Chimps and Humans More Similar Than Thought

The genetic similarities between humans and chimpanzees -- the two species' genomes are 98.77 percent identical -- are often cited as evidence of how little genes, in and of themselves, explain. (I've made this argument many times, to the point where it's become a bias that I ought to work on.)

Perhaps these genetic similarities should be viewed as evidence that humans and chimpanzees have much in common:

Chimps display a remarkable range of behavior and talent. They make and use simple tools, hunt in groups and engage in aggressive, violent acts. They are social creatures that appear to be capable of empathy, altruism, self-awareness, cooperation in problem solving and learning through example and experience. Chimps even outperform humans in some memory tasks.

“Fifty years ago, we knew next to nothing about chimpanzees,” said Andrew Whiten, an evolutionary psychologist at the
University of St. Andrews in Scotland. “You could not have predicted the richness and complexity of chimp culture that we know now.”

Chimpanzees: Almost Human, and Sometimes Smarter [New York Times]

Image: Manogamo