Analytical Reasoning

I decided to give an example of the type of study that occupied me recently. I copied this question from a google search, so I have not completed the scenario. I want us to do it together. Work it out and leave the results in a comment. I will do the same, if anyone decides to participate. Have fun:

Exactly six trade representatives negotiate a treaty: Klosnik, Londi, Manley, Neri, Osata, Poirier. There are exactly six chairs evenly spaced around a circular table. The chairs are numbered 1 through 6, with successively numbered chairs next to each other and chair number 1 next to chair number 6. Each chair is occupied by exactly one of the representatives. The following conditions apply:

Poirier sits immediately next to Neri.
Londi sits immediately next to Manley, Neri, or both.
Klosnik does not sit immediately next to Manley.
If Osata sits immediately next to Poirier, Osata does not sit immediately next to Manley.

1. Which one of the following seating arrangements of the six representative in chairs 1 through 6 would NOT violate the stated conditions?
(A) Klosnik, Poirier, Neri, Manley, Osata, Londi
(B) Klosnik, Londi, Manley, Poirier, Neri, Osata
(C) Klosnik, Londi, Manley, Osata, Poirier, Neri
(D) Klosnik, Osata, Poirier, Neri, Londi, Manley
(E) Klosnik, Neri, Londi, Osata, Manley, Poirier.

2. If Londi sits immediately next to Poirier, which one of the following is a pair of representatives who must sit immediately next to each other? (
A) Klosnik and Osata
(B) Londi and Neri
(C) Londi and Osata
(D) Manley and Neri
(E) Manley and Poirier

3. If Klosnik sits directly between Londi and Poirier, then Manley must sit directly between
(A) Londi and Neri
(B) Londi and Osata
(C) Neri and Osata
(D) Neri and Poirier
(E) Osata and Poirier

4. If Neri sits immediately next to Manley, the Klosnik can sit directly between (
A) Londi and Manley
(B) Londi and Poirier
(C) Neri and Osata
(D) Neri and Poirier
(E) Poirier and Osata

5. If Londi sits immediately next to Neri, which one of the following statement must be false?
(A) Klosnik sits immediately next to Osata
(B) Londi sits immediately next to Manley
(C) Osata sits immediately next to Poirier
(D) Neri sits directly between Londi and Poirier.
(E) Osata sits directly between Klosnik and Manley.

Filler

I'm pretty busy this month with some other stuff, so I will not be making many posts. In the meantime, I do have a few things I can post until October.

This is another of my drawings inspired by bhiggi's characters. Too many people have said what the character exclaims to take or assign credit, but I've always liked the juxtaposition.

SWEEP...SWEEP...SWEEP

The Braves finished off their sweep of the Mets last night in dramatic fashion. Ryan Langerhans, one of the thirteen rookies that have graced the Braves roster this year, came through with a game tying double in the ninth and a game winning single in the tenth to put the Braves on top. Paige and I attended, and it was a nail biter. Also, I was lucky enough to get three more BP balls. Two were caught; one was gotten after it landed. It's likely this is the last game of the regular season we will be able to attend, but we are planning to attend some post season games. She and I have fortunately seen the first and last games of the last three seasons. Hopefully, in the last game we see this year we will celebrate another Braves World Series title.

When we went to the game on Labor Day, I had run out of clean Braves shirts to wear, so I had to make one myself. My photoshop skills need some work, but I thought Jeremy would get a kick out of it:

MVP...MVP...MVP

Last month, Jones led the National League with 11 home runs and 29 RBIs, and for his efforts, has been named the National League Player of the Month for August. This is the second Player of the Month Award this season for Jones, who won for June.

"He should be the leading candidate [for MVP]," said pitcher John Smoltz. "No disrespect to the other guys. I think any time you tee up a season, Pujols is an MVP. But in this situation, if the season were to end today, the Atlanta Braves wouldn't be in first place without Andruw Jones.”

"My main concern is to go out there and win and prove to everybody that [even though] we have a young team, we're looking forward to [another division title] and getting back to the World Series," said Jones.

Source: Andrew Worob w/ MLB.com

This Cartoon Cracks Me Up

This is a relatively new addition to the Cartoon Network's lineup. I don't watch too many of the regular cartoons since my DBZ obsession has ended. I primarily watch Adult Swim. But this one really cracks me up. You should check it out when you can. I believe it airs at 4 in the afternoon. Yes, I am a dork. No, I am not high.

