancing the needs for thorough information with the time commitments of organization is certainly an issue (‘it was a week worth of work’ (small NGO B) and one of the biggest challenges seems to be to think about how to treat large global players and small local organizations fairly - even if that means that they may be treated slightly differently with regards to the requirements for information. But more importantly at this point, there were no questions about the rigor of the process and everybody noticed the changes compared to the first ranking process. ‘The ranking really helped us in gaining international legitimacy and more global exposure’ In my long conversation with one small organization I really felt that this is a key aspect of the exercise. For well-known global organizations the inclusion in the ranking is probably just one small add-on to their communications strategy and the impact on funding will probably be small at best. But smaller, innovative organizations really seem to get something valuable out of the exercise which for them was the equivalent of a ‘grant application’ or ‘external evaluation’ in terms of time and staff commitment. After last year’s inclusion, the organization was invited to an international conference and introduced as an ‘expert’ in their area and further networking and publishing opportunities arose as well. Future rankings and research may show how smaller organizations also benefit in more tangible ways if they continue to be among the ‘world’s best’ NGOs. Personal learning: Looking behind the headline pays off as many things are indeed more complicated in developmentI am really glad that I made the effort to reach out to The Global Journal and some of the organizations featured in the ranking. Judged against its self-proclaimed aims, the ranking is delivering on many accounts. If the process continues to be treated seriously and at the same time as an opportunity for discussion and learning for the aid community, Cecilia Cannon’s conclusion that The Global Journal has made a serious effort to continue to develop and implement a considered and consistent approach. (p.19)may help to establish the ‘Top 100 NGO ranking’ as a household resource with an approach that many in the aid industry could agree on after its bumpy start.

