Pathogen disgust sensitivity protects against infection in a high pathogen environment.

Disgust is hypothesized to be an evolved emotion that functions to regulate the avoidance of pathogen-related stimuli and behaviors. Individuals with higher pathogen disgust sensitivity (PDS) are predicted to be exposed to and thus infected by fewer pathogens, though no studies have tested this directly. Furthermore, PDS is hypothesized to be locally calibrated to the types of pathogens normally encountered and the fitness-related costs and benefits of infection and avoidance. Market integration (the degree of production for and consumption from market-based economies) influences the relative costs/benefits of pathogen exposure and avoidance through sanitation, hygiene, and lifestyle changes, and is thus predicted to affect PDS. Here, we examine the function of PDS in disease avoidance, its environmental calibration, and its socioecological variation by examining associations among PDS, market-related lifestyle factors, and measures of bacterial, viral, and macroparasitic infection at the individual, household, and community levels. Data were collected among 75 participants (ages 5 to 59 y) from 28 households in three Ecuadorian Shuar communities characterized by subsistence-based lifestyles and high pathogen burden, but experiencing rapid market integration. As predicted, we found strong negative associations between PDS and biomarkers of immune response to viral/bacterial infection, and weaker associations between PDS and measures of macroparasite infection, apparently mediated by market integration-related differences. We provide support for the previously untested hypothesis that PDS is negatively associated with infection, and document variation in PDS indicative of calibration to local socioeconomic conditions. More broadly, findings highlight the importance of evolved psychological mechanisms in human health outcomes.

Disparities in bone density across contemporary Amazonian forager-horticulturalists: Cross-population comparison of the Tsimane and Shuar.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigates bone density across the life course among Bolivian Tsimane and Ecuadorian Shuar of Amazonia. Both groups are rural, high-fertility forager-horticulturalists, with high lifetime physical activity levels. We test whether Tsimane and Shuar bone density patterns are different from each other, and if both groups are characterized by lower osteoporosis risk compared to U.S. references. METHODS: Anthropometric and calcaneal bone density data, obtained via quantitative ultrasonometry (QUS), were collected from 678 Tsimane and 235 Shuar (13-92 years old). Population and sex differences in QUS values (estimated bone mineral density, speed of sound, broadband ultrasound attenuation) by age group were assessed using Mann-Whitney U tests. Age-related change and age at peak QUS value were determined using polynomial regressions. One-way analyses of covariance assessed population-level differences in QUS values by age group adjusting for body mass index. Participants aged 50+ years at elevated osteoporosis risk were identified using a T score < -1.8; binomial tests assessed risk compared to U.S. references. RESULTS: Shuar males and females <50 years old have QUS values 3-36% higher than Tsimane, with differences evident in adolescence. Among Tsimane and Shuar, 49 and 23% of participants aged 50+ years old, respectively, are at high risk for osteoporosis, compared to 34% of Americans; Shuar osteoporosis risk is comparable to Americans, while Tsimane risk is elevated. CONCLUSIONS: Disparate patterns in QUS values are documented for Tsimane and Shuar, with pronounced differences early in life. Potential explanations for differences include gene-environment interactions and/or degree of market integration, which influences diet, activity profiles, pathogen exposures, and other lifestyle covariates. As Tsimane osteoporosis risk is greater than in the United States, findings point to alternative risk factors for low bone density that are not readily discernible in industrialized populations.

Lying about the future: Shuar-Achuar epistemic norms, predictions, and commitments.

Is there variation across cultures in what counts as a lie? Here we present evidence for a potentially unique conceptualization of lying in Shuar-Achuar communities in Ecuador, contrasting this conceptualization with people in twelve other countries and non-Shuar-Achuar Ecuadorians. In Shuar-Achuar communities, but not others, predictions of the future that turn out to be false are considered lies, even when the events that render them false are unforeseen. Failed commitments, on the other hand, are not seen as lies when unforeseen events prevent them from being kept. To explain this phenomenon, we suggest that there is an epistemic norm that regulates predictive speech acts in Shuar-Achuar communities, linked to the view that the future can be known under certain special circumstances. This norm holds that claiming knowledge of the future is a form of lying when events prove the prediction false. Commitments, on the other hand, do not imply certainty about the future and so are not considered lies when circumstances prevent them from being fulfilled. In addition, we found several other factors that influence whether speech acts are categorized as lies, including the speaker's expertise, group membership, and the nature of the outcome.