Paige likes it too. This is a photo taken in front of a new addition to the TED, called Tooner Field.

A Braves Weekend

This has been the best Labor Day Weekend. Paige and I were both off work, and the Braves were at home. She and I are both fans, and thanks to Ebay and student discounts, we got some great deals on tickets. For the three games we went to, the ticket value was $104. Luckily, we only paid $47. They were all great seats, too. Now, to the games' details:

9/4: Braves vs. Reds

This game was a long one, 12 innings in the Atlanta sun. Marcus Giles was the star for the Braves. He had 2 homeruns, a double, and 2 diving catches at second base. It was incredible! Unfortunately, Cox had to put Kolb in to pitch the 12th. He gave up five runs, including a grand slam, resulting in a loss for the home team.

9/5: Braves vs. Mets

In this one, the Jones Boys each homered. It's the 48th time that has happened. Andruw's blast was 452 feet, quite a shot. Chipper's hit barely cleared the center field wall, but it proved to be the game winner. John Thompson had a top quality start for the Braves, and he really needed it. He has not been the same since coming back from his injury in May. Jeff Francouer had another stellar afternoon as he makes his bid for the National League Rookie of the Year. He and Andruw have to be the best outfield tandum in the league. Not only did Andruw make an outstanding diving catch, but Francouer gunned down a run at home plate in the 6th. It was an amazing throw. We were sitting a few rows back from the right field wall, and it was a laser to home plate. The throw never went over head high. Francouer has only played 48 games this season, but he is tied for the league lead in outfield assists.

Enough about Francouer, another Georgia boy joined the team in August, and he is slowly becoming the Braves closer. Kyle Farnsworth came in the 9th inning and shut the Mets down. This guy is 6"4" 240 lbs and throws 100 mph. Talk about intimidating. Anyway, he got his 10th save of the season as the Braves triumphed over the Mets, 4 to 2.

How is the concept of race dichronically defined in Biological Anthropology?

What follows is an historical analysis of the concept of race as defined in Anthropology. I hope that if you read it, you will come to understand racial designation as a social construction, not a biologically determined catagorization. Comment if there are questions. I'll do my best to explain these concepts further.

A substantial amount of diversity and variation exists in all forms of life on this planet. One can discover environments teeming with organisms in nearly every nook and cranny of the globe, and evidence shows that individuals conducted investigations of these creatures throughout history. The desire to categorize this multitude remains as prevalent now as always. In order to study the abundance of life comprehensively, academics must organize their characteristics and unique features that distinguish them from every other living thing. They must biologically define the traits exhibited by the objects under investigation. When attempting to accomplish this in the species known as Homo sapiens, naturalists sparked a debate that remains unsolved in the present day. Concepts of human diversity permeate all levels of society. Issues of race are found everyday, in every culture, in every part of the world. Alliances are based on them, and enemies are sworn by them. People develop or neglect personal relationships due to their perceptions of race. This convoluted mess of racial interpretations brings an inexhaustible amount of conflict. In order for an individual to gain an understanding of race and its complexities, a person begins with its inception.

Variety in the animal domain has been a topic of interest since the days of the first documented philosophers in the fourth century before the Common Era. Aristotle contemplated this fact among many others. In this endeavor, he organized known life on the planet into distinguished categories he called, scala naturae. He coined the concept as “The Great Chain of Being”, and he based it on his belief that all beings in God’s creation should be arranged from the simplest organism to the most complex in ranked order. In this system, many aspects of physical complexity organized organisms: Amount of legs, outer covering, colors, etc. Humans reigned supreme and others fell in behind them. The bottom rung of the hierarchy held zoophytes, organisms similar to plants. (Jurmain, 2003; www.artchive.com, 2003; www.suite101.com, 2003; www.strangescience.net, 2003)