The Yanomami Ax Fight, an ethnographic film by Timothy Asch and Napoleon Chagnon, is a classic in anthropology and beyond. I first saw it as an undergraduate in an English class on travel writing. I have shown it in my classes to illustrate how what we may initially see as chaos or senseless can with another look be seen as part of a logical pattern. Much has been said about the Yanomami and The Ax Fight, but here I want to concentrate on just one point: steel axes. The Yanomami used iron and steel long before anyone ever filmed them for classroom consumption. As Brian Ferguson writes in Yanomami Warfare: A Political History, “the Yanomami have long depended on iron and steel tools. All ethnographically described Yanomami had begun using metal tools long before any anthropologist arrived” (1995:23). As noted in Myths of the Spanish Conquest, steel arrived with the Spaniards, but steel tools were quickly seized upon and traded far in advance of any European contact or conquest. In 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, Charles Mann argues that the very form of slash-and-burn cultivation practiced by the Yanomami and often portrayed as so traditional, “was a product of European axes” (2006:341). Similarly in Papua New Guinea, including for the famously and only-recently-contacted New Guinea highlands, steel axes had been in use for many years before anthropologists arrived. From Aaron Podolefsky’s classic article Contemporary Warfare in the New Guinea Highlands: “Enter the ubiquitous steel axe, exit the stone axe. No one in Mul today would use a stone axe. Indeed it was difficult to find someone who recalled how to attach the stone to a handle” (345). Keep in mind that when Podolefsky says today, he is describing his fieldwork in the early 1970s! It is very strange that Jared Diamond, who sold the world on the importance of steel as a formidable weapon of conquest, has so little to say about steel axes in The World Until Yesterday. Diamond mentions people in the New Guinea highlands received “a few steel axes, which were prized.” But this doesn’t sound at all like what Podolefsky describes as steel axes being ubiquitous by the early 1970s, so much so that no one knew how to make a stone axe anymore. Diamond also mentions–with regard to the Solomon Islands in the 19th century–that “steel axes can behead many humans without losing their sharp edge.” But those are the only two mentions–otherwise steel axes are unnoticed, even among the Yanomami. Steel axes are not the cause of violence–rather, they indicate centuries of trade and interconnection, of the interactions between state and non-state societies since well before Europeans arrived and outrunning European contact. It is in this context that we need to investigate the empirical data about violence in non-state societies. Counting Violence, Shaky Science, and an Ethnography of Interconnection Following on an overview of what accounts for the rise of European polities 800-1400AD and then a re-appraisal of the colonial enterprise in the Americas, this post means to draw out the major theme running through the earlier work: that anthropological studies are inevitably studies of interconnection. People have never been isolated, but in constant connection, from before the time of European expansion. Moreover, the effects of European expansion outran direct contact with Europeans, as items like steel axes and a host of agricultural products were traded around the world, often without any direct European involvement whatsoever (Charles Mann’s 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created has a host of examples, in many cases based on previous anthropological and historical work that paid attention to global flows). We need to put to rest the idea of Ruth Benedict in 1934–that primitive peoples are a kind of scientific laboratory, each an independent cultural whole. At a time when Angry Papuan leaders demand Jared Diamond apologizes, this task acquires additional urgency. Prominent claimants to the science mantle close ranks with Diamond. Steven Pinker tweets: “Noble savage myth strikes again–Jared Diamond has data on his side; Survival International confuses human rights with factual claims.” Skeptic Michael Shermer raises the hyperbole: “Another example of the Left’s War on Science: Survival International attacks Jared Diamond (whose data is solid).” Prominent economist Tyler Cowen: “Mood affiliation aside, the facts are on Diamond’s side.” Science blogger Razib Khan takes a strangely different turn. After remarking that Diamond has been “trading in glib and gloss for years,” Khan revs up his favorite diatribe apparatus against cultural anthropology. Khan concludes that “Jared Diamond may be wrong on facts, but he has the right enemies.” Hey, no use bothering with boring facts when terrific Twitter sensationalism awaits. Real scientists know better. Diamond has a lot of anecdotes, but very little empirical evidence. The few numbers he does use are suspect, and in any case doing math on numbers does not make it science. Before numbers can count as evidence, as empirical data, as facts, as science, it is crucial to understand the context of those numbers. Numbers usefully summarize what we count as important. Numbers offer glimpses into relationships and processes. But we should not confuse the manipulation of numbers with an understanding of those relationships and processes. We do need to review some facts. Looking at the empirical evidence reveals a very different story. The story matches what Brian Ferguson wrote about the Yanomami, with ideas developed over 20 years ago: Although some Yanomami really have been engaged in intensive warfare and other kinds of bloody conflict, this violence is not an expression of Yanomami culture itself. It is, rather, a product of specific historical situations: The Yanomami make war not because Western culture is absent, but because it is present, and present in certain specific forms. All Yanomami warfare that we know about occurs within what Neil Whitehead and I call a “tribal zone,” an extensive area beyond state administrative control, inhabited by nonstate people who must react to the far-flung effects of the state presence. (1995:6) Before launching this investigation of interconnection, I do need to clarify a few points: I love numbers. I love counting. I love math. Numbers, counting, and math are especially useful to counter and debunk stories we like to tell about ourselves and other societies. This is not about personal quirks or fieldwork ethics. The idea that steel axes were ever introduced by anthropologists is not supported. The point is that the steel axes were there long before the anthropologists. I am in no way making a counter-claim of peace, harmony, and gentleness. Countering the claim that others live in a state of constant warfare or endemic violence is not to idealize or prop up equally invalid constructions. I am in no way saying that steel axes cause violence. It is simply to say that the influence of steel axes and other trade goods, as well as contact with other peoples and with both European and non-European states, must be considered before we decide that a certain type of people are inevitably violent or warlike. Investigating Empirical Evidence: The Yanomami, The Nuer, The Siriono, The Aché, The !Kung, and Papua New Guinea The Yanomami. Brian Ferguson already did a complete empirical revision on the Yanomami evidence 20 years ago. After that work, no reputable scholar should be uncritically citing Napoleon Chagnon for empirical evidence. That this even must be done over again is a farce. Diamond cites only Napoleon Chagnon on the Yanomami. He does not mention Ferguson, nor do we ever hear that there may have been a debate about Yanomami warfare. Somewhat ironically, Ferguson and others cleared this up in the scientific journals years ago, but Diamond gets the scientist label without paying attention to science. I heard a paper by Ferguson at the 2012 meetings of the American Anthropological Association, but have not heard anything from him with regard to the current news. Charles Mann uses Ferguson’s work for 1491–perhaps Mann could provide a clarifying statement. The Nuer. Diamond uses E.E. Evans-Pritchard’s classic ethnography on the Nuer to highlight their “prevalence of formalized violence.” However, Evans-Pritchard studied the Nuer because the British colonial government was trying to figure out why they were being so rebellious to colonial rule and how they were organizing their rebellion. As Evans-Pritchard explains, “in 1920 large-scale military operations, including bombing and machine-gunning of camps, were conducted against the Eastern Jikany and caused much loss of life and destruction of property. There were further patrols from time to time but the Nuer remained unsubdued” (The Nuer 1940:135). I should not need to say that a period of widespread resistance to colonial rule, answered with brutal massacres by the colonial state, may not exactly be the most reliable time to objectively tally instances of violence in a “non-state society.” The Siriono. I have already objected to Diamond’s use of the Siriono as described by anthropologist Alan Holmberg. David Brooks then splayed the Siriono into The New York Times. The first chapter of Mann’s 1491 concerned “Holmberg’s Mistake”–the problem of drawing conclusions about people who were basically a persecuted fragment, a shattered remnant of a former society. Even Holmberg admits in his ethnography that “The Siriono are an anomaly in eastern Bolivia. Widely scattered in isolated pockets of forest land, with a culture strikingly backward in contrast to that of their neighbors, they are probably a remnant of an ancient population that was exterminated, absorbed, or engulfed by more civilized invaders” (Nomads of the Long Bow 1950:8, and I thank the Amazon reviewer Ron Cochran for the reference). No wonder then that according to Diamond “for the Siriono Indians of Bolivia, the overwhelming preoccupation is with food, such that two of the commonest Siriono expressions are ‘My stomach is empty’ and ‘Give me some food.’” Certainly such statements are a testament to something, but they hardly constitute evidence about life in a non-state society. The !Kung. For the !Kung, Diamond uses Richard Lee’s numbers to calculate 22 homicides from 1920-1969. Diamond then notes that “referred to that base population, the homicide rate for the !Kung works out to 29 homicides per 100,000 person-years, which is triple the homicide rate for the United States and 10 to 30 times the rates for Canada, Britain, France, and Germany.” Diamond then says that state intervention reduced the homicide rate. Three points: First, Diamond makes a strange comparison to contemporary homicide rates in the industrialized world. If we instead look at intentional homicide rates around the world, the !Kung numbers are roughly equivalent to the country of South Africa today–in other words, there seems to be a broader regional issue. The homicide rates were not worse for the !Kung, and may have even been reduced in comparison to other African locales at the time. Second, grabbing a local homicide number can be tricky–Washington, D.C. had an intentional homicide rate in the low 40s in the early 2000s, which has since come down to mid-20s. I would hope no one suggest Washington D.C. is a non-state society, but Diamond would come close to making such a claim: “Urban gangs in large cities don’t call the police to settle their disagreements but rely on traditional methods of negotiation, compensation, intimidation, and war.” Third, and most importantly, Lee and Diamond’s choice of time period is instructive. Robert J. Gordon has been for years trying to bring to wider attention The “Forgotten” Bushman Genocides of Namibia. Gordon “examines the Bushman genocide of 1912–1915 which, despite overwhelming evidence of its having occurred, has been largely ignored by both scholars and the local population” (2009:29). If Gordon is correct–and he is one of the only people delving into the German archives for evidence–then the indigenous populations were decimated, with both state and para-state involvement, during the years just before the 22 homicides calculated from 1920-1969. I’ve always wondered if that was one forgotten factor in why Richard Lee got that famous quote about so many mongongo nuts–perhaps because the population of people had been so decimated 50 years earlier (see Agriculture as “Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race”?). In any case, and as Robert Gordon and Stuart Sholto-Douglas argue in The Bushman Myth: The Making of a Namibian Underclass, by 1920-1969 these populations were hardly detached from wider society. The !Kung may have been more like the Siriono–a persecuted remnant of a former society–than we have hitherto realized. Papua New Guinea. Diamond here makes the case that a strong state government decreases violence. Following directly from the !Kung material: This course of events illustrates the role of control by a strong state government in reducing violence. That same role also becomes obvious from central facts of the colonial and post-colonial history of New Guinea in the last 50 years: namely, the steep decrease in violence following establishment of Australian and Indonesian control of remote areas of eastern and western New Guinea respectively, previously without state government; the continued low level of violence in Indonesian New Guinea under maintained rigorous government control there; and the eventual resurgence of violence in Papua New Guinea after Australian colonial government gradually yielded to less rigorous independent government. Here again, three points. First, as noted above, Diamond seriously underplays the influence of trade and pre-contact transformation. Even before the steel axes, the New Guinea highlanders had incorporated sweet potato horticulture into their diet. As Stephen Corry notes, while there is still debate about where the sweet potatoes came from, the probable answer is from the Americas in the last few hundred years: Most New Guineans do little hunting. They live principally from cultivations, as they probably have for millennia. Diamond barely slips in the fact that their main foodstuff, sweet potato, was probably imported from the Americas, perhaps a few hundred or a thousand years ago. No one agrees on how this came about, but it is just one demonstration that “globalization” and change have impacted on Diamond’s “traditional” peoples for just as long as on everyone else. (Savaging Primitives: Why Jared Diamond’s ‘The World Until Yesterday’ Is Completely Wrong) The incorporation of the sweet potato–just like other food crops from the Americas in other parts of the world–most probably led to denser populations in the highlands than had been previously supported. Add steel axes from trade–which by the time of fieldwork in the 1970s had become ubiquitous–and the conditions were surely ripe for an escalation of intertribal conflict. Anyone interested in the dramatic global interconnections of Papua New Guinea should watch the truly classic ethnographic film, again from the early 1970s, Ongka’s Big Moka: The Kawelka of Papua New Guinea. Ongka’s Big Moka can certainly be used to illustrate gift exchange and traditional life–but it is also instructive to see the appropriation of all kinds of elements–the “Do It In the Road” T-shirt, dentures, money counted in pidgin English, motorbikes, bank accounts for cash-crop coffee growing–all of which seem to not be destroying the traditional exchanges but intensifying them. That was the situation in the New Guinea highlands in the 1970s, and yet Jared Diamond announces on The Colbert Report that they might not know what to do with an electric can opener, that they might try “sticking it through their nose or over their ears.” Second, Aaron Podolefsky and other anthropologists explicitly sought to explain this somewhat puzzling resurgence in tribal violence in the 1960s and 1970s. Here again, Robert Gordon provided evidence that this could not simply be explained by a “less rigorous” government. Gordon pointed out the paradox that in many of the conflicted areas, police patrols had actually expanded and the jail penalties enhanced, but with no deterrent effect. Podolefsky’s article emphasizes the importance of trade–since highlanders no longer had to go far afield to obtain valued goods, there had been a decrease in intertribal marriage. This decrease in intertribal marriage led to situations in which there were fewer relatives to argue for peaceful relations (we might also recall the role of affines in Ongka’s Big Moka for reducing the intertribal conflict). In other words, Podolefsky argues that it is in fact the decline or abandonment of traditional methods of dispute resolution which led to this resurgence. Finally, those ethnographers who are most intimately familiar with the violence and warfare in Papua New Guinea–and who do not in any way dismiss it–nevertheless have suggested that state societies may have something to learn: Acephalous societies may have some advantages rather than disadvantages vis à vis centralized ones in the settlement of disputes including the handling of violence. The projection of disputes in terms of sorcery and witchcraft can be considered in this context. Our observations here turn ideas of the evolution of society upside down: “primitive” societies, rather than being forms to be transcended, may themselves provide valuable models for contemporary postmodern society on how to reintroduce community-based elements into dispute resolution, and on the mediation and transformation of violence into positive forms of exchange. (Stewart and Strathern, Violence: Theory and Ethnography 2003:153) The Aché. Diamond also brings up the Aché of Paraguay. Here, I’m just going to go with Wikipedia: The Aché suffered repeated abuses by rural Paraguayan colonists, ranchers, and big landowners from the conquest period to the 20th century. In the 20th century the Northern Aché began as the only inhabitants of nearly 20,000 square kilometers, and ended up confined on two reservations totaling little more than 50 square kilometers of titled land. In recent times they have been massacred, enslaved, and gathered on to reservations where no adequate medical treatment was provided. This process was specifically carried out to pacify them and remove them from their ancestral homeland so that absentee investors (mainly Brazilian) could move in and develop the lands that once belonged only to the Aché. Large multinational business groups (e.g. Industria Paraguaya) obtained title rights to already occupied lands and then sold them sight unseen to investors who purchased lands where Aché bands had roamed for thousands of years, and were still present. The fact that Aché inhabitants were present and living in the forests of Canindeyu and Alto Paraná on the very lands being titled in Hernandarias, Coronel Oveido, and other government centers seems to have bothered nobody. There is one other comment about almost all of the cases Diamond uses: much of the evidence is based not just on the unproblematic acceptance of these texts, but on the stories people told about the old days of raiding and warfare. And here we should remember that war stories are war stories–like fishing stories and hunting stories, the talk of past exploits sometimes needs to be taken with a few grains of salt. I had been attempting to not support the Jared Diamond juggernaut by purchasing The World Until Yesterday, but for the sake of science I’ve plunged ahead. After reviewing the empirical data, I’m even more surprised than I expected at how Diamond treats the ethnographic record. I’m even more amazed I have not yet heard mention of this from anthropologists who have reviewed the book. Are we really so far from empirical evaluation that these reviews were conducted on whether or not we support Diamond’s philosophy, his politics, his methods, his field experience, or his writing style? Where are the anthropologists who have taken Diamond to task for his absurd absorption of the Yanomami, the Nuer, the Siriono, the Aché, the !Kung, and in Papua New Guinea? Even Razib Khan says “I want to be clear that I think Jared Diamond is wrong on a lot of details, and many cultural anthropologists are rightly calling him out on that.” But who are the cultural anthropologists calling Diamond out on the empirical and the ethnographic record? Please let me know! Lest I be misunderstood, I have no desire to dismiss classic ethnographies. Indeed, I urge that we read, teach, and learn from them. But we need to be clear about what we these texts can and cannot provide. We also need to place ethnography in the context of critical assessment. Not a critique of writing or literary deconstruction, but an investigation of empirical claims in the light of history. Put differently: While empirical data never speak for themselves, anthropologists cannot speak without data. Even when couched in the most interpretive terms, anthropology requires observation–indeed, often field observation–and relies on empirical data in ways and to degrees that distinguish it as an academic prcatice from both literary and Cultural Studies. That such data is always constituted and such observation is always selective does not mean that the information they convey should not pass any test for empirical accuracy. The much welcome awareness that our empirical base is a construction in no way erases the need for such a base. On the contrary, this awareness calls upon us to reinforce the validity of that base by taking more seriously the construction of our object of observation. Ideally this construction also informs that of the object of study in a back and forth movement that starts before fieldwork and continues long after it. But the preliminary conceptualization of the object of study remains the guiding light of empirical observation: “What is it that I need to know in order to know what I want to know?” (Michel-Rolph Trouillot, Global Transformations: Anthropology and the Modern World 2003:128) What does anthropology’s empirical record reveal about violence and warfare? It is important to first underscore that we cannot read anthropology’s ethnographic record for evidence of whether or not violence is inherent to human nature, as some have attempted. Fortunately, on this point Jared Diamond is clear and correct: “It is equally fruitless to debate whether humans are intrinsically violent or else intrinsically cooperative. All human societies practise both violence and cooperation; which trait appears to predominate depends on the circumstances.” It is also important to underscore that human groups have had varying levels of violence, both historically and across both state and non-state societies. Diamond also realizes this point. What I object to is that following these two acknowledgements, Diamond then portrays non-state societies as generally more violent than state societies, and believes that “the long-term effect of European, Tswana, or other outside contact with states or chiefdoms has almost always been to suppress tribal warfare. The short-term effect has variously been either an immediate suppression as well or else an initial flare-up and then suppression.” (Of course, the duration of this “initial flare-up” could be for centuries as Diamond writes a few sentences earlier, that in some cases “warfare had been endemic long before European arrival, but the effects of Europeans caused an exacerbation of warfare for a few decades (New Zealand, Fiji, Solomon Islands) or a few centuries (Great Plains, Central Africa) before it died out.”) I hope to have shown above that the empirical evidence for those claims is not reliable. Again, this is not to make a counter-proposal of harmonic peace, but to lessen the distance between ideas of the modern us and the non-modern them. If we do give sufficiently wide berth to historical variability and intra-societal variation, I would propose the following as more general observations: Up until about 12,000 years ago, there is little evidence for much violence or warfare: If you review the published information on the fossil record of humans and potential human ancestors from about six million years ago through about 12,000 years ago you are provided with, at best, only a few examples of possible death due to the hand of another individual of the same species. . . . Examination of the human fossil record supports the hypothesis that while some violence between individuals undoubtedly happened in the past, warfare is a relatively modern human behavior (12,000 to 10,000 years old). (Fuentes Race, Monogamy, and Other Lies They Told You 2012:130-131) In other words, if by “yesterday” we really do mean 12,000 years ago, pre-agriculture, then these non-state societies are indeed examples of non-violence. This was a point that was first tremendously popularized by none other than Jared Diamond in his breakout 1987 article Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race. Widely re-printed and still shared today, if anyone is responsible for promoting Noble Savage ideas in the last quarter century, it’s Jared Diamond. Here’s Diamond in 1987: “Forced to choose between limiting population or trying to increase food production, we chose the latter and ended up with starvation, warfare, and tyranny.” Non-state horticultural, agricultural, and herding societies have demonstrated historically variable levels of violence and warfare. Almost all of those non-state horticultural, agricultural, and herding societies, along with almost all of the hunting and gathering peoples in the last several thousand years or so, have lived in interaction with state societies. Some of them have been incorporated into states, others displaced, and those displaced have sometimes displaced other groups. All these groups have been linked by trade. This was happening before European contact, but has certainly intensified in the last 500 years. These state and non-state interactions have sometimes diminished violence and warfare, but have sometimes exacerbated it. If, following Max Weber, we define a state as “the form of human community that (successfully) lays claim to the monopoly of legitimate physical violence within a particular territory,” then indeed–although the argument is a bit circular–it may be that a modern state can reduce violence. However, making that claim as a definition should not impede understanding how the establishment of a monopoly on legitimate physical violence was often itself a violent process, and in many case still depends on high levels of everyday violence, surveillance, incarceration, border patrols. A Final Thought In the early 1960s, we came very close to an interplanetary nuclear exchange between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. How precisely close we were is a matter for some debate, but it was a distinct possibility that may have only been averted by personality quirks and fortuitous occurrence, not exactly “the better angels of our nature.” This was something the scholars of the 1960s and 1970s seem to know better than we do today: How dangerously close we once came to ending this whole discussion of the-modern-versus-the-traditional. Or as Richard Lee and Irven DeVore put it in Man the Hunter: It is still an open question whether man will be able to survive the exceedingly complex and unstable ecological conditions he has created for himself. If he fails in this task, interplanetary archaeologists of the future will classify our planet as one in which a very long and stable period of small-scale hunting and gathering was followed by an apparently instantaneous efflorescence of technology and society leading rapidly to extinction. (1968:3) The Yanomami Ax Fight: Science, Violence, Empirical Data, and the Facts Living Anthropologically

