Primatology

Count Them While You Can “Saving one animal won't change the world, but it will change the world for that one animal” (Unknown). This is the perspective that Jane Goodall maintained throughout the years as she observed the American Burying Beetle. Jane Goodall is a primatologist, ethologist, anthropologist, and a UN messenger of peace. She worked along chimpanzees to observe their behavior which by surprise, made a revolutionary impact on the scientific world. In Jane Goodall’s scientific essay, Hope for Animals and Their World, Goodall uses specifically two phrases and one word to help establish the idea that the beetles play a vital role in the environment, yet is still on the verge of extinction. On March 18 of the year 2007, Goodall spontaneously learned about the American Burying Beetle and the role they play in the environment, with the help of Lou Perrotti, Jack Mulvena, and the Roger Williams Park Zoo. After this amazing discovery, Goodall said, "The American burying beetle...[plays] such a major...role in the maintenance of habitats and ecosystems" (paragraph 1). This quote conveys the idea that the beetle is a vital role in the environment in order to keep it thriving. The American burying beetle helps get rid of harmful carrions that infect the rich soil needed to produce vegetation. The beetles get rid of these harmful creatures by burying the body of the animal in the soil. This especially helps farmers because the beetles get rid of even the most dangerous…

For my Do-It-Yourself Primatology project I chose to research how Indiana University male and female students behave differently in public when they are eating with a group of friends, versus eating on their own among strangers. I found this question to be thought provoking because of the fact that Indiana University is a very diverse school with people from many different cultures and backgrounds. For this experiment I broke the variables down into four different categories; my first category…

Biological anthropology is one of the four main fields of anthropology. Biological anthropology—also called physical anthropology—includes human evolution, non-primatology, and biological adaptations to the environment. Biological anthropology is a popular area of study within anthropology. It is the combination of both the biological and social sciences to answer questions about human adaptability and evolution. As far as research methods go, biological anthropologists tend to include more…

In this method we would look at what we know of humans in the past and compare it to humans in the present. Using paleoanthropology, primatology, and skeletal biology in order to look deeper into the changes being made. With the use of biological and geological background we can compare the environment of where we started and where we live today to see how it has altered and how we as a species have changed along with it in order to adapt. Another useful way to research the evolution would be by…

The article Ancestors and Neighbours; Social Constructions of Gender at Other Times, Other Places, in “Women, Men and Society” by Renzeti and Curran, illustrates extensive research based on the prehistoric relationships between primates and humans in terms of behaviour and gender identified roles. The article focuses on underlying the main concept of gender roles in a historical context where primates have developed and adapted to, which, over time, has given sense to the roles that contribute…

She begins by saying, “Over the past quarter century, feminist have had a substantial impact across a range of disciplines within science” (Lloyd 193). With primatology, she explains that because of feminism, female animals became more of a vocal point for research instead of what they were-- unimportant background characters. Lloyd’s other feminist contribution (which I believe is of greater importance) is the movement of change for women’s health standards. This began when feminist demanded…

1980. She is very well known for studying chimpanzees and all the contributions and such that has increased that very field today. In July 1960, Jane goodall traveled from England to what is now Tanzania and very bravely entered the unknown world of the wild hairy little creatures that we call chimpanzees. The work and studies that Jane made and accomplished in those jungles, let alone the fact that she was only equipped with a pair of binoculars and a notebook, is just one reason that makes her…

moved toward the box and tried to open it. Error after error the larger gorilla still tried; after serval attempts the staff came back in and showed them how to open the box to get the snacks. Again the larger gorilla tried to open it and succeeded. Once the success was known the smaller gorilla came up and watched the larger gorilla repeat the action. Then the larger gorilla got the snack the second time, then the smaller gorilla tried and success was propionate. Knowledge appears to be a tool…

other cultures traditions that are being performed around them, as well as help them understand their own beliefs. Physical Anthropology is another field that anthropologists study. Physical anthropology, also known as biological anthropology, focuses more on humans as biological organisms based on fossil remains and DNA. Physical, or biological, anthropology deals with the evolution of humans, adaptations to environmental stresses, and their variability. Using an evolutionary perspective,…

diversity in humans and to discover the shared similarities in every individual. Physical anthropology is the first of the sub-disciplines. It is principally concerned with humans as a biological nature. It is also closely related to the natural and biological sciences. Today, there is a field of study called molecular anthropology that helps with the understanding of human evolution and adaption. These comparisons between groups, divided through time and geography, can disclose how humans have…