Conditions of innovative behaviour in primates

1985 ◽  
Vol 308 (1135) ◽  
pp. 203-214 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Social Structure ◽  
Short Duration ◽  
Field Conditions ◽  
Ecological Conditions ◽  
Selective Pressures ◽  
Innovative Behaviour ◽  
Natural Groups

Innovative behaviour achieved through exploration, learning and insight heavily depends on certain motivational, social and ecological conditions of short duration. We propose that more attention should be given to what these conditions are and where they are realized in natural groups of non-human primates. Only to the extent that such favourable conditions were frequently realized in a social structure or an extraspecific environment could selective pressures act on innovative abilities. There is hope that research into field conditions of innovative behaviour will help to identify its selectors in evolution.

Does play matter? Functional and evolutionary aspects of animal and human play

1982 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter K. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Goal Setting ◽  
Hominid Evolution ◽  
Residual Function ◽  
Educational Value ◽  
Selective Pressures ◽  
Innovative Behaviour ◽  
Systematic Development ◽  
Physical Skills ◽  
Evolutionary Aspects ◽  
Extrinsic Goal

AbstractIn this paper I suggest that play is a distinctive behavioural category whose adaptive significance calls for explanation. Play primarily affords juveniles practice toward the exercise of later skills. Its benefits exceed its costs when sufficient practice would otherwise be unlikely or unsafe, as is particularly true with physical skills and socially competitive ones. Manipulative play with objects is a byproduct of increased intelligence, specifically selected for only in a few advanced primates, notably the chimpanzee.The adaptiveness of play in pongid evolution is traced through the probable changes in selective pressures that occurred in hominid evolution. It is argued that fantasy was an emergent property in hominids, made possible by symbolic intelligence and language, and serving to make play complex enough to continue to provide useful practice for increasingly complex later skills.The advent of organised instruction and education has meant that play's unplanned, intrinisic goal-setting could be replaced by extrinsic goal-setting in the systematic development of particular skills. However, the need to ensure adequate motivation has continued to give play educational value. In addition, its capacity to enhance innovative behaviour seems to be a residual function of play which has acquired a new cultural importance.

scholarly journals Notes on a tree: reframing the relevance of primate choruses, duets, and solo songs

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiara De Gregorio ◽  
Filippo Carugati ◽  
Daria Valente ◽  
Teresa Raimondi ◽  
Valeria Torti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Structure ◽  
Turning Point ◽  
Territorial Behavior ◽  
Vocal Behavior ◽  
Evolution Of Language ◽  
Selective Pressures ◽  
Singing Behavior ◽  
Unique Definition

The complexity of primates’ singing behavior has long gathered the attention of researchers interested in understanding the selective pressures underpinning the evolution of language. Among these pressures, a link between territoriality, pair-living, and singing displays has been suggested. Historically, singing primates have been found in a few taxa that are not closely related to each other, and, in the last years, their phylogeny has dramatically changed. Hence, we aimed at understanding if the dogmatic association between territorial behavior and a monogamous social structure still holds in the light of current research. Moreover, singing behavior has often been considered a whole, but animals can perform different singing forms depending on how many individuals call simultaneously. Currently, it is unclear to which extent these singing forms are widespread among these primate groups. Given that there is no unique definition for a song, solo, duet, and chorus, we envisioned some of the most used descriptions. We then formulated some new definitions that we followed in our review of the presence/absence of these different forms of song organization among singing primates’ taxa. In particular, we suggested that tarsier species that are typically considered non-singers may indeed sing, and we pointed out that non-duetting gibbons may perform duet interactions. We found that, besides duets, chorusing behavior and solo songs are essential features of primates’ communication, but their study is still in a descriptive phase. Moreover, while territorial behavior seems to be conserved in these singing taxa, we highlighted that the monogamous social structure is not the rule. Pair-living plus multi- females groups displaying singing behavior are common too. We suggest that ending to consider these taxa as uniform in their sociality and vocal behavior might be a significant turning point to unravel the different selective pressures that influenced the emergence and organization of such peculiar vocal behavior.

A study of cometary eruptions through OH radio-lines

1999 ◽  
Vol 173 ◽  
pp. 249-254
Author(s):  
A.M. Silva ◽  
R.D. Miró
Keyword(s):  
Short Duration ◽  
Growth Curves ◽  
The Other ◽  
Initial Mass ◽  
Radio Lines ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Sudden Rise

AbstractWe have developed a model for theH2OandOHevolution in a comet outburst, assuming that together with the gas, a distribution of icy grains is ejected. With an initial mass of icy grains of 108kg released, theH2OandOHproductions are increased up to a factor two, and the growth curves change drastically in the first two days. The model is applied to eruptions detected in theOHradio monitorings and fits well with the slow variations in the flux. On the other hand, several events of short duration appear, consisting of a sudden rise ofOHflux, followed by a sudden decay on the second day. These apparent short bursts are frequently found as precursors of a more durable eruption. We suggest that both of them are part of a unique eruption, and that the sudden decay is due to collisions that de-excite theOHmaser, when it reaches the Cometopause region located at 1.35 × 105kmfrom the nucleus.

A Social Anthropologist Considers Social Structure

1957 ◽  
Vol 2 (11) ◽  
pp. 297-298
Author(s):  
HOWARD BAUMGARTEL
Keyword(s):  
Social Structure ◽  
Social Anthropologist

Dialogue (Re)Constructs Social Structure

1993 ◽  
Vol 38 (5) ◽  
pp. 536-537
Author(s):  
Frank E. Millar
Keyword(s):  
Social Structure
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