The Ethnographic Quest in the Midst of COVID-19.

The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 has threatened ethnographic inquiry, undermining its quintessential characteristic. Participant observation, then, has been thoroughly dismembered by the radical measures implemented to prevent the spread of the virus. This phenomenon, in short, has dragged anthropologists to a liminal state within which ethnography is paradoxically caught in an onto-epistemological unstable vortex. The question of being here and not there, during the pandemic, is epitomised in the instability of different spatio-temporal contexts that overlap through technological mediations. Reflecting on previous fieldwork experiences and current virtual inquiries with the Shuar of the Ecuadorian Amazon unfolds how COVID-19 has thoroughly reshaped how the author approaches subjects' socio-ecological settings. Against this background, the article argues that corporeal immersion remains a necessary condition for the anthropological scrutiny of multispecies relationalities amidst the challenging times of the Anthropocene. The article nevertheless demonstrates that the intellectual efforts to grasp the different material temporalities of virtual spaces embrace the ethical principles concerning the renunciation of fieldwork with vulnerable communities. Furthermore, a reflective and speculative stance is proposed to actualise the snapshots of faraway physicalities linking them to past embodied and multi-sensory experiences. It is ultimately theorised how these mnemonic devices operate as creative forms of inquiry that overcome the pandemic consequences, extra-stimulating our cognitive capabilities to reflect on prior and possible socio-material interactions.

Cuerpo y cosificación sexual: percepciones en la comunidad indígena shuar

RESUMEN Objetivo: Traer a la comunidad científica las voces del pueblo Shuar, sus percepciones sobre los cuerpos y la cosificación sexual por la influencia de occidente en el contexto de la colonización y la globalización. Material y Método: Se aplicó el paradigma de investigación interpretativo, con enfoque cualitativo, mediante entrevistas en profundidad y un grupo focal. La muestra se seleccionó por conveniencia; participaron 24 personas: hombres y mujeres shuar del Cantón Morona entre los 14 a 60 años que firmaron consentimientos informados. Los discursos de los informantes fueron grabados, transcritos y procesados en Atlas ti, y analizados por las investigadoras. Resultados: Las personas shuar que participaron en la investigación perciben que la comunidad shuar ha sido absorbida por la lógica de occidente; reconocen la ideología capitalista globalizada por el consumo y materialismo; perciben que los cuerpos femeninos shuar, pero también los masculinos, se han cosificado, que los imaginarios juveniles apuntan hacia lo sensual y erótico, menos biológico; a la vez creen que los comportamientos sexuales han sido modificados por la influencia de la pornografía; evidencian la existencia de pornografía exótica; creen que la prostitución es abundante en la etnia shuar, pues ofrece una oportunidad económica y es mayormente voluntaria; se evidencia una conciencia social de resistencia de los líderes comunitarios y la generación adulta. Conclusiones: Los principales resultados dieron cuenta de una nueva conceptualización del cuerpo; se manifestó la cosificación sexual por la prostitución y pornografía.

ABSTRACT Objective: To present to the scientific community the voices of the Shuar people, their perceptions about bodies and sexual objectification caused by the influence of the Western World in the context of colonization and globalization. Material and Method: The interpretative research paradigm was used, with a qualitative approach, through in-depth interviews and a focus group. The sample was selected by convenience; 24 people participated: Shuar men and women from the Morona Canton in Ecuador, between the ages of 14 and 60, who had previously signed informed consents. The informants' responses were recorded, transcribed, processed in Atlas.ti software, and analyzed by the researchers. Results: The Shuar people who participated in the research perceive that their community has been absorbed by the logic of the Western World; they acknowledge the globalized capitalist ideology of consumption and materialism; they perceive that the Shuar female bodies, but also the male ones, have been objectified; that the juvenile mindset focuses more on eroticism and less in biological aspects; they also believe that sexual behaviors have been modified by the influence of pornography, evidenced by the existence of exotic pornography; they believe that prostitution is abundant in the Shuar ethnic group because it offers an economic opportunity and is mostly voluntary; a social awareness of resistance emerges from community leaders and the adult generation. Conclusions: The main results showed a new conceptualization of the body; sexual objectification was manifested by prostitution and pornography.

