Primate Essays (Examples)

Primate ehavior Research

There can be big differences in the messages from a scholarly, or scientific, article and a main stream, or non-scientific article. The titles and the messages written in the articles can give readers entirely different meanings. The original article may state the study was done one way, but the main stream article tries to write in layman terms and may miss the entire meaning, or the way the study was actually completed. The techniques used to draw the reader's attention can also have an effect on the way the article gets written and the messages they send.

Reading the article from the Language Log, the article compares other sources that covered a study on a baboon learning to read English words. (Liberman, 2012) Each of the sources listed stated the titles different from each other and gave different impressions of what the baboon actually did. For instance,…

They have nails. The arms and legs are equal length. The Lincoln Park Zoo exhibit differs from its natural environment but is being upgraded.

6. Exhibits:

The New World Monkeys appear to be more prominently displayed.

The following species are featured in the Lincoln Park Zoo primate exhibit, including:

a. Allen's swamp monkey (catarrhine, Allenopithecus nigroviridis, arboreal (tree-dwelling) but semi-terrestrial.)

b. Black howler monkey (platyrrhine, Alouatta caraya, rain forests with near constant precipitation to tropical deciduous forest)

c. Black-and-white colobus (catarrhine, Colobus guereza, tropical forests, woodlands and wooded grassland, lowlands and at high elevations)

d. Bolivian gray titi monkey (platyrrhine, Callicebus donacophilus, rain forest habitats, among the trees)

e. De Brazza's monkey (platyrrhine, Cercopithecus neglectus, wetland forests within 1 mile of water)

f. Francois' langur (catarrhine, Trachypithecus francoisi, canopy in search of leaves on which to feed)

g. Geoffrey's marmoset (platyrrhine, Callithrix geoffroyi, dry patches within forests and forest edges.)…

Primate Conservation

The conservation of primates and their habitat is a point of major concern for many environmentalists, zoologists and even regular people that have an interest and/or passion for maintaining and sustaining wildlife. There is a litany of different reasons for primates and their conservation status being in danger and those will be covered in this report. Whether it be over-harvesting, habitat destruction or other things, there are many things happening at the same time that are creating a confluence of crisis for primates. While many primates are safe in zoos and other conservation areas, many other primates are seeing their habitat and way of sustaining themselves disappear.

Analysis

As described by the University of Michigan, there are many things that come, go and otherwise changes in this world. In most cases, what happens years from now is just a different combination or version of what is already going…

An important evolutionary distinction between primates and humans is that puberty and reproduction may begin in primates before the end of the juvenile stage.

Comparison of the developmental stages experienced by both primates and humans has provided invaluable information regarding the evolution of both species. This information has allowed anthropologists and biologists to understand how humans successfully combined the features brought on by neoteny such as extended childhood, delayed reproduction capability, short duration breastfeeding, and adolescent growth spurt to contribute toward their survival.

One of the most obvious similarities between primates and humans is their development of a period of juvenile growth and behavior between infancy and adulthood. Although this period is greatly extended in humans, primates, like most other highly social mammals, such as wolves, dogs, and elephants postpone puberty and insert this juvenile period. Such period provides offspring with additional time to learn life skills from their parents…

primates are more cognitively advanced than other mammals and that the degree of cognitive awareness and ability grows significantly from prosimians to humans. However, researchers still debate which parameters should be used to define and compare intelligence as well as the causal factors leading to this cognitive growth. Intelligence is a concept hard to define and even more difficult to test for in living species. In studying how human intelligence evolved, scientists are faced with a dilemma; how to determine the intelligence of individuals that no longer exist?

Methods that have been used to determine the level of intelligence in animal ancestors include the comparisons of the volume of the braincase, brain size to body weight and neocortex development. Studying social behavior also gives clues to cognitive level. Anthropologists, for example, have a variety of theories on what caused the significant leap in intelligence from the prosimians to humans. hich…

Cooperation in Primates

Given their massive amount of intelligence compared to other non-human animals and just how close they are to human in many ways, primates are often a major point of study when it comes to habits, trends and behaviors. One such behavior as identified by scientists in both humans and primates would be cooperation. Indeed, primates often cooperate and work together just like humans and this has been a specific point of study by many scientific personnel in general and primate specialists (e.g. zoologists, etc.) in particular. While there are some markedly different levels of cooperation between humans and primates, there are also some major similarities as well.

Cooperation tends to be present in many species, both advanced and less advanced, as they are pro-social in nature and they tend to benefit and help the broader collective. These pro-social acts can be reactive in many cases. This would…

human? This might seem to be a simple question, but that is probably because we have not thought very deeply about the issue. For decades physical anthropologists and other scholars have investigated this question. Their early efforts tended to take the form of trying to find one single trait that defined humans as different from all other species - whether it was our opposing thumb or the way in which we use language or in our recognition of our own mortality or even in the fact that we murder others of our own species.

Related to this search for the "missing trait" was the search for a "missing link" - a species that would link Homo sapiens to the species that had come before us historically on the evolutionary train. The thinking behind both of these searches was very much the same: Scientists could not believe that we (that is,…

Phyllis Jay briefly touches on the subject of primates swimming in the book Behavior of Nonhuman Primates; in discussing the habitat of African monkeys, Jay writes (Jay, 1965, p. 535) that the "…distribution of arboreal monkeys is restricted by open, relatively treeless areas" and "rivers are barriers to arboreal monkeys but not to terrestrial forms, many of which swim" (Jay, p. 535).

