Is Frans de Waal an atheist?
The ease with which our brain suspends reality—call it irrationality, imagination or faith—has been crucial to the development of religion in human culture, according to de Waal, a respected primatologist and avowed atheist. He has a scientist’s curiosity about religion.
How does Frans de Waal define morality?
Based on his extensive work with chimpanzees and capuchin monkeys, de Waal explained how these two species are among a select group of primates that share food. Human morality is a deep-seated, natural trait grown from the social nature that natural selection has produced, said de Waal.
What did you learn from Dr Frans de Waal and his study with capuchin monkeys?
Capuchin monkeys show their displeasure if given a smaller reward than a partner receives for performing the same task, like a piece of cucumber instead of a grape. These four kinds of behavior — empathy, the ability to learn and follow social rules, reciprocity and peacemaking — are the basis of sociality.
What is the name of the Dutch primatologist who discussed primate morality in his TED talk?
Dutch/American biologist and ethologist Frans de Waal draws parallels between primate and human behavior, from peacemaking and morality to culture.
What is Frans de Waal known for?
Frans B. M. de Waal is a Dutch/American biologist and primatologist known for his work on the behavior and social intelligence of primates. His popular books — translated into twenty languages — have made him one of the world’s most visible primatologists.
When did religion first appear?
Prehistoric evidence of religion. The exact time when humans first became religious remains unknown, however research in evolutionary archaeology shows credible evidence of religious-cum-ritualistic behaviour from around the Middle Paleolithic era (45-200 thousand years ago).
What did Frans de Waal do?
Dr. Frans B. M. de Waal is a Dutch/American biologist and primatologist known for his work on the behavior and social intelligence of primates. His first book, Chimpanzee Politics (1982) compared the schmoozing and scheming of chimpanzees involved in power struggles with that of human politicians.
What did Frans de Waal study?
When Frans de Waal started studying nonhuman primates, in the Netherlands more than 40 years ago, he was told not to consider the emotions of the animals he was observing. “Thoughts and feelings — the mental processes basically — were off limits,” he says.
What is the Capuchin monkey experiment?
It involved six Capuchin monkeys named after James Bond characters. Researchers trained the monkeys to exchange small metal tokens for food. They were put in a makeshift tiny market where experimenters would offer different foods at different prices.
What is monkey experiment?
If you haven’t heard about the Five Monkeys Experiment, it goes a little something like this: A researcher puts five monkeys in a cage. And, as soon as he touches the ladder to go for the bananas, the other four monkeys attack him to keep him from doing so. If he tries again, they attack him again.
What three animals did Frans de Waal Discover have empathy?
Primatologist Frans de Waal says chimps & bonobos share many of our traits, including empathy and a sense of fairness. He describes some of his research that challenges assumptions about human exceptionalism.”
What is the study of primatology?
By the simplest definition, primatology is the study of non-human primates. However, people will define it differently depending on the way in which they work with primates.
What did Frans de Waal talk about at TED?
But Frans de Waal shares some surprising videos of behavioral tests, on primates and other mammals, that show how many of these moral traits all of us share. This talk was presented to a local audience at TEDxPeachtree, an independent event. TED’s editors chose to feature it for you.
What kind of behavior does Frans de Waal study?
Frans de Waal studies primate social behavior — how they fight and reconcile, share and cooperate. Dutch/American biologist and ethologist Frans de Waal draws parallels between primate and human behavior, from peacemaking and morality to culture.
How did the idea of TEDx come about?
TEDx was created in the spirit of TED’s mission, “ideas worth spreading.” It supports independent organizers who want to create a TED-like event in their own community.