The problems of incompleteness and inconsistency of the data in ethnobotanical research are considered. Some inconsistency, such as that seen in the identification of plants, is unavoidable, but if care is taken, it can be reduced step by step. Some inconsistency, however, like variation in the ways plants are used, is intrinsic to ethnobotanical data, and must be recognized as such. Inconsistency does not mean uselessness so long as we recognize the characteristics of ethnobotanical data and use suitable methods for handling them.

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Time allocation studies provide basic information for understanding human adaptive mechanisms, and thus are especially useful in cross-cultural and inter-individual comparisons of behavioral patterns. Time allocation study methods are classified into three types: (1) “individual tracing, ” in which the researcher traces a subject person, recording the times at which he/she changes behaviors; (2) “observation at fixed spot, ” in which the researcher records all subjects' departures from and returns to a fixed spot; and (3) the “random spot-check, ” in which the researcher visits the subjects to observe their behaviors according to a randomly set schedule. Comparing the advantages and disadvantages of these methods and examining the reliability of inter-society comparison based mainly on my studies in Papua New Guinea communities, this paper aims to identify the most appropriate methods in time allocation studies.

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Numerous food consumption studies have been carried out to assess the nutritional status of various populationsin Papua New Guinea, for the purpose not only of improving their nutritional status but also of revealing their mechanisms of adapting to the local environment. However, most of the research methods applied were problematic in reliability and accuracy. This paper aims to identify appropriate ways of methodologically assessing the previous food and nutrition studies, including my own, based on the following points: (1) unit of data collection, (2) sampling of subjects, (3) time duration and timing of data collection, (4) measurement of consumed amounts of foods, (5) conversion from foods consumed to nutrients absorbed, and (6) standardization to per-person (adult male) nutrient intake.

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Biochemical analyses of urine specimens, which can be collected more easily than blood specimens in the field, provide information on the nutritional status of the subjects with regard to proteins and micronutrients. In particular, ingested protein passes through a body nitrogen pool and is excreted mostly into urine in the form of urea nitrogen. According to a newly developed filter paper method, in which a small amount of urine specimen (100-120μl) is adsorbed into filter paper (2.0×4.5cm) and transported to the laboratory for analysis, first-of-the-morning urine samples were collected from four Papua New Guinea populations inhabiting ecologically different environments. The measurements of their urinary nitrogen compounds (urea nitrogen and creatinine) and sodium and potassium concentrations reflected the subjects' body compositions and lifestyles including dietary habits.

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One of the goals of ecological anthropology and/or human ecology is to elucidate the long-term survival mechanisms of a human population as a whole. This paper discusses methodological issues, centering on a genealogy-based method for estimating reproduction rates and population increase rates in the past, which I have applied to the Gidra and some other populations in Papua New Guinea. Depending on the sociocultural circumstances of the target populations, the applicability and validity of this method vary; in some cases, these rates can be estimated to a satisfactory degree, and thus contribute from quantifiable evidence to reconstructing a population's ethnohistory and its relationships with diversified and changing environmental conditions on the one hand, and to clarifying gene frequency patterns on the other hand.

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Inter-regional comparative studies of cranial morphology depend upon composite specimens constructed according to the standards chosen by the writers. Although there have been many reports about variations within the so-called “Jomon population, ” very few have taken up the issue of the validity of the regional classification. In this study, Mahalanobis' D²s are calculated from metric and non- metric data to evaluate the intra- and inter-regional variation of Jomon crania, mainly from two regions-northern Chiba and the Atsumi Peninsula. The samples of both districts cannot be regarded as a homogeneous unit with morphological peculiarity by the D²s and bootstrap derived probabilities. The heterogeneities of the intra-regional variation are as large as those of inter-regional variation. This may indicate that, at least in the samples used for this study, morphological differences are not parallel to regional ones and thus, for what has been called the “Jomon population, ” the regional classification is not valid.

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Regional variability of skinfold thickness differs from individual to individual. This may be affected by differences in total body composition. If so, individual's fat distribution patterns may contribute to the prediction of body composition. On this premise, the regression relationships between body composition and fat distribution patterns which is represented by the pair-wise contrast of fatfolds, were analyzed by the quantification method of the first type. This method is a multivariate analysis method for categorical data. First, skinfold thickness was measured at 9 sites. From these 9 sites, independent pair-wise combinations of measures were established, for example subscapular>abdomen. Within each pair-wise contrast if A>B then the statement is true and a value of 1 was attached. If the statement is false a 0 was recorded. Thus the pair-wise relationships of skinfold measures were expressed as categorical data. These data subsequently served as predictor variables for multivariate regression analyses with the dependent variable being fat mass. The results suggested that regardless of gender, the series of pair-wise contrasts of fatfolds significantly correlated with fat mass. However, the reliability of the equations is not sufficient for the prediction of body composition.

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The present study validated the bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) method for estimating fat-free mass (FFM). Forty-five male university students served as subjects. Four equations that have been recently proposed for predicting FFM from resistance by BIA and anthropometrical indicators were compared with values obtained from underwater weighing. Cross validation analyses included examination of the constant error (CE), standard error of estimate, r, and total error (TE). The results indicated that the equations Deurenberg et al. (1991), which resulted in small TE and CE values, most accurately estimated FFM.

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