Totally Unique Language in the Himalayas (Researchers Discover )

A Koro speaker talks to National Geographic Fellow Gregory Anderson in Arunachal Pradesh, India, as he makes a recording of the language.

In the foothills of the Himalayas, two field linguists have uncovered a find as rare as any endangered species—a language completely new to science.

The researchers encountered it for the first time along the western ridges of Arunachal Pradesh, India's northeastern-most state, where more than 120 languages are spoken. There, isolated by craggy slopes and rushing rivers, the hunters and subsistence farmers who speak this rare tongue live in a dozen or so villages of bamboo houses built on stilts.

The language—called Koro—was identified during a 2008 expedition conducted as part of National Geographic's Enduring Voices project. The researchers announced their discovery Tuesday in Washington, D.C. So many languages have vanished world-wide in recent decades that the naming of a new one commanded scientific attention.

"Their language is quite distinct on every level—the sound, the words, the sentence structure," said Gregory Anderson, director of the nonprofit Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages, who directs the project's research. Details of the language will be documented in an upcoming issue of the journal Indian Linguistics.

Prized for its rarity as an unstudied linguistic artifact, the Koro language also offers researchers a catalogue of unique cultural experience, encoded in its mental grammar of words and sentence structure that helps shape thought itself.

Languages like Koro "construe reality in very different ways," Dr. Anderson said. "They uniquely code knowledge of the natural world in ways that cannot be translated into a major language."

In an era of globalization, languages have been disappearing by the hundreds, edged out by English, Chinese and Spanish or suppressed by government practices. Of the 6,909 known languages, about half are expected to disappear in this century; every two weeks, the last fluent speaker of a language dies. This newest, with only 800 or so speakers, may be no exception.

"Even though this is new to science, this language is on the way out," said linguist K. David Harrison at Swarthmore College outside Philadelphia. Many younger villagers, often educated at boarding schools where only Hindi or English are spoken, are abandoning their parents' language. "Young people are not speaking it in the villages," Dr. Harrison said. "If the process continues, Koro will almost certainly become extinct."
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Anime characters made out of paper for adults

Our hero creates anime characters out of paper , and then mocks them , torturing , killing , just like in horror movies . Look carefully, too much violence over the paper , for adults only

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15 Most Intelligent Animals on Earth

You’ll see some animals considered the smartest and most intelligent. I wanted to make top 10 but they’re many different sources so I made top 15. It’s subjective to rank which one is smarter than the other especially some animals on bottom rank, just judge yourself.

15. Sheep

If threatened, they make large groups and run away together from predators. Can remember and identify animal face (other sheep’s in the same group, they’ve met predator) can remember and identify human face.

14. Pigeon

They have a great memory that can recognise themselves in the mirror, can remember hundreds of different images/photos and learn routes to their home from long distances.

13. Rat

Once they’ve experienced rat trap, they wont get trap anymore. They have a strong social relationship, maybe stress even die after their partner died. Like dogs, can be trained to sniff out land mines and bombs.

12. Octopus

Octopus are the smartest among all invertebrates because they can change color in less than a second, mimicking seaweed, crab, coral, etc. They can use tool with their tentacles (e.g. open bottle).

11. Squirrel

They can remember their home by identifying trees, bushes, flowers, etc. Every fall, they bury a thousands of nuts in many places and they can remember where to find all nuts during winter. To fool their rival, they make some “fake nuts burial”.

10. Pig

In fact, they’re one of the cleanest and odorless animals, they have emotion, sensitivity, hurt feelings and easily bored. Very sociable to humans, trainable. Some say they are more trainable than dog.

9. Cat

Trainable, can recognize radio, television, they can even check traffic before crossing the street. They’re smart enough to get attention (meow, rub near ankle, follow you, sit on your lap, etc.). Cats can hear and recognise their owner’s footstep or stranger’s footstep.

8. Dog

The man’s best friend, very trainable, sociable to humans, can understand commands and obedience. Can identify and remember animal or human faces they’ve met, they can recognise radio, television, etc. Dogs can be sensitive, jealous and they won’t forget someone hurting them in their entire life.

7. Parrot

Parrot can mimic human words, understand the meanings, can remember many words and make sentences. Well-trained, can count up to 6 and can identify many objects. They can answer simple questions and can use tools with their beak (e.g.painting).

6. Crow

They’re the smartest among all birds, can count up to 3. Very creative because they can make and use tools without training (e.g. use branch to gather food). Sometimes they put nuts on the street and wait until car or pedestrian crack the nuts, then eat the nuts.

5. Elephant

Elephant can recognise themselves in the mirror, very altruistic. Among other animals, elephant has they’re own “death ritual”. They use their trunk to take a bath, drink, get food, play, even use tool (e.g. painting). They can mimic sounds, few human words and can understand the meaning if they’re well-trained.

4. Monkey

Monkey can imitate humans behaviour without training and if well-trained, they can behave like humans (e.g) drink from bottle and ride bicycle). Like human, they have egoism, vain, pride and strong relationship. If two monkeys were fighting, the relatives of one monkey will threaten the relatives of the other monkey.

3. Whale

They can find their relatives separated miles away in the sea for unknown reason but they have their own language to communicate, can call each other and have a strong friendships in a group. Whales can “sing” with their sound and can make many different “songs” in a good tone.