"Long-tailed macaques are excellent swimmers, and this may be a predator avoidance technique," writes the University of isconsin's Kristina Cawthon Lang in Primate Factsheet. If the long-tailed macaque is threatened by a feral dog, raptor, python, monitor lizard or large cat, the macaque simply drops into the water and swims to safety (Lang, 2006).

In its "Science & Nature: Animals" section, the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) published a story on the Long-tailed Macaque: "Long-tailed macaques swim well and jump into the water from nearby trees" (BBC).

In his…

It is not startling that some remarkable variation exists between the great apes as well as humans with regard to mental capabilities. Humans possess a lot higher intricate types of verbal communications compared to any other primates. Humans are the sole animal to make and apply symbols as a way to communicate with each other. Humans also have diverse as well as complex forms of social organizations compared to that of the other nonhuman primates. The most unique characteristic of humans lies in human mental capability to build novel ideas as well as intricate technologies. This has been considered to be important in the fight for endurance. (O'Neil 2007)

Further, the relatively negligible structural variations among humans and apes are generally an outcome of regular bipedalism observed in human beings. Quite a number of alterations in human bodies were linked to the growth of this type of locomotion. As opposed…

In males, the canine teeth tend to be longer, and sharper. Additionally, there appears to be greater variation in size and shape of male canines, in comparison to the relatively stable size and shape of the female canine. Often, the size differences between male and female teeth are seen more in the height of the crown of the tooth than in the length or width of the lower portions of the tooth (Plavcan, 29).

Further dimorphism can be seen in the anterior surface of the canine teeth. Researchers note that, in males, there is a groove that runs the length of the tooth, whereas in females, this groove in generally absent. Additionally, even in cases where the female tooth does have this groove, it is much less pronounced than that of the male primate (Plavcan, 29).

The mandibular premolar also appears to show signs of dimorphism. In males, this tooth…

Vervet Monkey, or Chlorocebus, is part of the Old-orld monkey classification of medium sized primates. There are typically six species that science recognizes, but there is disagreement as to whether this is one species of a species and subspecies. For the entire species of Chloroceus, the terms "vervet" and "green" monkey are used interchangeably even though there refer to some other species as common names (Groves).

Taxonomy

Suborder: Haplorrhini

Infraorder: Simiiformes

Superfamily: Cercopithecoidea

Family: Cercopithecidae

Subfamily: Cercopithecinae

Genus: Chlorocebus

Species: Ch. aethiops, Ch. cynosuros, Ch. djamdjamensis, Ch. pygerythrus, Ch. sabaeus, Ch. tantalus

Subspecies: Ch. p. excubitor, Ch. p. hilgerti, Ch. p. nesiotes, Ch. p. pygerythrus, Ch. p. rufoviridis, Ch. t. budgetti, Ch. t. marrensis, Ch. t. tantalus

Other names: Ch. aethiops: Cercopithecus aethiops, Cercopithecus aethiops, or Chlorocebus aethiops; grivet or savanna monkey; singe vert (French); grunmeerkatze (German); mono verde (Spanish); gron markatta or vervett (Swedish); Ch. cynosuros: malbrouck; Ch. djamdjamensis:…

Zuckerman

The same types of communicative behaviors may be exhibited among primates, particularly bonobo, apes, humans, and chimpanzees. However, there are also some core differences in the specific language expressions and their corresponding cognitive patterns among the descendants of a common ancestral lineage, particularly human, bonobo, and chimpanzee (Gillespie-Lynch, et al., 2014). Some of the most dramatic claims related to the philosophical import of non-human primate language imply either that human beings and their non-human primate relatives are completely alike, or alternatively, not at all alike save for some key animalistic features. Building on the formative research of Lord Zuckerberg, current researchers are showing that the question of whether humans and apes are similar is the wrong question; indeed humans are similar to non-human primates but there are distinct and meaningful differences between human beings and their primate counterparts. Those differences may, however, vanish over the next several million years.…

In the wild, the young of both baboons and chimpanzees must be potential prey for other animals. It seems unlikely that a zoo would put a valuable primate troupe in proximity to a pride of lions and just let nature take its course.

Nevertheless, the study of these animals, while always flawed in some way, has significance for humans. Kummer's conclusions about the genetic basis for much behavior in particular prompts some thought. If many behaviors are genetically driven in baboons and other primates, how much of human behavior is genetically driven? Obviously the need to procreate is present in all animals, but do genetics drive who we choose to marry? How much does genetics influence the jobs we choose? How much of our social activity is wholly our own choice, and how much of it is preprogrammed behavior? Most people would not want to believe that their choice to…

Zoo Observation

I visited X zoo on a warm, sunny day in October. All of the primates I observed in the zoo were confined to a specific area, although they were separated by species (Strier 1-2). The apes were enclosed in a habitat that attempted to mimic their natural environment behind a pane of glass. Although there was a fair amount of greenery, there was, overall, little privacy for the animals.

Although the younger animals appeared to be extremely active, the older estland Lowland gorillas attempted to find what privacy they could in the simulated environment of the rainforest. To conduct my ethnographic analysis was somewhat difficult at first; although primates are diurnal rather than nocturnal, many of the larger animals looked sluggish and sleepy at first and did not interact much with one another (Strier 2). Judging from the people around me, visitors are particularly fascinated by these apes…

After all, it remains within the female's best interest to mate with a newly dominant male, even if he has killer her infant. Ultimately, this is because the female, having lost her offspring, needs to remain reproductively competitive and to mate with a male. Additionally, if she mates with a non-dominant male, who has not killed her offspring, she runs the risk of the dominant male repeating his actions. Accordingly, she is obligated to mate with the dominant male in order to decrease the risk that her infant will be killed again. It may also be the case that the mothers who are victims of infanticide are physically incapable of preventing the guilty males from mating with them because of the differences in size between the sexes.

