Nature

Abstract

One of the military guides to New Guinea warned GIs in no uncertain terms that on this mysterious island, the Japanese would not be the only, nor even the worst, enemy. “The country itself will fight you with all its forces…,” the pamphlet insisted. “You must be forever on your guard against this silent enemy, your environment. It is relentless. If you relax, it will get you down.” The US military made sure, however, to end on a more assertive note. If the indigenes had learned how to live in New Guinea, then so could American soldiers. “And you should do better,” the guide reminded, “for you have with you the advantages of science.”¹