Why the Na'vi have long hair

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[Vur’evenge]

"Hair is one of the most important ways **humans have of presenting themselves, being one of the parts of their body which is easiest to manipulate. Also, having short, cut hair (or a shaven head) is often viewed as being under society's control, such as while in prison or as punishment for a crime, while males having long hair signifies being outside of the mainstream."

Synnott, Anthony (September 1987), "Shame and Glory: A Sociology of Hair", The British Journal of Sociology 38 (3): 381–413

**humans!  Intriguing for me to ponder if a sentient species like the Na'vi with group sensibilities and affinities might develop similar cultural/sociological idiosyncrasies about hairstyles.

JSTOR is one of those repository sites for which I always wish I had institutional access. Often this sends me running to the local reference librarian.  I love sitting on the floor between stacks in libraries with piles of books around me.   Footnotes are friends, somebody somewhere knows the answer to any question I care to ask.
 

[Seze Mune]

I had to snicker at the rapid foil headgear rebuttal to Seze's original post.  End of discussion is it?    Lunatic fringe! Tinfoil hattery! Thinly-veiled loaded language... variations on an ad hominem theme...   (snicker becomes guffaw.)  Galileo was considered a crank, fringe nut-job in his day.   It always feels like I'm breathing rareified air when such barbs are flung in my direction.   I hope there's comfort to be had in such profound certainty.  My preference is to remain uncertain and curious about all things called "incredible".

Just sayin'...

That's my standard operating procedure too, to remain open and curious about things.  Without an open and curious attitude, science itself would never have progressed.  Interestingly, while science seems to have bumped and jolted along a progressive pathway, I do not think humankind itself has kept pace.  The human heart, mind, and culture seem unable to keep up with technology and science is therefore harnessed for far less evolved purposes than anyone cares to admit. That's one of the strongest subplots in Avatar, ironically.

Onward! Irayo ma Seze for the fascinating link.  It has me thinking about the few times in my adult life when somebody, AKA my mother, talked me into cutting my hair short... and how completely wrong it felt when I did.  I felt unwell. It went beyond simple "like" of long hair.  It was a whole-being response. Also was thinking about the biblical Samson. And then I've read that our measurable personal energetic fields extend beyond our physical bodies.  I can't recall the distance at the moment.  Will look it up.

I read that in dreams, hair symbolizes strength and long hair is linked specifically with strength of all kinds, psychological and physical and even intellectual.  Dream symbols are personal though, so while this may be generally true for most, it isn't necessarily true for any given individual.

As for energetic fields, the electromagnetic radiation of the heart is supposed to be detectable up to six feet from one's body. That doesn't mean the field ends there, it means our instruments' sensitivity ends there.

You've got me thinking of many things.  I love that. "Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

Ah, the White Queen! Lewis Carroll had such a fantastic imagination......and it probably came from doing exactly that!   

Irayo seiyi, ma Vur'evenge - you made my day!!

[Human No More]

There's one major disadvantage. Long hair gets caught on stuff. We have screws on the backs of our school desks, and my hair is constantly getting snagged.  Now just imagine jumping off a tree and your hair gets tangled by a branch. There you are, dangling in mid-air. 

Not to mention people are always touching long hair. Especially boys. If you like flowing locks so much, get a wig. 

That's why they braid it. That's why I keep my hair tied back most of the time, at home, asleep and at work. If it was truly impractical, it wouldn't have been so prominent.

I already have really long hair and like it on people, although I wish mine was longer

I had to snicker at the rapid foil headgear rebuttal to Seze's original post.  End of discussion is it?    Lunatic fringe! Tinfoil hattery! Thinly-veiled loaded language... variations on an ad hominem theme...   (snicker becomes guffaw.)  Galileo was considered a crank, fringe nut-job in his day.   It always feels like I'm breathing rareified air when such barbs are flung in my direction.   I hope there's comfort to be had in such profound certainty.  My preference is to remain uncertain and curious about all things called "incredible".

