A study found that the psychology and behavior of elder monkeys and elder humans have many commonalities, indicating at least a partial genetic basis. One thing they may do better than us, though, is tolerating their youth. Although elder monks don’t really want to play with the kids, they also don’t mind having them on their lawn:
And around 20, (their “retirement age”) monkeys, like humans, had fewer social contacts and approached others less frequently. What surprised the researchers is that this apparent withdrawal wasn’t driven by a social tendency to avoid old monkeys: Younger monkeys still approached and groomed their elders. And it wasn’t that older monkeys just weren’t interested in anything: They still responded to photos of other monkeys and hissed at others during fights. “They are still very much tuned into what’s going on,” said Dr. Fisher. “But they don’t want to participate themselves.”
Dr. Freund said she sees the same behavior patterns in humans.
The dominant psychological theory to explain this in people is that we become more choosy with age in order to maximize the use of the time we have left with death in sight. While monkeys have excellent memories, there is no evidence that they are aware of their impending deaths. So if both humans and monkeys act similarly, perhaps this theory is just a way of rationalizing a natural behavior with biological roots, said Dr. Fischer.
Also, too:
Perhaps monkeys and humans just lose stamina with age, and maybe the monkeys are too tired to deal with relationships that are ambivalent or negative, she added.
Monkey wisdom.
Below, some more fauna-related links. Let’s discuss them in the comments. Also, as a reminder I will be in Davidson NC and available to meet for breakfast or coffee on Monday, July 11. Also will be in Golden, CO on Sunday evening July 24 and Monday morning (maybe) July 25. (Or look me up if you will be at the Colorado VegFest.) Please email me (not comment) if you can meet up. Would love to meet you all IRL!
-
Jelly or Sputnik? Animal activists both within and outside China are starting to seriously take on the Yulin (China) Dog Meat Festival, during which 10,000+ dogs are killed in especially horrific ways because participants believe meat from a tormented dog tastes better and yields health benefits. Multiple photos have documented doomed dogs still wearing collars, indicating that they were probably someone’s cherished companion who was kidnapped.
- Spain outlaws bull slaughter in a festival, in what activists are calling a watershed. The same article reports that bullfighting is on a serious decline.
- Johns Hopkins stops using live animals for surgical training. Now only the U of Tennessee does.
- Primatology.net–whose motto, btw, is, “We ain’t monkeying around here.”–reports on a spearfishing orangutan.
- Turnabout: Fish strategize, problem-solve, use tools, recognize their friends, and have emotions.
- WSJ food columnist and elite chef give vegan “Impossible Burger” high marks.
- C’mon people! Wildlife imperiled by selfie culture.
- Gorgeous new species of deep-sea jelly discovered. (Looks like Sputnik!)
- A (cute) day in the life of Henry, an urban piggie. And, in more porcine news, the rarest pig reminds me of the “God’s gift to warthogs” Far Side cartoon.
different-church-lady
Did they try exposing the monkeys to the political internet?
Roger Moore
@different-church-lady:
Isn’t there plenty of poo-flinging on the internet as it is?
Brachiator
I guess the new adage is “old monkey see, old monkey don’t do.”
Hillary Rettig
@Brachiator: very nice!
Hillary Rettig
@Roger Moore: might be a higher quality poo, tho
Xantar
Between swallow’s nest, shark fin, and now beating dogs to death, I get a little embarrassed to be Asian sometimes.
Paul in KY
With a monkey, being around younger monkeys is inviting an ass whupping. That’s why they don’t engage as much.
Cermet
Just provides information on how monkey’s learn to better tolerate but old farts just get worse (see tRump’s support, and Brexit support.) The more things change the more old white men resist change by shooting themselves in the foot unlike Chimps who seem to better realize where their self interest lay.
Hillary Rettig
@Xantar: don’t feel so bad; pretty much every culture except maybe Jain and some Buddhists is horrible to animals. we have, and are exporting, our factory farms.
Here’s a wonderful group that’s doing good work on shark fins: http://www.sharktruth.com/
Paul in KY
My Balloon Juice session is fucked up due to some stupid long running script! Please stop it! It might be that stupid Larry King thing.