As Samantha MacBride notes, modern waste–that is, postindustrial waste and particularly waste developed after 1945 when consumerism came into full swing in the United States– is synthetic, unpredictable, and heterogenous. Additionally, it has unique spatial and temporal characteristics compared to its predecessors. First, longevity: I’ve written elsewhere about the staggering longevity of plastics; the thousand to … Continue reading »

Happy 100th Birthday to British archaeologist and paleoanthropologist Mary Leakey. Google celebrated her birthday with this doodle. An article about her legacy via National Geographic and via the Mirror. An article by the Christian Science Monitor interviewing her son, Phillip Leakey, on her parenting style and growing up at dig sites. Check out the Leakey [...]

Report: U.S. Muslim Terrorism Was Practically Nil in 2012 from Wired Top Stories by Spencer Ackerman There were only 9 incidents of terrorism in the U.S. by American Muslims in 2012, involving 14 people, down for the third straight year, according to new research. U.S. President Barack Obama Supports Immigration Reform from Global Voices Online by Anna Williams A week into his second term, President Barack Obama promised an overhaul of the immigration system. On 29 January from Las Vegas, Obama announced his support for a bipartisan agreement (Republican and Democrat) that will start the citizenship proceedings for the nearly 11 million undocumented immigrants currently in the US, a process that has posed a more than welcomed reception across party lines also includes dispositions that might be potentially costly for immigrants. How Obama Transformed an Old Military Concept So He Can Drone Americans from Wired Top Stories by Spencer Ackerman Once, a nation could only attack another if it had evidence an enemy was readying an “imminent” attack. To justify drone strikes on American citizens, President Obama redefined imminence out of existence White House Considering Response to Chinese Cyberattacks from Mashable! by Alex Fitzpatrick Obama looks inward, America’s allies worry As far as the president is concerned, the foundation of American strength in the world is the power of its domestic economy, writes Gideon Rachman Al Gore: U.S. Democracy Has Been Hacked, Internet Can Help Save It from Mashable! by Camille Bautista The Many Faces of Barack Obama by Neha Prakash Latinos Were Key Figures at Obama’s Inauguration from Global Voices Online by Elizabeth The inauguration of the American president Barack Obama last January 21st, was filled with a passionate speech that foreshadows what could be the next years of his administration. Besides advocating on issues like legal gay marriage and reverting the effects of climate change, he also emphasized the need for an immigration reform and an unconditional support to young immigrants, topics that are close to the hearts of the Latino community. Also, two Latino figures, Sonia Sotomayor and Richard Blanco, played an important role during the ceremony. Mainly Continuity: Foreign Policy during a Second Obama Administration from WhirledView by Patricia Lee Sharpe By Patricia Lee Sharpe The following piece is also appearing in the Bengali daily published by the Times of India in Kolkata, India U.S. President Barack Obama had practically nothing to say about foreign policy in his second inaugural address, but the figures he has chosen for his new national security team tell us almost all we need to know.  There will be no internal squabbling over foreign affairs, there will be an emphasis on diplomacy and there will be continuity. Obama says fiscal cliff deal made tax system fairer from Hurriyet Daily News President Barack Obama said Tuesday he had fulfilled a campaign promise to make the US tax system. Kerry will take risks from FP Passport by Blake Hounshell The more I think about it, the more I think John Kerry was a great choice for Obama’s second-term secretary of state. Granted, he wasn’t the president’s first choice. But Obama may have stumbled into a pretty good decision. The main reason is that Obama’s second term is going to involve a number of lines of sensitive, patient diplomacy that could be politically unpopular at home, or at least easy to attack. Let’s take them one by one. Every Senator and 90% of House Members Now Use Twitter by Alex Fitzpatrick Women in the US military – uncomfortable power from open Democracy News Analysis - by Heather McRobie Last week saw the lifting of the ban on women in combat in the US military.  How will this change the dynamics within and perceptions of the American military, and will it help reduce the current epidemic levels of sexual harassment and sexual assault within the armed forces? Related posts: Obama, the 2012 victor. Roundup Part 3 Americana roundup: “Gun Control Petition is Most Popular Ever Posted to White House Site EFF focuses on FBI’s next generation identification… and Americana roundup Americans who are “off the grid”, Incarceration in US and more…an Americana roundup The Brookings Institution report on the Obama Administration’s First Year

Applications now being accepted for 2013 AAM Annual Meeting Fellowships

Starting February 2013, Ethnography Matters is starting a thematic monthly enquiry led by each of our team members. Be sure to contact us if you’re interested in contributing to any of these editions! February 2013 edited by Heather Ford: The Openness Edition March 2013 edited by Tricia Wang: “Stories to insights to action!” The role of [...]

