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Subscribe to RSSMotion-capture artist Andy Serkis talks about the premise of "Rise of the Planet of the Apes."
Experts say the premise behind "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," the latest movie about intelligent chimps gone wild, is almost laughable. But they're not laughing about the wider issues raised by the cross-species romp — ranging from the genetic humanization of other animals, to the way we treat our fellow apes, to the long-running debate over the definition of "humanness."
Let's start by acknowledging that there's no way just administering a drug or fiddling with a few genes can confer human-type intelligence or language ability on chimpanzees or other non-human primates. "The scientific notion is preposterous," Jon Cohen, author of the book "Almost Chimpanzee," told me today.
Cohen said the oft-cited claim that there's a 1 percent difference between the human and chimp genetic code has led people to believe mistakenly that the two species are separated only by a few molecular tweaks here and there. When the differences in non-coding DNA are taken into account, that difference rises to 4 or 5 percent. Chimps and humans don't even have the same number of chromosomes (48 for chimps vs. 46 for humans).
"We have to get away from this vastly oversold notion that we're the same," Cohen said. "Let's grow up, and let's stop that."
The differences range from physiological factors (chimps don't suffer from the kinds of heart disease and cancer that afflict humans), to behaviors (humans can swim, chimps generally can't), to cognitive abilities. For years, primatologists have debated whether chimps can use language, or teach concepts to each other, or do math, or identify with the plight of someone else — but there's no debate that humans put chimps to shame in those departments.
Cohen thinks there are several factors behind our desire to think that chimps are like us:
- Save the chimps: Conservationists may emphasize the similarities as a strategy to build up support for preserving wild chimpanzees in Africa, where they are an endangered species. "It works, because the public cares about chimps more than any other species," Cohen said. "But come on — we care about whales and elephants, and they don't look like us."
- Support for evolution: A long time ago, some Darwinists pointed to the similarities as evidence of evolution at work. But that argument may be counterproductive now, since it's clear that humans and chimps had common ancestors that didn't look or act like either species. Current evolutionary theory rests on a wide array of evidence, and not just on the human-chimp connection. "We don't need that argument any longer," Cohen said.
- We are not alone: "We're fascinated by the notion that we can communicate with species on other planets, that the universe isn't as lonely as it appears to be," Cohen observed. "If we could somehow have a chimp that was more like us, it would satisfy this deep science-fiction desire for communication with others, and make us feel less lonely. But it's a fantasy."
So unless you have 5 million years to spare, don't expect to take over the world by breeding an army of intelligent chimps. An army of intelligent robots is a more likely option. However, "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" does provide an opportunity for some serious reflection of the wholly human variety. Among the issues to reflect upon are these:
- Humanized species: It's becoming more common to transplant our genes into other species — for instance, the mice who were given a "humanized" version of the gene linked to language and speech. Humanized mice are even being created in college science projects. The trend has rung alarm bells at the British Academy of Medical Sciences, which is calling for a ban on experiments that might give human characteristics to other primates. (Note the "Planet of the Apes" angle in this video.) Last year, U.S. bioethicists made a similar call for regulation, saying that it would be "ethically unacceptable" to conduct humanization research with apes. (Here's a scary sentence: "Imagine the life of the transgenic chimpanzee that, while no more self-aware than other chimps, is hairless, walks erect, lacks long canine teeth, or vocalizes like a human.")
- 'Species-ism' at work: Even if chimpanzees are not as humanlike as some people may think, should they and other great apes be given special treatment? European regulators think so: They have ruled out most biomedical research on apes, while allowing experimentation on monkeys, our more distant relatives on the primate family tree. A similar debate over invasive chimpanzee research is simmering in the United States. Cohen says "species-ism" is a natural human tendency. We value mice over mosquitoes, monkeys over mice, and men over monkeys. "We do feel closer to some species than others, and we feel closest to the great apes because we're in the same family," he said. "But that doesn't mean tha we're them and they're us."
- Defining humanness: Some may question whether chimps should qualify as "persons" under the law, but no one would confuse a chimp with a human. In fact, Cohen argues that one of the main reasons to study chimpanzees is to track down the roots of the differences between our species and our closest relatives in the animal kingdom. "It clarifies what a human is, and what it means," he said.
One of the closing lines of Cohen's book resonates particularly strongly as "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" goes into its big opening weekend: "Humans will determine the fate of chimpanzees. Chimpanzees of course will have no say in the fate of humans. And that may be the single most conspicuous difference between the two species."
Do you agree? Feel free to weigh in with your comment below. And, oh, by the way: Let me know how you liked the movie.
Extra credit: If you're looking for a blockbuster movie that's on firmer (but equally scary) scientific ground, Cohen suggests keeping an eye out for "Contagion," a meticulously researched action-thriller that's due to debut next month. Looks like it has a dynamite cast — Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, to name a few — but the trailer is making me feel a little skittish about putting my fingers on the computer keyboard.
More about chimpanzees and humans:
- Did chimp and human ancestors interbreed?
