When it comes to work, communication is key, even if you don't have a writing job. Sounding unconfident, indecisive, or passive aggressive can hold you back professionally and hurt your team's productivity. Grimly premiums advanced tone suggestions make sure you're always sending the right message, sound clear and confident in your writing, and automatically replace negative leaning language with solution
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just right with Grammarly. Go to grammy dot com slash podcast to sign up for free, then get twenty percent off when you upgrade to Premium. That's twenty percent off at gramley dot com slash Podcast. Welcome to Unexplained Extra with me Richard McClain smith, where for the weeks in between episodes, we look at the stories that for one
reason or other didn't make it into the show. In last week's episode, Always Already we found ourselves journeying deep into the Amazonian rainforest with the Maya Runa tribe and acclaimed photojournalist Lauren McIntyre. McIntyre had traveled into the forest in the hope of making contact with the tribe, only to find himself hopelessly lost and unable to return to
his camp. Only after an epic three weeks living side by side with the Maya Runa, during which he believed he might be communicating telepathically with their chief, did McIntyre finally succeed in finding a way out. Sum That McIntyre had taken it on himself to locate the tribe in the first place might smack of a certain kind of
arrogance that speaks to a bygone age of colonial self importance. Certainly, McIntyre's ambition to be the first to photograph these people took precedent over the tribe's evident desire to avoid all contact with outsiders, Though MacIntyre had never intended to intrude in their lives quite to the degree in which he claimed to have done. The notion of wanting to make contact with such a self isolating community remains an immensely
complicated one for the Maya Runa. As it transpired when they were first contacted in nineteen sixty nine, after living in relative isolation since nineteen ten, they were grateful for it. The word Maya Runa translates to people of the river. After getting embroiled in skirmishes with the Peruvian government, they had been forced to leave the riverside lands where they
thrived and moved deeper into the jungle. Through a combination of napalm and machine guns, the Peruvian government, with the support of the US Army's Southern Command, had sought to annihilate the tribe. When they were finally located by Harriet Field and Hattie Neeland in August nineteen sixty nine, they were tired of running. After subsequent negotiations were set up with the Peruvian government, the tribe were able to return
to their homeland. Although it was contact with outsiders that threatened their existence in the first place and still does, it is also arguable that this later contact is what has kept them alive. In the main. However, the clash of a more dominant in culture against one lesso rarely tends to end well. Often, even just the language used when discussing the idea of it can be quite revealing.
In November twenty seventeen, self professed adventurer Benedict Allen faced criticism after he allegedly went missing in Papa, New Guinea while searching for the Yifo tribe. Much like the Mayoruna in the nineteen sixties, the Yifo also tried to maintain little contact with the outside world. Some media outlets, however, reveled in what they saw to be Allan's plucky, adventurous spirit, describing the Jaifo as a lost tribe who were little
more than dangerous headhunters. Such communities are also often described as having been discovered, as if they were rare precious metals with no agency of their own. Such groups are also often referred to as being remote or worse, uncivilized, as if there being anywhere other than closed to an urban center classifies them as being external to civilization, and
yet remoteness is only ever a case of perspective. As Lauren McIntyre came to understand for the Mayoruna, at least in the time he was making contact with them, the concept of remoteness would be completely incomprehensible if, like them, you consider yourself to always be a part of nature, as opposed to separate from it. To ever be remote in the purest sense is an impossibility, since nature is
both everywhere and always. For self isolating communities and cultures, such as the Mayoruna, there is good reason to want to avoid contact with outsiders. Indeed, history is littered with the blood and lost ideas of those people whose cultures were deemed inferior and weaker than others, and the damage can occur in many ways, from the contracting of a disease that a community had not previously experienced, to becoming the victims of deliberate genocide campaigns, and there are more
subtle ways too. The extinction of a different culture or community when it clashes with another is rare in the modern age. However, a culture considered less worthy by a more dominant one will at best run the risk of becoming significantly diluted over time, while at worst could be systematically erased. Though it is not strictly in the same sense, and I can't claim to have any idea what it's
like to experience that level of erasure. I couldn't help but be struck by something related to this when trying to write the last episode. It occurred whenever I attempted to search something online related to the natural world. If I typed glade, for example, the first thing I'd see was not something about a majestic forest opening of dappled light and fresh dew drops, but a domestic cleaning product
specifically designed to mimic the smell of the outdoors. When trying to find anything with the word Amazon in it, it wasn't information about the largest and most biodiverse tract of rainforest on the planet that I found first, but links related to the world's largest e commerce company. And when I searched the word jaguar, the Mayoruna's own ancient god, it wasn't information on the majestic felines of the wild that I came across, but information about a certain type
of car. Finding this happening again and again, it was hard to resist the sensation that a different world was being mapped out around me and slowly but surely laid over the one I thought I knew. This experience brought to mind a wonderful book called The Lost words written by Robert MacFarlane and exquisitely illustrated by Jackie Morris, inspired in part by this very idea of vanishing worlds, or rather our seemingly blase acceptance of it when it occurs,
