scholarly journals Revising the history of number: how Ethnomathematics transforms perspectives on indigenous cultures

Revemop ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. e202007
Author(s):  
Kay Owens ◽  
Charly Muke
Keyword(s):  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Mathematics Learning ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Indigenous Cultures ◽  
Number Systems ◽  
History Of ◽  
Los Grupos ◽  
Indigenous Mathematics

Many accounts of the history of number rely on written evidence such as clay, stone, and wood engravings or paintings. However, some of the oldest cultural groups (between 5 000 and 30 000 years old) have had only recent contact with the rest of the world, namely between 80 and 140 years ago but these were oral cultures without written records. Finding out about their understanding of number has involved analysis of the types of counting but also how counting related to the rest of their cultural relationships. There is some surprising evidence of diversity of number systems, longevity of the systems, and the interplay with cultural practices that begs respect for Indigenous cultures. Brief summaries of this history of number in Papua New Guinea and Oceania and the diversity of systems is followed by how this new knowledge can inform school mathematics learning in any part of the world.Keywords: History of number. Indigenous mathematics. Papua New Guinea. Melanesia. Pacific. Longevity of number systems.Revisando la historia de los números: cómo las Etnomatemáticas transforma las perspectivas sobre las culturas indígenasMuchos relatos de la historia de los números se basan en pruebas escritas como grabados o pinturas de arcilla, piedra y madera. Sin embargo, algunos de los grupos culturales más antiguos (entre 5 000 y 30 000 años) solo han tenido contacto reciente con el resto del mundo, es decir, hace entre 80 y 140 años, pero se trataba de culturas orales sin registros escritos. Conocer su comprensión del número ha implicado el análisis de los tipos de conteo, pero también cómo el conteo se relaciona con el resto de sus relaciones culturales. Hay alguna evidencia sorprendente de la diversidad de sistemas numéricos, la longevidad de los sistemas y la interacción con prácticas culturales que exigen respeto por las culturas indígenas. Breves resúmenes de esta historia del número en Papua Nueva Guinea y Oceanía y la diversidad de sistemas es seguida por cómo este nuevo conocimiento puede informar el aprendizaje matemático escolar en cualquier parte del mundo.Palabras clave: Historia de los Números. Matemáticas indígenas. Papua Nueva Guinea. Melanesia. Pacifico. Longevidad de sistemas numéricos.Revisando a história do número: como a Etnomatemática transforma perspectivas sobre culturas indígenas Muitos relatos da história do número dependem de evidências escritas como em argila, em pedra, em gravuras, em madeira ou em pinturas. No entanto, alguns dos grupos culturais mais antigos (entre 5.000 e 30.000 anos) tiveram apenas um contacto recente com o resto do mundo, nomeadamente entre 80 e 140 anos atrás, mas esses tinham culturas orais sem registos escritos. Descobrir a compreensão do número envolveu a análise dos tipos de contagem, mas também como a contagem se relacionava com o restante de suas relações culturais. Há algumas evidências surpreendentes da diversidade de sistemas numéricos, longevidade dos sistemas e interação com as práticas culturais que imploram respeito pelas culturas indígenas. Breves sumários desta história de números em Papua Nova Guiné, Oceânia e numa diversidade de sistemas são seguidos por uma reflexão sobre como esse novo conhecimento pode informar a aprendizagem de Matemática escolar em qualquer parte do mundo.Palavras-chave: História do número. Matemática indígena. Papua Nova Guiné. Melanésia. Pacífico. Longevidade de sistemas numéricos.

COMBINING ORAL TRADITIONS AND BAYESIAN CHRONOLOGICAL MODELING TO UNDERSTAND VILLAGE DEVELOPMENT IN THE GULF OF PAPUA (PAPUA NEW GUINEA)

Radiocarbon ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Chris Urwin ◽  
Quan Hua ◽  
Henry Arifeae
Keyword(s):  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Spatial History ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of ◽  
Gulf Of Papua ◽  
The Village