During European expansion in the eighteenth century, people were introduced to individuals distinctly different from themselves. This led to ponderings regarding the classification of human beings. In this day, intellectuals believed there was a fixed number of static organisms inhabiting the world. They perceived the study of these creatures was simply a matter of data accumulation and organization. (Molnar, 1998) One naturalist, Carolus Linnaeus established a classification of plants and animals that expanded upon Aristotle’s theory. He published his Systema Naturae as a guide to the planet’s biological diversity. In this taxonomy, he labeled humans as Homo sapiens and defined them as a member of a group called Primates. With exploration and discovery, new human variations became known, and Linnaeus applied his taxonomy to human diversity. (Jurmain, 2003; Marks, 1994) He established a hierarchy among Homo sapiens through the construction of four subspecies named for geographic domain and physical characteristics of skin color, hair form, stature and shape of nose. Eventually, he incorporated behavioral characteristics as a means to broaden the definitions of these distinct groups. He named these subspecies American, European, Asiatic, and Negro. (Molnar, 1998) These ambiguous descriptions fostered trends in biological determinism that haunt the study of racial diversity among humans.

Comte de Buffon and Johan Friedrick Blumerbach revised Linnaeus’s taxonomy. Buffon was the first to apply the term, race, to humans, and Blumerbach altered the characteristics defining subspecies. He utilized the skull as the defining trait among Homo sapiens. It was believed that the skull was the part of the body most resistant to change. Also, it was discerned that since the skull holds the brain, its characteristics are indicative of the capacities of an individual. After conducting research, Blumerbach concluded that the most “ideal” human was Caucasoid. He considered his other classifications; Mongoloid, American Indian, Ethiopian, and Malay to be inferior. (Molnar, 1998)

Over the next several decades, statistical calculations of cranial variation, anthropometry, were implemented to further distinguish races. Many investigators continued to search for “perfect” representations of particular populations. This branch of discovery, called phrenology, resulted in defined traits that supported the growing number of racial distinctions. Anders Retzius aided development of these new typologies of skull morphology that further distinguished races within previously classified geographic boundaries. As with other methods, these theories were based on physical characteristics that enabled productive investigation of human diversity in order to discover migration patterns between distinct populations. Continuing the trend, scientists applied these features to behavioral patterns to further elitist interpretations of human diversity. Pierre Paul Broca was one such scientist. Like his predecessors, he believed anthropometry could be used to classify physical distinctions among humans. In addition, he thought he could discover behavioral patterns that could be linked to cranial features in order to show racial differences as unchanging and continuous. In his opinion, physical traits were measures of intelligence and status, in addition to measures of biological variation. (Molnar, 1998)

Phrenology as a science disappeared in the late nineteenth century, but the concepts of physical characteristics linking individuals with their intelligence and behaviors continued to flourish. Samuel Morton and George Glidden furthered these perceptions through analysis of Native American and Egyptian skulls. Morton purportedly found that Native Americans had a smaller cranial capacity than Europeans; therefore, the Natives were intellectually inferior. He even reported that skulls of Caucasoid dimensions were found at mound sites around the Americas. In his view, the findings proved that a superior race of humans, Caucasoid, was responsible for the complex constructions of archaic origin. Coincidentally, Morton exemplified features of the Caucasoid race. Glidden produced similar results in Egypt. Utilizing the same methods of analysis, he concluded that the Caucasoid race was responsible for the erection of the pyramids. These findings continued the exploitation of scientific methods in support of ideals that held Caucasoids, Europeans, as superior to all other realms of human diversity. The work of these scientists encouraged biological distinctions as cultural bias. (Molnar, 1998)

Around this time, Darwin’s evolutionary theories brought about new explanations of human diversity. His theory of natural selection led to broader analysis of our species, but anthropometry continued as scientists were faced with new opportunities to investigate similarities and differences among humans and the relationship of these features to behavior. This was all done to support the early concepts established by Aristotle. Members of the perceived superior race conducted the investigations to further establish and maintain dominance over other geographic populations. It was believed that with continued investigation, race specific behavioral patterns and characteristics would emerge to definitively prove the taxonomies of human diversity. (Molnar, 1998)

