Clipmarks | Apes Clips

MJ chimp!

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:37:00 GMT

clipped by: shaor
clipper's remarks: We have not said anything to Bubble about Michael's death. Excuse me, but isn't "Bubbles" an ape???!!! I am a bit lost here, do they think that apes will understand this trauma?!

Clip Source: www.divine.ca

(BANG) -Plans to bury Michael Jackson at Neverland have been cancelled. The singer's family were reportedly hoping to lay the star to rest at his beloved ranch but are now scrambling to find a new location amid fears it would be illegal to bury Michael at his former home.

No matter where the funeral is held, Michael's beloved chimpanzee Bubbles will not attend.

Instead, the animal will spend the day listening to "calming flute music" at the animal sanctuary in Wauchula, Florida, where he was moved when he became "too aggressive" to live with the star.

A Centre For Great Apes spokesman said: "It is sad for Bubbles but it is better that he stays here. We have not said anything to Bubble about Michael's death.

"There has been no invitation for him to attend the funeral. Maybe we'll mark the occasion another way."

Michael rescued Bubbles from a cancer research centre in 1985. The pair lived together for years, even dressing in matching outfits. (C) BANG Media International

Actress Joins PCRM Campaign to Save Great Apes

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:38:34 GMT

clipped by: violetnightshade

Clip Source: www.pcrm.org

Traumatized victims in metal cages the size of kitchen tables. Emily Deschanel’s character on FOX’s Bones uncovers fictional scenes like this every week. But this isn’t fiction. It’s happening to more than 1,000 chimpanzees kept in laboratories across the United States. So last week, Deschanel asked Congress to put an end to this abuse.

Deschanel wrote to Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., asking him to support a ban on using primates in invasive scientific research.

eschanel asks Waxman to co-sponsor the Town-Reichert Great Ape Protection Act (H.R. 1326). This bipartisan legislation would phase out invasive experiments on chimpanzees and release all federally owned chimpanzees to sanctuaries.

On TV, I play a forensic anthropologist who solves crimes by reading clues in victims’ bones,” writes Deschanel. “In real life, I’m an animal protection advocate, and I don’t need any more evidence to know that the way we treat chimpanzees is unacceptable.

Visit PCRM's GAPA Web page

join

GAPA Facebook cause

Tags: animal rights, animal welfare, animal testing, animal cruelty, chimpanzees, great apes, pcrm, emily deschanel, bones

Myanmar fossil may shed light on evolution

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:48:16 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

Clip Source: www.usatoday.com

Myanmar fossil may shed light on evolution

By Michael Casey, Associated Press

Fossils recently discovered in Myanmar could prove that the common ancestors of humans, monkeys and apes evolved from primates in Asia, rather than Africa, researchers contend in a study released Wednesday.

However, other scientists said that the finding, while significant, won't end the debate over the origin of anthropoids — the primate grouping that includes ancient species as well as modern humans.

The pieces of 38 million-year-old jawbones and teeth found near Bagan in central Myanmar in 2005 show typical characteristics of primates, said Dr. Chris Beard, a paleontologist at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh and a member of the team that found the fossils.

His team determined that the fossil was 38 million years old, making it several million years older than any anthropoid found in Africa and the second-oldest discovered in Asia.

Tags: archaeology

Hobbits are a seperate species

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:50:40 GMT

clipped by: rainsong111
clipper's remarks: more deatails at the link

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Hobbits 'are a separate species'

The one metre

tall, 30kg

humans roamed the Indonesian island of Flores, perhaps up to 8,000 years ago.

Two papers in the journal Nature now support the idea they were an entirely new species of human.

The team, which discovered the tiny remains in Liang Bua cave on Flores, contends that the population belongs to the species Homo floresiensis - separate from our own grouping, Homo sapiens.

One team

analysed remains of the Hobbit foot

The group found that, in some ways, it is incredibly human. The big toe is aligned with the others and the joints make it possible to extend the toes as the body's full weight falls on the foot, attributes not found in great apes.

But in other respects, it is incredibly primitive

that resembles that of a chimpanzee.

So unless the Flores Hobbits became more primitive over time - a rather unlikely scenario - they must have branched off the human line at an earlier date than Homo sapiens.

Tags: anthroplogy, history, discoveries

Did Gene Mutations Give Rise to Human Thought?

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:54:06 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: I was taught how special humans were, in childhood. As an adult, I find we are a series of mutations and 40% of our self is capable of mutation in the future.

Clip Source: www.dailygalaxy.com

Although humans and chimpanzees genetically vary by just 1.2 percent, that small percentage makes a world of difference in the mental and linguistic capabilities between the two species. A study shows that a certain form of neuropsin, a protein that plays a role in learning and memory, is expressed only in the central nervous systems of humans. The scientists conclude that this critical difference originated less than 5 million years ago.

