He is legend

In a 31-square-mile area in Brazil that is off limits to logging companies, the sole survivor of an uncontacted tribe lives. All by himself.

Advanced societies invariably have subsumed whatever indigenous populations they’ve encountered, determining those tribes’ fates for them. But Brazil is in the middle of an experiment. If peaceful contact is established with the lone Indian, they want it to be his choice. They’ve dubbed this the “Policy of No Contact.” After years of often-tragic attempts to assimilate into modern life the people who still inhabit the few remaining wild places on the planet, the policy is a step in a totally different direction. The case of the lone Indian represents its most challenging test.

A sad story. But perhaps only to the culturally modern. It’s almost impossible to be alone in today’s world; maybe that’s not such a good thing sometimes. Loneliness on the other hand…200 messages per hour from your Twitter pals still can’t cure that.

• Brazil