Some 25 million years ago, humans and vervet monkeys diverged from a common ancestor. In very rough terms, perhaps one and a quarter million human generations, or five million vervet generations, have been brought forth upon the Earth since that common ancestor lived. Of course, many differences have evolved between humans and vervets in those 25 million years: among other things, human parents choose toys for their children; vervet parents do not.

But after all that time and genetic change, and despite studies attributing human children's toy preferences to adult stereotypes, a new study by Dr. Gerianne Alexander finds that vervet males, like human boys, prefer toy trucks and balls, while vervet females and human girls prefer dolls and toy cooking pots. What's more, the vervets play with the toys much as human children do: males roll trucks on the ground, females inspect dolls (apparently) for genitalia. Previously on MetaFilter: Pinker vs. Spelke, Gender and Brain morphology, Harvard president Larry Summers and his daughter's "baby truck".
posted by orthogonality on Dec 8, 2005 - 80 comments

are behind a wave of burglaries in the port city of Durban" "The adaptable vervets have become ingenious and efficient raiders who break into houses..." / "The monkeys, about 75 centimetres tall, like to squeeze through security bars and small windows." / "Police have rejected the idea of shooting or poisoning the monkeys, but that does not stop residents from taking potshots at monkeys that feed in their suburban gardens. The gunshot victims - those that survive..."
posted by tiaka on Feb 28, 2001 - 13 comments