Just sayin'...

"That which can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence." I'm not even much of a Hitchens fan (hated his politics), but here he's right - bring some evidence to the table and it's a different story; that is how the scientific method works. It's openness to ideas, but not to blindly accept something because someone thought it up and they claim it fits.

"By all means let's be open-minded, but not so open-minded that our brains drop out."

I didn't mean to make it ad hominem at all, even if I was perhaps being a little derisive. I think that examining WHY something might be held or be true is critically important though. Galileo was only considered a lunatic due to the church's smear campaign, but regardless of that, the critical part was that he offered something that they didn't - proof to back up his assertion, and as such, he won out while geocentrisicm is a joke of the past. If someone said 'I used magic yesterday but never can again', people would think they're mad. If they said 'I used magic yesterday but can't again, but I did write down the future result of every football game for the next 100 years' that's more likely to be taken semi-seriously and examined, while if they said '...and I used it to make this perpetual motion machine', it is more so again.

That's my standard operating procedure too, to remain open and curious about things.  Without an open and curious attitude, science itself would never have progressed.  Interestingly, while science seems to have bumped and jolted along a progressive pathway, I do not think humankind itself has kept pace.  The human heart, mind, and culture seem unable to keep up with technology and science is therefore harnessed for far less evolved purposes than anyone cares to admit. That's one of the strongest subplots in Avatar, ironically.

According to you - that's the beauty of human minds, people see what they personally want to, where I'd point out that it's more about how it's how it's used and the people behind something that matter, as Jake could haver have stopped the marines without his avatar.

Onward! Irayo ma Seze for the fascinating link.  It has me thinking about the few times in my adult life when somebody, AKA my mother, talked me into cutting my hair short... and how completely wrong it felt when I did.  I felt unwell.

That often happens when someone is forced into something against their will... especially when it's something that affects their perception of themselves, it's to be understood. I haven't had short hair in about 8 years, and I never will. I really understand though, and IF the study in the OP was actually true on any level (unlikely), such an effect may well be in play.

I read that in dreams, hair symbolizes strength and long hair is linked specifically with strength of all kinds, psychological and physical and even intellectual.  Dream symbols are personal though, so while this may be generally true for most, it isn't necessarily true for any given individual.

Makes sense - after all, it's like my earlier post - hair has a definite evolutionary role, it's a symbol of health, of attainment and a positive indicator, like markings or large tails in some other species, and as such, can gain associations much like other such characteristics.

As for energetic fields, the electromagnetic radiation of the heart is supposed to be detectable up to six feet from one's body. That doesn't mean the field ends there, it means our instruments' sensitivity ends there.

Sensors that surpass humans in every manner and even have capabilities humans never have had (e.g. UV/IR radiation. Hair is amazing, but it's dead, the only sense it can do is when something touches it where the hair is physically moved and the touch is registered by the skin of the scalp and head/neck/back.

[Seze Mune]

WTH is HAIR SYNTONY?  While playing around with my browser, I came across an article which not only mentioned hair syntony, but referenced AVATAR!! I'm pasting it here for your commentary:

"HAIR SYMBOLISM IN AVATAR

"In the movie Avatar you can find the most beautiful, meaningful and potent hair symbolism ever depicted and in 3D. The people connect with one another, the earth, and their power animal through their HAIR. They link via their hair. After twenty years of explaining the Hair Balancing concept to people, I can now say watch AVATAR for its hair symbolism. This is what HAIR BALANCING is about!! Balancing and CONNECTING each hair with one another, CONNECTING it with the whole person, or RECONNECTING it to the person's inner self, the person's immediate energy field and CONNECTING it with the larger energy field of the earth. With Hair Balancing, hair is treated as a COSMIC ANTENNA. Its energetic properties are refined as a means of communication on many levels." 

