Tag Archives: sense

Why Your Sense of Taste Changes After 50: Exploring the Science Behind Food Flavor Loss

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Many people believe that food becomes less enjoyable as we age. While age plays a role, various other factors contribute to this phenomenon.

We are born with around 9,000 taste buds located on the papillae of the tongue. These taste buds regenerate every few weeks.

However, this regeneration slows down as we age. After around age 50, there is often an overall decline in taste buds, and existing ones may become less sensitive.




Not everyone experiences this decline uniformly, but some may find that food loses its appeal as they age. Still, it’s not solely about age.

Factors such as genetics, dental issues, medications, chronic health conditions, smoking, and nasal problems can also affect our sense of taste.

Moreover, our sense of smell significantly impacts how we perceive flavor. As we age, the number of olfactory receptor cells and the function of nasal mucous membranes decline, dulling our taste perception.

Temporary loss of smell, such as during a cold, can create similar effects, rendering food significantly bland.

As our sense of taste weakens, food preferences often shift. Salty and sweet flavors become more pronounced, leading many to favor these tastes as they age.

However, caution is essential; increased salt intake can affect blood pressure, while consuming sweets can lead to weight gain.

Intense flavors like sour citrus can awaken even the dullest of palates – Credit: Getty

So, can we prevent our sense of taste from dulling? While we can’t halt the aging process, certain habits may enhance our taste perception.

For instance, staying well-hydrated helps maintain saliva production; avoiding smoking (which harms taste buds), managing chronic conditions such as diabetes, and reviewing medications that cause dry mouth can all help.

Incorporating sharp flavors can also invigorate our taste experience. Foods like citrus fruits, sorbets, and mint often strike a stronger chord with our taste buds.

Marinating foods with vinegar, dressings, mustard, herbs, and spices can significantly enhance flavor and is often a better approach than merely increasing salt and sugar.

While it’s common for some individuals to experience a decline in taste as they age, with mindful habits and a touch of culinary adventure, many can continue to savor vibrant flavors well into their later years.

This article addresses the question posed by Kian Wilkinson from Lancaster: “Can we prevent our sense of taste from becoming dull as we age?”

If you have any questions, feel free to email us at: questions@sciencefocus.com or reach out via Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram (please include your name and location).

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Bumblebees Astonish Scientists with Their Impressive Sense of Rhythm

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Buff-tailed bumblebee on artificial flower

Buff-tailed Bumblebee on Artificial Flowers

Honey bee laboratory at Southern Medical University

Bumblebees exhibit remarkable abilities by recognizing Morse code-like patterns of flashing lights and vibrations, showcasing a unique sense of rhythm not previously documented in such small-brained animals.

This capacity to discern flexible and abstract rhythms, such as varying tempos or styles, has only been observed in select birds and mammals, including primates like parrots, songbirds, and chimpanzees.

Andrew Baron and his research team from Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia, found that buff-tailed bumblebees (Western bumblebee), despite their less intricate brains, can comprehend a range of diverse rhythms.

In their initial experiment, these bumblebees were trained to select between two artificial flowers with flashing LED lights. One flower emitted prolonged flashes while the other produced short pulses, reminiscent of Morse code. One flower contained a reward (sucrose) while the other housed an unpleasant substance (quinine).

After mastering the distinction between the rewarding and punishing flowers, the bees were further tested on flowers containing just water. Remarkably, nearly all bees still chose the flowers that produced the type of flashes they previously associated with sucrose.

Next, the scientists complicated the experiment by employing different flashing patterns for each flower, such as dash, dash, dot, dot, dash, dot, dash. The bees still successfully identified the variations.

However, what astonished researchers were the results that followed. The artificial flowers were substituted with a maze featuring a vibrating floor at the junction of two paths.

“If it vibrates dot-dash-dot-dash, that signals a right turn for sugar,” Baron explains. “We demonstrated to them that certain rhythms indicated left turns while others indicated right turns, and they learned this successfully.”

In the final phase, the researchers halted training and replaced the vibrating floor with LED lights that mimicked the same patterns. “Though not every bee grasped the concept individually, as a collective, we proved that they could transition from vibrations to light pulses,” Baron notes.

This indicates that the bumblebees recognized the rhythm regardless of its representation, be it through light flashes or vibrations.

