Essays on Chimpanzees

Abstract

Over thirty years after its identification, HIV and AIDS remains a somewhat elusive virus, particularly when it comes to its history as a human infectious agent, and resourcing a complete epidemiology of the disease. Part of the problem is that so many antiretroviral drugs have come out and have either been used or prescribed incorrectly. In addition, the virus, like many other reverse RNA transcriptase viruses, has a very high aptitude in terms of developing resistance to drugs at a very rapid rate. What further complicates matters is how quickly it has spread. It will probably never truly be ...

In global societies, discussions concerning the use of animals in medical tests for research are uncomfortable and controversial. Modern technology often broadcasts horrific photos of procedures being conducted on helpless creatures accompanied by claims of untrustworthy results and skewed statistics. In the long run, animals will continue to be used for testing in laboratories until the value of the practice is diminished. “The benefits of animal research have been enormous and it would have severe consequences for public health and medical research if it were abandoned “ (Festing and Wilkinson, n.p.). This paper will present information regarding whether animal testing ...

Do animals have emotions like human beings? Are the animals closer to human beings than it is commonly believed? The two videos attempt to understand the similarities between animals and human beings. Frans Lanting depicts a human side of the animals in his photos and images. Using the photographs, Frans creates a deeper understanding of the creatures. From the video, he says that he is often asked why he does not capture human beings in his images. Frans responds by outlining that the animals themselves are a form of human beings meaning that there is a person in each ...

In the present assignment we are to analyze food habits among chimpanzees and the significance of those throughout the history of evolution of species. As it is well known chimpanzees are our closest surviving relatives with approximately 96 percent of genes being shared between us, humans, and chimpanzees. In the capacity of our relatives chimpanzees have the largest brain among the primates. Moreover, they have certain things in common if not with humans, at least with our predecessors – chimpanzees can use tools, some of which are quite sophisticated. They make their sleeping nests in a rather elaborate fashion which ...

The psychology, history, and nature are in continuous change, and it is necessary to understand the approach that our hunter-gatherer ancestors had in past. It can be said that “A brief history of Humankind” is the best way to get into the past. In one of its chapter, there is a strong statement that summarizes many things in one line, and that is “our brain and minds were adapted to a life of hunting and gathering.” Many psychologists believe that present day social and psychological characteristics are designed after a long pre-agricultural era. And thus, today the way the ...

(Teacher)

Theory 1: (PBS/NOVA) Peaceful bonobos and Violent Chimpanzees. Because chimpanzees are closely related to humans it is likely that some humans act very much like the violent chimpanzees, however, many humans are peaceful too. Although I would be more likely to state that the reason is within our DNA by strictly looking at the data for both primates, I am actually a believer in both nurture and nature, as evidenced by the fact that although most children are raised by the same people and can have siblings that are completely different in personality traits. Therefore, my belief is ...

In most cases, wars serve a collective purpose. Conflicts emerge due to the interaction of people concerning the available resources. This paper seeks to establish how wars arise from an evolutionally point view, provide previous cases, and the emergence of conflict theories. According to Jha (1), a study in Uganda found that Chimpanzees form rival groups and attack each other to secure a larger territory. A similar situation of the Chimps occurred in Virunga Park, Tanzania. The researchers noted that the primary reason for conflict among the Chimps was to have a bigger place for food and interaction within ...

Introduction

Even though the concept of evolution is a typical narrative, it remains one of the most highly contentious of the topics. Major disagreements persist in the field, particularly when the evolutionary origin and physical modification of primates are the subject matter of discussion. Because of these differences, lots of significant finds in the field have attracted considerable amounts of opposition from experts depending on the species, or the side angle of evolution one recognizes (Ravosa and Dagosto). Disputes often center around locomotion and posture – whether a particular species was fully upright or could walk bipedally, brain size (intelligence), sexuality ...

Gombe is a national park in Tanzania, one of East African countries. Jane Goodall is the primatologists in this research of the chimpanzees in Tanzania’s Gombe national parks. Goodall today runs an organization to help champion conservation of the environment and other endangered species (Goodall, 2010). Goodall founded Roots and shoots and the Jane Goodall institute through which she runs several of her activities. Although Goodall didn’t have collegiate training when she set out to go to Gombe stream 1960 to study the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community, Goodall's interactions with the primates has contributed a lot to the ...

Today, it is estimated that more than twenty-six million animals are being used yearly in the United States for both scientific and commercial research, as they are used in the development of medical treatments, determining of toxic medicines and analyse how safe are products designed for people use among many others. According to Langley et al., “the issue with animal research has been in practice since 500 BC as those who agree with the issue testifying on how it has been of help in developing plenty life-saving medicines for both human beings and animals (270)”. According to the proposers ...

The River and the Chimp is an analytical book written by David Quammen about how the HIV originated from chimpanzees in an African forest (Quammen, 2015). The acumen of this book challenges the many unscientific beliefs about the origin of HIV and spread. There is a great need to understand where this scourge originated to beat the diverse stereotypical and unscientific beliefs. By examining the works of David Quammen in the book The River and the Chimp, this research paper shall focus on discussing the origin of HIV. The knowledge of the origin of HIV is of immense importance ...

Did Human Bipedalism Evolve from a Knuckle-walking Ape Ancestor Did Human Bipedalism Evolve from a Knuckle-walking Ape Ancestor

Introduction

The narratives of human evolution are one of the oft-told scientific stories whenever the topic of the origin of man crops up. However, this topic is also one of the thorniest and most highly contentious. There are major disagreements in the manner in which man first came to be, and every interpretation of almost every new find on the matter will be sure to find opposition among scholars on the field (Harcourt-Smith & Aiello, 2004). While there are numerous causes of disputes ...

Based on what I have learned, the primates are intelligent animals. For instance, the chimpanzees and other apes are intelligent because they can learn words, play with each other, play with objects, and they even mourn their friends' death. As compared to humans, psychological abilities vary from one animal to the other. Half of the intelligence that primates have come from their genes. The environmental factors contribute the rest of the intelligence in primates. On the other hand, the human intelligence and development are based on cultural factors such as formal education (Matsuzawa). From the study in human beings ...

Chimpanzees are genetically very close to human beings. As a result, these animals are very useful when conducting human biomedical and behavioral research (National Academies of Science). Plenty of research have been done using these animals leading to great developments in public health. Although these primates have helped researchers to make plenty of contribution to public health, some people feel that other alternatives should be considered. It is true that chimpanzees have played a vital role in medical research. However, their use as animal models is no longer appealing as technology provides alternatives. Complete discontinuation of chimpanzees in laboratories ...

Decision-Making

“Chimp Minds” is a documentary of Chimpanzees that explores the similarities between chimpanzee and human minds. Unlike other animals that simply act based on instinct, Chimpanzees seem to be conscious of their decisions. For example, the chimpanzees seem to be conscious of their choices of play items. The chimpanzees also take their time before deciding on how to react to a situation. Such a trait mirrors human behaviour and way of thinking. Other animals do not share this level intelligence. For example, when a gazelle spots a lion, it will not spend a lot of time thinking of what ...