Summary of Bower’s, “Chimps may put their own spin on culture.”
Bruce Bower’s article, “Chimps may put their own spin on culture,” points out that chimpanzees pass down culture to their siblings just as humans do. Bower provides different research evidence to show the chimps’ abilities to come up with their culture. Unlike humans, who use talking to pass on knowledge, chimp populations pass along traditions in communicating signs and using tools. Researchers have encountered groups of chimps living together developing similar useful skills, such as using rocks to crack nuts.
Referring to Boesch’s and Tomasello’s research on chimps regarding how they use tools as well as other behaviors, Bower shows how these creatures day to day practices, despite containing many gaps, form a tentative consensus. The two researchers conclude that both chimps and humans portray socially developed patterns of activities that last for subsequent generations. A significant example is the difference between Tai chimps and Gombe chimps in hunting and collecting ants. Tai chimps hold out a stick with one hand and dip it among the soldier ants blocking their nest entrance (Bower). The chimps withdraw the stick as the ants climb, and using their lips, they sweep off the insects from the stick. Gombe chimps, on the other hand, similarly use the same technique to collect the insects but sweep off the ants from the stick using their free hand before shoving them into their mouths.