THE GREAT APE CHALLENGE

Language makes humans different from other animals, but how language emerged through evolution remains a mystery. The Great Ape Challenge is a comparative research project, funded by The Leverhulme Trust, to investigate the evolution and development of language. Professor Gilly Forrester (Birkbeck, University of London) has developed puzzles that mimic language structure and can be manipulated by all great apes (including us humans) to test a unique theory about how our human speech emerged over evolutionary time and develops in modern human children. Experiments with these same puzzle boxes have been taking place across the UK with chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans, and humans looking at how different ape species use their hands to solve problems. Take the Great Ape Challenge!

Hands-On Science Friday 2022, Saturday 2022, Sunday 2022

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