ABSTRACT When European colonists arrived in the late 19th century, large villages dotted the coastline of the Gulf of Papua (southern Papua New Guinea). These central places sustained long-distance exchange and decade-spanning ceremonial cycles. Besides ethnohistoric records, little is known of the villages’ antiquity, spatiality, or development. Here we combine oral traditional and 14C chronological evidence to investigate the spatial history of two ancestral village sites in Orokolo Bay: Popo and Mirimua Mapoe. A Bayesian model composed of 35 14C assays from seven excavations, alongside the oral traditional accounts, demonstrates that people lived at Popo from 765–575 cal BP until 220–40 cal BP, at which time they moved southwards to Mirimua Mapoe. The village of Popo spanned ca. 34 ha and was composed of various estates, each occupied by a different tribe. Through time, the inhabitants of Popo transformed (e.g., expanded, contracted, and shifted) the village to manage social and ceremonial priorities, long-distance exchange opportunities and changing marine environments. Ours is a crucial case study of how oral traditional ways of understanding the past interrelate with the information generated by Bayesian 14C analyses. We conclude by reflecting on the limitations, strengths, and uncertainties inherent to these forms of chronological knowledge.

History of non-physician anaesthesia providers in Papua New Guinea: from heil tultuls to Anaesthetic Scientific Officers

2021 ◽  
pp. 0310057X2110278
Author(s):  
Terence E Loughnan ◽  
Michael G Cooper ◽  
Pauline B Wake ◽  
Harry Aigeeleng
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Stages Of Development ◽  
Medical Assistants ◽  
History Of ◽  
The University

The most recent estimates, published in 2016, have indicated that around 70% of anaesthesia providers in Papua New Guinea are non-physician anaesthetic providers and that they administer over 90% of anaesthetics, with a significant number unsupervised by a physician anaesthetist. Papua New Guinea has a physician anaesthetist ratio estimated to be 0.25 per 100,000 population, while Australia and New Zealand have a ratio of 19 physician anaesthetists per 100,000, which is 75 times that of Papua New Guinea. To reach a ratio of seven per 100,000, recommended as the minimum acceptable by the Lancet Commission in 2016, there will need to be over 35 practitioners trained per annum until 2030, at a time when the average annual numbers of recent years are less than three physicians and less than five non-physician anaesthetic providers. We review the development of anaesthesia administered by non-physician indigenous staff and the stages of development from heil tultuls, dokta bois, liklik doktas, native medical assistants, aid post orderlies, and Anaesthetic Technical Officers up to the current Anaesthetic Scientific Officers having attained the Diploma in Anaesthetic Science from the University of Papua New Guinea.

scholarly journals Power, pork and patronage: Decentralisation and the politicisation of the development budget in Papua New Guinea

1970 ◽  
pp. 7-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Allen ◽  
Zahid Hasnain
Keyword(s):  
Political Culture ◽  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Development Planning ◽  
State Development ◽  
Patronage Politics ◽  
History Of

This paper examines a number of recent empirical studies of local-level decision-making in relation to development planning and, especially, the allocation of state development funds in Papua New Guinea. The discussion is framed by the extensive theoretical and Papua New Guinea literature on patronage politics and political culture, by the recent history of decentralisation reforms, and by the frequently articulated, but largely anecdotal, observations about the functioning of district and local-level governance processes.In contrast to the anecdotal vision of widespread and chronic dysfunctionality, the studies considered here paint a picture of considerable spatial and regional variation. We offer some tentative hypotheses to explain this variation, while flagging the need for more empirical work. We outline how these preliminary findings have informed a program of research that is currently being undertaken at the district and local government levels with a view to gaining a better understanding of the extent and nature of spatial variation in the local-level governance of state development funds in Papua New Guinea.

Continents and consequences: the history of a concept

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter J. Yearwood
Keyword(s):  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Emotional Content ◽  
Classical Antiquity ◽  
World Geography ◽  
Medieval Europe ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of

AbstractOriginally intended to provide an accessible overview for colleagues in Papua New Guinea, this article outlines the emergence of the continental division of the world in classical antiquity. In medieval Europe this survived as a learned conception which eventually acquired emotional content. Nevertheless, the division was still within the context of universal Christianity, which did not privilege any continent. Contrary to the views of recent critics, the European sense of world geography was not inherently ‘Eurocentric’. While Europeans did develop a sense of continental superiority, Americans, Africans, and many Asians also came to identify themselves with their continents and to use them as weapons against European domination. The application of the division to Melanesia is also considered.

HISTORY OF TUBERCULOSIS IN AUSTRALIA. NEW ZEALAND AND PAPUA-NEW GUINEA

CHEST Journal ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 102 (4) ◽  
pp. 22 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.J. PROUST ◽  
Carlton R. Souders
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
History Of
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