PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Chimps are sensitive to what is right and wrong

'Bystander effect' seen in chimps that only react when one of their own group is harmed

2015-06-25
(Press-News.org) How a chimpanzee views a video of an infant chimp from another group being killed gives a sense of how human morality and social norms might have evolved. So says Claudia Rudolf von Rohr of the University of Zurich in Switzerland, lead author of a paper in Springer's journal Human Nature. It provides the first evidence that chimpanzees, like humans, are sensitive to the appropriateness of behaviors, especially those directed toward infants. It also shows that these primates might only take action when a member of their own group is being harmed.

The researchers filmed two social groups of chimpanzees living in two Swiss zoological gardens while the animals repeatedly viewed film clips. The films portrayed the actions of other chimps unknown to them. The control clip showed chimps doing neutral activities such as walking or cracking nuts. The experimental clips included aggressive scenes, such as an infant chimpanzee being killed by its own kind, a small colobus monkey being hunted and killed by chimps, and socially aggressive behavior between chimpanzee adults. The taped sessions were analyzed to find out how long the chimps in the experiment looked at the screen, whether they were aroused or affected by what they saw, and how they behaved while doing so.

The zoo animals looked up to four times longer at the infanticide scenes than at any of the other films. The chimps did not merely respond to the infant screams they heard, they paid preferential attention to these scenes as a whole. This shows that chimpanzees can distinguish severe aggression against infants from other forms of aggression and harmful behavior. It also indicates that such incidents do not match the social expectations of tolerance normally granted toward infants. This is a form of so-called proto social norms at work, where individuals react as bystanders to a violation of a certain expectation of how others should behave.

Interestingly, although the chimps viewed the infanticide scenes much longer, the research team found only limited evidence that what they saw caused the viewing chimps to be more aroused or to react to them.

"The results suggest that chimpanzees detect norm violations both within their group as well as in a group of unfamiliar individuals, but that they will only respond emotionally to such norm violations within their own group," says Rudolf von Rohr.

The Swiss study adds to the growing body of evidence that identifies the building blocks of human morality in our closest living relatives. These precursors include consolation and policing behavior. Rudolf von Rohr believes that future research might provide important insights into the evolution of specific social norms in humans and why some of them are widely accepted and others are more difficult to establish.

INFORMATION:

Reference: Rudolf von Rohr, C. et al (2015). Chimpanzees' Bystander Reactions to Infanticide: An Evolutionary Precursor of Social Norms? Human Nature. DOI 10.1007/s12110-015-9228-5



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Johns Hopkins scientists restore normal function in heart muscle cells of diabetic rats

2015-06-25
Working with heart muscle cells from diabetic rats, scientists at Johns Hopkins have located what they say is the epicenter of mischief wreaked by too much blood sugar and used a sugar-gobbling enzyme to restore normal function in the glucose-damaged cells of animal heart muscles. In addition to much-needed insight into the process of diabetes-related heart damage, the study, described June 24 in the journal Diabetes, offers a clue to a possible treatment strategy for diabetic cardiomyopathy, a condition marked by progressive weakening of the heart muscle found in 60 ...

Infection preventionists may spend more time collecting data than protecting patients

2015-06-25
Nashville, Tenn., June 25, 2015--Collecting and reporting hospital infection data to federal health agencies takes more than 5 hours each day, at the expense of time needed to ensure that frontline healthcare personnel are adhering to basic infection prevention practices such as hand hygiene, according to a recent case study, to be presented on Saturday, June 27 at the 42nd Annual Conference of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC). Infection preventionists (IPs) play a critical role in the effort to eliminate healthcare-associated ...

Pilot program in pediatric long-term care facility halves topical antibiotic use

2015-06-25
Nashville, Tenn., June 25 -- A pilot antibiotic stewardship program at a pediatric long-term care facility brought about a 59 percent decrease in use of a topical antibiotic and an 83 percent decrease in orders for antibiotics without proper documentation during a six-month period, according to a new study. When the infection prevention team at Elizabeth Seton Pediatric Center in Yonkers, N.Y. noticed that certain antibiotics were being prescribed for a prolonged period of time and for non-infection indications, they launched a trial program to make improvements in antibiotic ...

Researchers question what happens in the brain when we think

2015-06-25
New research from Lund University in Sweden questions the prevailing doctrine on how the brain absorbs and processes information. The idea that the brain has a mechanism to maintain activity at the lowest possible level is incorrect. What happens in the brain when we think and which components make up a thought? Researchers in Lund have taken a major step towards understanding this central issue. Since the 1980s, there has been a general consensus among neuroscientists that the brain has a system to maintain brain activity at the lowest possible level while retaining ...