RESUMO Objetivo: Apresentar à comunidade científica as vozes do povo Shuar, suas percepções sobre os corpos e a objetificação sexual causada pela influência do mundo ocidental no contexto da colonização e globalização. Material e Método: Aplicou-se o paradigma interpretativo de pesquisa, com uma abordagem qualitativa, por meio de entrevistas em profundidade e um grupo focal. A amostra foi selecionada por conveniência e participaram 24 pessoas: homens e mulheres Shuar do cantão de Morona no Equador, com idades entre 14 e 60 anos que haviam assinado previamente o consentimento informado. As respostas dos informantes foram gravadas, transcritas e processadas no programa Atlas.ti, e analisadas pelas pesquisadoras. Resultados: O povo Shuar que participou da pesquisa percebe que a comunidade foi absorvida pela lógica do Ocidente, reconhece a ideologia capitalista globalizada do consumo e materialismo; percebe que os corpos femininos Shuar, mas também os masculinos foram objetificados e que o imaginário juvenil se concentra mais no erotismo e menos nos aspectos biológicos; também acredita que os comportamentos sexuais foram modificados pela influência da pornografia, evidenciada pela existência de pornografia exótica; acredita que a prostituição é abundante no grupo étnico já que oferece uma oportunidade económica e é principalmente voluntária; uma consciência social de resistência emerge dos líderes comunitários e da geração adulta. Conclusões: Os principais resultados mostraram uma nova conceituação do corpo; a objetificação sexual foi manifestada pela prostituição e pornografia.

Hunting and hallucinogens: The use psychoactive and other plants to improve the hunting ability of dogs.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Cultures throughout the world give plants to their dogs in order to improve hunting success. These practices are best developed in lowland Ecuador and Peru. There is no experimental evidence for the efficacy of these practices nor critical reviews that consider possible pharmacological effects on dogs based on the chemistry of the ethnoverterinary plants. AIM: This review has three specific aims: (1) determine what plants the Ecuadorian Shuar and Quichua give to dogs to improve their hunting abilities, (2) determine what plants other cultures give to dogs for the same purpose, and (3) assess the possible pharmacological basis for the use of these plants, particularly the psychoactive ones. METHODS: We gathered Shuar (Province of Morona-Santiago) and Quichua (Napo and Orellano Provinces) data from our previous publications and field notes. All specimens were vouchered and deposited in QCNE with duplicates sent to NY and MO. Data presented from other cultures derived from published studies on ethnoveterinary medicine. Species names were updated, when necessary, and family assignments follow APG III (Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, 2009. An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III. Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 161, 105-121). Chemical data were found using PubMed and SciFinder. RESULTS: The Shuar and Quichua of Ecuador use at least 22 species for ethnoveterinary purposes, including all but one of their principal hallucinogens. Literature surveys identified 43 species used in other cultures to improve hunting ability. No published studies have examined the pharmacological active of these plant species in dogs. We, thus, combined phytochemical data with the ethnobotanical reports of each plant and then classified each species into a likely pharmacological category: depuratives/deodorant, olfactory sensitizer, ophthalmic, or psychoactive. CONCLUSIONS: The use of psychoactive substances to improve a dog׳s hunting ability seems counterintuitive, yet its prevalence suggests that it is both adaptive and that it has an underlying pharmacological explanation. We hypothesize that hallucinogenic plants alter perception in hunting dogs by diminishing extraneous signals and by enhancing sensory perception (most likely olfaction) that is directly involved in the detection and capture of game. If this is true, plant substances also might enhance the ability of dogs to detect explosives, drugs, human remains, or other targets for which they are valued.