Dr. Bing Su of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Kunming, China, and other researchers analyzed the DNA of humans and several species of apes and monkeys. Previously they had found that type II neuropsin, a longer form of the protein, is not expressed in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of lesser apes and Old World monkeys.

The researchers note that more studies should look further into the biological function of type II neuropsin in humans, in order to understand the genetic basis that underlies the traits that set humans apart from nonhuman primates.

Tags: evolution

Countdown to World's First Bonobo Release.

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:24:45 GMT

clipped by: violetnightshade

Clip Source: www.wspa-usa.org

Countdown to world’s first bonobo release

Starting Sunday, June 14th, WSPA will accompany a group of orphaned bonobos on a historic journey back to the wild. Traveling to a remote corner of the Democratic Republic of Congo, this is the first ever attempt to reintroduce our closest ape relation to their natural habitat.

Bonobos are vulnerable to habitat destruction and the bushmeat and pet trades. Infants, sold into the pet trade or left behind when their mothers are killed for meat, desperately need safety, care and attention.

Dave Eastham, WSPA’s Head of Wildlife, explains the significance of this work: “This is the first time we will see bonobos return to their natural habitat after a period of captivity. It is the culmination of many years of work by the dedicated staff at Lola ya Bonobo and WSPA is proud to have provided the veterinary equipment and expertise to make a life in the wild possible for these intelligent apes.”

Tags: primates, animals, animal conservation, nature, science

SC GOP activist jokes ape is First Lady's ancestor

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:50:06 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: I'm sorry, South Carolina, that you must endure this disgusting crap. I know you aren't all like this.

Clip Source: crooksandliars.com

SC GOP Activist Jokes: Escaped Gorilla Just One Of Michelle Obama's Ancestors

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - A state Republican activist has admitted to and apologized for calling a gorilla that escaped from the Riverbanks Zoo Friday an "ancestor" of First Lady Michelle Obama.

the comment, made on the Internet site Facebook

Longtime SCGOP activist and former state Senate candidate Rusty DePass responded with the comment, "I'm sure it's just one of Michelle's ancestors - probably harmless." Read on...

His "I'm sorry if anyone was offended" non-apology was weak at best

DePass took his apology a bit further. He also said, "The comment was hers. Not mine," saying the first lady made statements in the media recently saying we are all descendents [sic] of apes.

But an Internet search for those comments turned up no news articles of the like.

Kudos to FITSNews.com for finding this and other racist GOP hackery. The comment, along with DePass' Facebook page has been scrubbed

Tags: gop, racism, south carolina

SC GOP Activist Jokes: Escaped Gorilla Just One Of Michelle Obama's Ancestors

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:20:37 GMT

clipped by: ratilfar

Clip Source: crooksandliars.com

Note to racist Republican: Everything you post on the internet can be spread around the globe in a matter of seconds.

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - A state Republican activist has admitted to and apologized for calling a gorilla that escaped from the Riverbanks Zoo Friday an "ancestor" of First Lady Michelle Obama.

Longtime SCGOP activist and former state Senate candidate Rusty DePass responded with the comment, "I'm sure it's just one of Michelle's ancestors - probably harmless." Read on...

Yes, this loyal Bushie was referring to the First Lady, Michelle Obama. Brilliant. His "I'm sorry if anyone was offended" non-apology was weak at best, but at some point he should have just STFU, put down the shovel and stopped digging:

DePass took his apology a bit further. He also said, "The comment was hers. Not mine," saying the first lady made statements in the media recently saying we are all descendents [sic] of apes.

But an Internet search for those comments turned up no news articles of the like.

Tags: right, wing, hate, gop, internet, more, of, the, same

human-faced missing link found in Spain?

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 05:59:39 GMT

clipped by: doodleicious
clipper's remarks: wow

Clip Source: news.nationalgeographic.com

"Human"-Faced Missing Link Found in Spain?

Move over Ida—you're last month's news. There's a new (purported) "missing link" in town.

An 11.9-million-year-old fossil ape species with an unusually flat, "surprisingly human" face has been found in Spain. The discovery suggests humans' ape ancestors split from primitive apes in Europe, not Africa—the so-called cradle of humanity—a new study says.

The species, Anoiapithecus brevirostris, may also represent the last known common ancestor of humans and living great apes—including orangutans, gorillas, and chimpanzees—researchers say.

"With this fossil, our opinion is that the origin of our family very probably took place in the Mediterranean region," said study leader Salvador Moyà-Solà of the Catalan Institute of Paleontology in Barcelona.

"Surprisingly Human"

Unearthed at a fossil-rich site near Barcelona in 2004, the fragmented skull remains suggest a species with human-like facial features, Moyà-Solà said.

Tags: missing, link

"Human"Faced missing link,found in Spain?