Cermet
Also, since monkey’s can’t lie (they do not have language) it means they have to use facts to survive – old white men can just scream for the government to keep its hands off their medicare and still manage to continue to be rewarded for utter stupidity.
As the old farts in UK just learned, all the so-called savings – the 350 millions pound sterling – they would reap weekly has been withdrawn and they have been told it is not true by the very people who claimed it as fact just 24 hours earlier – just as the old farts here will learn about tRump if that liar does win.
Brachiator
@Cermet:
Chimps ain’t monkeys. Some behavior may be similar, but big evolutionary gap.
Chimps may also be able to practice deception.
Emma
OT, but need info for Dad. Hillary, do you eat frozen veggie burgers? If so, do you have a favorite brand? Anyone else with experience, please chime in.
schrodinger's cat
@Emma: Not Hillary, but I have a recommendation. Trader Joe’s Masala burgers, they are pretty good and a little bit spicy.
schrodinger's cat
@Paul in KY: NoScript is your friend.
raven
@Emma: I’m eating a Boca right now. I’m sure someone won’t like that.
germy
@Brachiator:
An orangutan reacts to a magic trick
Since magic is a form of deception and the orangutan finds it so amusing, he most certainly understands the concept.
Hillary Rettig
@Paul in KY: I’m having issues too, didn’t know why. thx. i will email Alain
Paul in KY
@schrodinger’s cat: Is NoScript a pgm or an option on your browser? Asking for a friend…
Paul in KY
@Hillary Rettig: Thanks, Hillary!
Hillary Rettig
@Brachiator: chimps absolutely do lie! it’s been proven many times.
schrodinger's cat
@Paul in KY: A plug in for the browser. Stops all javascripts. You can then enable whatever you want.
schrodinger's cat
Monkeys are revered in India. They are a big nuisance in many parts. They are intelligent and not afraid of human beings, especially the langurs.
Hillary Rettig
@Emma: Hi Emma,
There are a zillion types – if your dad likes shrooms or black beans that might be a starting point. Any product by Gardein or Beyond should be good, and someone here mentioned Boca – that’s good too. All in the freezer section.
Beast Burger is the hot new item – supposed to be amazing:
http://beyondmeat.com/products/view/the-beast-burger
If you want let us know in a future thread what you buy and how your dad liked it.
rikyrah
Trump baffles with bizarre appearance in Scotland
06/24/16 08:45 AM—UPDATED 06/24/16 10:20 AM
By Steve Benen
Earlier this month, Donald Trump was asked about the upcoming vote in the U.K. about leaving the European Union. The reporter asked, “And Brexit? Your position?” Trump replied, “Huh?”
“Brexit,” the reporter repeated. “Hmm,” Trump responded, apparently unfamiliar with the term.
With this exchange in mind, consider what the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said on Twitter this morning:
“Just arrived in Scotland. Place is going wild over the vote. They took their country back, just like we will take America back. No games!”
What Trump may not realize, or really even be able to fully understand, is that Scotland is “going wild” because Scottish voters overwhelmingly voted against leaving the E.U. Locally, people aren’t celebrating – because they see this as a disaster.
Trump proceeded to hold a press conference in Scotland, against the backdrop of one of the most important political moments in the modern history of the United Kingdom, where he spoke at great length, and in great detail, about his new golf resort. The Republican candidate boasted about refurbished holes on his course, plumbing, putting greens, and zoning considerations.
raven
@Hillary Rettig: Those beast things are readily available, hmm.
raven
@rikyrah: And suites.
Hillary Rettig
@germy: mumblety mumble zoos but that orang vid was wonderful.
here’s similar:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm8Q4fgv8Qo
amazement rather than uproarious laughter!
rikyrah
What the Supreme Court Did (and Didn’t Do) Today on Immigration
“This is a clear reminder of the consequences of Republican obstruction of Obama’s current SCOTUS nominee.”
by Nancy LeTourneau June 23, 2016 4:43 PM
The Supreme Court issued a one sentence response today to President Obama’s Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA): “The judgment is affirmed by an equally divided Court.” That means that, because of a 4-4 tie, the injunction blocking the plan from taking effect stands. As the President pointed out today, it affirms the status quo.
