Evolutionary Roots of Laughter Shared Between Humans and Great Apes, Study Finds
Researchers found all six great ape species share evenly spaced laughter rhythms that may predate human speech by 15 million years.
- Researchers at the University of Warwick published findings Thursday in Communications Biology showing that Humans and Great Apes share consistent laughter rhythms when tickled, suggesting the trait dates back 15 million years.
- Chiara Gregorio and her colleagues analyzed 140 laughter sequences from bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans, and Humans, discovering that consistent rhythmic intervals between laughs indicate a shared evolutionary link.
- While basic rhythmic intervals remain constant across species, Human laughter has evolved to be faster and more complex, which scientists consider a fundamental building block for speech development.
- Simon Townsend, who studies primate communication at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, said the findings "fall in line with an emerging body of data" suggesting primates have greater vocal system control than previously thought.
- Brittany Florkiewicz, an animal communication researcher at Lyon College, suggested future studies should include recordings from other playful animals like dogs and horses to distinguish unique human traits from shared evolutionary behaviors.
76 Articles
76 Articles
Scientists Think They’ve Uncovered the 15-Million-Year-Old Origin of Laughter
Welcome back to the Abstract! Here are the studies this week that yucked it up, went interstellar, controlled the weather, and sang our praises.First, the sounds of ape laughter have been gracing our planet for 15 million years. Then: a visit from a cosmic elder, a meteorological martial art, and bops by blowhards. As always, for more of my work, check out my book First Contact: The Story of Our Obsession with Aliens, or subscribe to my personal…
Scientists Just Discovered How Long Humans Have Been Laughing, and It’s Way Longer Than You Think
We all have our own unique laugh patterns. Our own signature laugh sounds. It should be no surprise that our primate cousins—chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobos, and orangutans—laugh too, and they all do it in their own distinctive ways, just like us. But according to a new study published in Communications Biology, there are way more similarities between our laughs than once thought. Researchers analyzed decades-old recordings of tickled great apes …
What’s so funny?! Apes and humans have been sharing a laugh for 15 million years
All living great apes - chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orangutans - laugh. But until now, it has been unclear how our laughter may have changed over millions of years of evolution, and how it might relate to the evolution of our speech.
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