In human societies, however, we see less infanticide perpetrated by males relative to our population. There are many reasons for this: there are…

Sacramento Zoo Observations

Chimpanzee (Pan troglodystes) and Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus abelli)

When I was at the Sacramento Zoo, I observed many animals, including primates. At this time, I chose to further expand on my observations of the Chimpanzee (Pan troglodystes) and Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus abelli).

At this time of observation; I can only see four of the five chimpanzees, two females and two males. Of the five chimpanzees, it seems that the extra female chimpanzee is missing from my observations. According to the Sacramento Zoo, there are a total of five chimpanzees- with three females and two males. Although it is difficult to tell from the distance that we were at, the females are slightly smaller than the males. I would assume that the males would also be heavier since they are larger. Unfortunately, there are no blatantly obvious characteristics that distinguished the males from the females and…

intended major? Discuss how your interest in the subject developed and describe any experience you have had in the field -- such as volunteer work, internships and employment, participation in student organizations and activities -- and what you have gained from your involvement.

Until I volunteered at the MRI center with my sister, where she works as a technician, I never thought I would ever be enthusiastic about any academic subject. Having always done fairly well in school, I simply understood how to study and get by on exams. Yet nothing made me thrilled, or made me want to stay up all night reading just for pleasure. I kept waiting for the right subject to hit me on the head and then, suddenly it happened. When I was looking at images of bones in the MRI lab, a synapse flew in my brain. That synapse connected that magnetic resonance image…

The findings presented by Snowden within his study Visual Attention to Color are extremely intriguing when one considers the history of research on M. stream/P stream activity and attentional guidance. As Snowden states in the Discussion section of his article, "the current finding appears to establish conditions under which a purely chromatic signal can automatically attract attention, and thus shows that color vision can play a vital role in the guidance of visual behavior" (183), and the implications of this result are wide-ranging in terms of their potential application to the study of color vision and colorblindness. By demonstrating that the M. stream is not strictly colorblind, Snowden has opened the doors for a new avenue of visual study, one aimed at determining the link between color vision and attentional guidance. The survival instincts that drove primates to develop the adaptive traits necessary for target detection, identification, and localization still…

Scientific eport of Tufted Capuchin Monkeys in SanDiego Zoo

Behavioral Differences Between Male and Female Capuchin Monkeys in an Artificial Habitat

Studies have shown that the activity and energy of an animal can be determined through the collection of data and presentation as an activity budget (Altmann 1974, Tacha 1985). An activity budget collects specific behavior data over a predetermined time for an animal or population for analysis in the evaluation of a hypothesis. This study reports the differences in activity between males and females for a population of tufted capuchin primates living in an outdoor artificial habitat within a North American zoo. The hypothesis that there are differences in activity levels between male and females for this population is confirmed for the duration of observation in this study. More study would be required to determine the effects of weather, seasonal variation, and daytime verses nocturnal behavior.

Introduction

The tufted…

Sex and Culture

What are the advantages and disadvantages of sexual reproduction (animal/human world)?

Sexual reproduction is an evolutionary phenomenon, which entails the cooperation of two species: the male and the female. In any aspect of sexual reproduction, the energy of male spermatozoa and the female oocyte must both be expended in order to reproduce, as opposed to the efficient method of asexual reproduction, which only involves the singular (female) organism. Furthermore, sexual reproduction has a failing in that humans and animals tend to reproduce much less than organisms that reproduce asexually. However, this evolutionary method of reproduction allows for genetic variation and adaptable feasibility. The offspring of the sexually reproductive parents will have gained half of the mother's genetic characteristics and half of the father's genetic characteristics. Genetic variation increases the immunity against otherwise deadly genetic diseases.

Is the capacity that female primates have for orgasm detrimental to their…

Chimpanzees Have Culture?

The Culture of Chimpanzees

The term "culture" has many different definitions, but for purposes of this discussion it should be defined loosely as the values, goals, beliefs, and attitudes that are shared by and characterize a group, organization, or institution. For some time, anthropologists have been studying chimpanzees in order to determine whether they have culture as it relates to that definition. Field-studies on diet, hunting, and chimp tool-use have contributed to this issue and to the attempted resolution of it (McGrew, 1998). Noted anthropologist Jane Goodall has long stated that chimpanzees have behaviors which they have learned from others, and which have been passed down to them, therefore they have a culture (Goodall, 1986). Despite Goodall's opinions, not all anthropologists agree with what she believes and how she defines and understands culture. Anthropological primatologists are divided in their opinions of whether non-human primates like chimpanzees have…

Human Beings and Primates

There is a four percent genetic difference between human's chimpanzees. What might these differences be? Let us speculate. First of all, human beings can be scientists; chimps are not by their genetic natures. Second of all, humans engage in goal-directed behavior, chimps live for the moment. Third of all, human beings have the physical and mental ability to create civilizations. Chimps do not.

