Ok just kidding but you should really read this funny post from the Language Log mocking a Washington Post article about spear use in chimps.
Chimpanzees living in the West African savannah have been observed fashioning deadly spears from sticks and using the tools to hunt small mammals -- the first routine production of deadly weapons ever observed in animals other than humans.The multistep spearmaking practice, documented by researchers in Senegal who spent years gaining the chimpanzees' trust, adds credence to the idea that human forebears fashioned similar tools millions of years ago.
The Spoof:
Chimpanzees living in the West African savannah have been observed fashioning what gives every indication of being pencil-like tools from short, thin sticks and then using them in a manner suggesting to researchers that the chimps are in the early stages of acquiring the skill of writing -- the first routine production of writing instruments ever observed in animals other than humans.The multi-step pencil-making process, documented by researchers in Senegal who spent years gaining the chimpanzees' trust, adds credence to the idea that our human forebears fashioned similar writing tools centuries ago.
The landmark observation also supports the long-debated proposition that females -- the makers of these pencils among the chimps -- tend to be the innovators and creative communicators in primative culture.
Of course there's a lot more to each of these stories... so go check em' out!
Comments
This was great - 'to-do lists'!
Posted by: The Ridger | February 25, 2007 11:31 AM
I saw that this morning... Very funny and almost had me going (especially since there's no hint it's a spoof apart from the fact that the linked 'source' is the WaPo article about spears). I wonder how long it'll be before it gets cited as fact somewhere?
Posted by: outeast | February 26, 2007 8:42 AM