From the airplane, one can see the scars in the earth from the mining. Paved roads end in dirt trails. The city itself is low and nestled in the hills. Near the airport, you see large warehouse buildings with Japanese, European, Chinese, and Aussie names emblazoned on them. Construction churns up the fine dust everywhere. He crews are a Babel of Indian, Chinese, Aboriginal, and Aussie of European descent. The airport is full of those in pink, orange, or yellow reflective gear and blue work suits. The dirt on their faces and hands mark their esteemed position in the mining sector.

Intercultural learning

US State Department backs Ambassador Ricciardone’s comments from Hurriyet Daily News U.S. State Department Spokesperson Nuland argued that there was nothing new in Ricciardone’s comments on Turkey. Despite US opposition, oil trade with Iraq is legal, PM Erdoğan says from Hurriyet Daily News Turkey will continue its oil trade with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). Turkey-US at a Kurdish impasse from Hurriyet Daily News In the morning hours of Feb. 7, Turkish news stations filed urgent stories saying that Francis Ricciardone. Turkey Tells US Ambassador to ‘Mind His Business’ from Yahoo news Turkey bluntly told the US ambassador on Thursday to stop meddling in its domestic affairs after he fired off a strident attack on the country’s justice system. “Ambassadors should mind their own business. They should stay away from assessments that mean interference in Turkey’s judiciary and domestic affairs,” Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency . Ankara to US envoy: Stop meddling in our domestic affairs :. The Shanghai Seven? from Hurriyet Daily News Once again, Turkey looks “directionless.” As usual, “a bit of everything” ideology leaves the Crescent. Turkey says has spent $600 million on Syria refugees from Yahoo news ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey has spent more than $600 million sheltering refugees from the almost two-year-old conflict in neighboring Syria, Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Friday. Of that total, the central government had spent 610.5 million lira ($344 million) from its budget by February 5, Simsek said on his official Twitter account. Local authorities have provided the rest, he added IHT Rendezvous: Turkey Hints at a Breakup With Europe from Yahoo news Turkey’s prime minister denounced the European Union’s alleged stalling on his country’s long-standing membership bid. But is he bluffing when he says Turkey will look east? U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone (L, with white hair) speaks to media outside of the U.S. Embassy in Ankara February 1, 2013. A suicide bomber from a far-left group killed a Turkish   Turkish PM’s accusations unfair, German interior minister says from Hurriyet Daily News The German interior minister has denied accusations that Germany failed to provide Turkey sufficient help. Turkey ‘blocked’ Israeli NATO steps from Hurriyet Daily News Turkey blocked North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) initiatives taken toward the inclusion of Israel. Turkey ‘with or without’ EU from Hurriyet Daily News If anyone wants to explain the relationship between the European Union and Turkey with a song.. Frustration with the EU from Hurriyet Daily News The current Turkish political team has anti-European Union roots. It is an Islamist political clan different from.. Shanghai not alternative but Turkey losing EU patience from Hurriyet Daily News The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is not an alternative to the EU, the president and the premier reiterate. Idea of Shanghai membership inconsistent, says main opposition party leader from Hurriyet Daily News The Turkish government’s suggestion that it could consider joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Why didn’t al-Assad even throw a pebble at Israel: Turkish FM from Hurriyet Daily News Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu criticized the Israeli raid in Syria this week, severely questioning Damascus’ inaction on the aggression. Why keep complying?: compliance with EU conditionality under diminished credibility in Turkey by Acturca PhD thesis (LSE) October 2011 Department of International Relations of the London School of Economics Naz Masraff The widely accepted external incentives model of conditionality (EIM) argues that the rewards promised by the EU need to be credible for target states to comply with costly EU conditions. Accordingly, compliance should come to a halt or EU leaders should not fear a ‘Turkish invasion of Europe’ by Acturca New Statesman (UK) 1 February 2013 by Ibrahim Sirkeci * Just 13 per cent of Turkey’s adult population expressed a desire to migrate, lower than many other countries. With a year to go until the people of Romania and Bulgaria gain free movement across the EU, familiar concerns have already been raised about the possibility US message to PKK: Follow in IRA, PLO’s footsteps from Hurriyet Daily News It has been a month and three days since the İmralı Process was officially launched by the government Related posts: As an expert in uncovering state terrorism cases Turkey now states Syria “a terrorist state”, before it was Israel… Strains with Israel and US continue. Yavuz Baydar’s Open letter to Ambassador Ricciardone US Department of State Annual Report on Human Rights Practices for 2011- TURKEY SECTION Hellraiser! Turkey expels Israeli ambassador… US Department of State July-December, 2010 International Religious Freedom Report

The American Anthropological Association is pleased to offer two internship opportunities funded by member donations and one internship opportunity funded by the Association for Feminist Anthropology for the summer of 2013. Internships are six weeks in length from June 30 through August 17, 2013.  Internships are unpaid however; interns will be provided housing and a meal/travel stipend. Interns [...]

U.S. Embassy Museum Internship Program in Peru

The Department of Anthropology is offering one and perhaps two interdisciplinary 3-year PhD studentships to start in September 2013. The studentship will include full UK/Europe fees and a maintenance stipend set at RCUK rates. The successful applicant(s) will submit a proposal which fits within the research topic of 'Arctic Domestication' as specified on the project website arcticdomus.org. The student(s) are expected to do field research in at least one of the seven circumpolar regions covered by the project and to integrate one of the four component disciplines of the project (anthropology, history of science, archaeology, genetics). Arctic Domus is a 5-year international research project funded by a European Research Council Advanced Scholarship. The goals of the project are to elaborate a model of emplaced human-animal relations in the Arctic evoking theoretical concerns of the definition of the person, the attribution of agency, and renewed attention to build environments. A full project synopsis is on the project website within the 'events' section under the title Two PhD Studentships 2013--2016. arcticdomus.org www.abdn.ac.uk For further information please contact David Anderson david.anderson@abdn.ac.uk

Dr. Edward Liebow, who was selected as the new Executive Director of the AAA during the organization’s 111th Annual Meeting in November of last year, started his new position with the group this past week. Dr. Liebow, formerly a practicing anthropologist with Battelle, was selected for his knowledge of the challenges as well as opportunities [...]

Applications are invited to join an interdisciplinary research programme directed by Professors Kevin Laland (School of Biology) and Andrew Whiten (School of Psychology) at the University of St Andrews’ renowned Centre for Social Learning and Cognitive Evolution. “Exploring the Evolutionary Origins of Culture Complexity, Creativity and Trust” is funded through a major grant from the John Templeton Foundation. Successful candidates at PhD student level will join a team of over 20 researchers working on the project, studying aspects of social learning, innovation and cultural evolution in monkeys, apes and human participants, or through mathematical and statistical analysis. Funding is available for three years, commencing either September 2013 or September 2014. Closing date: Feb 28 2013. Stipend: £13,390 per annum. Fees and research expenses covered in full. Further Particulars for PhD applicants here.

