Re: Recognition of photos

L. Anthony Zalucha (Calonsegur@AOL.COM)
Mon, 24 Jul 1995 23:23:20 -0400

Thomas Mennicken has raised the question of whether or not traditional people
are able to recognize objects in photographs. For what it's worth.....

I don't know if it's a joke, a myth, or what, but as a student back in the
sixties, I clearly recall being told by my professor that certain New Guinea
tribesmen were unable to discern faces in photographs. However, when the
photographs were manipulated such that the eyes could be made to open and
close (by a second layer of moving paper) supposedly the people *suddenly saw
* the image of a face. This has always been a very attractive image for me:
that of the "Ah, ha" response from someone not familiar with technological
ways of looking at things. But it may be entirely bogus. I just have the word
of someone who (I now know) wasn't all that qualified to be teaching
Anthropology anyway. I look forward to new posts about this question.
L. Anthony Zalucha

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

-- --
"I make wine at -- - --
Lafite and -- --
Latour.... -- -- ....but my heart
-- -- is at
Calon."
-

Marquis de Segur, 18th century

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++