Category Self Image & Branding

What is the ‘Yo Heave Ho’ Theory?

Have you seen men trying to move a fallen tree or some other heavy object? They will make sounds like ‘Heave! Ho!’ or ‘Yo! Yo!’ According to the ‘Yo Heave Ho’ theory, language arose from the noises made by people who were engaged in a joint effort to do something like lifting a rock or moving a tree trunk.The people who put forward this theory say that as people worked together in a group, their physical effort produced rhythmic grunts, which over time, became chants, and then language.

What is a slit gong?

A slit gong is a type of drum that is hollowed out from a single log. The instrument is played by hitting the log with a stick.The walls of the log are not of the same thickness throughout. Different sounds are produced by hitting the log at different places. Sometimes, the slit gong is placed on a stand so that it vibrates more freely. The bigger the log, the louder the sound. Sometimes, the sound can be heard 8 kms away!  The slit gong was also one of the earliest instruments of communication. Messages sent from one village to another, would often be passed on by the drummer in the second village to another village further away. These ‘talking drums’ could therefore send messages for kilometres and kilometres in every direction.

What was the txalaparta, and where was it used?

The txalaparta was an instrument of communication that was used by the Basque people of Spain. Just as the Africans had their talking drums, these people have the txalaparta.The txalaparta was made of wooden planks leaning over logs. When hit with a special stick, it would produce a sound. The tone would vary according to where the instrument was hit. The Basque were thus able to send messages by producing different sounds on the txalaparta. Today, the txalaparta is no longer needed for communication. However, it is still widely used as a musical instrument.

What is cave art?

The earliest form of art that has been found is cave art. It is found on the walls of caves around the world from Europe and Asia to Africa and Australia.Cave art consists of pictures, mostly of the animals hunted by early man. The first pictures were probably drawn with charcoal. Later, clay, lime and charcoal were ground into a powder, and mixed with water or animal fats. So, the pictures became more colourful and life-like. Early artists made brushes with animal fur, feathers, twings, and moss. Sometimes they used just their hands to draw the pictures.Cave art represents one of the first attempts of man to communicate by means other than speech, and is therefore, an important milestone in human development

What is drum communication and who used it?

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Tha-ki-da… the –ki-da…tha! Rat-a-tat-tat… don’t you just love the sound of different types of drums?Did you know that early man used drums as a means of communication? In Africa, New Guinea and tropical America, people used drums to send messages to other tribes who were far away. Such drums were of-ten called ‘talking drums’. They could warn a tribe that a stranger was approaching, or could convey a message from one person to another. Of course, you had to understand the meaning of different beats to understand what the drums were trying to tell you!Drums played an important role, not just in communication, but also in cultural and religious rituals as well.                                

                                                                                                                                                                                              

What are hologram movies?

Do you know what holograms are? They are three-dimensional images created by the intersection of two beams of light. Laser beams project these images that look exactly like the real thing. You can see the sides, top, bottom and even the top of an object.You don’t have to wear any special glasses nor need any special equipment see these holograms. Some holograms even appear to move as you walk past them and look at them from different angles. Others change colours or include views of completely different objects, depending on how you look at them. Holograms have other surprising traits as well. If you cut one in half, each half contains whole views of the entire holographic image. The same is true if you cut out a small piece — even a tiny fragment will still contain the whole picture. On top of that, if you make a hologram of a magnifying glass, the holographic version will magnify the other objects in the hologram, just like a real one. A team of researchers at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre have already developed the first true, three-dimensional, holographic movie. It is quite possible that a special projector will be developed that will allow you to watch holographic movies at home too. But you would have to wait a few years, for this.