First of all, human beings can think about the differences between themselves and other animals in a scientific fashion. Chimpanzees cannot do this -- chimps are different because they do not analyze. Chimpanzees are different from humans because they do not have the ability to think in the long-term and make scientific observations about different kinds of animals. Instead, unlike people, chimpanzees live for the moment and are not goal-oriented because they do not have the mental capacity to create long-term goals and…

Reproductive Potential and Paternity Certainty: Factors Determining Mate Preferences among Males & Females

Dear So Bummed Out in Berkeley,

You described yourself as a "sleek, young California mouse." Indeed, your irritation over Guy Next Door/Dull Dude for choosing his "totally ugly" wife over you has to do with your physical traits/attributes. That is, you base your judgment that Dull Dude will prefer you, a young and sleek California mouse, with the assumption that he prefers physically attractive mice over 'totally ugly' ones. Unfortunately, due to the diverse characteristics that your specie (California mice) possess, it is not a guarantee that biological traits, specifically, desirable biological traits, becomes the sole basis for mate preference among male California mice (particularly Dull Dude).

It is important for you to remember that your specie does not only look at physical or biological traits, but it also looks at social and cultural interactions among species…

Sarah laffer Hrdy is an anthropologist who specialized in the field of primate sociobiology (Zika 2002). Her undergraduate thesis was a study of mental adaptations that shape how and why humans fabricate imaginary demons, and then graduated at Radcliffe College in 1969. In 1975, she earned a Ph.D. At Harvard University for her research on why a species of monkey engaged in infanticidal behavior. It became the first socio-biological study of wild primates' wild behavior in connection with their gender. In 1981, 1984 and 1996, Hrdy wrote best sellers on female primates as active strategists and the natural selection and common traits shared by higher primates with other living creatures on earth.

Hrdy's works reveal the motivations behind some of our most primal behavior patters, including gender roles, choice of mate, sex, reproduction and parenting, along with the ideas and the institutions that have been established around them. They have…

Wes Sechrest and Thomas M. rooks and published in the National Academy of Sciences reveals the results of a study they conducted investigating the varying levels of biodiversity distributed throughout the world. The authors employ a fairly novel approach in their measurements of biodiversity, specifically, relying upon two methods approximating the levels of evolutionary history endemic to twenty-five terrestrial "hotspots." The significance of evolutionary history as a measuring stick is that it is associated with the past importance of particular geographic locations, and implies that future evolution is threatened if these locations are threatened. Additionally, Sechrest and rooks find that their twenty-five defined hotspots house not only disproportionately large amounts of evolutionary history, but are also disproportionately threatened by the activities of man. The article stops short of attempting to identify any possible solutions to this impending problem, however, it does help to illuminate some of the shortcomings of our…

The finding that helped clinch the case was the New orld howler monkey. it's the only New orld monkey with full trichromatic vision, and the researchers found that it also has the worst sense of smell among New orld monkeys, with about 31 per cent of its olfactory receptor genes being nonfunctional. (Kleiner 12)

There is another interesting evolutionary difference between humans and our avian cohabitants. Even though birds are also trichromates, we do not use the same protein for detecting the color red. The primate version of this opsin apparently arose spontaneously in Old orld primates from a mutation of the green opsin gene on the X chromosome some 30 million to 40 million years ago. (Travis 235) Perhaps another evolutionary clue that birds are in fact really the descendants of dinosaurs, but that is a topic for another paper. This is also the point, seen on the our…

Another theorist with a different view is Chomsky (1988). Chomsky sees the acquisition of language as a process of input-output, what he calls a Cartesian view of language acquisition and language structure. He states: "We have an organism of which we know nothing. We know, or we can discover, what kind of data is available to it, and the first question we must try to answer is: what kind of mental structure does the organism develop when that evidence is presented to it?" (Chomsky, 1988, p. 102). Once we find an answer to this question, we can ask what sorts of processes have intervened leading form the data available to the knowledge that resulted. Chomsky explains:

The input-output situation is this: a child who initially does not have knowledge of a language constructs for himself knowledge of a language on the basis of a certain amount of data; the input…

Organism: Monkey

Classification and common features

Monkeys are classified under the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Primates, superfamilies Cercopithecoidea and Ceboidea. (Classification: Infoplease) More specifically the term monkey "includes all primates that do not belong to the categories human, ape, or prosimian." (Monkey: Encyclopedia Com) There are two main groupings under which monkeys fall. These are New World and Old World monkeys. (Monkey: Wikipedia.)

The common characteristics of moneys include the following. They are all excellent climbers and are arboreal. They mostly live and can be found in subtropical and tropical climates. They are almost exclusively day-active animals. Their physiognomy is similar to humans, with flat faces and eyes pointed forward. They also have stereoscopic vision. Another distinguishing characteristic is that their hands and feet are highly developed for grasping and climbing. Many species have big toes and thumbs which are opposable. (Monkey: Encyclopedia Com)

Monkeys have characteristics…

Friend by Any Other Name

Sex matters between friends. No, not in the way you might think -- or the kind of sex that you might think. Sex matters in terms of gender: Male friendship and female friendship really is different from each other. Of course, there are always exceptions to statements as broad as this, and other traits of any individual dyad matters a great deal. ace matters as well as gender, and age, and physical disability, and personality.

But aside from all of these factors there are substantial differences between the ways in which men and women (and before them, boys and girls) conceptualize and practice the art of friendship. These differing definitions of friendship reflect larger social and cultural ideas about gender, a point that will be taken up below in this paper that examines how sex -- that is, gender -- affects friendships.

The basis for…

Monogamous Nuclear Families, Polygamous and Communal Families

Family has different connotations for different persons and cultures. In American society, the word is usually meant to denote a nuclear family consisting of a father, mother and their children. However the meaning of family in Asia is different because the family includes the grandparents, relatives and siblings of the elders. Family thus would also denote an entire clan. In African communities the Mormon system has its own connotation of family. Most of the world has some form of plural marriage, or polygamy, and is sanctioned by religions. Polygamy is not a non-western practice, but also exists in modern Western societies. (Koktvedgaard Zeitzen, 2008)

The common type of family being the nuclear family, the other types have all along attracted researchers to attempt to find an anthropological theory for polygamy that has spread to U.S. And UK to Malaysia, India, regions of Africa…

By adding our understanding of the human complexity to these experimental models, the explanatory power may increase. Collaborating and identifying human subjects that are suitable candidates based on environmental factors will allow for hypotheses to become testable.

