Christian Science Monitor

To many Germans, Santa's spread is an unwelcome reminder of the encroachment of American commercialism into Europe. "People are starting to become critical of commercialism in every respect," says Hermann Bausinger, a cultural anthropologist at the University of Tübingen.

"Christmas has switched from being only a celebration within the family and the church to being a public event starting late in November and going on through January," says Mr. Bausinger.

The problem, as German television celebrity Mr. Hahne sees it, is that American-style Santas are crowding out Saint Nicholas, the traditional Christmas icon of this hilly Germany village named after the 4th-century bishop. "Santa is a symbol of consumption," Hahne says. "Nicholas was a real bishop [who] taught us what's still very true today: giving does not make us poorer. It makes us richer." >> continue

Buisiness Wire / Intel

A new, tech-savvy woman has emerged and Intel calls her "Tif," short for Technology Involved Female. Tif is closing the technology gender gap, with women at the youngest end of the spectrum actually surpassing men in their intent to purchase a laptop. The survey reveals that women are using computing technology in their daily lives now more than ever.

"Women are a driving force in technology adoption, and it is important for us to understand how women use technology so we can meet their needs, too," said Dr. Genevieve Bell, a cultural anthropologist with Intel, who observes how people around the world use technology in daily life. >> continue

SEE ALSO
Genevieve Bell - presentation and publications
Culture Matters: An Interview with Genevieve Bell (GoToMedia)

Anthropologists at Intel (TheStarOnline Malaysia)

Ross Teague, Local Tech Wire

Anthropologists take their findings and produce, among other things, a description of the culture of that group or environment. That same cultural interpretation can be a huge help in understanding a business or client group. Understanding how information really flows in an organization, who the gatekeepers of knowledge are, and why people make the choices they do can help make business and product decisions easier. >> continue

Christian Science Monitor

A recent study revealed that one-quarter of the children (ages 8 to 15) in China's wealthiest city have considered taking their own lives. Perhaps more surprising is that the results were made public. Long a taboo topic in China, suicide is becoming part of public discussion.

"In the area of the examination system, there is tremendous pressure on kids today, especially urban kids," says Arthur Kleinman, chairman of Harvard University's anthropology department, who has studied social trends in China for three decades. >> continue

SEE ALSO:

Call for action over Third World depression (BBC, 1.9.99)

Arthur Kleinman: Ethics and Experience - an Anthropological Approach to Health Equity (Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Working Paper Series Number 99.04)

About Arthur Kleinman's research (Harvard University)

Ingvild Solvang, social anthropologist, Jesuit Refugee Service Indonesia (JRS)

JRS Indonesia has experienced that traditional ways to solve issues of displacement can be very fruitful, not only in West Timor but also in other parts of Indonesia. Finding the appropriate traditional approach becomes a process in itself, which ties the refugees and local communities together. It creates an arena where people sit down to discuss values that are essential in their culture.

In the local community, the binding of local tradition is stronger than formal legal documents. That makes the Fetsawa Umamane ceremony, in this case, an important supplement to the legal process. The combination of a formal legal and traditional approach will hopefully lay a solid foundation for good durable solutions for old and new families in Sukabitetek. >> continue

University of Oslo

Cultural complexity in the new Norway, represents a large commitment by the University of Oslo towards research on cultural diversity. This is the first time in the history of the University of Oslo that it is being worked cross-disciplinary to such an extent.

Through interdisciplinary cooperation, the research project will be able to present new perspectives on Norway as a multicultural society, project manager Professor in Social Anthropology Thomas Hylland Eriksen promised. It is not immigrants alone who will be studied; Norwegians will be studied, too. One will look at ways of being Norwegian, and relations between them. It is of great importance to focus on other identities than ethnic ones. >> continue

SEE ALSO

Thomas Hylland Eriksen: So what kinds of people exist – really?

Lawrence Journal World

It seems more the stuff of an action movie than an anthropology professor's field work. But Kansas University professor Bart Dean found himself in the middle of a violent showdown between corrupt Peruvian officials and the indigenous Cocama-Cocamilla people.

Seven months later, Dean has become embroiled in a nationwide controversy in Peru and is working with a group of KU students to document the abuses on the Internet. "My general sense is that when somebody's rights are diminished, mine are as well," Dean said. "As a concerned citizen and as a professor of anthropology, I had to speak out."

Earlier this week he and his students unveiled a preliminary version of an Internet site, www.cocama.org, that eventually will contain video footage, photos and other information about the attack and political problems in Peru. >> continue

UPDATE 1.8.05PS: Their website is no longer accessible

Alexander Knorr, xirdal.lmu.de (University of Munich, Germany)

'Maxmod' is an open-research-project in sociocultural anthropology. At its core stands long-lasting 'thick participation' in an online-community. The chosen community condensates around the shared interest in, and practice of modifying commercial computergame-software, particularly the game "Max Payne".

The project's first goal is to describe and understand the community's social structure, the gamemodders' cultural actions and artefacts, and most importantly, their explicit and tacit cultural knowledge. The virulent importance and meaning that transnational technoludic online-communities of practice have for globalization and related issues will become clear.

Thirdly the project aims to substantially contribute to a systematic basis for the advancement of sociocultural anthropology. The discipline has a lot to contribute to the understanding of the relation between human beings and cybernetic systems, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in particular. >> continue

(via mosaikum.org)