Author: Kerim

P. Kerim Friedman is a professor in the Department of Ethnic Relations and Cultures at National Dong Hwa University in Taiwan. His research explores language revitalization efforts among indigenous Taiwanese, looking at the relationship between language ideology, indigeneity, and political economy. An ethnographic filmmaker, he co-produced the Jean Rouch award-winning documentary, ‘Please Don’t Beat Me, Sir!’ about a street theater troupe from one of India’s Denotified and Nomadic Tribes (DNTs).

kerim.oxus.net/

Looking back, looking forward

By Kerim | December 20, 2023

The blog may be shutting down, but I’m not! I started blogging in 2001 and my personal blog, Keywords, is still going strong. Check out this recent post about the movie Killers of the Flower Moon. I’ve also started a newsletter, Triptych. I wanted to recreate the joy and excitement I used to feel in …

Sunset

By Kerim | December 13, 2023

Dear readers, We are sorry to say that after eighteen years, we are going to be shutting down this blog at the end of the year. We will write a longer farewell post later on, but we wanted to announce that we are closing this site and project down at the end of this year. …

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Anthro Boycott 2.0

By Kerim | April 9, 2023

Responding to the petition members submitted on March 3, the American Anthropological Association has scheduled a vote on the boycott of Israeli academic institutions from June 15-30. Make sure your AAA membership is active and watch your email for information about how to vote. In 2015 a similar resolution “narrowly missed adoption in the subsequent …

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In 2023, Question Everything

By Kerim | January 1, 2023

Here’s a New Year’s Resolution for everyone for 2023: Question everything about how we teach, do research, and select students or job applicants. – Question grades – Question letters of recommendation – Question peer review What else should we question about academia this year? (Sorry for the paywalled links, I usually try to avoid them, …

What makes a job ad “terrible”?

By Kerim | December 13, 2022

On September 18, 2021, Dada Docot launched what she called “Search for 2021 Worst Anthro Job Ads.” Taking place on Twitter, this “contest” brought public attention to conversations that often happen in private between friends and colleagues who may bemoan the state of the job market and the endlessly multiplying requirements of job ads but …

Tips for Better Online Teaching

By Kerim | May 15, 2021

As I write this, colleges in Taiwan are switching to online learning for the first time since the pandemic started. This is because, for most of the past year, Taiwan was able to contain the pandemic at the border. This past week, however, marks the first time ever that there has been sustained local transmission …

Roam If You Want To

By Kerim | May 5, 2020

You already know how to use Roam Research, the new note taking app taking the internet by storm. You don’t need to follow the #roamcult hashtag on Twitter, or watch the dozens of YouTube explainer videos in order to start using Roam. If you’ve used Wikipedia (with its web of interlinked definitions), an outliner (with …

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COVID-19 Potpourri

By Kerim | March 13, 2020

The WHO declared that COVID-19 is now officially a “pandemic.” It should be: "COVID-19 declared a pandemic by WHOM." — John Gemberling (@Gemberlicking) March 11, 2020 While this news came as a shock to some, many feel that the WHO should have made the announcement weeks ago. Things are moving fast and it can feel …

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Inventing the Way of Tea in Taiwan

By Kerim | December 8, 2019

One never knows how to read the NY Times when it comes to their reporting on the lifestyles of the one-percenters, but not far into a recent cringe-worthy NY Times article about a tea ceremony being held in California I began to suspect that the author was not on the same side as her subjects. …