Until now, abstract rhythmic understanding was thought to necessitate a larger brain, Baron stated. Understanding how bumblebees perform this with their diminutive brains could transform how small drones and similar autonomous devices perceive their environments.

“This study suggests there might be simpler cognitive mechanisms at play,” Baron reflects. “It’s extraordinary that a bee can abstract rhythm with such a small brain.”

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Triassic Coelacanths: Did They Use Their Lungs to Sense Ocean Sounds?

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New research on two 240-million-year-old coelacanth fossils reveals an intriguing sensory adaptation: ossified lungs that transmit sound to the inner ear, shedding light on how early vertebrates interpreted their environment.

Reconstruction of a Triassic coelacanth. This schematic illustrates the connection between ossified lungs and the inner ear, enabling underwater hearing. Image credit: A. Beneteau & L. Cavin, MHNG.

“Coelacanths are lobe-finned fish with a rich fossil history exceeding 400 million years, offering crucial insights into vertebrate anatomical evolution,” said Professor Lionel Cavin, a paleontologist affiliated with the Natural History Museum of Geneva and the University of Geneva.

“Once believed extinct, the genus Latimeria remains, currently including two recognized species.”

“Fossilized coelacanths possess a series of large, puzzling ossified plates arranged in a tiled pattern within their body cavities, surrounding an internal area that likely contained gas during life.”

In a groundbreaking study, paleontologists investigated the lungs and inner ear anatomy of two Middle Triassic coelacanth species: Glauria Branchiodonta and Loreleia eusingulata from eastern France.

By utilizing a particle accelerator at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, researchers uncovered an exceptionally well-preserved ossified lung featuring wing-like bony structures at its tip.

Simultaneously, examinations of modern coelacanth embryos revealed canals linking auditory and balance organs on either side of the skull.

By synthesizing these findings, researchers propose that these structures create a comprehensive sensory system.

Sound waves captured by the ossified lungs are believed to be conveyed through this channel to the inner ear, enhancing the animal’s underwater auditory perception.

“Our hypothesis draws parallels with contemporary freshwater fish like carp and catfish,” explained Luigi Manueli, a PhD student at the Geneva Museum of Natural History and the University of Geneva.

“In these fish, a structure known as the Weber apparatus links the swim bladder to the inner ear, facilitating the detection of underwater sounds.”

“Air pockets in the swim bladder are vital for sensing these waves; otherwise, they would go unnoticed by the fish.”

“This hearing capability likely diminished as modern coelacanth ancestors adapted to deep-sea settings, leading to lung degeneration and the obsolescence of this system,” noted Professor Cavin.

“Remarkably, some structures related to the inner ear remain preserved.”

“These anatomical remnants offer valuable insights into the evolutionary trajectory of these fish and potentially our own aquatic ancestors.”

For more details, refer to the study published in the Journal on February 14, 2026, in Communication Biology.

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L. Manueli et al. 2026. The dual functions of coelacanth lungs: breathing and hearing. Commun. Biol. 9, 400; doi: 10.1038/s42003-026-09708-6

Source: www.sci.news

Unveiling the Mystery: Why Your Sense of Touch is One of the World’s Most Fascinating Illusions

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From a scientific perspective, “touching” an object is more complex than it seems. For all objects with mass, it appears they are touching, but in reality, they aren’t in physical contact. This phenomenon can be explained by two main factors.

First, the structure of atoms plays a crucial role. Atoms consist of positively charged protons and negatively charged electrons. Protons, along with neutral neutrons, form the nucleus at the center of the atom, while electrons orbit this nucleus.

According to the principles of electromagnetic force, opposite charges attract and like charges repel. When two atoms approach one another, their outer electrons typically repel due to their similar charges, leading to the sensation of not truly touching.







Another essential concept is Pauli’s Exclusion Principle. In simple terms, this principle states that no two electrons in the same atom can occupy the same quantum state, meaning their “orbitals” must differ.

This leads to a short-range repulsive force, referred to as Pauli’s Repulsion, affecting electrons and, consequently, atoms. Combined with electromagnetic forces, these interactions typically result in atoms repelling each other.

So when you “touch” an object, the atoms or molecules involved are usually repelled by one another, creating a small repulsive force that prevents real contact.