In his studies seeking the ideal European, Lambert Quetelet attempted this to no avail, but his analysis was influential in the studies of Francis Galton, who took the concept further. In 1869, he published Hereditary Genius, which built upon Quetelet’s data. He utilized the information he acquired to statistically determine the shared traits and variations among human races. His results were graphed in a parabola where shared traits were located at the apex, and variable traits were distributed along the extremities of the graph. Commonly referred to as the “bell-curve”, this analysis gave insight into the purity of an individual. Galton began to correlate this with status and intellect. Upon further study, Galton thought he had proven hereditary procreation of intelligence, concluding that further human evolution could not occur through the support of weaker individuals. Herbert Spencer produced further evidence that Darwin’s theories could not exist in human populations as long as the weak and feeble minded were allowed to pass on inferior traits. With these theories, also called eugenics, scientists sought to improve the Caucasoid race through procreation of socioeconomic elites. (Molnar, 1998)

These typologies and biases remained prominent in the works of Karl Pearson and Charles Davenport, and the continuation of these concepts persists in modern analysis in the work on Carlton Coon. Throughout history, there have been scientists that challenge these methodologies based on the lack of practical evidence. In Linnaeus’s time, James Cowles Pritchard rejected classification systems based on anthropometry. He noticed that there was no perfect representation of any taxonomic species, and by definition, to be defined as a subspecies, an organism must be recognizably distinct from other units of the species. Taxonomies also assume the presence of static processes in the natural world. This misleads because many traits are simultaneously affected as a result of environmental variation. (Gould, 1977; Molnar, 1998) Other biologists were also skeptical as it became more wide spread that categorization can be too ambiguous. They found it incorrect to designate distinct groupings based on dynamic, natural variation. In the early years of the twentieth century, Franz Boas figured prominently in disputing typographical research. He found the shortcomings to be as they always had been. No factor of heredity can be conclusive for all members of the particularly defined racial group. In his arguments, the existence of dynamic variation was enlisted to dispel the elitist concepts of his contemporaries. Boas, along with Alfred Kroeber, pounded eugenic theories with contradictions. They did not succeed in eliminating the ideas from scholarly investigation, but their efforts did spurn a schism in anthropology as the nature vs. nurture debate came into fruition. (Gould, 1977; Molnar, 1998)

Regardless of the contradictions, racial typologies persisted as no efficient method of analyzing variation existed. However, in the last few decades, scientists have developed methods and discovered concepts that help disprove taxonomic designations of racial diversity among Homo sapiens. Scientists developed a system called multivariate analysis that allowed continuous scrutiny of dynamic species. This development spurned a transition from dependence on complex taxonomies of diversity in favor of more continuous, statistical investigation. This method allows investigation of alterations in a species over time and through the environmental conditions of its geographic area. It considers the diversity among and between species as well as their similarities and differences. Some technological advancements have brought about the ability to define the elements of human diversity on a cellular level. Most notably, the discovery of DNA has played a role in dispelling traditional concepts of race. When variation can be investigated on a sub-genetic level, common physical traits lose their weight as defining characteristics. Another concept emerged in the 1960s. Clinical distribution of individual traits reflects the influences of natural selection and gene flow. This method of analysis limits biases in racial designation as it investigates diversity through exclusively evolutionary forces. With these developments, previous concepts of natural selection, genetic drift, and gene flow become more accurately and efficiently calculable. (Gould, 1977; Jurmain, 2003; Molnar, 2003)

Modern methods of research have resulted in a more flexible and comprehensive view of diversity that has no fixed biological or geographic restrictions. Biological evidence has always been used to distinguish populations from one another, but the concept of biodeterminism has always been used in a cultural context, to establish the superiority of one distinction over another. Migration and exploration have occurred throughout history, these population movements and climatic changes have been the source of human variation. There can be no defined races if gene flow has been apparent across space and time. Racial categories are cultural constructions that attempt to find support in biological theory. Society has become grid locked by the prevalence of these ethnocentric, European ideals. Convoluted racial distinctions have infiltrated all aspects of life, especially with the emergence of concepts of economic globalization in the late twentieth century. Historically, concepts of race have resulted in the production of social identity that is easily recognized by others though not distinguished by nature. (Gould, 1977; Marks, 1994; Molnar, 1998)

Geographic variability exists in known fact, but race is simply a concept. Though methods of classification resulting in ambiguous nomenclature help increase our understanding of human variation; in reality, these labels encourage beliefs in static environments and polarize factions that support hierarchal stratification. These ideals are set in cultural distinctions and socioeconomic status; not science. The exploitation of biological facts to support elitist perceptions can only be achieved through diachronic analysis of related theories.