even right in front of our eyes. At first we lose the word, then its meaning, and in some cases, finally the very thing itself can vanish too. It is hard to know exactly what to make of all this. Is it something natural or something to be resisted, Although it feels sad on one level that to think one day the word jaguar might only bring to mind the model of a car. Much more so to think that in forgetting its name, we forget to care about it, while on another level, the animal was never ours to
name in the first place. To day, sadly, tribes like the Mayoruna are likely to only be able to survive in isolation for as long as the land they occupy is deemed of little value to others. This is one of the reasons given for the continued survival of a small community of people living on North Sentinel Island, which forms part of the Andaman Islands that lie between the
Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Though it isn't known how the tribe refers to itself, outsiders have labeled the group the Sentinels in order to protect them from the corrupting influence of outsiders. Their island homeland, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Indian government, has been declared an island reserve. All travel is prohibited within a three mile radius, while the area is also patrolled twenty four hours a day, and this patrol is not only for
the tribe's protection. Like many self isolating tribes, the Sentinels are fiercely and unequivocally protective of their territory. In November twenty eighteen, despite knowing this, twenty six year old missionary John Alan Chow traveled to the island intent on converting the people to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. There was only one way it was going to end. Are you always taking care of your family? Do you often take care of others and not yourself? Now it's time to
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C dot com slash Unexplained podcast. Very little is known about the Sentinels, with some estimates suggesting their specific ancestry could date back anywhere between thirty to sixty thousand years. Current population estimates have been anything from forty to four hundred. In twelve to ninety six, explorer Marco Polo saw fit to describe the general population of the Andaman Islands as a most brutish and savage race, having heads, eyes, and
teeth like those of dogs. They are very cruel and kill and eat every foreigner whom they can lay their hands upon, he wrote. However, in what is often par for the course when describing others, it is thought that Polo never saw or interacted with these people himself, and merely based the estment on rumor alone. For many years, the Andaman Islands were largely ignored by others until the eighteen fifties, when they fell under the colonial rule of the British Empire and were used in part as a
penal colony. When the first British Superintendent was dispatched to the Andamans in eighteen fifty eight, he instructed that the indigenous population be treated with the greatest forbearance and humanity by the British, insisting that their intentions towards the people of the islands were of the most friendly character. Unfortunately, this message didn't get across since, unsurprisingly, when the British attempted to take ownership of the islands, they met with
some fierce resistance. However, this was soon quelled when after one skirmish in which fifteen hundred Islanders attempted to scare off their foe, they were massacre by the guns of a British warship. Prior to the arrival of the British, the Andaman Islands indigenous population was thought to be around five thousand. By the time they relinquished control ninety years later, it was estimated to have dropped to round four hundred
and sixty. As Adam Goodheart wrote in the American Scholar magazine in two thousand, the history of the period can be summarized as a series of epidemics. As the local population were one by one introduced to pneumonia, syphilis, ophthalmia, measles, mumps, Russian influenza, and gonorrhea. We can only speculate as to how sexually transmitted diseases made their way into the population.
As for the Sentinels specifically, though there had been rumors of a tribe of people living on North Sentinel Island, due to its relevant size and inconvenient location, it had been deemed unimportant. Then in eighteen seventy nine, one young colonialist, recently appointed to the position of Officer in charge of
the Andamanese decided to take a closer look. Nineteen year old Maurice Vidal Portman, the grandson of a viscount, set off for the island shortly after his appointment with a team of armed escorts and trackers from other Andaman tribes. When they arrived, however, they found the place completely deserted, save for a few tracks and a series of small villages that appeared to have been recently abandoned. Having given up on their search, they chanced upon an elderly couple
and four children walking back to their village. Portman had them abducted on the spot and taken back to his home in Port Blair, the Andaman Islands capital town, to observe their behavior. Almost immediately, the islanders grew sick, and within weeks the elderly couple died, and so it was that Portman's amateur anthropological ambitions came to a swift end.
Children were returned to the island soon after. After this brief encounter, the Sentinel Leaves had virtually no contact with outsiders until nineteen ninety one, when Indian government anthropologists finally succeeded in completing a non fatal engagement with them. After years of trying to establish a relationship. Their attempts were effectively abandoned in two thousand and three, when it was decided instead to enact a policy of no contact with
the group. In two thousand and six, two Indian fishermen drifted too close to North Sentinel, Ireland and were promptly captured and killed by the Sentinel Leagues. Twelve years later, missionary John Alan Chow arrived to make his own attempt at contact. Chow, a missionary for the Missouri based organization All Nations in the United States, did not make his
trip lightly. In fact, he had been training for it for three years, attending a missionary boot camp which included undertaking role play exercises of how to deal with hostile potential converts. Chow was enthralled to the Great Commission Jesus's supposed injunction that Christians must spread the Gospel to all people.
