“Selecting for” increased learning capacity sets the stage for the emerging cultures who are an important source of learned behaviour repertoires

( my learned examples are); routine behaviour patterns of positive behaviours that can be activated on appropriate occasions.  This capacity has a neurological base and is dependent on the evolution of larger more complex brains, and a more “intelligent” species.  (senses are the neurological base and the ability to learn daily).

Many non human species are intelligent enough to possess rudimentary traditions, or basic traditions of a group of organisms. Songbirds for example have traditional songs that vary from one population to another within a given species and many animals follow paths to waterholes, and feeding grounds laid down over generations; whereas others migrate to traditional nesting sites.

The most elaborate example of nonhuman cultures have been found not unexpectedly among our specie’s closest relatives, the monkeys and great apes. The Chimpanzee has a DNA 98% similar to ours. The Chimpanzee has learned to drive a golf cart, and has learned to sign language; further  Noam Chomsky proved with apes they can learn how to understand sign language, and further communicate on a basic level with humans. Primotologists have been doing Primate Research at the Institute of Kvoto University and have found a wide variety of traditions among the local troops of monkeys. The males of certain troops take turns looking after the infants while the “infant’s mothers” feed the infants. Such babysitting is characteristics only of the troops at Takasaki – yama and Takahashi. Other cultural differences have been noted. When the monkeys of Takasaki – yama eat the fruit of the muki tree, they throw away the hard stone inside or swallow it and excrete it in their feces. But the monkeys of the Arishi – yama break the stone with their teeth and eat the pulpy interior. Some troops eat shellfish, and others do not.

Cultural differences have been noted with respect to the characteristic of distance that the monkey maintains among themselves in eating habits, but with respect for the order of males, females and juveniles in line of march when they march through the forest.

The scientists at the Primate Research Institute have even been able to observe the actual spread of behavioural innovations from individual to individual. To attract monkeys to the shore for easier observations Scientists put sweet potatoes out on the beach. One day a female started washing the potatoes by plunging them in a small brook that ran through the beach. This washing behaviour spread through out the group and gradually replaced the rubbing behaviour they previously exhibited. Eventually 80 to 90% of the animals were washing their sweet potatoes in the brook and in the sea.

When wheat was spread on the beach by the scientists for the monkeys of Koshima, at first they had a hard time separating the kernels from the sand.  However soon afterward the same female invented a process for de-sanding wheat and this behaviour soon was taken over by others. The process was to plunge the wheat into the water to remove the sand. When the wheat floats the sand goes to the bottom.

Over a period of many years, Jane Goodal and her associates (1986) did a great deal of observing and recording studies of the behaviour of a single population of free ranging chimpanzees and it was noted they fish for ants and termites. It involves first breaking off a stick or breaking a piece of twig or a vine, and stripping it of leaves and side branches and then locating a suitable termite nest. Such a nest is as hard as concrete and impenetrable except for certain thinly covered tunnel entrances. The chimpanzees scratches away thin coverings and inserts the twig. The termites inside the nest bite the end of the twig and the chimpanzee pulls it out and licks off the termites clinging to it. Especially impressive is the fact that the chimpanzees will prepare the twig first and then carry it in their mouth from the nest while looking for a suitable tunnel entrance (Van Lawick Goodall 1968). “Anting” is an interesting variation on these behaviours. The Gombe chimps “fish” for species of aggressive nomadic – driver ants that can inflict painful bites. The chimp watches till the ants climb up the twig to a certain point, and then he swiftly pulls the twig out, and takes his other hand wipes the ants into his hand and then swiftly puts them in his mouth, and chews vigorously.  These chimps also make sponges to sop up water from hollows in trees. They strip a handful of leaves from a twig, put the leaves in their mouth and suck the water off. They employ a sponge to dry their fur to wipe off any sticky substances. Gombe monkeys use sticks as tools that are levers, and for digging. In other locations monkeys use hammer type tools to pound tough skinned fruits, seeds and nuts that are hard to get into with sticks and stones. Chimpanzees tend to use some tools as weapons and projectiles. They can use stones, and sticks with considerable accuracy. Chimps have deadly aims, and if a leopard comes into sight, they can tear it apart and drag the parts into the woods for food. Their genetics determine them to learn survival techniques for manipulating objects, and manipulating through destructive behaviours because they are working for safety for their own tribe. These are survival tactics of the Chimpanzee who work together as a unit for survival.

The development of traditions of tool manufacturing and tool use would be of great value to any intelligent species. There are traditions which are rudimentary to all species for cultures to survive.

 In the beginning where ancestral line leading to human beings forms from the line that leads from chimpanzees our closest non human relatives occurred 5 to 8 million years ago. By 2.5 million years there were at least two kinds of hominids (members of the human family), one called the Australopithecines, and this group  went extinct. The other group was called Homo Habilis that was a remote, but direct ancestor of homo sapiens. We know they were hominids because their limbs and bodies were already completely adapted for walking upright. There are 3 million year old footprints of Australopithecine. Hominids were not originally selected for their braininess, but for their peculiar upright gait. This gait called bipedalism was “selected for” and why is still debated today. It was true that when hands became unnecessary for walking, or a running tool, their use expanded way beyond the original use of monkey’s and apes.  Bipedal creatures could now carry clubs as weapons, and could manufacture clubs, digging sticks, stones and hammers and knives without lessening their ability to explore, move about for new lands, find food on new lands and seas, and to flee from any dangers.

Homo Habilis was succeeded by a larger and brainier human ancestor the Homo Erectus. Despite its larger brain, Homo Erectus does not appear to have had a advanced capacity for complex mental tasks. In 1.3 million years the brain size and tools did not change for complex mental tasks. however, 200,000 years ago the pace of evolving both in biological evolution, and cultural evolution quickened leading to the appearance in Africa of the First anatomically modern Homo Sapiens between 150,00 years before the present day. Around 40,000 years ago the cultural and biological evolution underwent profound changes. Although the human brain stayed the same size the complexity and rate of human agriculture cultural systems increased in many orders of magnitude. The last 40,000 years of evolution the primary emphasis has been on natural selection, but on cultural evolution and not the individual processes. Language has been the cultural takeoff, furthering the language assisted systems of thought. While other organisms use complex signal systems to facilitate social lives like human languages,  we as homo sapiens are qualitatively different and advantaged over other animal systems of communication.

The unique changes that took place because of human communication undoubtedly arose from genetic changes, and indeed are correlated with tool use for agriculture, social activities that are facilitated in exchanging goods and information sharing. We as homo sapiens have achieved “SEMANTIC UNIVERSALITY.”