2. Dolphin

Dolphin is the smartest aquatic animals, they can recognise themselves in the mirror. Very trainable and can hold and use tool with their teeth for painting. They use whistling sound to communicate with best communication system among animals.

1. Great Apes

The 98% genes of the great apes are same as human, the smartest species is chimpanzee. They can also recognise themselves in the mirror, they can make tool (e.g. stone to cut food), use tool (e.g. painting). Like human, they can kiss, snuggle, tickle, laugh, can count very trainable and have language

Tags: Intelligent Animals, crow, Dolphin, animal, Elephant, Great Apes, human, intelligent, pigeon, SMART, Squirrel, Earth

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Dangerous Surgical medicine instruments pictures

These surgical tools look scary, like those in Hostel movie.
It will never be good to be ill, but nowadays at least it's not so scary.

Hysterotome/Metrotome (1860s-90s)

This hysterotome or metrotome was used to amputate the cervix during a hysterectomy.

Amputation Knife (1700s)

Knives used for amputations during the 18th century were typically curved, because surgeons tended to make a circular cut through the skin and muscle before the bone was cut with a saw.
By the 1800s, straight knives became more popular because they made it easier to leave a flap of skin that could be used to cover the exposed stump.

Amputation Saw (1600s)

While some surgeons chose to flaunt their wealth with elaborately decorated saws like this, the crevices in the intricate engravings proved to be a breeding ground for germs.

Arrow Remover (1500s)

Not much is known about this tool, but it is hypothesized that it was inserted into the wound in a contracted position, with the central shaft used to grasp the arrow.
The blades, which appear to have their sharp edges facing outward, were then expanded using the scissor-like handles, thus expanding the flesh around the arrow to prevent the arrowhead from ripping through the meat as it was pulled out.

Artificial Leech (1800s)

Bloodletting with leeches was such a popular treatment for a range of medical conditions that an artificial leech was invented in 1840 and was used frequently in eye and ear surgery.
The rotating blades would cut a wound in the patient’s skin, while the cylinder would be used to produce a vacuum that sucked up the blood.

Bullet Extractor (1500s)

Elongated bullet extractors could reach bullets embedded deeply in the patient’s body.
Extractors like this one had a screw tip that could be inserted in the wound and lengthened to pierce the bullet so that it could be pulled out.

Cervical Dilator (1800s)

This instrument was used to dilate a woman’s cervix during labor, with the amount of dilation measured on the scale by the handle.
Such dilators fell out of favor because they often caused the cervix to tear.

Circumcision Knife (1770s)

Ritual circumcision is performed around the world in varying extents and for varying reasons, but few instruments used in the process are as intimidating as this European knife from the 18th century.

Ecraseur (1870s)

This ecraseur was used to sever hemorrhoids and uterine or ovarian tumors.
The chain was looped over the mass and tightened using the ratchet, stopping the circulation of blood to the area.

Hemorrhoid Forceps (1800s)

These forceps were used to grasp a hemorrhoid between the blades and apply pressure to stop the blood supply, causing the hemorrhoid to drop off.

Hernia Tool (1850s)

This unique tool was used after the restoration of a hernia.
It was inserted into the body near the affected area and left there for a week to produce scar tissue that would help seal off the hernia.

Hirtz Compass (1915)

The Hirtz compass was used to accurately determine where bullets were located in the body so that they could then be removed with precision.

Lithotome (1740s-1830s)

This lithotome was used to cut the bladder in order to remove stones. The shaft contained a hidden blade that was inserted into the bladder and then released using a spring handle.

Mouth Gag (1880s-1910s)

This wooden, screw-shaped mouth gag would be inserted into an anesthetized patient’s mouth to keep the airway open.

Scarificator (1910s-20s)

Scarificators were used in bloodletting. The spring-loaded blades in this device would cut into the skin, and a special rounded glass cup could be applied over the wound. When warmed, it would help draw the blood out at a faster rate.

Skull Saw (1830s-60s)

This hand-cranked saw’s blades were used to cut through sections of the skull, allowing for access by other instruments.

Tobacco Smoke Enema (1750s-1810s)

The tobacco enema was used to infuse tobacco smoke into a patient’s rectum for various medical purposes, primarily the resuscitation of drowning victims. A rectal tube inserted into the anus was connected to a fumigator and bellows that forced the smoke towards the rectum. The warmth of the smoke was thought to promote respiration, but doubts about the credibility of tobacco enemas led to the popular phrase “blow smoke up one’s ass.”

Tonsil Guillotine (1860s)

This method of removing tonsils worked much like a traditional guillotine, slicing off the infected tonsils. This “double guillotine” design meant that both tonsils could be removed at the same time. Tonsil guillotines were replaced by forceps and scalpels in the early 20th century due to the high rate of hemorrhaging and the imprecise nature of the device, which often left tonsil remnants in the mouth.

Trephine (1800s)

This trephine was a hand-powered drill with a cylindrical blade that was used to bore into the skull. The spike in the center was used to start the procedure and to hold the blade in place while cutting.

Vaginal Speculum (1600s)

Specula have been used for thousands of years to allow doctors better vision and access to the vaginal area (or other body cavities) by expanding after insertion. This 17th century European example, which appears to use a cranking motion to expand, is more ornate and intimidating than most.

Tags: Dangerous, Surgical, medicine, instruments, pictures

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