It is important to keep in mind that Obama’s previous action – Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA – was not contested and therefore continues to be in effect. Also still in place are the priorities this administration outlined for immigration enforcement.
The above statement from the Court does not indicate a ruling about the Constitutionality of DAPA – that is still an open question to be addressed at a later date.
As many are noting – including President Obama – this is a clear reminder of the consequences of Republican obstruction of his current SCOTUS nominee, Judge Merrick Garland. With nine Justices, we would have gotten a definitive ruling from the Court. The one thing I haven’t seen mentioned is that if Justice Scalia were still alive, there is no doubt that DAPA would have been struck down. We never had much trouble predicting where he would stand on issues.
dr. bloor
Maybe they just get tired of having to deal with idiot monkeys.
MobiusKlein
Off topic: turns out there is one (1) public self serve laundromat in the country of Iceland. It is about 300 miles away now, so pardon the not so fresh waft.
smith
@rikyrah: In a just world, Trump’s comments about Brexit should have the same impact as Romney’s about the Olympics in 2012. Alas, all the oxygen is used up by Brexit, so this will pass unnoticed. (Also, too, there’s just too much to choose from with Trump.)
jacy
@Emma:
Morningstar is great. Their American Grillers are very hamburger-like, and the black bean burgers are really good. There are other varieties too — just have to find them. My kids love them, and they’re super-easy for even the youngest to make for himself. Just thaw a bit in the microwave and flip a couple of times in a skillet
Cermet
@Brachiator: OK; often a general term but I bet their results do apply to chimps and chimps are a lot closer to us then monkey’s would be;so then it would be far more applicable; otherwise, it would be mostly irrelevant if chimps and other “great apes” didn’t do this..
Cermet
@jacy: These contain eggs so aren’t vegan.
Origuy
@MobiusKlein: I wondered what that was. Seriously, getting laundry done is a major issue when I travel in Europe. Very few coin-ops, and dropoff places mean that you have to stay in one place long enough for them to do it.
Paul in KY
@schrodinger’s cat: Thanks!
GregB
@raven:
In the heartland we call them Obama-Stalin Burgers.
? Martin
I wonder what the reaction from the leave crowd will be when they realize they just shoved their best Premiere League talent out of the country.
raven
@GregB: Took longer than I thought!
MomSense
@Origuy:
Laundry and shaving legs is what those crazy bathrooms with the drain in the middle of the floor and the shower head on the ceiling somewhere between the toilet and the sink are for.
schrodinger's cat
Cute monkey* in the song from Bajrangi Bhaijan (Brother Bajrangi). The hero is a retired wrestler who is a devotee of Hanuman or Bajrang Bali,( the monkey who helps Rama cross the sea and go to Lanka to rescue Sita.)
The movie is about the journey Forest Gump like hero, Salman Khan, undertakes to take a mute girl lost in India back to her home in Pakistani Kashmir, across a heavily militarized border. They gain another travel buddy, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, a Pakistani journalist en route.
*Monkey appears at 1.44
Brachiator
@Cermet:
But never correct. And a lot of this goes back to ignorant anti-evolution folks who like to declare that they were not descended from no monkeys.
Fair enough, although I wonder whether this behavior might be observed in other social non-primates.
Mnemosyne
@Emma:
Vegetarian or vegan? If you’re looking for vegetarian, I second the recommendation for Morningstar Farms, especially the Spicy Black Bean and Tomato & Basil Pizza burgers — yum! Their corn dogs and BBQ riblets are also tasty.
I have no recommendations for vegan, though.
ETA: Also, if you prefer to grill, the Dr. Praeger’s burgers are good. They have to be pan-fried or grilled and can’t be microwaved like the Morningstar Farms products.
Prescott Cactus
As humans approach death their world gets smaller.
First no more out of country trips,
No airport trips,
No out of state trips,
no overnighters.
I think the mind works in step with the body in this “narrowing” process.