Projects
Current on-site projects include research on:
Symbolic/mathmatical reasoning (Erin Colbert-White)
Inducing traditions (Jessica Crast)
Visual Attention (Jessica Crast)
Social Facilitation of Work (Jessica Crast)
Drawing and categorization via touchscreen use (Tephi Jeyaraj)
Social Cognition (Hika Kuroshima)
Vigilence and Kinematics in nut cracking (Freya Liu)
Spatial planning in maze navigation (Jing Pan)
Perception of emotional facial expressions (Liz Simpson)
Effects of social relevancy on sound perception (Liz Simpson)
Emotion-related thermographic changes of the face (Liz Simpson)
Spatial and relational reasoning (Brian Stone)
Communication at a distance using a laser pointer (Brian Stone)
Current field projects include:
Ontogeny of sex-differentiated foraging activity in Brown Capuchins in Raleighvallen, Suriname (Noëlle Gunst)
Stone tool use in Bearded Capuchins in Piauí, Brazil (Qing Liu Collaborating Research Labs:
Zoo Atlanta, Atlanta, USA
Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Altanta, USA
Brain and Behaviour Laboratory, National University of Singapore
Japan's National Institute of Neuroscience, Tokyo University, Japan
Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Japan
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Erin Colbert-White is currently working on two projects. The first is an investigation of capuchins' ability to assign numerical values to arbitrary tokens. In it, the monkeys are asked to not only comprehend the token values, but to also manipulate them and choose pairs of tokens that sum to the highest quantity. The second project is a continuation of work done with a language-trained African grey parrot. Grammatical structure and the social aspects of the parrot's vocalizations will be examined.
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Jessica Crast is currently conducting a study with Hika Kuroshima on visual attention to conspecifics in feeding and problem-solving contexts. The study gives each subject the choice of looking at either an affiliative-familiar or less affiliative-familiar conspecific to investigate the influences of partner identity and affiliation, and competition on visual attention in food-related situations.
A second project concerning the social influences on learning and foraging traditions is being coordinated by Jessica. We are investigating the aspects of the social context that lead to learning a novel foraging skill in infant capuchin monkeys, such joint-interaction and scrounging from kin and peers.
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| Jessica is also beginning her dissertation project on the social facilitation of work on a foraging task in capuchin monkeys. Expending effort, or work, on foraging problems in the wild is particularly important for capuchins, as they specialize on foods that must be extracted from a tough embedding substrate. Jessica hopes to show that the capuchins are faciliated by others' activity, not only to feed, but to work on a problem; and that working on the problem, or practicing, enhances opportunities for learning. |
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Noëlle Gunst studies the ontogeny of foraging behavior in tufted capuchin monkeys in the Central Suriname Nature Reserve, Suriname. Her work concerns the appearance of skilled percussion in foraging and signaling contexts in these monkeys. |
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Tephilla Jeyaraj is involved with several projects concerning drawing abilities and discrimination/categorization in capuchins using a touchscreen monitor.
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Hika Kuroshima is currently conducting a study with Jessica Crast on visual attention in feeding and problem-solving contexts. The study gives each subject the choice of looking at either an affiliative-familiar or less affiliative-familiar conspecific to investigate the influences of affiliation and competition on visual attention in food-related situations. |
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Qing Freya Liu studies how capuchin monkeys use hammer stones and anvils to crack nuts in the laboratory and in the field (in Piauí, Brazil). This project concerns how the monkeys select nuts, hammers, and anvils; the development of skill in using hammers to crack nuts, and the kinematic properties of skilled action during hammering.
Freya is also beginning a project with a fingermaze mounted to the testing cage.
This maze project investigates attention management and problem solving using a perception-action perspective.
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Jing Pan is continuing research on
planning abilities in capuchin monkeys. This study examined the errors made by capuchins as they used a joystick to navigate through a series of two-dimensional computer mazes. These mazes varied in terms of the number of possible choices and the perceived difficulty of these choices. The effects of maze characteristics and experience on performance were examined. |
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Elizabeth Simpson's Master's Thesis is examining the perception of facial expressions from a comparative perspective in capuchin and human participants. Response latencies and durations were recorded in a choice task with photos of monkey and human facial expressions, varying in valance (positive, negative, and neutral).
In related projects with collaborators Dr. Annett Schirmer and Nicolas Escoffier, now at the National University of Singapore, Elizabeth used ERPs in humans to examine whether a change in sound intensity is processed differently depending on its social relevance.
Elizabeth is also utilizing an infrared thermographic system to measure emotion-related temperature changes in collaboration with Dr. Katsuki Nakamura and Dr. Koji Kuraoka, at Japan's National Institute of Neuroscience.
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Brian Stone is continuing research on managing spatial relations in captive capuchin monkeys and chimpanzees, currently studying how performance is affected by additional asymmetrical features.
Brian is also working with capuchins on a project involving reasoning, manipulation and communication at a distance using a laser pointer. |
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