Guest post by Megan Hogikyan Paul Farmer/ Wikimedia CommonsTo label Dr. Paul Farmer as a practitioner or theorist of any one field would be a disservice to the multi-faceted nature of his commentary and points of view. A self-described physician and medical anthropologist by training (Farmer 2001 [1999], 2005), Farmer’s career experiences highlight his other important roles as an academic, humanitarian activist, diplomat, and voice of the poor. Evidence of each can be found when tracing the development of Farmer’s theories through analysis of selected works published since the 1990s. Depending on the function and audience of the work, and its place in his timeline of experience, each book highlights different concepts, practices, and forms of theory. The categorization of Farmer’s writings into early, middle, and late periods helps to demonstrate the development and evolution of his core theories, how they build on each other, and how their progression is affected by each of his varied perspectives and audiences. Analysis of selected works by Farmer traces the development of his main theories and arguments as they build on each other over time. Over the last two decades, Farmer’s central theories have evolved from studies of social suffering; topractical analysis of political, social, and economic inequality and structural violence; to pragmatic solidarity and the provision of tools of agency and targeted solutions to suffering stemming from tuberculosis (TB), HIV/AIDS, and poverty. The use of ethnography, local and international history, and the practice of actively bearing witness to violations of health as a human right facilitate what has become a collective, comprehensive approach and body of theory associated with Farmer. Consideration of his central concepts, writing style, and practical experiences serves to demonstrate how his unique approach came to be associated with the household name he is today. 1992-1996: The Early Years: Paul Farmer, Academic and Medical Anthropologist Ethnographies and Analysis of Suffering The early selected works of Farmer establish the core concepts and frameworks he uses in his writing moving forward. In these works, Farmer is structured in his writing style. Structured in this sense describes his use of distinct chapters and explicitly stated positions of analysis to address the central topic of the book. He approaches health issues from defined and disparate positions, separating biomedical and medical anthropological commentary and analysis. Always inclusive of elements from both disciplines in his writings, the structured approach here to providing ethnography, history, and epidemiological analysis in distinct chapters, later develops into a more freeform, integrated writing style. Uses of Haiti by Paul Farmer One of his earliest published books, the “revised and shortened dissertation” (Farmer 2006a [1992]: xiii)AIDS and Accusation: Haiti and the Geography of Blame illustrates foundational concepts of Farmer’s process. Farmer establishes the medical anthropological base for his future works by stating his intentions for the book to be “an attempt to constitute an interpretive anthropology of affliction based on complementary ethnographic, historical, epidemiologic and political-economic analyses” (Farmer 2006a [1992]: 13). With a scholarly focus and the academic community as an audience, Farmer uses accepted medical anthropological theory, especially that of Arthur Kleinman, as the starting point for what will evolve into his distinctive contribution. Farmer’s methodology in the study of suffering, and accusation as a manifestation thereof, is notably influenced by the belief in the importance of ethnography and positioned accounts of suffering and affliction associated with Kleinman, Farmer’s teacher and colleague. The application of Kleinman’s style of positioned accounts of ethnography is a clear focal point of Farmer’s early works (Farmer 2006a [1992]). He uses ethnographic accounts of poor Haitians to better understand their suffering due to AIDS, what the consequential “stakes” (Farmer 2006a [1992]: 47) are for their physical, social, and economic well being. Entire chapters devoted to the stories of Manno, Anita and Dieudonné (Farmer 2006a [1992]: 61-109), all native Haitians suffering from AIDS, are illustrative of the depth and quality of Farmer’s anthropological research. Each story of suffering serves as a microcosm, a manifestation of Haiti’s history and relations with the West, and of recent Western perceptions of Haiti as relates to the spread of AIDS. Comprehensive accounts of Western media, actions, and policies toward Haiti paralleled with local perception, sorcery, and understanding of the disease, flesh out Farmer’s anthropological narrative of suffering (Farmer 2006a [1992]). Reflecting back on this 1992 work, Farmer’s preface to the 2006 edition identifies and acknowledges the later progression of his approach from roots in the core concepts of AIDS and Accusation (Farmer 2006a [1992]). One manifestation of this progression is seen when his dual role as a physician and anthropologist lends itself to a gradual transition from the distinctly Kleinman narratives of suffering, toward structural analysis and practical solutions to violations of health as a human right(Farmer 2006a [1992]: xiv). It is through the conflation of structural, macro-level analysis and individual stories of the poor and suffering, that Farmer’s training in medical anthropology informs his theories, aids in their development and evolution, and guides the functional purpose of his writings. He is able to apply critical anthropology to individual situations of suffering, and to recommend holistic actions to address the problems from all angles. Advancing forward to a dualistic analysis at the systemic and individual levels, Farmer takes on two investigations in The Uses of Haiti (2006b [1994]): “one examines the ‘large-scale’ forces that have determined, to no small extent, the nature of the current crisis” (Farmer 2006b [1994]: 43) of political upheaval and consequent health rights violations, examining economic and political forces historically over time. The other “seeks to discern these same large-scale forces at work in the experience of individual Haitians” (Farmer 2006b [1994]: 44) whom Farmer knows personally. Looking at the development of historical forces overtime, Farmer details major events in Haitian history and their ties to U.S. foreign policy through the 1990s when this book was written (Farmer 2006b [1994]). Analysis from the perspective of the poor, demonstrating influences of rich Westerners on the poor in Haiti, serves as context for the individual stories of suffering and political violence documented in later ethnographic accounts. Detailing the socio-political history of the Haitians suffering today, Farmer gives the broad anthropological context necessary to understand their individual perceptions of suffering. The analysis of ethnographic content in The Uses of Haiti (Farmer 2006b [1994]), specifically the stories of Yolande, Chouchou Louis, and Acéphie Joseph, demonstrates a progression from AIDS and Accusation (Farmer 2006a [1992]), as Farmer’s stated “analytic and narrative task is to expose the mechanisms by which abstract and large-scale forces…become manifest in the lives of individuals”(Farmer 2006b [1994]: 215). Farmer’s approach to studying individual suffering begins to take root in the cross-cutting examination of power structures, in this case the “political economy of brutality” (Farmer 2006b [1994]: 46) in Haiti and the contributing role of Western, especially American, foreign policy. Each story incorporates the following: an element of health, namely AIDS or injury sustained from physical abuse; local and national level political and social factors in Haiti; and international political and economic forces. Farmer always ties his analyses of these macro-level forces back to the abuse of the health of individuals. From the connection of these levels of analysis unfolds the constellation of causes of individual suffering illustrated through ethnography. Farmer conflates ethnography with analysis in this work, relating political, economic, and social structural realities to the course, severity, and nature of individual suffering. Working to raise awareness about the significant roles played by structural forces in the health of the poor, Farmer contributes a medical anthropological voice to Women, Poverty, and AIDS: Sex, Drugs, and Structural Violence (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]). This book is intended to fill the knowledge and communication gaps concerning the fact “that poverty and other forms of social inequality, including gender-based discrimination, are the leading co-factors in the grim advance of the worldm pandemic of AIDS” (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]: xxxviii). The themes of poverty, gender inequality, and choices denied to poor women provide the foundation for a discussion of structural violence concerning women and AIDS (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]). Farmer defines structural violence as “historically given processes and forces that conspire to constrain individual agency” (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]: 23), the central concept driving his analysis and recommendations. Farmer’s academic theory is complemented with literary analysis documenting the prevalent gaps in knowledge and practical considerations for pragmatic solidarity, what can be done to address situations of structural violence moving forward. The discussion is explicitly directed toward a broadly stated audience of scholars, healthcare professionals, social activists, and grant-seeking community-based organizations (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]: xli), covering both theoretical and practically applicable fields. Farmer’s contributions to Women, Poverty, and AIDS include the voices of the poor, speaking through ethnography. Although, in distinct contrast to AIDS and Accusation (Farmer 2006a [1992]) and The Uses of Haiti (Farmer 2006b [1994]), the stories of Darlene, Guylène, and Lata are centered around their common experiences with structural violence and HIV/AIDS, but in the disparate contexts of Harlem, rural Haiti, and rural India respectively (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]). Farmer uses these stories to illustrate the forces of structural violence, constraining the agency of poor women and integrating inequality globally, and to note that while individual experiences may be different, all around the world the macro forces perpetuating inequality are what need to be addressed (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]). Using the common denominator of HIV/AIDS in women as the health element of this theory, Farmer et. al demonstrate the connections and fill the knowledge gap between structural forces and individual suffering. For example, by demonstrating that Lata; being born a girl in India was culturally “pre-destined” to a life of hard work, no school, abuse by her father, and significant vulnerability; had no other viable choice but to go with the man who promised to take her somewhere far away and to help her make a living—and thus became a sex-trafficking victim and HIV positive (Farmer et. al 2011 [1996]: 15-20). Such individual illustrations of structural violence bring a tangible anthropological element to the literary analysis of scholarly gaps in the study of these important issues, and augment the epidemiological and biomedical contributions of the other authors of Women, Poverty, and AIDS. As he gains experience and continues to write, Farmer moves away from his initial academic focus, maintaining key concepts but gearing the message to an increasingly broader audience. The use of ethnography, history, and structural analyses are central themes built upon in later books, amplified by additional years of experience, ethnographic accounts, political and social events guiding the themes of later works toward awareness-raising and public education (Farmer 2001 [1999], 2005, 2011). But first, Farmer augments his basic framework for structural analyses with tools from both biomedicine and medical anthropology, rendering an integrated approach informed by complementary in-depth analysis of suffering and pragmatic treatment solutions at both the individual and systemic levels. 1999-2003: The Middle Years: Physician and Medical Anthropologist Inequality and Structural Violence: Health as a Human Right Moving into the middle years of Farmer’s theoretical development, his writings are less rigidly framed than his earliest works. Speaking to broader audiences, Farmer incorporates and juxtaposes history and ethnography with biomedical statistics to tell the stories of the poor. Key points of analysis are embedded in ethnographic demonstrations of the validity and saliency of Farmer’s approach to addressing inequality and structural violence experienced by the poor. Farmer advances the concepts of inequality and structural violence to a new level of analytical detail in his 1999 work, Infections and Inequalities: The Modern Plagues. He again highlights the specific plight of women as pertains to inequality (Farmer 2011 [1996], 2001 [1999]), the exaggerated agency of poor patients (Farmer 2011 [1996], 2001 [1999], 2005), and the different perceptions of disease from the individual to those of international aid sponsor countries (Farmer 2006a [1992], 2006b [1994], 2011 [1996], 2001 [1999]). Here Farmer also documents his struggle in reconciling medical anthropology and biomedicine (Farmer 2001 [1999]). Speaking to challenges of addressing sorcery as the perceived cause of TB in a village in rural Haiti, recognizing it as a method of rationalizing suffering, Farmer purports that “the anthropologist within me is perfectly satisfied to analyze such explanations, but to a physician it is nothing less than punishing to see preventable or treatable pathologies chalked up to village-level squabbles. The doctor in me insists that no one should die of tuberculosis today; it’s completely curable” (Farmer 2001 [1999]: 3). The dualistic theme of anthropologist-physician carries throughout the book as Farmer the anthropologist uses ethnographic evidence and analysis of local, national, and international structural forces to show the reader how these embedded inequalities result in diminished patient agency and the unwillingness of the international health aid system to provide the basic inputs needed to treat TB, a curable disease (Farmer 2001 [1999]). Farmer’s comprehensive style incorporates perspectives from the international business, profit-seeking mindset of pharmaceutical companies (Farmer 2001[1999]: 243), to the tired unwillingness of patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDRTB) to seek treatment after years of poor interactions with the disparate health providers in Haiti (Farmer 2001 [1999]). Simultaneously, Farmer the clinician assesses and demonstrates with personal success stories, that poor patients with MDRTB are not untreatable, as the many hospitals and international medical aid groups would have them termed; rather the system of structural violence and social, political, and economic inequality has defined them in this way (Farmer 2001 [1999]: 34). The constellation of problems resultant of structural violence are illustrated by Farmer in detailed anthropological assessment of inequality, suffering, and the observed effects of poverty and larger structural forces on the incidence and experience of poor Haitians suffering from TB, MDRTB, and HIV/AIDS. To address the issues caused by structural violence, specifically TB in this case, Farmer advocates for pragmatic solidarity, the “increased funding for tuberculosis control and treatment…making therapy available in a systematic and committed way” (Farmer 2001 [1999]: 208). Pragmatic solidarity rises from his biomedical conviction that prevention and treatment need to happen, and they need to be directed toward the most vulnerable populations, namely the poor (Farmer 2001 [1999]: 208). Pragmatic solidarity focuses on biomedical solutions to prevention and treatment of disease but it stems from Farmer’s anthropological work as documented in the ethnographies of the poor patients he works with directly. Farmer demonstrates that active identification of the systemic, structural obstacles to getting necessary drugs to the sick and poor, but also understanding the unique suffering of the individual, both influence a person’s ability or willingness to seek and follow