TED2011
Isabel Behncke: Evolution's gift of play, from bonobo apes to humans
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With never-before-seen video, primatologist Isabel Behncke Izquierdo (a TED Fellow) shows how bonobo ape society learns from constantly playing -- solo, with friends, even as a prelude to sex. Indeed, play appears to be the bonobos' key to problem-solving and avoiding conflict. If it works for our close cousins, why not for us?
Isabel Behncke - Primatologist
Isabel Behncke applies an evolutionary lens to human questions like: Why do we play? Full bio
Isabel Behncke applies an evolutionary lens to human questions like: Why do we play? Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
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I just came back from a community
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that holds the secret to human survival.
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It's a place where women run the show,
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have sex to say hello,
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and play rules the day --
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where fun is serious business.
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And no, this isn't Burning Man
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or San Francisco.
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(Laughter)
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Ladies and gentlemen, meet your cousins.
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This is the world of wild bonobos
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in the jungles of Congo.
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Bonobos are, together with chimpanzees,
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your living closest relative.
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That means we all share a common ancestor,
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an evolutionary grandmother,
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who lived around six million years ago.
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Now, chimpanzees are well-known
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for their aggression.
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(Laughter)
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But unfortunately,
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we have made too much of an emphasis
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of this aspect
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in our narratives of human evolution.
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But bonobos show us
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the other side of the coin.
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While chimpanzees
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are dominated by big, scary guys,
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bonobo society
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is run by empowered females.
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These guys have really worked something out,
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since this leads to a highly tolerant society
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where fatal violence
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has not been observed yet.
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But unfortunately,
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bonobos are the least understood
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of the great apes.
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They live in the depths of the Congolese jungle,
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and it has been very difficult to study them.
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The Congo is a paradox --
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a land of extraordinary biodiversity and beauty,
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but also the heart of darkness itself --
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the scene of a violent conflict
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that has raged for decades
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and claimed nearly as many lives
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as the First World War.
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Not surprisingly,
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this destruction also endangers bonobo survival.
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Bushmeat trades and forest loss
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means we couldn't fill a small stadium
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with all the bonobos that are left in the world --
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and we're not even sure of that to be honest.
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Yet, in this land of violence and chaos,
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you can hear hidden laughter
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swaying the trees.
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Who are these cousins?
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We know them as the "make love, not war" apes
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since they have frequent, promiscuous
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and bisexual sex
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to manage conflict
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and solve social issues.
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Now, I'm not saying this is the solution
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to all of humanity's problems --
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since there's more to bonobo life
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than the Kama Sutra.
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Bonobos, like humans,
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love to play throughout their entire lives.
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Play is not just child's games.
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For us and them,
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play is foundational for bonding relationships
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and fostering tolerance.
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It's where we learn to trust
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and where we learn about the rules of the game.
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Play increases creativity
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and resilience,
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and it's all about the generation of diversity --
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diversity of interactions,
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diversity of behaviors,
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diversity of connections.
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And when you watch bonobo play,
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you're seeing the very evolutionary roots
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of human laughter, dance
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and ritual.
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Play is the glue
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that binds us together.
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Now, I don't know how you play,
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but I want to show you a couple of unique clips
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fresh from the wild.
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First, it's a ball game bonobo-style --
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and I do not mean football.
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So here,
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we have a young female and a male
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engaged in a chase game.
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Have a look what she's doing.
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It might be the evolutionary origin of the phrase,
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"she's got him by the balls."
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(Laughter)
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Only I think that he's rather loving it here, right?
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04:27
Yeah.
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(Laughter)
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So sex play is common
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in both bonobos and humans.
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And this video is really interesting
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because it shows --
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this video's really interesting
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because it shows the inventiveness
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of bringing unusual elements into play --
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such as testicles --
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and also how play both requires trust
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and fosters trust --
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while at the same time being tremendous fun.
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But play's a shapeshifter.
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(Laughter)
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Play's a shapeshifter,
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and it can take many forms,
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some of which are more quiet,
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imaginative, curious --
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maybe where wonder is discovered anew.
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And I want you to see,
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this is Fuku, a young female,
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and she is quietly playing with water.
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I think, like her,
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we sometimes play alone,
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and we explore the boundaries
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of our inner and our outer worlds.
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And it's that playful curiosity
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that drives us to explore, drives us to interact,
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and then the unexpected connections we form
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are the real hotbed for creativity.
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So these are just small tasters
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into the insights that bonobo give us
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to our past and present.
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But they also hold a secret for our future,
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a future where we need to adapt
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to an increasingly challenging world
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through greater creativity
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and greater cooperation.
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06:01
The secret is that play is the key
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to these capacities.
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In other words,
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play is our adaptive wildcard.
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In order to adapt successfully
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to a changing world,
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we need to play.
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But will we make the most of our playfulness?
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Play is not frivolous.
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Play's essential.
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For bonobos and humans alike,
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life is not just red in tooth and claw.
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In times when it seems least appropriate to play,
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it might be the times when it is most urgent.
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And so, my fellow primates,
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let us embrace this gift from evolution
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and play together,
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as we rediscover creativity,
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fellowship and wonder.
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Thank you.
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06:53
(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Isabel Behncke - PrimatologistIsabel Behncke applies an evolutionary lens to human questions like: Why do we play?
Why you should listen
Isabel Behncke (MSc University College London, MPhil, Cambridge University; PhD, Oxford University) is a New York- and Oxford-based behavioural and evolutionary scientist working on the nature of social animals … including humans. She’s from the mountains of Chile and loves wild things.
After walking 3000+ km in the jungles of Congo observing the social behaviour of bonobo apes -- our closest living relatives -- in field research, Dr. Behncke now applies an evolutionary lens to questions that lie at the core of social life and creativity: Why do we go to festivals? Why does trust require risk taking? Why do adults need to play in order to not just feel alive, but also maintain health, creativity and social bonds? Why do cities need to be not just ‘smart’ but also enjoyable? And crucially why is it that the more digital we get, the more understanding of evolution we need?
She enjoys consulting and engagement in different forms, has spoken at WIRED, the G20, House of Lords, United Nations, twice at the main TED event, and around the fire in Patagonia. She also has been part of numerous radio programmes, including NPR and BBC Radio 4. She has been featured in a number of television documentaries (BBC and National Geographic) and independent cinema (e.g., ‘Bounce: How the Ball taught the World to Play’).
Isabel Behncke | Speaker | TED.com