To quench a fire, you must extinguish its fuel. In anthropology, we must achieve this by debunking biological theories in concepts of race. Only then can we begin to fully realize the cultural constructions that serve to separate geographic populations from one another.

Bibliography

Gould, S. J. “Why We Should Not Name Human Races -- A Biological View”. Ever Since Darwin. Pgs. 231-236. 1977.

Jurmain, Robert; Kilgore, Lynn; Traventaan, Wenda; Nelson, Harry. Introduction to Physical Anthropology. Pgs. 24-25; 395-397. Wadsworth/Thompson. 2003.

Marks, Jonathan. “Black, White, Other”. Biological Anthropology: An Introductory Reader. Pgs. 159-162. 1994.

Molnar, S. “Racial Variation and the Perception of Human Differences”. Human Variation, 4th Edition. Pgs. 1-33. 1998.

www.artchive.com/artchive/V/valezquez/valezquez_atlec.html. 2003

www.strangescience.net/aristotle.htm. 2003

www.suite101.com/article.cfm/4003/29309. 2003

Katrina

Many people I know have hinted at the role of racism in the response to the Katrina disaster. People in the media have stated it plainly. I believe these conclusions to be mistakes. To me, this is a matter of socioeconomic demographics. The people you primarily see in footage are of African descent, but 78% of the New Orleans population is African-American. In my opinion, more coverage of the devastation in Mississippi would balance this out. The population of Mississippi is primarily Caucasion, so those dealing with shortages there are European-American by a vast majority.

All the people that are stuck; that were unable to evacuate, are all a part of a low income demographic, and their numbers are great. Now, their status explains why these citizens could not evacuate, but why the slow response; why is it taking so long to bus people out? I'm not sure. I would speculate in personal conversation, but not here. All I want to do here is express my opinion against rascism.

The people in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama are suffering primarily due to a lack of proactive planning, and they were put in this situation because of their socioeconomic status. With that said; the wheels are turning. The trucks are rolling in to offer assistance. Everyone I know resides in the Southeastern United States, and we could easily find ourselves and our families in the same situation. There's no excuse for doing nothing. Do your part by just doing something.

A Night at the TED

Paige and I witnessed a thrilling game last night. The details will follow. But I wanted to mention that after 24 years of going to Braves games, I finally got a ball. Granted, it was caught before the game, but it went straight from Andurw's bat into my glove about a dozen rows back from the left field wall. Now, on to the game's details compliments of Mark Bowman, a reporter from MLB.com:


Entering September in the midst of a very heated division race, the Braves knew there would be tense moments in the coming weeks. But they weren't exactly looking to begin the month creating unnecessary tension that would be relieved by yet another memorable Andruw Jones home run.

Riding the roller coaster of elation and frustration at Turner Field on Thursday night, the Braves were fortunate to have Jones move yet another step closer toward the National League MVP Award with a blast that prevented what could have been a horrific loss.

"I just know this would have been a day everybody would have pointed to, if we'd have lost this game," said John Smoltz after Jones' 10th-inning walk-off homer gave the Braves a dramatic 8-7 victory over the Nationals.

Instead of marking Sept. 1 as a day in which the Braves possibly began a tailspin, it might be remembered as the one in which they propelled themselves toward a 14th consecutive division title. If they are fortunate enough to achieve that goal, it will be because Jones has established himself as one of those great players who now has a flair for the dramatic.

"Without him, we might be smelling trail dust out there," said Braves manager Bobby Cox, whose team maintained a four-game division lead over the Phillies by earning a split of their four-game series with the Nationals.

Mozart Makes You Smarter

Have you ever heard this? This topic was discussed in my wife's developmental psycology class today. It's classic stuff. As it turns out, this study was conducted on teenagers and applied to infants. Yeah, ten minutes before these teens took a standardized test, they were asked to listen to Mozart. Coincidentally, the teens who listened scored higher on the test. There are so many other variables to consider that the Mozart connection should be nullified; much less applied to infants. Never the less, the governor of Georgia at the time, Zell Miller, appropriated funds to ship Mozart CDs to all children born around the time of the experiment. The result is thousands of wasted dollars; not dozens of smarter children. Although Zell was right on with the lottery, his short shortcomings can be seen is this little experiment; not to mention his propagandist rantings last year. (Author's note: HIGHLY BIASED OPINION)