- Dogs (not chimps) are most like humans now
- How humans got big brains and barbless penises
- Give a chimpanzee a video game and ...
- Search for chimpanzees on msnbc.com
Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page or following @b0yle on Twitter. You can also add me to your Google+ circle, and check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.
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Wake up you dam 'fools' they're already in control with a white racist pig at the helm of terror, making you think it's black on black crime.
Check him and let's do it quick,
signed PISSED
How high can they rise? Depends on how tall the tree is!
go ahead and dream with our arsenal, ape cant and will never rise againist humans( one single machine gun with enough ammo can take a whole klan of apes out, simple ) get that straight. okay you people who ridiculed our government well, what can one say, you are apes yourself, for putting these jokers on the seat on the first place.
so blame yourselves.
Or go eat a banana.
A wise man once stated that "the problem with a Democracy is you wind up with the government you deserve." Another stated " the problem with a Democracy is the skills to get elected are not the same skills needed to lead". Another "a democracy only lasts until the citizens discover they hold the keys to the treasury". And finally from Thomas Jefferson "I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them." All were correct and Jefferson was right, America could have been happy and was for many generations.
Yes, Jefferson's slaves were especially happy, particularly when their spouses and/or kids were sold off to the highest bidder. And the workers who had no type of insurance when injured or killed on the job with all of the unsafe conditions, they were very happy. And then there were the female population who were not allowed to vote because they were considered the property of their husbands or fathers, I'm sure they were thrilled about that. And during the depression when there was no such thing as unemployment compensation to tide families over and put some food on the table, those were happy times. Oh, and the bank failures with no FDIC insurance, many people were undoubtedly happy to lose their life's savings. I could go on, but you get the idea.
Life is actually better today than in previous generations because we learned from our mistakes. This latest economic upheaval should also teach us all a lesson: that we cannot blindly trust big finance and big banks, because the greed of their CEO's and upper management will destroy this country, or at least the middle class. Millions of homes are being foreclosed and many millions of people out of work. Most of the people I know have multiple families living in one household. Out-of-work adult children are returning to their parents homes with their own kids because they've lost their homes or can't pay the rent. There is something terribly wrong when 90% of the wealth is in the hands of a very small percentage of American people. It is time for another major change, and it's big banks posing as right wing (tea party) republicans who are fighting it, because the change we need would redistribute some of that unearned ill-gotten wealth to a more equitable proportion.
you just made an excellent argument for evolution. i'm certain it's because you're too stupid to realize it though.
When I had children, I explained to them the difference
in reality vs. make believe in movies and TV shows.
What happened to you?
To the presidency of the USA the less intelligent make it to congress and senate, below there EPA and wildlife officers city cops and the like. The rest live in South Floria and new york.
your comment is less than subtle and anti-semetic.someone should introduce you to the JDL bob-1864521
How high? Bachmann and Perry come to mind.
You allow them to vote.
You allow them to vote.
Only as registered Democrats. Both do not have the common sense to drop the cookie when their hand is stuck in the cookie jar (or the treasury in the lefts case).
It doesn't take a DA to understand Darwin. Separated species adapt different physical characteristics to survive. The change of the Continent to many seperated the different species and some adapted differently to survive. We removed the tail and stood upright, others didn't have to. Our brains could grow larger cause we stood up and the skeleton changed to support the head differently, We grew longer legs and shorter arms because we needed to. We've all been around about the same, they just didn't go thru the hell we did.
paper tiger, what you say here is accurate, except to accredit it to Darwin. He didnt invent the concept of evolution. He attempted to explain its causes. He thought he had discovered a prepetual creation machine in random accident and what he called "selection". He was entirely wrong and his theory is a fallacy.
His theory involves the combination of random chaos and a selective filter, both of which are regressive, not constructive. Random chaos destroys functional order quickly and thoroughly. It is the opposite of the complex functional order we see and there is no evidence of randomness in any living thing. There is no hope that random happenstance could produce anything as functional as a hand crank canopener. Mathematically it is a complete joke of a non-theory.
Even more vapid is his selection concept which is nothing more than the passive state of not dying. No subtractive filter can create or add anything that isnt already there. Elimination of the less fit does not cause more fit to exist. Lack of death does not cause life. The Darwinian Fallacy is essentially saying "We live because we didnt die."
1 to 5 percent difference in genetic makeup doesnt sound like much but with 3 billion base pairs, that is 30 million plus bits of information. We are more closely related to the bonobo ape than chimps, but they are one of the closer species. The leap can not be made by drugs, but only by understanding the cause of evolution in the first place. We still have so-called scientists clinging to Darwin's useless luck theory as a "cause". One thing that has become clear through experimentation in recent years is that genetic changes are not random or errors, but intelligent and need-based, just as all other of life's functions.
one day after the nuclear war wipes out the human and most life on earth the little chipmunk will walk upright and go to war with the Crow, besting it and have the power of flight. And the little Chipmunk will go where no chippy has gone before, stretching the envelope with each flight.
i think we should eliminate the threat now.them monkeys are demon spawn and need to be stopped.protect us mr.president
just like the Nebraska man was the scientific proof to get that got evolution
into schools. we had proof, so we but the mother, father and children in
our museums. and brought that (theory) scientific proof into our class rooms.
