This is a discussion on bonobos, dogs and us within the Evolution forums, part of the Science category; here's a thoughtful article: http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/woods_hare09/woods_hare09_index.html In the 6 million years since hominids split from the evolutionary ancestor we share with ...
bonobos, dogs and us here's a thoughtful article:
http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/woods_hare09/woods_hare09_index.html
In the 6 million years since hominids split from the evolutionary ancestor we share with chimpanzees and bonobos, something happened to our brains that allowed us to become master cooperators, accumulate knowledge at a rapid rate, and manipulate tools
there's an interesting part about how dogs have been domesticated too.
Re: bonobos, dogs and us That's pretty intense. If you think about it this makes perfect sense. In some Darwinian ways certain people may be much more evolved physically, but if they're insane and kill folks then they're not right for society. Great article.Most important (and controversial), something similar may have happened in human evolution. Instead of getting a jump start with the most intelligent hominids surviving to produce the next generation, as is often suggested, it may have been the more sociable hominids — because they were better at solving problems together — who achieved a higher level of fitness and allowed selection to favor more sophisticated problem-solving over time. Humans got their smarts only because we got friendlier first.
Saccer Fidelis Tyrannosaurus!
Re: bonobos, dogs and us I wish I had time to read the whole thing right now. Looks like a really great article. I think this ties in nicely with the evolutionary origin of altruism.
"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself -- and you are the easiest person to fool." -- Richard Feynman
Posting Permissions
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Reply With Quote