Training robots to develop culture

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/tayside_and_central/6587377.stm

I guess if you break it down that way, what they're doing is in a sense culture, but it's an odd way to go about it. It seems like no more than a 3D computer simulation to me.

Chimps evolving faster than humans?

Preliminary evidence shows that chimps have evolved and mutated faster than humans, which isn't all that surprising considering their life and mating cycle is slightly shorter, but apparently it looks like their genes mutate more each generation: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article1662524.ece

More research will have to be done on this before anything clear comes out of this. For the moment, I'm not buying the big hoopla that people are trying to make out of this, that they're going to overtake us evolutionarily or something.

Chimps in caves

The same chimps who learned how to use tools now have been seen seeking out caves for shelter: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18057867/.

It won't be long until they start roasting hot dogs over a fire.

The human brain, old and new

Some dude says that the KNM-ER 1470 skull should be adjusted and that the brain therefore weren't as big as originally hypothesized: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/04/070405-human-skull.html
Rafe's hero, John Hawks, and others had a great response (summation: No, you idiot!): http://johnhawks.net/weblog/fossils/habilis/er/bromage_1470_2007.html

New research shows that art classes make you a better doctor: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17707457/
So, now that they've cut all the art programs from schools, does that mean we'll have stupider doctors? :/