Animal economics 动物经济学Balinese temple monkeys are sophisticated thieves巴厘岛庙里的猴子是老练的窃贼They prove that human beings are not the only species able to negotiate a deal它们证明了人类不是唯一能够谈判的物种Jan 14th 2021 |
IF YOU VISIT Uluwatu temple in Bali, beware. The long-tailed macaques there are well-known thieves. Since time out of mind they have made a living by robbing visitors of their possessions and then holding those objects hostage until a ransom in the form of food is paid. That is quite clever. But Jean-Baptiste Leca of the University of Lethbridge, in Canada, wondered whether these monkeys are cleverer still. Sometimes, they do not accept the first offer and hold out for more. He therefore asked himself whether they are able to assess how valuable an object is to its owner, and factor that into their negotiations.
macaque：猕猴
time out of mind：很久以前、自古以来
ransom：赎金；赎回
make a living: 谋生、维持生活
hold sb hostage: 挟持某人当作人质
hold out for：坚持……而不肯妥协
如果你要参观巴厘岛的乌鲁瓦图神庙，要小心。那里的长尾猕猴是有名的小偷。很久以来，他们就靠抢劫游客的物品，然后把这些物品当作交换食物的筹码来谋生。这很聪明，但是加拿大Lethbridge大学的Jean-Baptiste Leca怀疑这些猴子是否（比我们想象的）更聪明。有时，它们不接受第一次报价，拿着这些物品索要更多的食物。因此，他问自己，它们是否能够评估一件物品对其拥有者的价值，并将这一因素纳入谈判之中。Laboratory experiments conducted in the past with various species of monkey and ape suggest such primates can indeed attach a value to something intrinsically worthless to them, like a coloured plastic counter, by learning that tokens of this sort may be exchanged for food, and that different types of token bring different rewards, not all of them equally valued by the animal (a desirable grape versus an undesirable piece of cucumber, for example). That, though, is an artificial protocol in an artificial setting. The macaques of Uluwatu are true wild animals, albeit ones that are familiar with, and comfortable in the presence of, human beings.
