Stitches often treat deep or wide cuts. For slightly smaller cuts, your healthcare provider may use strong, sterile adhesive strips called Steri-Strips. Here I suggest an alternate theory: the primary reason for the historical and continued use of the finger knife is for seed selection through a centuries old tradition of plant breeding. Though I accept the accuracy of the practical and community-based, socio-cultural reasons for the use of the finger knife put forth by other authors, I suggest that seed selection and genetic improvement was the driving factor in the use of the finger knife. Indeed, intricate planting and harvesting rituals, which both ensured and encouraged varietal conservation and improvement co-evolved with the use of the finger knife as the primary harvest tool due to its unique ability to aid the farmer in the art and science of seed selection. Even in modern, highly technological plant breeding programs around the world today, the “art” of selection, based on the breeder’s intuition and experience, is considered vitally important to the release of new varieties; plant breeding is commonly defined as the art and science of improving traits and varieties of agricultural importance [ 50– 52]. Acabado SB. Defining Ifugao social organization: “House”, field, and self-organizing principles in the Northern Philippines. Asian Perspect. 2013;52:161–89. The influx of higher yielding rice varieties negatively impacted Ifugao terrace ecology due to their reliance on synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Mollusks, shellfish and fish that traditionally enhanced the Ifugao diet have largely been wiped out in the terraces due to toxicity caused by industrial chemicals ([ 36]: 284). The new rice varieties do not require year round inundation, the absence of which has led to an increase in abundance of Polypheretima elongata, a large earthworm whose tunnels weaken the terrace walls [ 39].

According to Skeat [ 41]: 58, the Malays adhere to the practice of using the finger knife out of “piety,” so that the “soul of the rice not being disturbed thereby.” Wilkinson ([ 42] 1: 604) states that the “wooden framework is held in the hand so as to hide the blade…. The underlying idea is that the rice grains shall not see the knife and that their vitality ( semangat) shall not suffer through fright.”

Karambit knives originated in the Philippines and Indonesia as a form of agricultural utility tool. Ingeniously, the design models the claw of a tiger. As their anatomical origin suggests, they've been around for awhile; nearly a millennia, per historical consensus. Fighters first used karambits as last-ditch weapons, concealing them for use in desperate situations. Some sources suggest that the karambit, as a last-chance weapon that started as a farm tool, once had a pejorative reputation. Tsegaye B, Berg T. Utilization of durum wheat landraces in East Shewa, Central Ethiopia: Are home uses an incentive for on-farm conservation? Agric Hum Values. 2007;24:219–30.

Freeman D. Report on the Iban, LSE Monographs in Social Anthropology No. 41. London: Athlone Press; 1970. Although this safety ring was designed as a self-defense ring for runners, the Go Guarded ring is also a great option for many other situations. Being listed as a top women’s self-defense ring, this defense tool is great when walking through a desolate parking lot, getting gas at a sketchy location, walking across campus at night, on the subway, or any other situation where a woman feels isolated and vulnerable.The laceration continues to bleed for more than 20 minutes, or it simply won’t stop bleeding with elevation and pressure. No-Slip Grip: First and foremost, a karambit knife is a weapon. That means a slippery handle is a no-no. Most karambits get textured handles at the bare minimum; some, like Schrade's, even have grips that resist moisture. If the side ligaments are torn, the patient may have pain on the side of a joint, and the joint may be loose. Khor M, Lin LL. Sustainable rice production by indigenous women. In: Good Practices and Innovative Experiences in the South: Volume 1: Economic, Environmental and Sustainable Livelihood Initiatives. Khor and Lin, Zed Books, editors. UNDP. 2002. A fracture of a phalanx may be an isolated injury, but it is often associated with injury to tendons, ligaments, fingernails, or other soft tissue.

People should change their wound bandages daily until the cut heals. However, they should take care, as exposing the cut to the open environment may cause an infection. For this procedure, a healthcare provider will first clean the wound with a topical antibiotic. They’ll then close the wound with stitches that may dissolve on their own or require removal after the cut has healed. KM researched and wrote the manuscript. All pictures, unless otherwise noted, were taken by the author. Competing interests Fingerslayer Bladeis used to progress in Ranni's questline. This is the 'Hidden treasure of Nokron' she asks you to find. After giving this item to her, she gives you the Carian Inverted Statue as a reward. Tendons are the fibrous bands that attach muscles to bones and allow the flexible, precise movements of the joints.Woensdregt J. De Landbouw bij de To Bada’ in Midden-Celebres. Tijdschraft voor Indische Taal, Land en Volkenkunde. 1928;47:125–255.