The study of pair bonding has gone from rodents to primates. The next question is when will it move from primates to humans?

eferences

Aragona, Brandon J., Jacqueline M. Detwiler, and Zuoxin Wang. (2007). Amphetamine reward in the monogamous prairie vole. Neuroscience Letters, 418, 190-194.

Bales, Karen L., William A. Mason, Ciprian Catana, Simon . Cherry, and Sally P. Mendoza. (2007). Brain

esearch, 1184, 245-253.

Curtis, J. Thomas, Yan Liu, Brandon J. Aragona, Zuoxin Wang. (2006). Dopamine and monogamy. Brain esearch, 1126, 76-90.

Gobrogge, Kyle L., Yan Liu, and Zuoxin Wang.(2008). Dopamine egulation of Pair Bonding in Monogamous Prairie Voles. Neurobiology of the Parental Brain, Elsevier: 347-360

Lederhendler, Israel, and Jay Schulkin.(2000). Behavioral…

Glimpse into Neanderthal Culture

hen one thinks of the Humanoid genus Homo Sapiens neanderthalensis (HSN) they picture a very primitive creature, simplistic in nature with few social complexities. However, upon close examination of several Neanderthan archeological sites, one will find the Neanderthal man had all of the necessary elements for the beginning of the formation of modern society. It was once thought that these elements were only present after Neanderthan culture after contact with Home Sapiens (HSS). However, evidence now exists that suggests that Neanderthals were already well on their way to developing a formal, but rudimentary, culture well before contact with HSS. This research will examine these findings using evidence gathered from the Petralona, Larga Velhol, St. Cesaire, Shanidar, and Arago sites. This research will support the thesis that Neanderthals had the beginnings of an advanced society prior to contact with Home Sapiens and that the disappearance of the…

When the driver looked in the hole, he found a dog sleeping inside -- and only when the dog was chased away would the elephant place the log into the hole (Holdrege, 2001).

Octopi -- Suprisingly, octopi have been shown to use tools. The will retrieve discarded coconut shells, manipulate them, and then reassemble them to use as a makeshift shelter (Coghlan, 2009). Other octopi will use Jellyfish and Portugese Man o War tenticles that they shear as their own weapon. They are the only invertebrates known to use tools and show surprising cognitive ability in mazes, food training, and even handler recognition (Jones, 1963).

Implications - esearch into this new discovery is important because it redefines what it means to be "human," as well as implications about the evolution of violence and hominid predation. Finally, an understanding of non-human "culture" may help in answers questions about other intelligent species…

communicative processes of humans to those of non-humans, taking as a primary example the member of the primate family the chimpanzee with follow up examples from birds, members off the canine family and cats. Bibliography cites no sources.

Human and non-human communication, a comparison of interspecies speak

Humans and animals are very different creatures, however if we look at the differences in communication we can see that although humans have the ability to form words in their form of communication, animals also have their own unique way of communication, birds chirp and whistle, primates hoot and stamp the ground and wolves or those of the canine family growl, use their ears and tails in their own form of sign language.

Moreover if we compare the system of communication with that of those that are closest to the human race but are not human, this is the primate family, for this…

Origin of HIV

The mystery of HIV and its origins is one that cannot be easily solved. In the thirty-odd years which have passed since the official recognition of AIDS by the CDC and the subsequent search for its cause, various theories have been floated regarding its nature, its development, its ability to adapt, our ability to combat it, and -- most importantly for some -- its origin. How did the virus come into being? Viruses are known for altering over time and according to circumstances. They have a way of "bending" in order to make due -- of manipulating themselves in such a way so as to survive. This is no less true for HIV than for influenza. Just as variants of influenza appear each year to wreak havoc on the human population, variant-strains of HIV continue to be discovered, suggesting that the virus is still developing, still finding…

Perhaps other animals also have this capacity for understanding, but they have not accessed it because it has not yet been required of them. Furthermore, viewing the Bonobos' and other animals' together, one can make the claim that learning is a highly specific process that requires not only biology -- or connections in the brain, but also culture or nurture.

While this information is certainly interesting in its application to primates, it is perhaps even more important when generalized to apply to humans. First, it is possible that early humans used their incredible talent for learning like the Bonobos do when attempting to adapt to humans. Perhaps learning was somehow involved in the adaptation process, allowing humans to grasp greater heights. Further, the Bonobos' ability to learn in such a way suggests that humans, too, have the ability to continue growing and learning, perhaps someday evolving into something even greater…

Since males of all sexually reproducing species are naturally drawn to signs of fertility in females (Zuk 2002), they naturally express more interest in females when they ovulate, or come into heat in the vernacular applied to non-human animals. In many other species that do not rely as much on a monogamous pair bond for the survival of the fetus (Barash & Lipton 2001), females exhibit very clear external signals corresponding to their ovulation. This system is very well suited to species where a single male (or several) mate with many females, such as among lions and many mammals; in fact, it probably reduces any potential for conflict among harem females for male attention.

Human females replaced the outward signals of ovulation and fertility by evolving a suppression of any outward manifestation, precisely, to ensure that males provided for, guarded, and protected them continually rather than only that portion of…

598)

The study concludes that, "These few observations provide a fascinating window into the way in which new dietary regimes can affect neurotransmitter synthesis and thereby influence broad-based activity patterns in the brain" (lumenberg et al. 598).

