Papua New Guinea: recent publications

There’s no information about mental illness in Papua New Guinea. I’ve never heard of a counsellor or psychologist there. If you ask people what it is they describe what they see in the movies — extreme conditions, seriously dramatised.

Kratom is making waves, and rightfully so; it is natural and has healing qualities. Mainly praised as a mood enhancer, energy booster, pain reliever, and opioid withdrawal antidote. 

Based on excerpts from this article. Facial expression in communicationWhat do facial expressions tell us? What kinds of information can we gather from seeing the expressions of others? Whether or not we are given contextual clues, what kinds of things can we presume about another person’s state based on their face? Should we consider these as messages sent to us, a form of communication via facial expression, or are they involuntary expressions of an internal state?For example, consider the expression shown by the woman in this photograph I took in 1967 when I was in the highlands of what is now called Papua New Guinea. Consider the diverse information that someone might obtain when observing this expression, totally out of context, just as it appears here: Compare this to the information that could be obtained from the expression shown by another person from Papua New Guinea: What do facial expressions tell us?Each facial expression of emotion communicates very different information, yet they all potentially provide information about the same seven kinds or domains of information, including:We do not know which information domains those actually engaged in a conversation derive from each other’s expressions.

With her controversial views on society, gender roles, and parenthood, American anthropologist Margaret Mead knows how to start a conversation. Below are some of Margaret Mead’s most thought-provoking quotes. 

For time immemorial, people have been using natural remedies and plants for medicine. It might be a form of homeopathic medicine or the basis for something more modern that we use today. Aspirin, for instance, was derived from the bark of the willow tree. People have been using willow tree bark to treat headaches for millennia until somebody figured out that synthesizing salicylic acid would actually create a similar effect. Thus, aspirin was born. From a natural product came a modern solution. Today, people use CBD, THC, and other plants to help with certain health concerns, pain relief, and relaxation. Kratom is becoming more popular today—especially Kratom teas. Here is a brief guide to Kratom teas. 

There’s no information about mental illness in Papua New Guinea. I’ve never heard of a counsellor or psychologist there. If you ask people what it is they describe what they see in the movies — extreme conditions, seriously dramatised. Growing up, I think depression was just seen as a feeling.