#primate studies

[is-the-primate-vid-cute]

Hey, in a psych class I take, we have been using some results from primate studies. I was wondering if any mods have ever been involved in or have been involved with places that have conducted research on any primates previously? Behavioural studies or otherwise? Or if any of you have any thoughts on studies that have been done previously? Bc having kept up with this blog for a while and having a modicum of common sense, cases like Kanzi's and Nim Chimpsky's seem highly unethical

While neither of us have been directly involved in any primate studies, I have studied a good few both independently and as part of my post secondary education. While there are many many many cases of unethical primate studies, I feel hopeful knowing that primate studies have become a lot more ethical in recent years. While Nim Chimpsky lived a tumultuous and tragic life for the most part, Kanzi is living his best life currently! The Ape cognition and Conservation Initiative has undergone major changes and Kanzi is no longer being treated inappropriately for his species by interacting with humans too closely, wearing clothes, and being overfed. He is now able to prioritize his relationships with other bonobos, and is down to a healthy weight for his species, all while continuing to give us insight into bonobo cognition and communication. I hope cases like Kanzi show that there is a right way and a wrong way to learn from primates, and that beneficence in research ethics should extend to other species. We should take what we can learn from previous primate studies, and vow to do better in every study forward.

[thoughtlessarse]

Bonobos are more aggressive than previously thought, study shows

Chimpanzees and bonobos are often thought to reflect two different sides of human nature—the conflict-ready chimpanzee versus the peac

Chimpanzees and bonobos are often thought to reflect two different sides of human nature—the conflict-ready chimpanzee versus the peaceful bonobo—but a new study published in Current Biology shows that, within their own communities, male bonobos are more frequently aggressive than male chimpanzees. For both species, more aggressive males had more mating opportunities. "Chimpanzees and bonobos use aggression in different ways for specific reasons," says anthropologist and lead author Maud Mouginot of Boston University. "The idea is not to invalidate the image of bonobos being peaceful—the idea is that there is a lot more complexity in both species." Though previous studies have investigated aggression in bonobos and chimpanzees, this is the first study to directly compare the species' behavior using the same field methods. The researchers focused on male aggression, which is often tied to reproduction, but they note that female bonobos and chimpanzees are not passive, and their aggression warrants its own future research. To compare bonobo and chimpanzee aggression, the team scrutinized rates of male aggression in three bonobo communities at the Kokolopori Bonobo Reserve (Democratic Republic of Congo) and two chimpanzee communities at Gombe National Park (Tanzania).

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[pozmagazine]

Why Have Most HIV Vaccines Backfired? Well, think about the way most vaccines in the medical world work — by prompting an immune response against a virus. Now, think about the way HIV works...

by attacking these very same immune cells. A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences lays it out pretty well here.