3. Conclusion

There are many theories about the way that diet affected evolutionary selection in hominids. There is little doubt that diet played a significant role and that brain size is related to a radical change of diet in the distant past. However, what scholars are also at pains to point out is that diet should be seen in conjunction with and in relation to other factors, such as social structure. As Spuhler (1959) states,

The change to a partially carnivorous diet had extremely broad implications for the social organization of early hominoids" (Diet, Evolution, and Culture). Diet and other factors should be considered in the intricate and immensely complex task of attempting…

In other words, performance on the learning tests is associated with neurogenesis. The gene expression measures were taken to aide future research.

The results showed that performance on the learning tests did change, and the hypothesis was proven. Stress from the change, the intermittent pairings, did increase hippocampal neurogenesis in the adult male squirrel monkeys. Learning, especially spatial learning, was enhanced. Moreover, the corresponding gene expressions changed accordingly.

The authors suggest that the results may be generalized to a human population. With special attention paid to human beings suffering from depression, the authors suggest that specially-designed psychotherapeutic interventions for coping with stress will help stimulate hippocampal neurogenesis. Hippocampal neurogenesis is in turn associated with improved cognition. Therefore, effective coping mechanisms are likely to have a positive impact on overall psychological functioning.

This research demonstrates several key areas of interest, such as the ability for researchers to use non-human primates to…

Previous to Darwin, it has been considered that animals had nothing in connection with humans, since their brutish behavior had been very different from the sociable and civilized one displayed by people. French philosopher Rene Descartes apparently thought of animals to be nothing but machines that acted in conformity to the same laws to which inanimate matter had functioned. Quite the reverse happened when concerning humans, as, in spite of the fact that their bodies reacted similar to those of animals, they possessed a soul given to them by a divine being.

Darwin believed that there had been several similarities between the thinking of an ape and that of man. However, even he accentuated the fact that there had been great differences in cerebral power between the most primitive man and the most intelligent ape. It seems that Bambification firstly appeared as a result of people being inclined to anthropomorphize,…

They accuse Coyne of giving modern intellectuals "permission to remain biologically illiterate, through assuring them there is nothing useful or important that they could learn that would help them address the intellectual problems they face." (Tooby and Cosmides).

ithout undertaking an independent investigation of the evidence used to support each author's work, it is impossible to determine who makes the most valid arguments. However, if the facts listed argued by Tooby and Cosmides are true, then they do much to bolster the arguments made by Thornhill and Palmer. In fact, the arguments made by Thornhill and Palmer are very sound from a logical point-of-view, even if it is ultimately impossible to prove or disprove their hypothesis. That at least one species of animal has evolved a special organ specifically to accomplish rape clearly establishes that rape can be an evolutionary function and can be related to genetic evolutionary success. Furthermore,…

No animal understands what experimentation is. Therefore, how does one decide whether it is ethical to conduct experiments on them, experiments that involve blatant cruelty and assault?

It must be remembered that those people who voice their objections to using animals in experimentation fall under two broad categories: animal welfare activists, and animal rights activists. hile those who belong to animal welfare groups do agree that animal experimentation must carry on, but that they must be minimized, so that the pain and suffering of the poor creatures is also minimized, those that belong to the animal rights group are more radical with their opinions. These people have often stated that animals too have their rights, in much the same way as human beings do, and that animals must therefore never be used for the purposes of experimentation, as this is extremely cruel, unkind, brutal and unethical. (Bridgstock, 69)

Going back…

Attachment was believed by owlby to be a critical aspect of the normal development of human behavior. Attachment is inclusive of the following characteristics:

1) Proximity Seeking - the infant seeks to be near the maternal figure;

2) Separation distress or protests - when separated or distant from the material figure the infant becomes distressed and signals this by vocalizing these feelings and changes in affect.

3) a secure base - when the infant develops a healthy attachment, the mother becomes a 'secure base' from which the child can venture forth into the world and securely explore their surroundings.

Ainsworth is noted as the first to conduct empirical research assessing patterns of attachment behaviors in infant attachment relating to the mother being under stress. Infant attachment behavior was categorized as: (1) secure; (2) avoidant; and (3) ambivalent. Since then the behavioral patterns of infants has undergone intensive assessment and study…

Instead, spatial reasoning appears to be based on environmental inputs and old-fashioned cognitive development.

Why this should come as such a surprise to some researchers is uncertain. Core knowledge theorists claim that infants almost immediately express certain types of knowledge. But this suggestion assumes two things: one, that it is possible to measure infant cognition at the moment of birth; and two, that infants are incapable of learning before they are born. On the matter of the former point, it seems apparent that logistical and ethical concerns would make it exceedingly difficult, if not outright impossible, to test infant cognition immediately after birth. With regards to the second issue, we already have evidence that infants are capable of basic learning while still in the womb. Though developmentally unfinished, the basic sensory organs that the fetus develops permit it to learn information about its environment. Lecuyer (2006) reminds us that it…

Jerry Coyne's hy Evolution is True

I understand it contradicts the account in the Bible and other holy texts, if one takes a literalist interpretive stance, but given that most texts have more significant internal conflicts, I did not see why this particular theory would cause people to have such visceral emotional responses. I understand, intellectually, that evolution is not the first scientific advance to be met with tremendous hostility; there was also significant opposition to the notion of a heliocentric universe and to the idea that the earth was not flat. However, because people understand that other scientific ideas that were intertwined with biblical teachings have been proven incorrect before without damaging religious belief, I imagine that I assumed that people would be more open-minded about "modern" scientific theories. On the contrary, because of the strong scientific support for the idea of evolution, the choice not to believe evolution…

Dreaming

For centuries, people have sought to explain not only what people dream about, but also why humans dream. In older times, dreams were used for prophecy. Later, they were used in the growing field of psychology.