Antarctic life -- highly diverse, unusually structured

2015-06-25
In a comprehensive assessment of Antarctic biodiversity, published in Nature this week, scientists have revealed the region is more diverse and biologically interesting than previously thought. The team of scientists, led by Monash University, along with colleagues from the British Antarctic Survey, University of Waikato in New Zealand, and Australian National University, looked at how recent investigations have revealed the continent and surrounding ocean is rich in species. They are also very highly diversified into a variety of distinct ecological regions that differ ...

Writing program with student interaction creates sense of purpose for seniors

2015-06-25
A unique program combining a life review writing workshop with conversations between seniors and college students enhances the sense of meaning in life for older adults living independently, finds a new study by NYU's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. The study is published in the July/August issue of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy. Americans are living longer than ever. The majority of older adults in our aging population want to remain in their own home or "age in place," as opposed to moving to housing for seniors or moving ...

Are your emotional responses normal or abnormal?

2015-06-25
London, UK (June 25, 2015)- We all feel emotion, we all get upset, can feel low, angry and overjoyed, but when do these emotional responses become something of a medical concern? When are these feelings inappropriate, too intense, or lasting too long? When is the emotional state you are in classed as depression? In light of the 5th revision of the influential Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM- 5), where a person can now be diagnosed as undergoing a "major depressive episode" if showing depressive symptoms for more than two weeks after bereavement, ...

Redrawing language map of brain

2015-06-25
Mapping brain is like 'charting new galaxies in outer space' Old map based on stroke; new one based on neurodegenerative disease More precise brain target for future therapies to restore language CHICAGO -- For 140 years, scientists' understanding of language comprehension in the brain came from individuals with stroke. Based on language impairments caused by stroke, scientists believed a single area of the brain -- a hotdog shaped section in the temporal lobe of the left hemisphere called Wernicke's region -- was the center of language comprehension. Wernicke's ...

Medical research not addressing patient and clinician priorities

2015-06-25
Research on treatments for health problems, such as diabetes, stroke and schizophrenia, is not being focused on the treatments considered most important by patients and clinicians, according to a study published in the open access journal Research Involvement and Engagement. The study suggests that current research is instead favoring drug treatments over physical or psychological therapies, or interventions to improve educational approaches or service organization. Study author Iain Chalmers, one of the founders of the Cochrane Collaboration and James Lind Alliance, ...

A supportive close friendship helps boys and girls overcome adversity

2015-06-25
A single supportive close friendship can help young people from low-income backgrounds to thrive in challenging circumstances, according to a new University of Sussex study. The research, led by psychologist Dr Rebecca Graber, is published today, Thursday 25 June, in the British Journal of Psychology. Young people from low-income areas typically face substantial challenges to good physical health, mental health, academic achievement and employment. Previous research has linked these challenges to involvement with peers and membership of larger friendship groups - ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Fig trees convert atmospheric CO2 to stone

Intra-arterial tenecteplase for acute stroke after successful endovascular therapy

Study reveals beneficial microbes that can sustain yields in unfertilized fields

Robotic probe quickly measures key properties of new materials

Climate change cuts milk production, even when farmers cool their cows

Frozen, but not sealed: Arctic Ocean remained open to life during ice ages

Some like it cold: Cryorhodopsins

Demystifying gut bacteria with AI

Human wellbeing on a finite planet towards 2100: new study shows humanity at a crossroads

Unlocking the hidden biodiversity of Europe’s villages

Planned hydrogen refuelling stations may lead to millions of euros in yearly losses

Planned C-sections increase the risk of certain childhood cancers

Adults who have survived childhood cancer are at increased risk of severe COVID-19

Drones reveal extreme coral mortality after bleaching

New genetic finding uncovers hidden cause of arsenic resistance in acute promyelocytic leukemia

Native habitats hold the key to the much-loved smashed avocado’s future

Using lightning to make ammonia out of thin air

Machine learning potential-driven insights into pH-dependent CO₂ reduction

Physician associates provide safe care for diagnosed patients when directly supervised by a doctor

How game-play with robots can bring out their human side

Asthma: patient expectations influence the course of the disease

UNM physician tests drug that causes nerve tissue to emit light, enabling faster, safer surgery

New study identifies EMP1 as a key driver of pancreatic cancer progression and poor prognosis

XPR1 identified as a key regulator of ovarian cancer growth through autophagy and immune evasion

Flexible, eco-friendly electronic plastic for wearable tech, sensors

Can the Large Hadron Collider snap string theory?

Stuckeman professor’s new book explores ‘socially sustainable’ architecture

Synthetic DNA nanoparticles for gene therapy

New model to find treatments for an aggressive blood cancer

Special issue of Journal of Intensive Medicine analyzes non-invasive respiratory support

[Press-News.org] Chimps are sensitive to what is right and wrong
'Bystander effect' seen in chimps that only react when one of their own group is harmed