According to the latest Newscientist -
Chimps happy to help – you just have to ask - life - 13 October 2009 - New Scientist
Chimps happy to help – you just have to ask - life - 13 October 2009 - New Scientist
If you're looking for help from a chimp, don't forget to say please. Captive chimpanzees readily help others obtain an out-of-reach snack, but only if they beg for it, a new study shows.
Researchers have long debated whether chimpanzees act altruistically. In the wild, the great apes exchange grooming duties, and occasionally food such as meat, but whether these transactions fit the definition of altruism is controversial.
In dozens of trials involving six pairs of chimpanzees, one of the chimps consistently offered the tool to the other. But help often came only after the chimp in need reached out its hands or made a ruckus.Such requests may be necessary because chimpanzees don't fully understand the desires of others, Yamamoto says.