For instance, when you sit in a chair, you’re essentially floating on a cushion of subatomic repulsive forces.

While we may perceive that we are in contact with our surroundings, what we actually sense is a repulsive force – Credit: Getty

The reality is slightly more intricate. When we touch an object, a minimal chemical interaction may occur.

Some atoms can overcome electromagnetic repulsion, allowing them to exchange or share electrons with those of the object, forming bonds. This leads to the forces commonly associated with “friction,” but fundamentally, Pauli repulsion prevents true contact.

When you “touch” something, your body perceives this sensation, thanks to specialized sensory organs known as mechanoreceptors. These receptors respond to pressure and vibration, sending electrical signals to the brain, which interprets these signals as the sensation of “touch.”

Ultimately, these mechanoreceptors are detecting small repulsive forces between atoms and molecules, rather than direct physical contact. Hence, “touch” can be regarded as an illusion.

This article addresses the question raised by Josh Greene from Leeds: “Have you ever touched anything technically?”

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The detrimental effects of banning frightening concepts may outweigh the sense of security it provides

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Yuichiro Chino/Getty Images

In 1818, Mary Shelley invented a technology that has been used for both good and bad in the centuries since. It's called science fiction.

Although you might not think that literary genres count as technology, science fiction has long been a tool for predicting and critiquing science. Shelley’s Frankenstein Considered by many to be the first serious science fiction novel, it was so powerful that South Africa banned it in 1955. This story set the formula with a story that still serves today as a warning against unintended consequences.

As far as we know, the exact science that the eponymous Victor Frankenstein used to create is impossible. But today researchers can restore dead human brains to something resembling life. Experiments are underway to restart cell activity (but importantly not consciousness) after death to test its effectiveness in treating conditions such as Alzheimer's disease (see “Fundamental treatments that bring people back from the brink of death”).

It reminds me of many science fiction stories that feature similar scenarios and I can’t help but imagine what will happen next. The same is true for the study reported in “1000 people’s AI simulation accurately reproduces their behavior.” In this study, researchers used the technology behind ChatGPT to recreate the thoughts and actions of specific individuals with surprising success.

The team behind this work blurs the lines between fact, fiction, and what it means to be human.

In both cases, the teams behind this research are blurring the lines between fact, fiction, and what it means to be human, and their research is being conducted under strong ethical oversight. We are deeply aware that there are ethical concerns in the details. It was announced early on. But now that the technology is proven, there is nothing to stop more violent groups from attempting the same thing without oversight, potentially causing significant damage.

Does that mean the research should be banned for fear of it falling into the wrong hands, as Shelley’s book was? Far from it. Concerns about technology are best addressed through appropriate evidence-based regulation and swift punishment of violators. When regulators go too far, they miss out on not only the technology but also the opportunity to criticize and debate it.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Feeling lost? Try this simple trick to reconnect with your sense of direction

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WWe're disoriented and our brains are shrinking – at least our hippocampus is shrinking. These seahorse-shaped parts of the brain are about 5 cm in size, located just above the ears, and are responsible for our spatial awareness and sense of direction. London taxi drivers are famous for taking Knowledge, a test that requires them to memorize the capital's central streets, and they have life-sized hippocampi. But in 2011, neuroscientists at University College London found that taxi drivers' hippocampi shrank significantly after they retired.


Hippocampal development may also be disrupted during childhood. Children living in urban environments rarely see the sunrise or sunset and cannot distinguish between east and west. When I volunteered to go to local schools and teach directions to children, I noticed that they had a hard time distinguishing between north and south, east and west. However, you should be able to tell the difference if you are allowed to use your phone.

Ever since Google Maps was launched in 2005 with the claim that it would help users get from A to B, and three years later when the iPhone 3G was launched with “live” location, the online tech giant The first generation of today's digitally native children would not have known what it meant to be lost. But is that a good thing? Their vision and direction, like the hippocampus, is diminished by the collusion of their online providers. Over four generations, children roamed up to six miles from home, but on average only 300 yards. Even before COVID-19, three-quarters of children spent less time outdoors than prison inmates, research has found. Many parents know that the subsequent 50% increase in agoraphobia has a significant impact on children's mental and physical health. But it also drives
biophobia
avoidance, and even fear of the natural world. When we become afraid of nature, the consequences are:
Indifference and even hostility towards environmental conservation.