treatment or preventive measures. Pathologies of Power: Health, Human Rights, and the New War on the Poor by Paul Farmer Addressing individual and systemic level forces, as detailed in Pathologies of Power: Health, Human Rights, and the New War on the Poor (Farmer 2005) Farmer explores the “struggle for social and economic rights” (Farmer 2005: xxiv) in the context of health as a human right. In the chronology of the selected works examined here, Pathologies of Power is a pivotal work in which Farmer combines his well-developed theories and experiences as a medical anthropologist and physician to create a platform for a distinctly human rights activist role. In his own words, “this book is a physician-anthropologist’s effort to reveal the ways in which the most basic right—the right to survive—is trampled in an age of great affluence, and it agues that the matter should be considered the most pressing one of our times” (Farmer 2005: 6). Always an advocate for the poor, Farmer identifies, demonstrates, and advocates for solutions to the gross violations of the rights of the world’s poor, arguing, “human rights abuses are best understood (that is, most accurately and comprehensively grasped) from the point of view of the poor” (Farmer 2005: 17). Framing such violations as anything but accidental, Farmer argues them to be “symptoms of deeper pathologies of power” and “linked intimately to the social conditions that so often determine who will suffer abuse and who will be shielded from harm” (Farmer 2005: 7). This framework conflates the concepts of structural violence, inequality, bearing witness to the suffering of the poor, and of pragmatic solidarity as part of the solution. In the role of human rights advocate and activist, Farmer adds the voices of the poor and afflicted to human rights literature; accounting for, and addressing solutions to, the multitude of contributing factors to violations of the health and human rights of the poor, creating “a searching analysis of the mechanisms and conditions that generate these violations” (Farmer 2005: 11). In Pathologies of Power (2005), Farmer geographically and analytically broadens the scope and application of his core concepts. Geographically, the concept of bearing witness includes rights violations of the poor around the world. Analytically, his base of systemic analysis is expanded with a combination of ethnography and theoretical analysis of socio-economic and political forces. Farmer takes specific cases of physical injury, TB, and HIV/AIDS in Haiti, Guantánamo, Chiapas, and Siberia to demonstrate and analyze the “pathogenic role of inequity” (Farmer 2005: 20) in perpetuating human rights violations as related to health. His dualistic analysis operates as a channel for voices of the poor and as educated advocacy from an understanding of the international forces influencing these situations. In this way, bearing witness becomes more than a reporting of stories of the poor and afflicted. Demonstrative of this progression in his approach, the stories of Acéphie Joseph and Chouchou Louis’s, readdressed here from an initial recording in AIDS and Accusation (Farmer 2006a), show the dynamic roles of social, political, and economic inequalities in defining the gaps and unaddressed issues of a greater health and human rights agenda. By drawing on the varied experiences of the rural poor in Haiti, Haitian refugees in Guantánamo, poor farm workers or campesinos in Chiapas, and inmates in Siberian prisons, Farmer translates individual experiences of violations of the right to health from the perspective of the poor to a framework for problem solving. He creates a global agenda for addressing inequalities underlying major health issues with the best interests of the poor at the center. Farmer argues for change in how the problems of the poor are identified and a fundamental readjustment of the health and human rights agenda toward the notion of “preferential treatment for the poor” (Farmer 2005). Adding depth to his framework for the human rights agenda this work also serves “as a contribution to a critical anthropology of structural violence” (Farmer 2005:28). Farmer utilizes liberation theology, the idea that “genuine change will be most often rooted in small communities of poor people” (Farmer 2005: 140), to further a critical, theoretical examination of structural violence and how best to ensure the provision of pragmatic solidarity as part of a human rights health agenda. Adding agency and culture to his analysis of medicine, health, and the crosscutting effects of poverty, Farmer addresses perceived “noncompliance” (Farmer 2005: 147) of poor patients and the effects of prison culture on TB treatment (Farmer 2005: 179), thus bringing social, anthropological elements to a developing body of critical theory. Discussion of the commodification of medicine (Farmer 2005: 152) and the negative consequences for the health, and access to treatment of the poor, demonstrate a critical anthropological analysis of economic determinants of structural violence. As a contribution to the critical anthropology of structural violence, Farmer demonstrates the necessity of being critical from all angles, and of considering the many manifestations of structural violence, all from the perspective of the poor and afflicted. As a roadmap for the health and human rights agenda moving forward (Farmer 2005: 238-246), Farmer bundles ethnographic lessons with critical anthropology to lay out a holistic approach to guide future actions of physicians, policy makers, individuals, governments, scholars, and the private sector in redefining and acting on health as a human right of poor. 2011-Present: The Later Years: Paul Farmer, Diplomat and Activist Advocate Bearing Witness and the Provision of Pragmatic Solidarity The development of Paul Farmer’s theories, conceptual and practical approaches to addressing the health of the poor, has progressed over time in a variety of ways. First, the dominant role of the author and his stated or unstated choice of authorial position transitioned from being that of a medical anthropology scholar and academician, to the inclusion of a more biomedical, physician role, to that of advocate and activist. All of these roles and others, including historian and humanitarian, are significant to the comprehensive and unique nature of the body of practical and conceptual theory attributed to Paul Farmer today. Secondly, contributing in a similar fashion is the multitude of analytic forms Farmer incorporates in his writings. These include his use of ethnography, history, structural analysis, anthropological and biomedical frameworks. Each serves as a vehicle of observation, analysis, interpretation and practical action. Finally, Farmer’s ability to draw on personal experiences around the world fleshes out his arguments with individual stories of the poor, and allows his approach to develop to be a global commentary on the health of the world’s poor. The diverse and holistic nature of Farmer’s writing in these works allows for the development of an almost ‘Pocket Paul Farmer’ body of theory and applicable pragmatism to improving the health and healthcare access of the world’s poor. By writing for such diverse audiences, but always including elements central to his approach, the ‘Pocket Paul Farmer’ working theory and comprehensive approach is incorporated into individual books (Farmer 2001 [1999], 2005), giving the average, wayward reader insight into the breadth and depth of his unique approach to health problems plaguing the poor. Haiti After the Earthquake by Paul Farmer In his most recent book, Haiti After the Earthquake (Farmer 2011), Farmer continues his awareness-raising advocate role, bearing witness to, and analyzing structural influences and causes of the suffering of the poor. But unlike with many of his other works the catalyst for writing this book was a devastating internationally recognized natural disaster. True to form, Farmer highlights his perceived responsibility to give voice to the victims of the earthquake and to provide analysis of the underlying causes of such immense suffering surrounding the “acute-on-chronic” (Farmer 2011: 3) event of the January 4, 2011 earthquake in Haiti. A detailed account of the earthquake and its aftermath serves as witnessed testimony to the acute nature of the health crisis experienced by Haiti’s poor. The “history of the chronic ailment” (Farmer 2011: 23) affecting the health of Haiti’s impoverished populations creates a second, historical dimension of analysis to the “acute-on-chronic” problem central to this book. Finally, an examination of “the tension between praxis and policy: the struggle between direct service, which is what doctors are supposed to provide, and policy, which is what politicians and legislators are supposed to formulate with, in theory, the guidance of the citizenry they represent” (Farmer 2011: 23) outlines the somewhat new and nuanced role of the author as a physician and diplomat. This “tension” is embodied in Farmer as he writes of his conscious struggle between the desire to give direct medical aid to help the injured and suffering, and the recognition that his expertise can be effectively applied to identifying and securing life saving aid for those people. What could simply be an observational eye-witness account of how the aftermath of the earthquake unfolded, this work moves from bearing witness to the resultant health and human rights crises; to in-depth analysis of structural factors shaping the emergency and long-term responses at all levels; to identified mistakes that can be corrected in the future. Parallel to these themes, the role of the author is somewhat transformed when he is writing from the role of diplomat for the first time, more specifically as the UN Deputy Special Envoy for Haiti (Farmer 2011). The core of Farmer’s account, approach, and analysis does not deviate from all he has built up to this point. A history of the international, national, and local forces that influenced the condition of Haiti’s poor after the earthquake (Farmer 2011: 121-148), along with ethnographic accounts of victims, physicians, humanitarian workers, and relevant, detailed analysis of health and structural issues impeding the recovery process (Farmer 2011) are all included in this comprehensive book. From the position of diplomat, however, Farmer is at times forced to work through the problems plaguing Haiti within the confines of a diplomatic role. “…I felt out of place on the UN dais sitting behind President Clinton. At least…the others were real diplomats. But what was I doing sitting in a meeting when medical needs were great?” (Farmer 2011: 61). Forever juggling his responsibilities as a physician with his anthropological training, and now a diplomatic role, Farmer openly struggles with this dilemma especially when not present in Haiti immediately following the earthquake. Co-founder of his own NGO, Partners in Health, Farmer understands the necessity of government funding and international aid for relief and development work, and as such can come to terms with parts of his new role (Farmer 2011: 149-187). The acuteness of his interactions with the international aid, relief and development communities from the earthquake to the cholera outbreak and beyond, open his discussion to structural analysis of these communities as players in the health and human rights of Haiti’s poor. With this new, added dimension, Farmer uses his analysis to “advance a process of discernment” to find “hopeful and relevant examples of building back better” (Farmer 2011: 217). By taking into account detailed analysis of such macro-level structural forces, Farmer is able to extrapolate what he encounters as a physician working in the relief tents to what he can do as a diplomat speaking at UN meetings (Farmer 2011: 59) to most efficiently effect positive results for the poor and suffering. As seen in some of his other works (Farmer 2001 [1999], 2005) Haiti After the Earthquake (2011) incorporates all the essential elements of the ‘Pocket Paul Farmer’ approach, and once again takes it a step further. After more than 20 years of writing and publishing at this point, Farmer has moved away from writing for highly academic, scholarly audiences, including erudite analyses in the style of scholars of the field (Farmer 2006a [1992]). Rather, having developed his own unique combination of theories, approaches, and style, his writings are geared more toward the general public and civil society. As a microcosm of the purpose behind his writings, Farmer has moved into the realm of pragmatic solidarity; providing the reader with the tools of understanding and analysis to be fully educated on all dimensions of the problems, and thus move toward more effective and efficient solutions for consideration and action. Concluding Thoughts With more than 20 years of experience working and writing as an advocate for the health of the poor, Paul Farmer has truly evolved; playing many different roles, building on his collective experiences, and developing an integrated and holistic approach to addressing health issues of the poor. Analysis of selected major works by Farmer demonstrates his constantly shifting roles; that of physician, medical anthropologist, activist and advocate, historian, diplomat, and above all voice of the poor; and the myriad of perspectives and levels of analysis these bring to his interpretive and often prescriptive approach. Parallel to these dynamic roles, various elements of Farmer’s body of theory and practical applications are more prevalent at different points. As discussed here, these major themes are structural violence, bearing witness, the provision of pragmatic solidarity, inequality, health as a human right, the use of voices and ethnography, emphasis on history, individual human agency, and the study of suffering. From his earliest major works (Farmer 2006a [1992]) to his most recent (Farmer 2011), these core concepts become part of the standard ‘Pocket Paul Farmer’ package. Depending on the circumstances of his writing, and the identified audience of the work, Farmer brings each of these themes to bear on his account and analysis, gearing interpretation toward the ultimate end goal of finding the right solutions to relieve the suffering of today’s poor. Perhaps too comprehensive to define in a single sentence, the culmination of Farmer’s theoretical, practical and very personal evolution thus far in advocating and working toward preferential treatment for the poor is the ‘Pocket Paul Farmer’ platform. It is a body of practically applicable theory, informed by individual and structural analyses, written for a broad audience with the purpose of raising social awareness and driving healthcare and health policy toward preferential treatment for the poor. Over the course of the evolution examined here, Farmer translates his years of holistic analytical findings into practical concepts and actions to be taken by society at all levels. He makes the potential for real change in the approach to healthcare of the poor defined and accessible to everyone, from students to doctors to policymakers. If he continues on this trajectory of theory and approach, Farmer will advance his writings in a style that speaks to the general public as well as students, academics, and professionals alike. Always using his holistic style of analysis, incorporating ethnography and relevant history of the issue, an increasingly activist and diplomatic theme will continue to develop. Perpetual reassessment of the issues plaguing the poor will remain, but the established academic and scholarly core of his analytical style has become constant and a base for advocacy and activism. Now a household name, Paul Farmer has much more to show the public, and as he continues to apply and share his expertise, perhaps the scholars, practitioners, activists and aid workers of today will take note and succeed in effecting deep rooted and lasting change in the lives of the world’s poor. Acknowledgements Megan A. Hogikyan The content posted here is a revised version of a paper the author originally wrote for a medical anthropology seminar taught by Professor Barbara Miller in the spring of 2012 at the George Washington University. Megan Hogikyan attained her B.A. from the Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a major in international affairs, concentrating in international development, and a minor in French. Megan currently works for an international nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C. In her spare time, she enjoys playing tennis and exploring the city.

