Reminder: Anthropology in Practice Has Moved

Why are you still hanging around here? Come join me at the new Scientific American blog network!

blogs.scientificamerican.com/anthropology-in-practice

(Note: If you were subscribed through the old RSS feed, you should not be affected.)

Communicating Meaning Online: A Digital Expression of Theory of Mind

© Creative Commons Attribution 2.0

Note: This post originally appeared on Scientific American.

The growth of email, instant messaging, texting, and various other digitally-mediated communicative tools (DMC) has been rapid and pervasive. The majority of people today are comfortable enough to use these communicative tools on a daily basis, particularly among younger generations. DMC appears to be a preferred means of communication. But the popularity of DMC forces us to deal with its main problem: How do these users clarify their meaning, intent, and desires?

Details About the Move to Scientific American (and More)

If you're wondering why things here at Anthropology in Practice have been uncharacteristically quiet this past week, it's because AiP has a new home on the just launched Scientific American blog network! For details about the launch (and if you have the time), you can read community manager Bora Zivkovic's thorough introduction to the new network and its fantastic line-up of writers.

So what does this mean for www.anthropologyinpractice.com? I'll be re-posting my SciAm material (with a 48-hour delay) mainly for archival purposes but also to hold onto this space. However, there are a slew of new links that you may want to take note of:

• The new URL for AiP: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/anthropology-in-practice/
• The new URL for AiP's Feed: http://rss.sciam.com/anthropology-in-practice/feed

Note: Existing subscribers, particularly those who get AiP updates via email, should not experience an interruption in feed delivery. However, existing subscribers who do not rely on email updates, are encouraged to update to the new feed.

• The URL for the SciAm blog network homepage: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/home
• The URL for the combined network Feed: http://rss.sciam.com/all-blogs/feed

In case you missed it, AiP's first post went up on Thursday at high-noon (cue the O.K. Corral music) titled, "Shifting Stigmas: The Act of Crying in Public":

The City That Never Sleeps is also a City That Cries On-the-Go When Necessary: on the subway or the commuter rail, in a park, or while walking down the street, do these private moments become a part of the public experience in part because there aren’t enough private spaces? If this is the case, then why does public crying still feel, well, private?

You can read the rest here.

It was an exceptionally busy week, and Bora has a nice round up on network activities. As Bora notes, the new bloggers are on a posting schedule for the first two-weeks. You can expect AiP to resume business-as-usual after July 15th.

AiP in the Press

The launch of the Scientific American blog network has attracted a lot of attention—understandably as Bora Zivkovic has done an amazing job assembling a very diverse group of writers. Thanks very much to the following outlets for their recognition of AiP during this move:

• The Mary Sue: The Scientific American Introduces Everybody to About a Zillion Women in the Sciences
• SciCrunch (Science 3.0): SciAm Blogs—The details
• Labcoat Life (Nature): Scientific American's New Science Blogging Network Launches (Yes!)
• Denim and Tweed: Science online, socially un-contagious edition 
• Though incorrectly associated with (the fabulous) Melody Dye, AiP also received a nice mention from the National Association of Science Writers

This is definitely an exciting time, and I look forward to seeing AiP grow in this new venue.

Shifting Stigmas: The Act of Crying in Public

Jimmy Dugan firmly established that there’s no crying in baseball. But what about in public? In New York City, at some point or another you’re going to encounter a crying person—in fact, you could even be the crier. A few weeks ago, I boarded the subway for a short trip uptown. It was the middle of the day and the car was relatively empty, so I grabbed a seat, put my Metrocard away, and quickly found myself absorbed in detangling my headphones from the mess in my bag. After a few minutes, I felt the distinct sensation of being watched. Looking up, I met the eyes of man who was clearly distraught. It took me a second to realize that he had been crying. His cheeks were red and blotchy and the still wet splotches on his blue t-shirt suggested that I had interrupted some private grief. His hand was pressed tightly over his mouth, and as we regarded one another, his eyes began to fill with tears once more. What do I do? I asked myself. Apparently, nothing—the other passengers in the car did their best to avoid looking at him, busying themselves with eReaders, Angry Birds, and even a good old-fashioned newspaper. But it was too late for me to pretend I hadn’t seen. He knew. And as he roughly brushed away his tears and ran his hands through his hair to feign some sort of normalcy, I was struck by how quickly the moment changed. He went from being vulnerable to utterly guarded in a matter of seconds, adopting the aloofness that New York City commuters wear so expertly. There was no embarrassment or trace of shame in his face, however he may have felt inside. And he nodded to me slightly as stood to exit at his stop, his cheeks still flushed and his shirt still marked by damp spots. The City That Never Sleeps is also a City That Cries On-the-Go When Necessary: on the subway or the commuter rail, in a park, or while walking down the street, do these private moments become a part of the public experience in part because there aren’t enough private spaces? If this is the case, then why does public crying still feel, well, private?

Anthropology in Practice Joins Scientific American

The time has finally come for me to share a secret with you that I've been keeping for months: AiP is moving! To the new Scientific American blog network!The community manager Bora Zivkovic has written an extensive introduction to the new network that also discusses who the new members are—it's worth the read.

The move is a bittersweet one. I am excited to be able share the goals of this blog with a wider audience, but this corner of the Internet has been my home for almost two years. I have selected every element contained in this venue, and crafted the experience for my readers with patience and a fair amount of my heart as well—because this enterprise has always meant a great deal to me. My writing has always been an extension of myself and good friends can likely find traces of their influence in the posts on AiP. Questions they've posed, discussions we've had over coffee and beer—anything and everything can be fodder for writing (which S knows so well). Moments of joy, frustration, love, and even heartbreak are littered throughout this blog, and they serve as a reminder that writing is an intimate exercise. And anthropology in particular, which invites a fair amount of introspection, only enhances this sort of intimacy.

So as I take a final look around here, surveying the packed boxes, I am quite honestly overwhelmed as to how far we have come together, Readers—for make no mistake, this is your journey as well. I may have done the heavy lifting, but you came, time and time again. You read, digested, and shared my thoughts. You shared your own. And I have gotten to know a few of you quite well. Thank you for your support. In particular, thank you to those of you who know me personally, and supported me in the early days of writing. While you may not comment publicly, your support has never wavered, and I hope you know how much it has meant to me to see AiP on your iGoogle pages, on the home page of your phones, and to see your Facebook shares.

I hope you will join me at my new digs, which have also been carefully crafted by the SciAm editors. If you subscribed via the RSS, please be sure to update your feed. I would hate to lose any of you in the process of this move.

I am delighted to announce that many friends will also call the SciAm network home, including Eric Michael Johnson, Kevin Zelnio, Hannah Waters, Janet Stemwedel, Jason Goldman, Kathryn Clancy, and SciCurious. But the entire network is a robust and diverse one, and I encourage you to visit and poke around—you may find new material for your RSS feeds. Over the next two weeks, we'll be "unpacking," so please bear with us.

See you on the other side. If you want to bring over a box or two, I'd be much obliged. Here's to whatever adventures await us.

And as always, thanks for reading.

- Krystal