This morning I woke up and one of the first messages on my blackberry was from a friend Hermes – news that Steve Jobs had died. I’m not iPhone girl, all that finger swiping and touch screen malarkey sends shivers down my OCD spine!!
Steve Jobs 1955-2011
However I was so very sad to hear that Mr Jobs, the Apple founder and former CEO had died aged 56, after a long battle with cancer. A visionary who many say dazzled the world with his genius.
One questioned posed by Hermes was: “Steve Jobs dies, do primates also mourn the loss of great leaders?”
Interesting question. Without going into too much detail. Scientists have found that primates have very complex, diverse and fluid social grouping dynamics, something that sets them apart from other mammals. Social systems can range from monogamous pairs; harems; fission/fussion communities; multi-male troops to territorial families. Some primate groups (there are always exceptions) live in hierarchies so the loss of a so-called leader happens more frequently that you’d think. It may not be through death, but when an Alpha is over thrown, group dynamics adjust accordingly and life moves on.
Grief is a whole other issue in the non-human primate world and raises the question of whether consciousness and emotion exists. A highly controversial topic as it is very difficult to gauge without erring towards anthropomorphic tendencies.
Our closest relatives appear to be far better equipped to move on and handle change far better than we do, a trait that’s clearly served them well in evolutionary history.
But let’s for a moment dwell on Steve Jobs’ passing (because we can) and remember a great man who did much for our technological evolution.
whogivesamonkeys 
Sham Mitra
October 11, 2011
One thing that distinguishes us (the Homo erectus) from other species in the same genus, is that we’re able to understand the complexity of emotion and (if we so wish) allow that to change our behaviours.
Was it not for Steve Jobs, I wouldn’t be a technologist today. Steve’s life has always inspired me to think differently, and to believe that nothing is impossible. The untimely death of the insanely brilliant visionary Steve Jobs leaves behind with it an insurmountable void. Steve was a man whose stoicism knew no bounds, and whose passion allowed him to defy convention, repeatedly. We’ve lost arguably the greatest inventor of our generation,
It’d be absurd (dare I say it, okay I just did) to think that primates can have such a lasting affect on humanity. And yes, there are those stories of human-animal attachments which tug at even the tightest of heart strings (such as Christian the lion), however I find it hard to believe that primates (or indeed any animals) have the complex understanding (even in there own social groupings) to make change happen significantly enough to warrant the changing of mindsets.
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urbanprimate
October 12, 2011
Hi Sham,
You’re not alone in your views about Jobs. I know many people who feel the exact same way. However I wouldn’t be too quick to dismiss our nearest cousins. Not only have they aided the advancement of science to allow us to have “safe” drugs to use, they were also among the first animals sent into space before man to safeguard our missions. They’ve taught us and continue to enlighten scientists about our evolutionary past and that has indeed had a “lasting effect on humanity”. Man certainly does not know enough about most species, just because they can’t verbally communicate to us does not mean they are not complex animals. Your statement is very anthropocentric.
A
Sham Mitra
October 12, 2011
Cheers Asha for your response.
I won’t lie, I had to Google ‘anthropocentric’ – that’s a new one on me! Notwithstanding however, I must be quick to point out that primates (in there various guises) would have been used (for want of a better word) for exploratory purposes, i.e. if the chimpanzee survives the journey into space, it’s most likely humans will too. Had HAM the chimpanzee had a say in whether or not he boarded a rocket bound for space, I’d have to say he’d have probably declined graciously. It’s a catch 22, was it not for HAM who knows when humans would have made the voyage beyond the exosphere.
I’ve often lamented over the facts associated animal testing, with my current thinking (and for sometime now) being that it’s out-dated and immoral. And as for verbally communicating with humans, body language is seen as anywhere between 60% and 93% of communication – primates have the intelligence to communicate in other ways than verbally which is why (I suspect) we’re able to read them (albeit with a bit of peer-to-peer consultation).