-- Linda Deslauriers

Hair Balancing Practitioner and Trainer

[Seze Mune]

This brings Albert Einstein to mind. I wondered if he ever said WHY he wore his hair long......to channel thoughts from the cosmos perhaps?    Well, in searching for the answer I came across this, supposedly from the Cornell University Library website:

General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology

Einstein Hair

Theodoros Kolyvaris, George Koutsoumbas, Eleftherios Papantonopoulos, George Siopsis
(Submitted on 1 Nov 2011)

    We consider a gravitating system of vanishing cosmological constant consisting of an electromagnetic field and a scalar field coupled to the Einstein tensor. A Reissner-Nordstr{\o}m black hole undergoes a second-order phase transition to a hairy black hole of generally anisotropic hair at a certain critical temperature which we compute. The no-hair theorem is evaded due to the coupling between the scalar field and the Einstein tensor ("Einstein hair"). We calculate explicitly the properties of a hairy black hole configuration near the critical temperature and show that it is energetically favorable over the corresponding Reissner-Nordstr{\o}m black hole.

Obviously, this is Greek to me.  

[Seze Mune]

The results of scientific hair conductivity testing are here.

I wonder if the results would be different if the hair were especially oily?

[Human No More]

...it's not actually correct though; their hair isn't anything to do with tsaheylu - it's just braided over the queue. Again, people have this ability to see what they want to.

That study isn't relevant to actual senses - electrical conductivity isn't spatial awareness. while in any case it was zero in most tests. You could get the same results from any number of organic compounds, which would also mean nothing.

[Vur’evenge]

WTH is HAIR SYNTONY?  While playing around with my browser, I came across an article which not only mentioned hair syntony, but referenced AVATAR!! I'm pasting it here for your commentary:

"HAIR SYMBOLISM IN AVATAR
"In the movie Avatar you can find the most beautiful, meaningful and potent hair symbolism ever depicted and in 3D. The people connect with one another, the earth, and their power animal through their HAIR. They link via their hair. After twenty years of explaining the Hair Balancing concept to people, I can now say watch AVATAR for its hair symbolism. This is what HAIR BALANCING is about!! Balancing and CONNECTING each hair with one another, CONNECTING it with the whole person, or RECONNECTING it to the person's inner self, the person's immediate energy field and CONNECTING it with the larger energy field of the earth. With Hair Balancing, hair is treated as a COSMIC ANTENNA. Its energetic properties are refined as a means of communication on many levels." 
-- Linda Deslauriers
Hair Balancing Practitioner and Trainer

WAY cool ma Seze, notwithstanding any lack of present day Earth-human-science supporting empirical evidence! Hyphens and quotations marks are friends. 

Horatio:
O day and night, but this is wondrous strange!

Hamlet:
And therefore as a stranger give it welcome.
There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
(Hamlet Act 1, scene 5, 159–167)

[Vur’evenge]

The results of scientific hair conductivity testing are here.
I wonder if the results would be different if the hair were especially oily?

From the link and...
Dr. Feughelman described keratin as a form of protonic semiconductor (as opposed to an electronic semiconductor)

An abstract: Proton semiconductors and energy transduction in biological systems

Transistor Made to Run on Protons : "Squid shell is the secret ingredient in a device that modulates a proton current"   Hmm... Squid shell, dead?

"21 September 2011—It turns out the transistor has a positive side. A team at the University of Washington, in Seattle, has created the first solid-state transistor that controls the flow of protons instead of electrons. The device could help pave the way for gadgets that can interface at a molecular level with living systems, since biology commonly employs protons and ions to perform work and transmit information."

Proton-based transistor could control biological processes - more on the U of W proton transistor...

Some of this is not for peeps at my "happy generalist" pay grade obviously, but I still like to follow the serpentine links and read. Hugely happy-making...

Edited to add quote from 2nd link and correct a typo,
and again to add related article link

[Vur’evenge]

Ah, the White Queen! Lewis Carroll had such a fantastic imagination......and it probably came from doing exactly that!   
Irayo seiyi, ma Vur'evenge - you made my day!!

