Animal cognition experiments frequently reveal striking individual variation but rarely
consider its causes and largely ignore its potential consequences. Studies often focus on a …

The presence of divergent and independent research traditions in the gestural and vocal
domains of primate communication has resulted in major discrepancies in the definition and …

Language is an essential part of what makes us human. Where did it come from? How did it
develop into the complex system we know today? And what can an evolutionary perspective …

In recent years evidence has accumulated demonstrating that dogs are, to a degree, skilful
in using human forms of communication, making them stand out in the animal kingdom …

Joint attention (JA) is an early manifestation of social cognition, commonly described as
interactions in which an infant looks or gestures to an adult female to share attention about …

The movements we make with our hands both reflect our mental processes and help to
shape them. Our actions and gestures can affect our mental representations of actions and …

In his classic analysis, Gould (The mismeasure of man, WW Norton, New York, 1981)
demolished the idea that intelligence was an inherent, genetic trait of different human …

It is sometimes argued that while human gestures are produced ostensively and
intentionally, great ape gestures are produced only intentionally. If true, this would make the …

We and our colleagues have been doing studies of great ape gestural communication for
more than 30 years. Here we attempt to spell out what we have learned. Some aspects of …

Neocortical development in humans is characterized by an extended period of synaptic
proliferation that peaks in mid-childhood, with subsequent pruning through early adulthood …