But, until fairly recently, people only theorized about what dreams mean, and not why people themselves have evolved the capacity to dream.

This paper examines various theories that explain why human beings dream. The first part of the paper looks at the writing of Sigmund Freud regarding dreams as the royal road to the unconscious. Implicit in Freud's writings is the view that dreams evolved as humans were forced to sublimate their natural desires to live in society.

The paper then looks at the work of J. Allan Hobson, who saw dreams as a result of the natural physiological workings of the brain. In this body of research, Hobson meticulously matches the features…

Abstract

Zika, that was identified accidentally in Uganda in 1947 in the midst of insect and primate monitoring, had so far stayed as a hidden virus limited to a slim equatorial belt functioning along Africa and running into Parts of Asia. Not much is known with regards to ZIKV’s release in the US. Phylogenetic studies suggest that the virus originated with the French Polynesian ZIKV force came into Brazil around May and Dec of 2013.

The unparalleled dimension and impact from the ZIKV pandemic within the Americas could be the all-natural consequence of a unique release right into a big populace without having preexisting immune system; Much like the Americas, the communities of Yap Tropical island and French. The seriousness of results in latest breakouts, in comparison with previous findings of moderate illness, has directed a few to hypothesize that this virus seems to have mutated to become much more…

Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey is a masterpiece in the science fiction genre. Based on a story by Arthur C. Clarke, the film epitomizes the features of science fiction, including an overarching theme questioning the role of humanity in the universe. The film could just as well be classified as an epic, given its length and breath, as it begins with the origin of human beings through a depiction of evolution from primates, through the story of a space mission occurring millions of years later. Plot practically takes a back seat to cinematography and design in 2001: A Space Odyssey, in which Kubrick employs multiple cinematographic tools including music, mise-en-scene, editing, lighting, design, and script elements.

The mise-en-scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey is simply extraordinary, because each image captures the tension and existential angst that pervades the movie. Because the bulk of the film takes place…

hat fascinated the chimps the most among the various items / objects that were placed within their immediate proximity? The infants seem to gravitate visually to the most complex forms. For example, they stared at a bull's eye, a checkerboard and items with stripes; and these items were "preferred" no matter how many weeks old the chimp was. So that settled (it seemed) the issue of whether or not an infant has form perception at birth -- infants do indeed have that ability, the study indicated.

Unlike the chicks' ability to perceive form -- which they do instinctively because their DNA informs them that they need food, nourishment -- human infants have to depend on other humans to care for them. So the Fantz team of researchers -- to take the case deeper into understanding -- presented a total of 49 human infants with three "identical sized" oval disks (p.…

The only part of the human body that can really be said to be devoted to speech in a way totally unique to humans is the brain. There are language centers in the human brain that researchers have yet to find any analogs for in other animals. This supports Noam Chomsky's assertion that language did not simply evolve from animal calls. There are, it is true, all of the biological mechanisms required for speech in many other animals, but language is capable of much more than simply making sounds or even communicating. Language can imagine the future, and express ideas that do not necessarily pertain to the current situation. The difference between the language of humans and the communication abilities of animals, as it is not physically based, must be neurologically based, and research both into human and animal brains and a careful examination of language supports this theory.

Chomsky,…

S., experts estimate the genuine number of incidents of abuse and neglect ranges three times higher than reported. (National Child Abuse Statistics, 2006) in light of these critical contemporary concerns for youth, this researcher chose to document the application of Object elation, Attachment Theories, and Self-Psychology to clinical practice, specifically focusing on a patient who experienced abuse when a child. Consequently, this researcher contends this clinical case study dissertation proves to be vital venture, which will contribute to enhancing research in the field of psychology.

For this clinical case study dissertation exploring Object elation, Attachment Theories, and Self-Psychology, along with researching information for the application of these theories to clinical practice, this researcher answered the following research questions.

esearch Questions

What is Winnicott's elational Model Theory?

What is Bowlby's Attachment Theory?

What is Kohut's Self-Psychology?

How may components of these three theories be applied to the clinical case chosen for…

Ecstasy Use by Adolescents in Miami-Dade County, FL

Ecstasy, also known as MDMA, Methylenedioxymethamphetamine, has become popular as a club drug and at techno dance events, such as raves, trance scenes and private parties. Many who attend raves and trances do not use drugs, but those who do, may be attracted to their generally low cost and to the intoxicating highs that are said to deepen the rave or trance experience ("NIDA," 2004). It has gained the reputation as a "hug drug" promoting empathy, relaxation, and sexuality. Studies indicate an increase in abuse of this drug, especially among adolescents and/or teenagers. It is a human-made drug that acts as both a stimulant and a hallucinogen. It is taken orally, in the form of a capsule or a tablet. It has short-term effects including feelings of mental stimulation, emotional warmth, enhanced sensory perception, and increased physical energy.

Health effects can include,…

Evolution be Taught in Schools?