And you mine. Irayo seiyi, ma Seze!  +1 

[Seze Mune]

...it's not actually correct though; their hair isn't anything to do with tsaheylu - it's just braided over the queue. Again, people have this ability to see what they want to.

Right. We weren't talking about tsaheylu anyway, were we?

That study isn't relevant to actual senses - electrical conductivity isn't spatial awareness. while in any case it was zero in most tests. You could get the same results from any number of organic compounds, which would also mean nothing.

I understand, but I think we're talking about different things.  I wasn't referring to tsaheylu which seems to be understood to be a ego-mediated process.

I found the anecdotal report to be interesting, and somewhat in keeping of what little I know of Native American culture. Since I think there is an arguable connection between Native American culture and Na'vi culture, I posted it. I have no dog in the fight here so I am not arguing to prove or disprove anything.  I'm just throwing out ideas out of curiosity.

If we're chatting about Indian scouts becoming aware of things that so-called civilized people are not, I think that's very possible for multiple reasons. They are sensitized to their environment in ways we aren't.  

If hair is part of the equation, imo, it may be because it is integral to their cultural self-concept.  If it's cut, then they believe they have lost a connection to their cultural identity and everything that entails.  If you believe something is true, then you are likely to behave as though it is.  Psychologists have done much testing in this regard, e.g. telling children that only brown-eyed children are intelligent and then voila, brown-eyed children do better on tests than blue-eyed ones. Later the scientists told the children they were wrong, only blue-eyed children were intelligent.  Guess who did better on tests?  You won't try to be better than you believe you can be, despite your potential.  That's why I believe Edison was correct when he said,"Whether you think you can, or whether you think you can't - you're right."  

So for other reasons than those supposed, I think it *could* be possible that cutting their hair impaired the Indians' abilities.

Now, as far as your (spatial) awareness is concerned - is awareness only located in the ego consciousness?  Is it located in the greater conscious awareness that is NOT the ego?  Is there awareness in the subconscious? How many times has your subconscious driven your car without your ego consciousness being aware of it til later - if at all?  Now, remember what has been proven about beliefs structuring your perceptions and performance...is it *possible* that subconscious or unconscious (even dreaming consciousness) can be aware of things which the EGO consciousness filters out because of its beliefs of what is possible and what is NOT possible?

Since this is a 'soft' science and is in its infancy, I'd have to say we don't really know.  But I do believe we are well served by becoming aware of our biases and prejudices and of opening our minds to the possibilities that things don't necessarily operate the way we *think* they do.  There is probably a quantum interface between our greater minds (not the tiny little ego) and whatever else is 'out there', but we can't say that for sure yet, but neither can we rule it out.  I'm waiting for some quantum psychologists to test this.

[Human No More]

...it's not actually correct though; their hair isn't anything to do with tsaheylu - it's just braided over the queue. Again, people have this ability to see what they want to.

Right. We weren't talking about tsaheylu anyway, were we?

The 'hair syntony' (whatever that's supposed to mean) link was, although that site is full of woo so should be taken with a large pinch of salt - reading between the lines, it appears to be a hairdresser who tries to be all mystical and woo-ey and probably charges a premium to match .

That study isn't relevant to actual senses - electrical conductivity isn't spatial awareness. while in any case it was zero in most tests. You could get the same results from any number of organic compounds, which would also mean nothing.

I understand, but I think we're talking about different things.  I wasn't referring to tsaheylu which seems to be understood to be a ego-mediated process.

It isn't facilitated in any way by hair though; the hair is just braided to protect the queue.

If we're chatting about Indian scouts becoming aware of things that so-called civilized people are not, I think that's very possible for multiple reasons. They are sensitized to their environment in ways we aren't.  