Being such a committed follower of this doctrine, Chow became fascinated by the idea of helping to convert the to the Lees, whom he described as possibly representing Satan's last stronghold on earth. Having made his way to the Andamans on November fourteenth, two and eighteen, he took the next step and succeeded in paying some local fishermen to sneak him past the patrol boats and drop anchor close enough
for him to kayak to the island. The next morning, he assembled his initial contact response kit, which included picture cards for communicating and dental forceps in case he might have to remove any arrows, the sentinels weapon of choice, as well as some gifts which he hoped to share with the islanders. Then, after stripping to his underwear to appear less threatening, he got into his kayak and paddled
toward the shore. As he drew closer, he was able to make out a small hut and some wooden canoes pulled up on to the beach. Suddenly, a series of high pitched voices rang out, followed by the appearance of a handful of islanders with faces painted yellow, rushing down to the water line. My name is John, shouted the missionary from his kayak. I love you and Jesus loves you. It was only then that John noticed the bow and arrows in their hands, watching aghast as one of the
group raised one up and took aim. John hurriedly flung them some fish as a gift, and then paddled away as fast as he could. Later that day, he made a second attempt, and this time succeeded in landing on the island before being spotted. Cautiously, he approached the hut on foot, this time being careful not to get within shooting range. Calling out to them again. The islanders suddenly emerged,
whooping and shouting for him to back off. Ignoring them, John drew closer as he attempted to parrot their words back to them. When they laughed scornfully in response, John assumed the words were insults and they were laughing at his ignorance. Undeterred, John reverted to singing songs of worship, and after a while the islanders appeared to grow used to his presence. In response, John's voice grew in confidence. He held up his Bible and began to preach the gospel.
Just then he felt something hit hard against the good book, turning it round. He looked on in horror at the sight of an arrow now sticking out of it. Holding his nerves as best he could, John slowly pulled it out and then offered it back to the boy who had fired it, and made his retreat. When he turned back, however, his kayak had gone. With no other option, John dived straight into the ocean and swam back to the fishing boat.
That night, John wrote in his diary about how scared he was, fearful that the beautiful sunset that was occurring before him, as he wrote, might be the last he ever saw. In his final entry, he asked God to forgive any of the people on the island who might try to kill him, especially if they succeeded. Shortly after first light the following day, he took another kayak back to the island. Later that morning, as the fisherman waited for John to return, they saw movement on the beach.
It appeared the tribes people were burying something in the sand. John allan Chow was never seen alive again. If you enjoy listening to Unexplained and would like to help support us, you can now go to Unexplained podcast dot com forward slash support. All donations, no matter how large or small, are massively appreciated. All elements of Unexplained are produced by me,
Richard mc lane Smith. Please subscribe and rate the show on iTunes, and feel free to get in touch with any thoughts or ideas regarding the stories you've heard on the show. Perhaps you have an explanation of your own you'd like to share. You can reach us online at Unexplained podcast dot com, or Twitter at Unexplained Pod and Facebook at Facebook dot com. Forward slash Unexplained Now. It's time to take care of yourself. To make time for you.
Teledoc gives you access to a licensed therapist to help you get back to feeling your best. Speak to a licensed therapist by phone or video anytime between seven am to nine pm local time, seven days a week. Teledoc Therapy is available through most insurance or employers. Download the app or visit teledoc dot com, Forward slash Unexplained Podcast Today to get started. That's t e ladoc dot com Slash Unexplained Podcast. When it comes to work, communication is key,
even if you don't have a writing job. Sounding unconfident, indecisive, or passive aggressive can hold you back professionally and hurt your team's productivity. Grammily premiums advanced tone suggestions make sure you're always sending the right message, sound clear and confident in your writing, and automatically replace negative leaning language with solution focused alternatives. With Grimley's help, you can build stronger relationships at work, be constructive in the face of challenges
and help your team get things done. Grimly works where you do so your team's projects get done before the deadline and with features like comprehensive spelling, grammar and clarity focused sentence rewrites. Grammily helps keep your writing efficient and mistake free. The right tone can move any project forward. Get it just right with Grammarly. Go to grammy dot com slash podcast to sign up for free, then get twenty percent off when you upgrade to Premium. That's twenty
percent off at gramley dot com slash Podcast. When it comes to work, communication is key, even if you don't have a writing job. Sounding unconfident, indecisive, or passive aggressive can hold you back professionally and hurt your team's productivity. Grammily premiums advanced tone suggestions make sure you're always sending the right message, sound clear and confident in your writing, and automatically replace negative leaning language with solution focused alternatives.
With Grimley's help, you can build stronger relationships at work, be constructive in the face of challenges, and help your team get things done. Grimly works where you do so your team's projects get done before the deadline and with features like comprehensive spelling grammar and clarity focused sentence rewrites. Grammily helps keep your writing efficient and mistake free. The right tone can move any project forward. Get it just
right with Grammarly. Go to grammy dot com slash podcast to sign up for free, then get twenty percent off when you upgrade to premium. That's twenty percent off at gramley dot com slash Podcast