After long hours in transit (in total probably around 20 hours), I arrived in India, specifically Mumbai. I have now spent about 36 hours in India. So reading this, you will learn nothing about India, because I do not know anything about India. At the end of two weeks, you will learn nothing about India, because I will not now anything about India. But what you will get are some of my impressions of India, and snippets of the conversations about India that I will have with Indians. Hopefully, you will get some interesting images if I can remember that I need to be taking photographs of things. So first impressions... Flying into Mumbai at night I love flying to a city at night. As the plane descended, we flew into what I thought was a layer of clouds, but found out later was haze. The airport itself was like any other airport in the world, spacious, clean, geared towards shopping. Reflecting Mumbai's position as a global city, there were people from all over the world getting on and off planes. I originally chose the hotel because of its distance from the airport (2 km) and that it was supposed to have complementary shuttle bus. Arriving at 10:30pm, there was no bus. But Mumbai has a unique for me taxi system. There are these pre-paid taxi stands at the airport. There you go and order a taxi. They give you a slip with the taxi number written on it and you go find your taxi. The second part of this system can fall down quite spectacularly if it weren't for the culture of service of enterprising taxi touts. A kind gentleman offered to show me where my taxi was for a tip. Of course, the tip was just as much as the taxi itself, but it's late, you're tired, and just want to get to the hotel. After getting escorted to the taxi, we drive the 2km to the hotel. Two kilometers is much further than I thought when the taxi driver does not know where the hotel is located. I am glad for my anal retentiveness regarding having a two-page print out of all my flight, hotel, and talks information including addresses. For a moment, I wish I had chosen to stay at the Hyatt and the Hilton, whose familiar names reflect brightly in the night. But we pass them by and continue to weave through the traffic of cars, trucks, the mini-cabs whose names I do not know yet, and motorbikes, lots and lots of motorbikes. Mumbai from the route from the airport seems under contruction itself. Large swaths of land are cordened off with metal, tarp, and bamboo fences and inhabited by all manners of construction machines. The taxi gets to the general area of the hotel and stops to ask his other taxi mates where it is. After gaining more directions, we continue to weave through narrow streets with mid-rise buildings and small neighborhood kiosks. We make the final twists and turns asking directions one more time before arriving at the hotel, Suncity Residency Hotel. The security guard looks at me, obviously a foreigner, and waves the taxi through the gate. The SunCity Hotel The SunCity is a tourist class hotel, which is exactly what I wanted as I headed back to the airport in the morning. There is not much to say except that I loved the fact that they had a foot massager in the room. After getting on the internet, fixing a cup of Tetley tea (I am disappointed by the tea selections in the two hotels I have stayed in), and washing off the transit germs from my three flight, it was great to sit in my PJs and have the massager reduce the minimal swelling in my legs. I woke up in the morning to the roar of motorbike engines and the smell of fragrant burning wood. It is the latter this probably reponsible for the haze in the photo below. Mumbai during the day (finally photos) I love this quick picture of Mumbai at about 8:00am in the morning. We begin by comparing what we see to what we know before. Mumbai reminds me of both China and Ethiopia. The resemblance to China is based on the density of the people, the amount of contruction everywhere, and the crazy non-rules of the road driving patterns. The difference is that instead of bicycles you find more motorbikes in Mumbai. It also resembles Ethiopia in terms of the look and feel of the people walking, riding, chatting, brushing their teeth, selling stuff on the road, drinking tea on the streets. Someone raised a concern about being overwhelmed by India, but from the luxury of my taxi and hotel windows, I feel it is more familiar than strange. Lots of construction and people on the road in the morning I wanted to capture the shrine for Ganesh on the taxi driver's dashboard. You find many images of the Gods painted on buildings and long ribbons of yellow and orange marigolds hanging from shops. When I left the hotel in the morning, one of the attendants was separating marigold blossoms for the shrine in the hotel. It reminded me of the shrine to Buddha tucked in the corner of the Ramada Inn Hotel in Hong Kong. Back at Mumbai Airport This time I came to the domestic terminal. I am really impressed with the service culture at the airlines and the hotels. Getting my ticket was simple and everyone was really helpful. There are separate security lines for men and women, which makes sense given that every woman is screened with the wand. The underwire in my expensive brassiers set them off every time. What was interesting is that there was only one line for the women and six lines for the men. I tried to do a quick count to see if that 6:1 ratio was warranted by the traffic of passengers. I don't think that is the case. I arrived extra early at the airport, which is my habit because you never know if you can get an earlier flight. Or there is the time in Malaysia, where my original flight was delayed, which meant I would have missed my connecting flight back to Melbourne. Because I had arrived early, I was able to catch an earlier flight which got me to KL on time. But it gave me the opportunity to observe people. From my perch at the coffee shop, I was able feel the flow of my fellow passengers: parents trying to entertain their young children, business men setting pre-meeting game plans in English, teenagers glued to their Samsung smart phones (very few iPhones), grandmothers in bright saris and grandfathers in suits holding hands while watching for their call, Northern European tourists flipping through their guide books, Chinese businessmen reading English-language newspapers, and people getting in semi-orderly lines as their flights are called. I appreciated the free Vodaphone internet connections, because it allowed me to finally check my email. The University non-international roaming policy is really terrible. I could not get the complementary wi-fi to work with my computer in the hotel. Thus I finally resorted to letting my partner know I made it safely via text message. The plane to Pune was running 15 minutes late but the flight attendants were very gracious about it, so you did not feel overanxious. Luckily, I always travel with a book for these occasions. Current read is Lionel Shriver's The New Republic. She work We Need to Talk about Kevin. I like her sense of humour. The shuttle bus takes us to the plane where we walk up the "glamour stairs" inside the cabin. I always consider them glamour stairs because you always saw Hollywood stars waving from the stairs. Walking through the long expandable tubes is not glamourous at all, you feel like you are entering and exciting the colon of the airport. The flight took only 40-50 minutes.   You will have to follow my adventures in Pune in the next installment, where I discuss INDI Design and my friend Sudhir, my talk on Cultures-Based Innovation, and my tour of Pune today, including museums and Bollywood movies. More tonight.  

