The Chimps of War
Chimps may be portrayed as mischieviously fun but largely harmless by Hollywood, but the truth is anything but. In the wild, chimpanzees are killers that engage in years-long war against one another, and their behavior may explain man’s propensity for violence:
It was a four-year "war" witnessed by Dr Jane Goodall, and Dr Muller’s PhD supervisor, Richard Wrangham, a professor of primatology from Harvard University, Boston, that put an end to our cosy ideas.
In the Seventies, Prof Wrangham and Dr Goodall watched a group of chimpanzees split into two factions. One group killed every male and some of the females in the other group. The victims had recently been their companions.
Although Dr Goodall was the first to suggest it, Prof Wrangham went on to develop a theory that would explain human violence based on the aggression he had witnessed. As he points out, we are hardly a peaceful species. In Britain, men are 24 times more likely to kill or assault another person, and 263 times more likely to commit a sexual offence than a woman.
Prof Wrangham’s theory is called the Demonic Male Hypothesis. He argues that human males and chimps share a tendency to be aggressive with our closest common ancestor. Chimpanzees and humans have many attributes in common: we share approximately 98.5 per cent of our DNA, we both hunt and males show a strong desire to form alliances against other males while jockeying for status. Male chimpanzees are hostile towards other groups of chimps; you don’t even have to go to Arsenal to know that men are not dissimilar.
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Violent Death in the Insect World: Stunning Photography
Some amazing photography enables us to get up close as various insects meet their demise. Includes various acts of dismemberment (including one in mid air) which are not for the faint hearted!
Death in the domain of the insects can be swift and cruel but retains a magnificence and beauty that is somehow at odds with the brutality of what is happening. Take a look at this collection of awesome photographs and see whether or not you agree – but beware! This is not for the squeamish!
Link – via webphemera
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Teen Attacked Mom with Taco over Xbox
While the jury’s still out on whether playing video games lead to violence, one thing is clear: some people deserve to have their video games taken away from them. Here’s the story of one 19-year-old teen who attacked his mom with a taco when she unplugged his Xbox:
Dena Moir, 54, told deputy sheriffs she called her 19-year-old son Zachary several times to come downstairs for dinner Tuesday. When he didn’t respond, she went upstairs and unplugged his Xbox. She told deputies her son pushed her, called her names and ordered her out of his room.
The woman said she was cleaning the kitchen when her son came down to eat and that she pushed him to the side because he was in her way. At that point, deputies said, the man smacked his mother on the left arm, called her more offensive names and threw his taco in her face.
"I don’t think he believed I’ll call," the woman told a 911 dispatcher when she called the Sheriff’s Office. "He’s done this plenty of times before and I’ve never called."
The unruly teen is now in jail: Link – via Arbroath | Side discussion: Do video games cause violent behavior?
(Photo: Volusia County Sheriff’s Office)
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