Monthly Archives: September 2010

Filming with Broad Strokes

Posted on September 30, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

The Liminal Space My daughter Rachel and I went to see the new documentary Reel Injun last evening, a film about Indians in cinema. It’s an ideal entree for an introduction for anyone unfamiliar with the boatload of books on … Continue reading →

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Faith and science

Posted on September 25, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

Buy a piece of spirituality Philosophers have long struggled with the intersection of their belief systems that embrace religion and their attachments to science. Not surprisingly most Americans say they are religious: only about 15% consider themselves atheists or agnostic, … Continue reading →

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Framing science

Posted on September 23, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

Is science naked? Western science is framed as being devoid of cultural values and is, in fact, perceived as “naked.” Anthropologist Laura Nader writes that naked science is “stripped of its ideologized vestments” and I argue that Western science is … Continue reading →

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Navigating tropes

Posted on September 20, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

What informs us? Close your eyes for 30 seconds: what comes to mind when I ask you to think about American Indians and their colonizers? The word “colonizer” is loaded right up front, and you probably envision explorers—what some would … Continue reading →

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Bridging streams

Posted on September 17, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

Telling stories This week I’ve been writing about the atomistic nature of Western science which I argue isn’t a bad thing: in fact it’s a useful tool for problem solving. Problem is scientists often believe this is the only problem-solving … Continue reading →

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Holism and the Big Cheese

Posted on September 15, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

Comparing lenses Thinking about Native science means thinking about western science, and forces you to examine holism and reductionism. Once a student told me about a course she took on time management, and said the instructor recommended the Swiss cheese … Continue reading →

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The identity dialectic

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

How is identity formed? In the past few months I’ve been consumed with writing about identity. Often it seems the more I read the less I know, but I carry on despite my deficits.

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Owning the past

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

“And the scientists cannot accept the fact that just because it’s not written down in a book, it’s not fact. It’s fact to me, because I live it every day.” Continue reading →

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When some values prevail and others fail

Posted on September 7, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

Scientific supremacy Writing a book chapter on mass media and American Indians brings sharply into focus our western love of science.

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News and the scientific approach

Posted on September 5, 2010 by Cynthia Coleman Emery

Objectivity Journalism textbooks take writing seriously and promote an objective style of reporting information. The concept makes perfect sense when, as a reader, you want to make your own judgments about an event—an election, a soccer game, a police shooting—rather … Continue reading →

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