No matter where your kids travel, they're probably following a blue dot on their phone screen to guide them, regardless of the world around them. Now more than ever, mobile phones allow us to have maps in the palm of our hands, but maps can be both liberating and tyrannical. Our phones map us and collect our likes and dislikes online.

The current study focuses on this so-called
Developmental topographical disorientation The same goes for mental health, as online experiences lead to digital contamination of our sense of space and place. Quite literally, we are becoming disoriented in the digital world, abandoning cognitive-enhancing tools like paper maps and magnetic compasses that allow us to move and orient ourselves in parallel to the physical world. . We have retreated from using the spatial skills that have sustained us for thousands of years. No wonder our feeling of being lost is as existential as it is directional.

To be disoriented means to be “lost in the East.” The word comes from the Latin word meaning the sun rising in the east. In ancient history, most societies were oriented primarily toward the east, the source of the sun, which gives light, heat, and life. Next we came to the west where the sun was setting. This was followed by north and south, and people determined their positions by astronomical observations of the sun's position at noon and the North Star, Polaris. Early polytheistic societies worshiped the sun rising in the east, and this tradition continues in the monotheistic Judeo-Christian faiths, which place the east at the top of the map as the place of the beginning of creation and resurrection. In the Old Testament, Creation begins in the East in the Garden of Eden. Medieval Mappa Mundi
Hereford Cathedral The upper part has East, depicting Adam and Eve in Eden, and the lower part has West. This was the orientation that defined European Christianity for over 1,000 years.

In contrast, early Islamic maps placed the south at the top, as the first converts to the faith lived directly north of Mecca. The easiest way to understand their sacred direction was to orient the map so that Mecca was “up”. We still talk about going up north and going south in the UK. This is the old hangover of understanding the four points of the compass: up and down, forward and backward, or left and right, depending on our body. South serves as a cardinal direction, just as in classical Chinese science a magnetic compass pointed south rather than north. they are called this
Ragyo“That which points to the south.” Australians know this. In 1979, Stuart MacArthur published a corrected map of the world with Australia at the top and facing south.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Scientists discover 16 different types of neurons responsible for human sense of touch

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A new study led by scientists from the University of Pennsylvania, Karolinska Institutet, and Linköping University has revealed a landscape view of the human sense of touch.

Somatosensory diversity arises from heterogeneous dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons. However, the cell body transcriptome, a key piece of information for deciphering the function of individual human (h)DRG neurons, is lacking due to technical difficulties. In a new study, Yu others. They isolated somatic cells from individual hDRG neurons and performed deep RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) to detect an average of more than 9,000 unique genes per neuron, identifying 16 types of neurons.

Humans perceive touch, temperature, and pain through the somatosensory system.

The general understanding is that there are specific types of neurons for each type of emotion, such as pain, pleasant touch, or coldness.

But new research casts doubt on that notion and shows that bodily sensations are probably much more complex than that.

“Much of the knowledge we have today about how the nervous system works comes from studies of animals,” said Dr. Wenqing Luo of the University of Pennsylvania and colleagues.

“But how similar are mice and humans, for example?”

“Many discoveries made in animal studies have not been confirmed in human studies.”

“One reason for this may be a lack of understanding of how it works in the human body.”

“We wanted to create a detailed atlas of the different types of neurons involved in somatosensation in humans and compare it with neurons in mice and the primate macaque.”

The study involved a detailed analysis of the genes used by individual neurons, so-called deep RNA sequencing.

Neurons with similar gene expression profiles were grouped as one sensory neuron type.

In this way, the researchers identified 16 unique human neuron types.

This study is the first to link gene expression and actual function in different types of neurons.

To investigate the function of neurons, the scientists used microneurography techniques to listen to the signals of one neuron at a time.

Using this technique, skin neurons in awake participants are exposed to temperature, touch, or certain chemicals, and individual neurons are “listened in” to determine how those particular neurons respond and send signals to the brain. You can find out if it is.

During these experiments, the authors made discoveries that would not have been possible if mapping the cellular machinery of different types of neurons had not given them new ideas for experiments.

One such discovery concerns a type of neuron that responds to pleasant touch.

The researchers discovered that this cell type unexpectedly responded to heat and also to capsaicin, the chemical that gives chili peppers their heat.

