Congo vs. Amazon

Angrist · 07-23-2009, 05:39 AM

Which tropical jungle river?

The African Congo river:

Length: 4,700 km or 3,000 miles.

The South-American Amazon river:

Length: 6,400 km or 4,000 miles.

Professor S · 07-23-2009, 08:19 AM

Amazon, it supports the most primitive culture known to man, the Yanomamo tribe.

Teuthida · 07-23-2009, 09:16 AM

Just read up on them. Not sure how they'd be considered primitive.

Thought you might have been referring to the Piraha at first. They have no concept of numbers, unable to count higher than two (there's one, two, and many), no words for colors, no written language, no collective memory going back more than two generations, tell no fictional stories, have no art, no creation myths. A lot of other weird stuff too. Fascinating people. A number of articles about their lack of numbers, but this covers their culture pretty succinctly:

http://www.jcrows.com/withoutnumbers.html

Angrist · 07-23-2009, 10:36 AM

Michael Crichton says that the Congo is way more diverse than the Amazon. It houses more plants and animals.
Congo was a great moody book, so right now I want to see the Congo more.

Combine 017 · 07-23-2009, 05:08 PM

I thought this was a monster vs thread at first.

Angrist · 07-23-2009, 05:15 PM

We could ask Typhoid to do a nature war. Machu Picchu vs the Himalayas. Vesuvius vs El Chichon. Snow vs Rain. Sun vs Moon.

Swan · 07-24-2009, 01:15 AM

What about Machhu vs Picchu?

That sounds like a pokebattle.

I voted Congo on account of the Crichton book as well. Oh killer apes

Professor S · 07-24-2009, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teuthida

Just read up on them. Not sure how they'd be considered primitive.

Thought you might have been referring to the Piraha at first. They have no concept of numbers, unable to count higher than two (there's one, two, and many), no words for colors, no written language, no collective memory going back more than two generations, tell no fictional stories, have no art, no creation myths. A lot of other weird stuff too. Fascinating people. A number of articles about their lack of numbers, but this covers their culture pretty succinctly:

http://www.jcrows.com/withoutnumbers.html

Not primtive? You're being sarcastic, right? You just described how primitive they are.

Teuthida · 07-24-2009, 09:07 AM

You said Yanomamo. I was describing the Piraha.

Professor S · 07-24-2009, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teuthida

You said Yanomamo. I was describing the Piraha.

Oh, thought you said Pirahna (sp?), like the fish.

Yeah, sound like the Piraha are more primitive. Keep in mind I learned about the Yanomamo in 1998(?) when I was in college, so opinion might have changed since then.

They WHISTLE THEIR LANGUAGE?? Thats just awesome.