Skip to content

Southern Fried Science

Over 15 years of ocean science and conservation online

  • Home
  • About SFS
  • Authors
  • Support SFS

Tag: BBC

The Gentle Tasaday: An anthropological hoax

Posted on September 6, 2010September 7, 2010 By Bluegrass Blue Crab 7 Comments on The Gentle Tasaday: An anthropological hoax
Uncategorized

In 1971, a group of people known as the Tasaday were discovered on a remote island of the Phillipines known as Mindanao. They wore leafy loincloths and subsisted off what the forest could provide, possessing no knowledge of tobacco, corn, rice, or domesticated animals. They spoke a new dialect of Malay-Philipino language that included no word for outsiders, war, weapon, or enemy, giving them the title ‘The Gentle Tasaday’. The family unit was nuclear and the community has no formal organization or government outside of some loose food-sharing networks.

Today, Tasaday life is way different and matches more modern tribal life in the Phillipines, as documented on their website. The question is, however, whether this modernization was normal development post-contact or whether there was a hoax involved.

Read More “The Gentle Tasaday: An anthropological hoax” »

Popular Posts

I can serve on your graduate thesis committee. Here’s what you can expect of me, and what I expect in return.I can serve on your graduate thesis committee. Here’s what you can expect of me, and what I expect in return.October 16, 2025David Shiffman
5 things you need to know about the proposed European Union shark finning ban, including how you can helpSeptember 17, 2012David Shiffman
Severely injured great white shark found, are scientists responsible?Severely injured great white shark found, are scientists responsible?March 29, 2011David Shiffman
Why the new Trump order to shoot wolves is both illegal and a dreadful precedent for endangered speciesWhy the new Trump order to shoot wolves is both illegal and a dreadful precedent for endangered speciesSeptember 5, 2026Ali Gaster
That's not a blobfish: Deep Sea Social Media is Flooded by AI SlopThat's not a blobfish: Deep Sea Social Media is Flooded by AI SlopDecember 19, 2025Andrew Thaler
13 wrong things about sharks that conservation advocates should stop saying in 2013 (and what they should say instead)December 27, 2012David Shiffman
What is a Sand Shark?What is a Sand Shark?November 12, 2017Chuck Bangley
Getting a sense of porpoiseJanuary 20, 2009Andrew Thaler
U.S. government: shark fin bans "significantly undermine conservation and management of Federal shark fisheries"May 2, 2013David Shiffman
What Ocean Ramsey does is not shark science or conservation: some brief thoughts on "the Shark Whisperer" documentaryWhat Ocean Ramsey does is not shark science or conservation: some brief thoughts on "the Shark Whisperer" documentaryJuly 2, 2025David Shiffman
Subscribe to our RSS Feed for updates whenever new articles are published.

We recommend Feedly for RSS management. It's like Google Reader, except it still exists.

Southern Fried Science

  • Home
  • About SFS
  • Authors
  • Support SFS


If you enjoy Southern Fried Science, consider contributing to our Patreon campaign.

Copyright © 2026 Southern Fried Science.

Theme: Oceanly Premium by ScriptsTown