Scientists were surprised that the touch-sensing neurons responded to such stimuli, since their response to capsaicin is typical of pain-sensing neurons.

Additionally, this type of neuron also responded to cooling, even though it does not produce the only protein known to date that signals the perception of cold.

This finding cannot be explained by what is known about cellular mechanisms and suggests that there are other mechanisms for detecting colds that have yet to be discovered.

The authors speculate that these neurons form an integrated sensory pathway that produces pleasurable sensations.

“We have been listening to the neural signals from these neurons for 10 years, but we knew nothing about their molecular characteristics,” said Dr. Håkan Ólausson from Linköping University.

“This study shows us what kinds of proteins these neurons express and what kinds of stimuli they can respond to, and we can now make connections between them. Moving forward.”

Another example is a type of pain-sensing neuron that conducts very rapidly and has been shown to respond to non-painful cooling and menthol.

“There is a common understanding that neurons are very specialized: one type of neuron detects cold, another type detects specific vibrational frequencies, a third type responds to pressure, and so on.” said Dr. Saad Nagy, also from Linköping University.

“That's how people often talk about it. But it turns out it's much more complicated than that.”

So how do mice, macaques, and humans compare? How similar are we? Many of the 16 types of neurons the researchers identified in their study are largely similar across species.

The biggest difference they found was that conduction in pain-sensing neurons was much faster in response to stimuli that could cause injury.

Compared to mice, humans have more pain neurons, a type of neuron that sends pain signals to the brain at high speeds.

“Our study doesn't answer why this is the case, but we have a theory,” Dr. Ólausson said.

“The fact that pain signals are emitted at a much faster rate in humans compared to mice is probably just a reflection of their body size.”

“Mice don't need such rapid neural signaling. But in humans, the distances are longer and the signals need to be sent to the brain more quickly, before reacting and withdrawing.” You will be injured.”

Regarding this research, paper in diary natural neuroscience.

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H. Yu others. Utilizing deep sequencing of single cell somatic RNA to explore the neural basis of human somatosensation. nut neurosipublished online on November 4, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41593-024-01794-1

Source: www.sci.news

Biologists claim geckos possess an extra sense

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To detect low-frequency vibrations, geckos use the saccule, a part of the inner ear traditionally associated with maintaining balance and body position, the institute’s biologist duo said. University of Marylandthis special “sixth sense” serves as a complement to the gecko’s normal sense of hearing and how it senses the world around it.

Tokay gecko (gecko gecko). Image credit: Duncan Leach.

“As we know, the ear hears sounds in the air,” says Katherine Kerr, a professor at the University of Maryland.

“However, this ancient internal pathway is usually associated with balance and helps geckos sense vibrations traveling through media such as the ground or water.”

“This pathway is present in amphibians and fish, and has now been shown to be conserved in lizards.”

“Our findings reveal how the auditory system evolved from being visible in fish to being visible in land animals, including humans.”

In their research, Professor Kerr and colleague Dr. Dawei Han, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Maryland, focused on: Tokay gecko (gecko gecko).

They discovered that the gecko’s saccule can sense weak vibrations in the 50 to 200 Hz range. This is a much lower spectrum than what geckos can normally hear.

This indicates that the saccule serves a different, but complementary, function to the gecko’s normal auditory system.

Geckos can hear sounds in the air, but many other reptiles do not have this ability.

“Discovery of the role of the saccule in gecko hearing may lead to a better understanding of communication and behavior in other animals previously thought to have limited hearing ability,” said Dawei of the University of Maryland.・Dr. Han said.

“Many snakes and lizards were thought to be ‘dumb’ or ‘deaf’ in the sense that they could not make or hear sounds very well.”

“But it turns out that animals could potentially be using this sensory pathway to communicate via vibrational signals. This has revolutionized the way scientists think about animal perception as a whole. Ta.”

The existence of this common sensory pathway in modern reptiles provides a unique window into the evolutionary history of vertebrate sensory systems, suggesting that the transition from aquatic to terrestrial environments may be more complex than previously thought. This suggests that gradual changes in auditory mechanisms are likely involved.

Although these discoveries are not directly related to human hearing, researchers believe there is always more than meets the eye – in this case, the ears.

“Think about going to a live rock concert,” Professor Kerr says.

