Up until recently, humans have lived comfortably with the idea that we are the only species on Earth to be truly altruistic. That is to say, we, as a race, tend to help others of our kind without the other person being necessarily a member of our family, or without the expectation of reward. At times, we are so bent ... |
25 May 2009
10:49 GMT |
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Anthropologists and archaeologists have been scouting early human dig sites around the world for clues as to when the change from the primate-like state to a biped humanoid happened. They know that, in the grand scheme of things, ancient humans gave up their ability to use all of their four limbs to climb trees, in f... |
14 April 2009
06:58 GMT |
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One of the most iconic chimpanzee figures in the world, Gregoire lived some 40 years of his life caged in solitary confinement at the Brazzaville zoo, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He was rescued from the poorly-run zoo some 11 years ago and lived the remainder of his life at the Tchimpounga Chimpanzee R... |
28 December 2008
09:38 GMT |
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For adapting to the environment, organisms have two choices: to change their physiology or to change their behavior, through genetic changes or learning; it is a trade between mutation and innovation. Innovation can be cultural if it propagates to other individuals or groups, maintains along the generations, beyond t... |
18 February 2008
10:56 GMT |
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Everybody is familiar with the chimpanzees, but how many know that there are two species: the common chimpanzee and the bonobo or pygmy chimpanzee? The term "pygmy" for bonobo is a misnomer, as bonobo has the same size as a common chimp. They are quite similar (only that a bonobo is somehow slender), live in groups o... |
25 October 2007
14:06 GMT |
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A piece of crap, once it's yours it's yours and people can often behave like freaks when it comes to their personal little belongings. Now, the same odd behavior has been found in chimps, explaining more the way the human mind works. An old experiment made on college students showed that once offered either... |
9 October 2007
06:29 GMT |
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They say 'love goes through the stomach' …or through a shopping spree, for that matter, 'enjoying' the man's 'loaded' credit card... But since chimps don't go shopping, the only available sector remains…the food. A study made on wild chimps in the West African village of Bossou... |
14 September 2007
03:46 GMT |
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We know chimps can be really nasty and male aggressiveness is already recorded in our closest species, including the male infanticide. But this goes too far: not only previously thought gentle females are equally aggressive, but it's a common practice to kill and eat the babies of other females. Scientists can o... |
15 May 2007
03:06 GMT |
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Males may want to spread their semen as much as possible to ensure a large number of descendants; theoretically, their offspring number is unlimited, but the number of offspring a female can produce is counted. Thus, they want to be sure that the strongest hunk will give his best for her progeny. Researchers investig... |
8 March 2007
11:12 GMT |
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