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 00:28:56 GMT

clipped by: vanjoy

Clip Source: news.nationalgeographic.com

The species, Anoiapithecus brevirostris, may also represent the last known common ancestor of humans and living great apes—including orangutans, gorillas, and chimpanzees

Surprisingly Human"

Unearthed at a fossil-rich site near Barcelona in 2004, the fragmented skull remains suggest a species with human-like facial features,

Resembling both primitive ape species and our early ancestors, Anoiapithecus could be called a missing link

The ape's wide nose and long palate, for example, resemble those of the ancient apes from which great apes and humans arose

But Anoiapithecus' thickly enameled teeth and robust jaw are like those of primitive Kenyapithecus fossil apes, which lived in both Africa and Europe

Tags: apes, gorillas, chimpanzees, spain

Why Are Humans Different From All Other Apes? It’s the Cooking, Stupid

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:00:05 GMT

clipped by: mfcarter
clipper's remarks: Very interesting viewpoint on why the human species is different from all others.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Human beings are not obviously equipped to be nature’s gladiators. We have no claws, no armor. That we eat meat seems surprising, because we are not made for chewing it uncooked in the wild. Our jaws are weak; our teeth are blunt; our mouths are small. That thing below our noses? It truly is a pie hole.

“Cooked food does many familiar things,” he observes. “It makes our food safer, creates rich and delicious tastes and reduces spoilage. Heating can allow us to open, cut or mash tough foods. But none of these advantages is as important as a little-appreciated aspect: cooking increases the amount of energy our bodies obtain from food.”

Tags: food, evolution

Why Are Humans Different From All Other Apes? It’s the Cooking, Stupid

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:35:18 GMT

clipped by: wildcat
clipper's remarks: This is a fascinating and quite fresh view on a possibly groundbreaking view on the evolution of the human specie.

“Cooked food does many familiar things,” he observes. “It makes our food safer, creates rich and delicious tastes and reduces spoilage. Heating can allow us to open, cut or mash tough foods. But none of these advantages is as important as a little-appreciated aspect: cooking increases the amount of energy our bodies obtain from food.” (emphasis mine)

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

The title of Mr. Wrangham’s new book — “Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human” — sounds a bit touchy-feely. Perhaps, you think, he has written a meditation on hearth and fellow feeling and s’mores. He has not. “Catching Fire” is a plain-spoken and thoroughly gripping scientific essay that presents nothing less than a new theory of human evolution, one he calls “the cooking hypothesis,” one that Darwin (among others) simply missed.

Tags: books, cooking, evolution, technology, theory

Important video--Imperiled Oceans

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 11:37:21 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: clik link for a must see video--
Her voice needs amplifying, required viewing in High School Assemblies...I don't think most people really know how dire the situation is...this is the saddest thing about living in this era...even more than the wars, methinks. We've always had wars and as much as I have fought to stop them, my measly efforts have really changed nothing...but we've never killed the Oceans before. As JB would say--DAMNED DIRTY APES! So very sad...

Clip Source: jblindsight.livejournal.com

TED prize winner for 2009 Sylvia Earle

Tags: imperiled oceans, sylvia earle, ted

TED Conference - Ideas Worth Sharing

Ape study traces evolution of laughter

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 00:20:35 GMT

clipped by: balthazarus
clipper's remarks: not alone anymore...

Clip Source: wtopnews.com

Ha-Ha! Ape study traces evolution of laughter

When scientists set out to trace the roots of human laughter, some chimps and gorillas were just tickled to help. Literally

That's how researchers made a variety of apes and some human babies laugh. After analyzing the sounds, they concluded that people and great apes inherited laughter from a shared ancestor that lived more than 10 million years ago.

As far back as Charles Darwin, scientists have noted that apes make characteristic sounds during play or while being tickled, apparently to signal that they're interested in playing.

It's been suggested before that human laughter grew out of primate roots. But ape laughter doesn't sound like the human version. It may be rapid panting, or slower noisy breathing or a short series of grunts.

So what does that have to do with the human ha-ha?

After measuring 11 traits in the sound from each species, they mapped out how these sounds appeared to be related to each other.

result looked like a family tree

Tags: evolution, ape, laughter

Scientific ape tickling

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 18:31:57 GMT

clipped by: JohnWaterman

Clip Source: scienceblogs.com

If you tickle a young chimp, gorilla or orang-utan, it will hoot, holler and pant in a way that would strongly remind you of human laughter. The sounds are very different - chimp laughter, for example, is breathier than ours, faster and bereft of vowel sounds

But in context, the resemblance to human laughter is uncanny

Marina Davila Ross of the University of Portsmouth has used these noises to explore the evolutionary origins of our own laughter

tickled youngsters of all of the great apes

to build an acoustic family tree, showing the relationships between the calls

listen to MP3s of a tickled chimp, gorilla, bonobo and orang-utan

The tree linked the great apes in exactly the way you would expect based on genes and bodies

[Video]

even though human laughter sounds uniquely different, it shares a common origin with the vocals of great apes

[Video]