Thats the kind of proof u want me to put up with the law of gravity?9 after all
that (scientific) proof, we found out it was an extinct pig. and there are many
more examples of these kind of evolution proofs that blow up when the facts
are know, the problem is we are to prejudice to look into them. and that ok
to believe what ever u want, but a (theory) is an explanation that seems
satisfactory but has not been proven true. That is not the definition of a scientific
fact. U just did what most evolutionist do. twist the truth, you just made
up your own meaning for the word theory.
own meaning for the word theory.
what?
Neanderthals aren't the same as humans either, but we interbred anyway and the nonhuman genetic markers remain in quite a LOT of human beings today. There have been four different humanoid species that lived at the same time and interbred. Modern man is a composite species, a kind of hybrid. Its not absurd to speculate about chimps and other animals sharing critical biological traits and features considered to be the source of the divine in humans...
Actually, there's strong genetic evidence that chimpanzees and humans diverged, then interbred again- then diverged again, about 1/2 million years ago. This is based on common genes present in the X chromosome. Given the habits of some of the guys I knew while I was in the military, I can't say I'm that surprised.
apes can rise to who knows maybe president of the united states some day notice the ears !!!
Seriously. We already have the first one sitting in the Oval office
Carl Hubert: Did you really have to stoop that low?
I agree with ihateliberals....if we evolved from apes.....why are they still here. enough said on that subject.
If you knew anything about evolution you would know that humans didn't evolve from the apes that we have today. Humans and modern apes share a common ancestor. This is supported by fossil evidence, DNA evidence, and genetic evidence. Did you know that in the human genome we have a fused chromosome with the other great apes? That is why we have 46 chromosomes and other apes have 48 chromosomes. And to anyone who says "evolution is just a theory" please, learn the definition of a scientific theory. Scientific theories are not just random guesses based off very little amount of evidence like non scientific theories. They must be supported by all the facts and contradicted by none. Also how come the same people that criticize evolution for being a theory. Don't criticize the theory of gravity, heliocentric theory, atomic theory, germ theory, theory of relativity, etc, etc. And to all religious people out there. You can accept evolution and believe in God too. Science shouldn't be your enemy. I wish more people could stop being ignorant about science and try to understand it before criticizing it.
Theory of Gravity? Isn't that Law of Gravity?
How convenient that the only apes capable of evolving into humans just happen to be unavailable to observe at the moment. ;)
If apes ever do evolve to the point of dominance, I hope they do a better job taking care of this planet then humanity has.. In fact, I'd bet on it..
Read the "Uplift Wars" series by David Brin. It's an excellent, thought provoking read exploring a lot of different sides of this issue.
One already plays women`s tennis , and threatened to shove the ball down the line judge`s throat.
All this movie is really teaching us is that we might consider our selfs human, however that fact in itself does not garantie that we will treat other beings in a humane way.
For me the saddest part of the movie was were the ape with one eye was being strapped in and already knew what too do. The handler then made the comment that he was used to it, so must have been in lots of experiments .
I work(ed) in a variety of research fields and are well aware that some experiments are needed, there are a lot that are not, no matter how curious we are. Some things are not worth the price it costs.
Humanity does seem too be one of the cruelest species. As shown in what we can do too our children or others we do not consider off our standing
First off, like so many other movies these days, it's a direct rip off and I have no plans of ever watching it... second, hey give'um the planet, they might do a better job then we have with it....
Wow! I do not get to watch enough stuff like this. I was delighted! It was so nice to watch real feelings being owned and written into a film. I liked it a lot.
I must say that I have seen and read a lot of anger in the comments in many sites. We all have so many emotions just spinning us around and around. We really need to stop the spinning, take a look at our feelings, own them....and them lets try to be appropriate. The feelings are all ours. It is what we do with them that make us heros, adults or animals. It is what we create out of our feelings that will have a lasting impact upon our surrounding environment, and upon society. "Our creation" of events, and actions are so important. What will we create? We only have one shot each time at something wonderful.
The problem with our emotions is that when we don't talk face to face we dehumanize the person we are talking to. Over the internet we allow ourselves to be hostile in ways we would never be in person. It poisons our discourse. Disc jockeys speak only to a microphone and not to people - they say some pretty unbelievable stuff. People in cars get angrier because to them the other car isn't a person to whom respect must be shown.
The more we rely on Newsvine and sites like it for our discourse the worse our country will become. Hasn't anyone noticed the deterioration of civility in politics has gone hand in hand with the spread of internet blogs full of trolls? We already see its effects in our Congress.
Want an answer to the question? Just take a look at what happened Thursday night at the Wisconsin state fair. Over a hundred "APES" attack inocent white people leaving at closing time. A Flash mob suprize attack.