Chimps Respond to Human Yawning

A new study says as chimpanzees grow, they increase their ability for empathy – the ability to recognize emotions in others. Researchers say they learned this by watching chimps yawn when they see people yawn. De Capua report on yawning chimps Elaine Masden and her colleagues at Lund University in Sweden base their conclusions on studying the primates in a sanctuary. But you have to ask – why study contagious yawning? Laughing, she said, “I don’t know. It’s a really peculiar effect. It’s ...

© La Voix de l'Amérique - vendredi 18 octobre 2013