“The sound is so loud that you can feel your whole head and body vibrating in the sound field.”

“You don’t just hear music, you can feel it. This sensation suggests that the human vestibular system may be stimulated during loud concerts, which This means that the sense of balance may also be closely related.

of findings Published in a magazine current biology.

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Dawei Han & Catherine E. Kartkay The gecko’s auditory pathway for sensing vibrations. current biologypublished online on October 4, 2024. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.09.016

Source: www.sci.news

Research reveals that apes lack a good sense of humor

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Have you ever tapped someone on the far shoulder only to see them spin the wrong way, and then do it again immediately? Why is this funny? You might think that it’s an inherent human trait to find things like this funny, and that complex communication and context are needed for a gag to work, but you’d be wrong.

New research published in today’s journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B found evidence of monkey business (sorry) in four species of great apes, shedding light on the evolutionary origins of humor.

The findings suggest that the playful teasing exhibited by 8-month-old human children may have deeper roots in our primate relatives than previously thought.

Such behavior involves intentionally subverting the expectations of others. Examples include repeatedly offering and withdrawing goods, or intentionally disrupting another person’s activities by creating an element of surprise.

To understand these behaviors, the researchers observed spontaneous social interactions among populations of orangutans, chimpanzees, bonobos, and gorillas. They in turn analyzed everything from the teasing person’s body movements and facial expressions to how the target of the teasing (the teasing person?) reacts.

In addition to this, the researchers investigated whether the teasing behavior was targeted at specific individuals, whether it continued or escalated over time, and whether the teasing behavior was waiting for a response from the target. We tried to investigate the intentions behind the teasing.

“Our findings support the idea that teasing great apes is a provocative, purposeful, and often playful behavior.” Isabel Romersaid the postdoctoral researcher and lead author of the study. BBC Science Focus. “It is usually asymmetric and can take a variety of forms with varying proportions of playful and aggressive characteristics.”

In total, the researchers identified 18 distinct teasing behaviors. These include repeatedly shaking or brandishing objects in the center of the target’s visual field, hitting or poking them, staring into their faces, and pulling their hair. How fascinating!

Unlike play exhibited by all animals in the animal kingdom, playful teasing has several unique characteristics. “Apes’ playful teasing is one-sided and mostly comes from teasing,” he explained. Erica Cartmill Senior author of the study.

“Animals also rarely use play cues, such as the primate ‘play face,’ which resembles what we call a smile, or the ‘grasping’ gesture that signals intent to play,” she continued. Ta.

Cartmill recalled seeing such behavior in apes for the first time in 2006. Then he observed a young orangutan begging his mother by repeatedly waving a stick in front of her. “It didn’t look like a joke that would fit in a stand-up special on Netflix, but it seemed like a simple joke that could be used with young human children,” she said.

Almost 20 years after this interaction, this research has provided important insights not only into great ape behavior but also into our own behavior. “Depending on the species, great apes share 97 to 99 percent of our DNA, so we have a lot in common,” Romer said.

“The existence of playful teasing in all four great apes, and its similarity to playful teasing behavior in human infants, suggests that playful teasing and its cognitive prerequisites may have been associated with the last human species at least 13 million years ago. This suggests that it may have existed in a common ancestor.

Going forward, Romer and her team will investigate whether other primates and large-brained animals tease each other in hopes of better understanding the evolution of this important (and highly entertaining) behavior. intend to do something.

About our experts

Isabel Romer I am a postdoctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior in Radolfzell/Konstanz. She is a primatologist and cognitive biologist with 10 years of experience studying great apes and Goffin parrots. Her main research areas are within physical cognition, tool use and manufacturing, tool innovation, template matching from memory, flexible multidimensional decision making based on reward quality and tool functionality. is focused on. Her work also delves into social cognition, exploring prosociality, aversion to inequality, delay of gratification, theory of mind, and playful teasing with these animal subjects. .

Erica Cartmill He is a professor of anthropology, cognitive science, and ethology at Indiana University. Her research bridges the fields of biology and linguistics, using both comparative and developmental methods to examine communication. Her research with great apes and humans includes observing spontaneous interactions between communication partners and employing communication games that allow for more controlled experiments. Her research focuses specifically on whether gestures played a role in the origin of human language.

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