Comments on: Ethiopia http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/ Blog of P. Clint Rogers, PhD: Culture, Training, and Technology Specialist Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:30:02 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.1.3 By: Joseph http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2540 Joseph Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:49:49 +0000 http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2540 Very cool. You have so many remarkable opportunities to experience new cultures. I think that technically the new millenium should begin in 2001 (unless their reference year is considered the year 0... a possibility if they start their time at 0 o'clock). I like the old biblical time system of dividing the daylight into 12 hours (of different length, depending on the time of year) and then dividing the night into 4 watches. Although I don't suppose it's technically a time system, the Portuguese seemed very strict about always saying "good-day" until exactly noon, whereupon it became "good-afternoon" until 6 pm. Then it was "good-evening". They correct you if you get it wrong. Many people there referred to time on a 24-hour scale. I never did get used to hearing that something happened at 15 o'clock. Very cool. You have so many remarkable opportunities to experience new cultures. I think that technically the new millenium should begin in 2001 (unless their reference year is considered the year 0… a possibility if they start their time at 0 o’clock). I like the old biblical time system of dividing the daylight into 12 hours (of different length, depending on the time of year) and then dividing the night into 4 watches. Although I don’t suppose it’s technically a time system, the Portuguese seemed very strict about always saying “good-day” until exactly noon, whereupon it became “good-afternoon” until 6 pm. Then it was “good-evening”. They correct you if you get it wrong. Many people there referred to time on a 24-hour scale. I never did get used to hearing that something happened at 15 o’clock.

]]> By: Clint http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2583 Clint Fri, 08 Aug 2008 17:24:18 +0000 http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2583 Joseph, I never knew about the biblical way of keeping time before. That is interesting. It seems like a lot of those systems (including the ones I have found in Africa) utilized the daylight hours as best they could. I wonder if when electricity is introduced, it has one of the biggest influences on altering a civilizations perception of time? Speaking of experiencing other cultures, one of the things that is still hard to fully wrap my mind around is how differently we perceive and experience time. Joseph, I never knew about the biblical way of keeping time before. That is interesting. It seems like a lot of those systems (including the ones I have found in Africa) utilized the daylight hours as best they could. I wonder if when electricity is introduced, it has one of the biggest influences on altering a civilizations perception of time?

Speaking of experiencing other cultures, one of the things that is still hard to fully wrap my mind around is how differently we perceive and experience time.

]]> By: Camille http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2548 Camille Fri, 08 Aug 2008 17:48:28 +0000 http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2548 We should all "Take Care"... I loved that picture. Also, how did Y2K go there... I mean they did have a practice run with the rest of the world, so I'm expecting great things. :) We should all “Take Care”… I loved that picture. Also, how did Y2K go there… I mean they did have a practice run with the rest of the world, so I’m expecting great things. :)

]]> By: Clint http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2584 Clint Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:26:54 +0000 http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2584 Camille - ha! I didn't even think about that. I should have asked. My guess is that most of the Y2K hype was because of computers - and since they are still a relative rarity in Ethiopia, and mostly are imported, that Y2K went relatively unnoticed for them. :) Camille - ha! I didn’t even think about that. I should have asked.
My guess is that most of the Y2K hype was because of computers - and since they are still a relative rarity in Ethiopia, and mostly are imported, that Y2K went relatively unnoticed for them. :)

]]> By: VeNicia http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2650 VeNicia Sat, 30 Aug 2008 02:30:23 +0000 http://www.clintrogersonline.com/blog/2008/08/06/ethiopia/#comment-2650 I've always imagined other African countries as more "traditional" Africa (I think of Kenya first), so it's interesting to hear it's one of the least "morphed". And that it's green and has spicy food...I've never really put Ethiopia on my list of places I wanted to travel to until now. As far as time, the sunlight has always had a strong and noticeable effect on me. I love waking up with the sun and, unless I close my blinds, I do. (But since I like it, I don't generally close the blinds.) Anyway, I've always thought it curious, and especially the first time I went camping I woke up at 4:30 as it got light and I felt so rejuvenated and peaceful waking up with the sun. It's made me wonder about pre-electric cultures and how they undoubtedly functioned dependent on daylight, and used candles sparingly, so probably went to bed a lot earlier than we tend to in our culture. I've heard that an hour of sleep before midnight is worth two after, and wonder how our erratic sleep habits effect our health in comparison to the older cultures. (Though our life expectancy is longer now than ever...) I learned that when light is received by the retina it switches of the production of melatonin in the brain which is naturally produced at night making us sleepy. So people who are blind often have sleeping problems because their retinas don't detect light and their melatonin production is effected.(And unrelated but interesting--my mom loved studying health and the body--it's tryptophan in turkey that helps the body produce niacin which helps produce seratonin which makes us feel calm and therefore sleepy after Thanksgiving dinner.) Funny story for optional reading: I love the story my dad tells about getting electricity. (He was born in the 2-room house where his dad was also born, which was built by my great-grandfather in Almo, ID after coming from England. Don't ask me why he stopped in brown, dusty Almo, Idaho coming from England. Anywho.) The family watched as the "electrician" installed a naked bulb in the center of the ceiling...and turned up the exposed wires before he left so when they "turned on the juice" it wouldn't leak out. My grandpa made sure there was a bucket under the light bulb that night so they wouldn't risk any spills. You should hear my dad tell it. (The "first fridge" story is funny, too.) It's usually followed with some sort of mild comment about he got out of that place as soon as he could. I’ve always imagined other African countries as more “traditional” Africa (I think of Kenya first), so it’s interesting to hear it’s one of the least “morphed”. And that it’s green and has spicy food…I’ve never really put Ethiopia on my list of places I wanted to travel to until now.

As far as time, the sunlight has always had a strong and noticeable effect on me. I love waking up with the sun and, unless I close my blinds, I do. (But since I like it, I don’t generally close the blinds.) Anyway, I’ve always thought it curious, and especially the first time I went camping I woke up at 4:30 as it got light and I felt so rejuvenated and peaceful waking up with the sun. It’s made me wonder about pre-electric cultures and how they undoubtedly functioned dependent on daylight, and used candles sparingly, so probably went to bed a lot earlier than we tend to in our culture. I’ve heard that an hour of sleep before midnight is worth two after, and wonder how our erratic sleep habits effect our health in comparison to the older cultures. (Though our life expectancy is longer now than ever…) I learned that when light is received by the retina it switches of the production of melatonin in the brain which is naturally produced at night making us sleepy. So people who are blind often have sleeping problems because their retinas don’t detect light and their melatonin production is effected.(And unrelated but interesting–my mom loved studying health and the body–it’s tryptophan in turkey that helps the body produce niacin which helps produce seratonin which makes us feel calm and therefore sleepy after Thanksgiving dinner.)

Funny story for optional reading: I love the story my dad tells about getting electricity. (He was born in the 2-room house where his dad was also born, which was built by my great-grandfather in Almo, ID after coming from England. Don’t ask me why he stopped in brown, dusty Almo, Idaho coming from England. Anywho.) The family watched as the “electrician” installed a naked bulb in the center of the ceiling…and turned up the exposed wires before he left so when they “turned on the juice” it wouldn’t leak out. My grandpa made sure there was a bucket under the light bulb that night so they wouldn’t risk any spills. You should hear my dad tell it. (The “first fridge” story is funny, too.) It’s usually followed with some sort of mild comment about he got out of that place as soon as he could.

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