In Primate Behavior:The Adapted Primate Mind, we will explore the
unusual selective pressures that have acted on the nonhuman primate
mind to produce an Order that contains perhaps the largest relative
brain sizes and a host of unusual and complex behaviors.  Primates
share many cognitive capacities with other mammals, but differ from
all but a few animals in the sheer number of skills they possess
and/or the complexity of those skills.

Some particular issues that will be given close examination are
complexity of foraging regimes, categorization and discrimination,
optimal diet decision making, tool use, quantitative abilities,
communication, long-term relationship maintenance, reciprocity and
exchange, theory of mind, deception, coalition formation, political
maneuvering, and culture.  Students will be expected to keep up with
course reading and to attend and participate in class discussions,
particularly by providing their unique perspective on weekly readings.

We will explore these issues through readings drawn from both a text
and the primary literature, in talks given by guest speakers, and in
discussions with visitors and among ourselves.  Principal readings
will come from Tomasello and Call’s Primate Cognition, supplemented by
primary literature where appropriate.  Course topics are expected to
appeal to students in cognitive science, psychology , biology,
physical anthropology, and neuroscience.

Weeks when there is no invited speaker student teams will present the
week’s readings and lead discussion on the weekly topic.  During weeks
when there is a visiting speaker students will attend the talk and
participate in less formal discussion after the talk.  An
approximately 25 page course paper is required for graduates;
undergraduate paper are expected to be approximately 20 pages long.

Course text
Tomasello, M., & J. Call. 1997. Primate Cognition. Oxford University
Press, New York.
From the book jacket.  “[The authors] review what is already known
about the cognitive skills of nonhuman primates, and assess the
current state of our knowledge.  They integrate empirical findings on
the topic from the beginning of the century to the present, placing
this work in theoretical perspective. The first part examines the way
primates adapt to their physical world, mostly for the purpose of
foraging.  The second part looks at primate social knowledge and
focuses on the adaptations of primates to their social world for
purposes of competition and cooperation.  In the third section, the
authors construct a general theory of primate cognition,
distinguishing the cognition in primates from that of other mammals
(humans in particular).  Their broad-ranging theory should provide a
guide for future research."

Grading
1. Class discussion (10%)
2. Proposed paper topic with annotated bibliography (10%)
3. Presentation (20%)
4. Term Paper (60%)