There are clear similarities between non- human primates and primates. These similarities provide information about human evolution because of how primates are all very closely linked together. Non-human primates have a lot of physical and biological features with humans, showing that there is a common evolutionary history, which in turn provides an idea of why some traits are seen in humans. This also allows us to know what traits may be biological, and which ones are from cultural influences.
For as long as I can recall, humans have always been compared to chimpanzees because they are the closet living animals that are the related to humans. This is because they share 98.5% of DNA with humans, which is actually very surprising. But, there are more similarities than just DNA. What I found to be interesting about chimpanzees is that other than humans they are the only group of non-human primates that seem to hunt. Not only this, but it seems that they also have a wide variety of food they eat in their diet, as far as carbs, fats, and proteins go. They also live in a male dominated society.
Furthermore, by being able to study Hominoids, which are Apes as well as humans, we are able to understand how our ancestor’s brains may have worked. This is because humans have definitely evolved from what our ancestors once were, and apes represent what we may have once been somewhat like. This gives us an idea into evolution, and helps us further understand it.
When reading through the articles for this week, the one article that really stood out to me was, “What Is War Good for? Ask a Chimpanzee”.This is because the article discusses how Jane Goodall and other scientists documented war like behavior between chimps. Since, chimpanzees are our closest living relative a lot of people took this to mean that humans may have a killer instinct in them too. But, the article explains that, “Instead of humans and chimps being natural born killers, violence in both species may be more a matter of circumstance.” Which makes sense, because for example if someone is harming someone you care about or is harming you in anyone, you would most likely respond violently. These are special circumstances.
Overall, there are many similarities between non-human primates and human primates that have allowed us to learn a plethora of things about evolution. It lets us know that the evolution of primates reaches very far back, and there is a reason for a lot of instinctual things humans do. The information about human primates biology and behavior can also be more easily explained by looking at the relationship between non-human primates and human primates.
Hi Jenna! I was shocked to find out that chimpanzees share 98.5% of our DNA with humans as well. That is an insanely high percentage! I agree that by continuing studies on Hominoids, we can better understand the way our ancestors thought. Additionally, we can analyze how our thought process has changed over the courses of the year and hopefully understand why. Also, I mentioned the article, “What is War Good for? Ask a Chimpanzee” in my blog post as well. I appreciate you mentioning the quote about violence is a matter of circumstance versus us being natural killers because it shows that being violent is not installed in our DNA. We simply want to protect the things we love. Your blog was very informative and engaging at the same time! Overall, I think you did a fantastic job.
I also think its really shocking to know that chimpanzees share 98.5% of our DNA, which makes for great study to show how similar we are biologically and socially. In the article “What is War Good for? Ask a Chimpanzee” I think its really interesting to learn that violence and this “killer instinct” can be found in both species, us and chimpanzees, however I definitely agree its important to put this emphasis on circumstantial situations and that its not embedded into us as we are all killers, its just that we are capable of those actions but its a process of which is a matter of circumstance. I think thats a really important distinction to make and to highlight that the chimpanzees are also not naturally violent or aggressive but they are very well capable just like humans which shows their similarity to us and how they can maintain and regulate their emotions and urges.
Hi Jenna,
I think that is great you mentioned how our culture as humans could have been possibly influenced from non-human primates. We are on the track to find out from observations and DNA analysis. Again, I think the close relation to DNA from humans to chimpanzees is also surprising but then really thinking about it, it is not since it is the closest relative to us as another organism like you had mentioned. Their culture and behavior are also very similar to what we do as humans, and therefore why many believe it is in our “human nature” that we behave the way we do sometimes. Studying more on Homonoids would definitely help in learning more about our own biology, and would continue to be so interesting the connection we can make in our changes and evolution as a species.
Hello Jenna,
I think your blog was written very well and I felt that I found a lot of useful and interesting things regarding humans and non human primates. I was also just as shocked when I learned that chimpanzees share 98.5% of our DNA. That is a huge percentage and is very crazy if you think about it. I agree a lot about, in the second paragraph, where you state what chimpanzees diets are like. I think it is cool that they have such a large variety because you would not just assume that they do. My favorite thing that you wrote about in your blog was when you talked about the article called “what is war good for?” I think that that article was very interesting to read and it is good to know that killers are not just born with killing and violence in their own brain. Overall I think I this was a great post and I enjoyed reading it.
Great job on your blog post. I felt as if you explained things that weren’t clear during lecture, but after reading you post I received a better understanding. For example: describing the Non-Human Primate Chimps and their similarities to humans. You touched on why we as humans are constantly being compared to chimps. I agree, it’s very surprising that chimps share 98.5% of human’s DNA! But what’s even more fascinating are our characteristics, how we both hunt and our similar diets. Also, the male dominated society is exactly parallel to human’s society in many different cultures. The points you bought up in your blog post are essential to understanding the correlation between the non-human primates and human primates, and how studying these primates helps us as humans understand our own biology.
Great job!
Hi,
I enjoyed your post this week when you compared us humans to other non-human primates. I too was shocked by the fact that they share 98.5% of DNA with humans and we are so much more evolved over the past 2 million years. It is interesting that they haven’t evolved into more intelligent beings while humans diverged and evolved at a much greater pace. I too find it interesting that they are omnivorous primates similar to us eating similar basic foods. I also found it interesting on the article “What Is War Good for? Ask a Chimpanzee” that both geographical chimps could differentiate each other and kill the other to start a war.
Hi Jenna!
I liked your post as it pertained to the immense similarities shown between humans and non-human primates. There is such great closeness not only among features and DNA but among our intelligence in a spacial and emotional sense. The intelligence seen in primates and their ability to solve certain problems and organize their community in such a way that it mimics human civilization and social hierarchy offers a fascinating insight into our own past. Studying these primates is a and observing their behavior is a pivotal part of our comprehension regarding the history of humans and how their evolution is in relation to primates. The evolutionary traits that primates share with humans, such as their ability to see color and their chosen diets, are so closely related that it only continues to solidify our relatedness and brings more information into who we are and where we came from.