Javascript must be enabled to continue!

The Cultured Chimpanzee: Nonsense or Breakthrough?

View through CrossRef

Controversy surrounds the claim that non-humans are culture-bearing creatures, yet the field of cultural primatology continues to progress. Using the chimpanzee as an example, this essay recounts the historical background to cultural primatology and its stage-wise development from natural history to ethnography to ethnology. First, it summarises the case for cultural primatology being nonsense, based on human uniqueness, dependency, transmission mechanisms, special pleading, language, and cumulative culture. Then, it counters with the case for cultural primatology being a breakthrough, citing multi-level comparative studies, universals, nuanced variation, and primate archaeology. Taking into account the strength of this diverse but convergent evidence, the breakthrough verdict is favoured.

International Society for Human Ethology (ISHE)

William C. McGrew

Title: The Cultured Chimpanzee: Nonsense or Breakthrough?

Description:

Controversy surrounds the claim that non-humans are culture-bearing creatures, yet the field of cultural primatology continues to progress.

Using the chimpanzee as an example, this essay recounts the historical background to cultural primatology and its stage-wise development from natural history to ethnography to ethnology.

First, it summarises the case for cultural primatology being nonsense, based on human uniqueness, dependency, transmission mechanisms, special pleading, language, and cumulative culture.

Then, it counters with the case for cultural primatology being a breakthrough, citing multi-level comparative studies, universals, nuanced variation, and primate archaeology.

Taking into account the strength of this diverse but convergent evidence, the breakthrough verdict is favoured.

Related Results

Gas Breakthrough Mechanisms in Reconstituted Geomaterial

Subsurface energy and waste disposal in geo-reservoir environments rely on the sealing potential of clay-rich geological formations to act as physical barriers to long-term anthrop...

Development of Semi-Analytical Post-Breakthrough Predictions for Vertical and Horizontal Wells

Abstract Horizontal and vertical wells are commonly used in the production of oil lying above a water zone, or above a gas zone or sandwiched between the gas and the...

Disulfram/Copper Complex May Enhance Its Cytotoxic Effect on CD34+CD38- KG1-Alpha Cells By Down Regulating the Expression of HIF1-Alpha in the Co-Cultured MSCs

Abstract Backgroud We had reported that Disulfram/copper complex (DS/ Cu) had a potent and selective anti-leukemia property in vitro against leukemia stem-like cells...

Emotional breakthrough and psychedelics: Validation of the Emotional Breakthrough Inventory

Background: Psychedelic therapy is gaining recognition and the nature of the psychedelic experience itself has been found to mediate subsequent long-term psycho...

Suppression of Nonsense Mutations by New Emerging Technologies

Nonsense mutations often result from single nucleotide substitutions that change a sense codon (coding for an amino acid) to a nonsense or premature termination codon (PTC) within ...

HCV selection and HVR1 evolution in a chimpanzee chronically infected with HCV‐1 over 12 years

Aim: To study hepatitis C virus (HCV) selection and hypervariable region‐1 (HVR1) evolution in a chimpanzee chronically infected with HCV‐1 over 12 years after inoculation with a ...

Clinico-Epidemiological Profile of Breakthrough COVID-19 Infection among Vaccinated Beneficiaries from a COVID-19 Vaccination Centre in Bihar, India

BACKGROUND፡ When the whole world is fighting in an unprecedented pace against COVID-19 pandemic, the breakthrough COVID infections poise to dampen the rapid control of the same. We...

Characteristics of Varicella Breakthrough Cases in Jinhua City, 2016–2024

Background: Varicella remains a prevalent vaccine-preventable disease, but breakthrough infections are increasingly reported. However, long-term, population-based studies investiga...