If hair is part of the equation, imo, it may be because it is integral to their cultural self-concept.  If it's cut, then they believe they have lost a connection to their cultural identity and everything that entails.  If you believe something is true, then you are likely to behave as though it is.  Psychologists have done much testing in this regard, e.g. telling children that only brown-eyed children are intelligent and then voila, brown-eyed children do better on tests than blue-eyed ones. Later the scientists told the children they were wrong, only blue-eyed children were intelligent.  Guess who did better on tests?  You won't try to be better than you believe you can be, despite your potential.  That's why I believe Edison was correct when he said,"Whether you think you can, or whether you think you can't - you're right."  

So for other reasons than those supposed, I think it *could* be possible that cutting their hair impaired the Indians' abilities.

Exactly. While they fail to provide anything resembling a source as these often do, if there WAS any such real study, that would well explain any correlation (although even in that case, I doubt it would have made an instant complete change between perfect and useless).

Now, as far as your (spatial) awareness is concerned - is awareness only located in the ego consciousness?  Is it located in the greater conscious awareness that is NOT the ego?  Is there awareness in the subconscious? How many times has your subconscious driven your car without your ego consciousness being aware of it til later - if at all?  Now, remember what has been proven about beliefs structuring your perceptions and performance...is it *possible* that subconscious or unconscious (even dreaming consciousness) can be aware of things which the EGO consciousness filters out because of its beliefs of what is possible and what is NOT possible?

From my understanding, it isn't located in any specific area like a process on an OS, it's more like a function form many processes - to use the same metaphor, some of these processes are active and visible while some are in the background, but they share resources to some degree.

Since this is a 'soft' science and is in its infancy, I'd have to say we don't really know.  But I do believe we are well served by becoming aware of our biases and prejudices and of opening our minds to the possibilities that things don't necessarily operate the way we *think* they do.  There is probably a quantum interface between our greater minds (not the tiny little ego) and whatever else is 'out there', but we can't say that for sure yet, but neither can we rule it out.  I'm waiting for some quantum psychologists to test this.

True enough, but we're also as well served if not more so by maintaining scepticism of ideas without proof, and examining any presented to determine its veracity and validity.
As far as I know, quantum psychology isn't a field yet, although by all means, implement it

[Seze Mune]

Since this is a 'soft' science and is in its infancy, I'd have to say we don't really know.  But I do believe we are well served by becoming aware of our biases and prejudices and of opening our minds to the possibilities that things don't necessarily operate the way we *think* they do.  There is probably a quantum interface between our greater minds (not the tiny little ego) and whatever else is 'out there', but we can't say that for sure yet, but neither can we rule it out.  I'm waiting for some quantum psychologists to test this.

True enough, but we're also as well served if not more so by maintaining skepticism of ideas without proof, and examining any presented to determine its veracity and validity.
As far as I know, quantum psychology isn't a field yet, although by all means, implement it

Oddly enough, you can google 'quantum psychology'.  Whether those hits prove it's an actual discipline......

I agree with examining ideas for veracity and validity.  I do that with political claims all the time.   But I will also say that mainstream science takes itself a little too seriously and often behaves as if its theories are facts.  This causes immense strife within the scientific community when something new comes up and actually serves to retard scientific progress for decades while entrenched scientists circle the wagons and shoot at the new concept and its messengers.

They forget what Richard Feynman said:  "It is in the admission of ignorance and the admission of uncertainty that there is a hope for the continuous motion of human beings in some direction that doesn't get confined, permanently blocked, as it has so many times before in various periods in the history of man."

[Seze Mune]

Feynman was a rogue, but he was a savvy one with a sense of humor.

He also said, "Science is the belief in the ignorance of experts."  Yeah, man!  

And while I'm on a roll, he also said, "If you thought science was certain - well, that is just an error on your part."

Plus......"We are trying to prove ourselves wrong as quickly as possible, because only in that way can we find progress."

        

[Vur’evenge]

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absense!