Old Sui makes starkly whimsical woodblock prints the old fashioned modernist way — by hand, alone, and in a studio that is open to friends who drop by for tea and chats. He has collected over 1,000 teapots that when

The emergent Woodie Guthrie Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma (one of my favorite places) is seeking to fill two key positions: (1) Executive Director/Chief Curator and (2) Educator and Public Programs Manager. These are great opportunities in an exciting new venture to be built around the Woody Guthrie Archives . Find out about both the Director [...]

Margalit Fox, "John E. Karlin, Who Led the Way to All-Digit Dialing, Dies at 94", NYT 2/8/2013: A generation ago, when the poetry of PEnnsylvania and BUtterfield was about to give way to telephone numbers in unpoetic strings, a critical question arose: Would people be able to remember all seven digits long enough to dial them? And when, not long afterward, the dial gave way to push buttons, new questions arose: round buttons, or square? How big should they be? Most crucially, how should they be arrayed? In a circle? A rectangle? An arc? For decades after World War II, these questions were studied by a group of social scientists and engineers in New Jersey led by one man, a Bell Labs industrial psychologist named John E. Karlin. […] It is not so much that Mr. Karlin trained midcentury Americans how to use the telephone. It is, rather, that by studying the psychological capabilities and limitations of ordinary people, he trained the telephone, then a rapidly proliferating but still fairly novel technology, to assume optimal form for use by midcentury Americans. […] John Elias Karlin was born in Johannesburg on Feb. 28, 1918, and reared nearby in Germiston, where his parents owned a grocery store and tearoom. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, psychology and music, and a master’s degree in psychology, both from the University of Cape Town. Throughout his studies he was a violinist in the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra and the Cape Town String Quartet. Moving to the United States, Mr. Karlin earned a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1942. Afterward, he became a research associate at Harvard; he also studied electrical engineering there and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At Harvard, Mr. Karlin did research for the United States military on problems in psychoacoustics that were vital to the war effort — studying the ways, for instance, in which a bomber’s engine noise might distract its crew from their duties. I didn't know that Karlin was an alumnus of the Harvard Psycho-Acoustics Laboratory. As James H. Capshew explains (Psychologists on the March: Science, Practice, and Professional Identity in America, 1999): The largest university-based program of wartime psychological research took place at the Harvard Psycho-Acoustic Laboratory (PAL). Employing nearly fifty people, including some twenty Ph.D. psychologists, the laboratory dealt with the problems of voice communication in the mechanized cacophony of modern warfare. It was headed by S.S. "Smitty" Stevens (1906-1973), a specialist in auditory psychophysics trained at Harvard under Edwin Boring in the 1930s and retained as a member of the faculty. He proved to be a gifted research administrator as  PAL gained major funding from the physics unit (Division 17) of the National Defense Research Committee. The Psycho-Acoustic Laboratory was set up in tandem with the Harvard Electro-Acoustic Laboratory, headed by physicist Leo L. Beranek. The laboratories made a coordinated attack on the psychological and physical problems of sound control. Both were begun in December 1940 under the auspices of the National Research Council's Sound Control Committee, chaired by MIT physicist P.M. Morse. [Stevens] was granted tenure and promoted in 1944, after being told a few years earlier by President Conant that he could expect to remain an assistant professor permanently. S.S. Stevens was the originator of Stevens' Power Law, and also, apparently, the inventor of the doughnut-style headphone socket. He was 34 years old in 1940, and he was skillful, lucky or both in choosing other young people for his lab. Or maybe the lab's environment turned more ordinary people into extraordinary ones. I'll mention just two of the many other PAL alumni who went on to distinguished careers: George Miller and J.C.R. Licklider. You can get some sense of their stature and contributions from the results of Google Scholar searches. Miller's listing leads with "The Magical Number Seven" and "WordNet", and continues (in citation-count order) through Plans and the Structure of Behavior, "An analysis of perceptual confusions", Language and Communication, "Finitary models of language users", "Psychology as a means of promoting human welfare", "Some psychological studies of grammar", "Introduction to the Formal Analysis of Natural Languages", and so forth. Licklider's intellectual journey took him even further beyond psychoacoustics, though he made significant contributions there, e.g. "Effects of Differentiation, Integration, and Infinite Peak Clipping upon the Intelligibility of Speech" (1948), "The Influence of Interaural Phase Relations upon the Masking of Speech by White Noise" (1948), "The intelligibility of interrupted speech" (1950, co-authored with Miller), "A duplex theory of pitch perception" (1951), "Basic correlates of the auditory stimulus" (1951), and so forth. His most important ideas were in the realm of "Man-computer symbiosis" (1960) and "The computer as a communications device" (1968). And at (D)ARPA from 1962 to 1968, he funded (and largely inspired) key developments in computer operating systems, in artificial intelligence, and computer networking — especially Arpanet, which metastasized beyond the military research establishment and turned into the Internet. No blog post discussing the Harvard Psycho-Acoustic Laboratory would be complete without a reference to the Harvard Sentences, a set of 1360 phonetically-balanced sentences originally developed for "articulation testing" (J.P. Egan, "Articulation testing methods — II", OSRD Report No. 3802, 1944). Here "articulation" means "intelligibility", a usage established by Harvey Fletcher at Bell Labs in the development of his "articulation index" in the 1920s and 1930s (Harvey Fletcher and Rogers Galt, "The perception of speech and its relation to telephony", JASA 1950). There is also some relationship between the "Harvard Sentences" and a set of sentences used previously at Bell Labs; but I'm not sure whether it's analogy, inclusion, or equivalence.