Introduction / Thesis (Part One)

The debate between those that believe in creationism -- or "intelligent design," a refined offshoot of the creationism theory -- and those who believe in the science of evolution, spilled over into the schools in the United States many years ago. Conservative Christians and others who are in denial vis-a-vis Charles Darwin's research and theory argue that at the very least their religious-based theories should be placed side-by-side in public school textbooks. Scientists, biologists, teachers, scholars and others who accept the empirical nature of scientific evolution have battled to keep creationism and intelligent design (ID) out of the science textbooks -- with some degree of success albeit in certain conservative communities and states politicians and school board members have overruled logic by those insisting that ID be part of science textbooks. Some objective scholarship sees this debate as another example…

SIV Phylogeny in Western Gorillas

SIV in Western Gorillas

Phylogenetic Analysis of SIV in Western Gorillas

In order to better understand how SIV is transmitted Takehisa et al. (2009) undertook several experiments to determine the phylogenetic relationship between SIVgor and SIVcpz. These experiments depended primarily on sequence homology comparisons, a commonly-used and well-accepted approach for determining phylogenetic relationships.

The specific aims are as follows:

Whole genome sequence homology comparisons will be performed between different strains of SIVgor, SIVcpz, and HIV-1, to establish the relative similarity and thus reveal phylogenetic relationships.

SIVgor sequence will be examined for evidence of recombination. Should a recombination signature be found, it can be used to help search for the most recent common ancestor.

There are multiple strains of SIVcpz infecting chimpanzees from central and eastern Africa, and previous research has shown these strains are geographically-specific. SIVgor sequence comparisons with SIVcpz strains isolated from wild chimpanzee…

Ecologically, human hearing was needed to communicate better in order to survive; higher ranges of hearing have no real genetic advantage because it does not help humans to find food, shelter, or to communicate with one another. In addition, being able to localize sounds (friend or foe) would be essential and usually those sounds occur under 20,000 Hz (rustling of leaves, breaking of branches, etc.) (pp. 193-4).

2. The text explains how we might distinguish loudness for low-frequency sounds. How might we distinguish loudness for a high-frequency tone?

Loudness is a sensation that is related to amplitude (strength of frequency). We distinguish loudness based on many factors; speed of the sound, quality of the sound, etc. The higher the amplitude, the louder something appears -- and in higher frequency tones, the amplitude is faster and the peaks more robust, so the sound appears to be much louder than the identical…

Perception

How does depth perception occur in a person who gains sight after being congenital blind?

Depth perception is necessary for the ability to perform many tasks including driving, and many other activities. The ability to perceive the distance of objects is a complex process. hen people are born blind in one eye, regardless of the reason, they do not develop the ability to perceive depths. Their world is flat compared to that experienced by the rest of the world. hen that person undergoes surgery or other procedures to restore sight to the blind eye many of these patients are able to perceive depth. The ability to do this defies commonly held views on the connection between visual acuity, depth perception and motor development.

This research explores current research on depth perception and the development of depth perception. Studies in this area are limited to animal studies and those involving…

Social Network and Its Effects on the Developing Brain

The enhancing quantity of time kids are investing on computer systems in their home and institution has actually raised concerns about how using computer innovation might make a distinction in their lives-- from assisting with research to triggering depression to motivating terrible habits. This short article offers a review of the restricted study on the impacts of personal computer use on kids' physical development. Preliminary study recommends, for instance, that access to computer systems enhances the overall quantity of time kids invest in front of a TV or computer screen at the expenditure of other individual tasks, therefore putting them at danger for excessive weight. At the exact same time, intellectual study recommends that playing video game can be an essential foundation to computer proficiency due to the fact that it boosts kids' capability to check out and picture images in…

Miguel Nicolelis a Monkey that Controls a Robot With It's Thoughts. No, Really.

The video concerns brain wave technology, as narrated by Miguel Nicolelis. The video begins with a brief introduction to the nature of what Mr. Nicolelis refers to as "brainstorms." Interestingly, he offers an audio representation of these brainstorms, with the claim that brainstorms constitute all that human beings do and are in a lifetime. Towards the more specific part of the talk Mr. Nicolelis brings up the example of the monkey called Aurora, who has been used for brain experiments by a reward system. For the reward of juice, Aurora has been taught to play a computer game with a joystick. Later, the research extended to connecting Aurora's brain to a robotic arm, where she used only her thoughts to control the remote arm for successfully playing the game and receiving her reward. Later still, the research…

Noam Chomsky's Language Criteria - Do Animals Have Language?

Philosophers and scientists have long wondered whether animals were capable of communicating with each other in the form of language. However, research regarding both the cranial and cognitive capacity of higher mammals suggests that these animals are capable of many cerebral functions that used to be the purview of humans.

This paper argues that higher mammals like primates, dolphins and whales are capable of and have evolved a complex language of their own. Towards this, the paper looks at the recent research done regarding the "whistling" and other auditory communication among dolphins. In arguing that this "whistling" constitutes and fulfills the functions of language, the paper uses the framework on the syntactic structures and the various aspects of language. Through an application of Chomsky's criteria, this paper argues that dolphins have evolved a communication system made of whistling sounds that serve…

human?

The meaning of humanity is difficult to grasp. It is complex and often layered. People do not think of humanity as being one of animals or being. It is often seen as a combination of the two. Humans bleed, have instincts, and mate. Human females carry babies within the wombs. This is how any normal mammal behaves. Yet, humans also think and perform conscious actions against their instincts.

Humans have, since 5,000 years ago, formed intricate and complex societies. They use games for recreation to relieve stress and promote bonding. They carry out detailed plans to build towns and cities. Humans even use religion in order to connect with each other and their perceived spiritual world.

There are many wonderful aspects of humanity that make them, us, more than just animals. So how does this apply to the meaning of being human? Perhaps the struggle between animal and being,…