Tag archives for culture
Posted by You never know what you’ll encounter in your travels. During my time reporting on Cheetah Conservation Botswana’s work, I headed to the town of Ghanzi to get supplies and run a few errands with CCB’s camp manager. Right when we arrived, the Botswana National Youth Council was staging a huge outreach festival in the town…
While traveling with Cheetah Conservation Botswana, I had the rare experience to meet the Nai Nai San Bushmen of the Central Kalahari. The name Nai Nai translates directly as “people of the bush” thus they consider themselves to be the true bushmen. This small family group is one of many who travel through the area…
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It rises in Ethiopia’s Shewa Highlands, and flows for 760 kms through terraced hillsides, volcanic outcrops and fertile grasslands as far as the world’s greatest desert lake, Lake Turkana, in Kenya. The lower valley of the Omo River is believed by some historians to have been a cultural crossroads for thousands of years, where a…
Google Doodle Honors Mathematician Leonhard Euler
Posted by Jane J. Lee on April 15, 2013 
Today’s Google Doodle honors Leonhard Euler—an 18th-century numbers whiz who’s credited with being the most prolific mathematician in history.
His name means “Hawk” in his language. Yet even with the acuity of vision the moniker suggests, Karapiru could not have foreseen thetragedy that befell his people, the Awá tribe of northeastern Brazil. He could never have imagined the day that he would flee for his life far into the rainforest, a shotgun pellet burning…
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Earlier this week I posted a story about the passing of Margaret Thatcher on April 8, sharing some lesser known facts about the life of the former British prime minister (including that she had been a food scientist who worked on soft serve ice cream before she entered politics). That story struck a nerve with our readers.…
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In South Sudan, epic wrestling matches between rival tribes are a path to post-war reconciliation.
“Mermaid” House, Crater Among Jeju Gems
Posted by Christine Dell'Amore of National Geographic News in News From Nature+ on September 10, 2012 
Come along as I hike the remnants of a recent volcanic explosion, learn about Jeju’s women divers at a folk museum, and look for giant eels at a waterfall.
Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Anthropology and Climate Change
Posted by IZILWANE on April 5, 2012 
What are the implications for indigenous or place-based cultures facing the imminent and gradually destructive processes of climate change? There is a significant amount of literature that suggests the most vulnerable, natural resource-dependent groups of the world will disproportionately experience the harmful effects of climate change. Less developed countries and their indigenous populations are largely…
Posted by If you follow politics, you’ve probably noticed that a certain character with classic good looks and black-and-white views (a bit square, you might say) has drawn a lot of attention this week. No, not that guy…we’re talking about the Etch-A-Sketch! The classic toy is famous for its transience—just shake it to start afresh—but did you…
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It may seem strange to suggest that the motivation behind our global economies, conflicts, cultures, and politics can be summed up within the mindset of the herdsman on the grassy steppe. But then again, the largest contiguous empire in human history was created by one of those nomads, and his name was Chinggis (Genghis) Khan.
Selfishness? There’s an App for That
Posted by Michael Jourdan on February 16, 2012 
Do cellphones make people selfish? If you’ve ever had to shush a garrulous iPhone user in the seat next to you at the movie theater, the answer may seem obvious. And now, a new study confirms our phone fears.
Simple Names Are Better When It Comes To Getting Ahead
Posted by Alyson Foster on February 13, 2012 
What your parents choose to call you may influence your life long after grade school is over. A new study has found that people with simple names are more likely to be promoted at work than those with names that are more difficult to say
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Originally published on Turnstylenews.com, a digital information service surfacing emerging stories in news, entertainment, art and culture. Powered by award-winning journalists, Turnstyle is a project of Youth Radio. By: Nelson Harvey I am a 25-year-old college graduate with a degree from a fairly prestigious eastern university, and I pull weeds for a living. At first…
A Royal Wedding Primer
Posted by Alyson Foster on April 28, 2011 Do you know who the Baron of Renfrew is? If you are planning to watch the royal wedding of William and Kate Middleton this Friday it’s time to brush up on London and all things royal. Take a trip back in time through the pages of National Geographic, with articles and photos showing the royal traditions and pageantry that will be echoed this week.
A group of mandrills at England’s Colcester Zoo have been observed covering their eyes, possibly an example of a cultural development.
Posted by MICROGRAVITY Function: noun Etymology: micr- + gravity : a condition in space in which only minuscule gravitational forces are experienced : virtual absence of gravity ; broadly : WEIGHTLESSNESS —via Merriam-Webster Just as black holes do not suck, there is technically no such thing as zero gravity in low-Earth orbit. Earth’s gravitational influence, after all,…
One More Endangered Language Falls Silent
Posted by Ford Cochran on February 19, 2010 News of the death of Boa Sr in India’s Andaman Islands—and with her the Bo language, of which Boa was the last known speaker—has focused media attention on humanity’s fast-vanishing endangered languages. The loss comes on the eve of the tenth anniversary of UNESCO’s International Mother Language Day this Sunday. “We imagine eureka moments taking…
A Life Among the Shamans: Wade Davis
Posted by Amy Bucci of NG Staff on November 6, 2009 The Royal Canadian Geographical Society awarded National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Wade Davis its top honor, the Gold Medal, at its 80th anniversary dinner in Ottawa last night. The anthropologist, ethnobotanist, writer, photographer, and lecturer is an eloquent and passionate voice for the world’s indigenous peoples and cultures. He has been described as the “real-life Indiana Jones.”…
Excitement is building for next year’s official designation of 2009 as the International Year of Astronomy, brought to you by the United Nations. [You may remember the United Nations from such years as 2003: Year of Freshwater; 2005: Year of Physics; and, apparently, 2008: Year of the Potato.] IYA was designated by the UN’s Educational,…
