Mariska Kret on Techregister about babies laugh like chimps
Young children are not just cheeky monkeys — it turns out they actually laugh like chimpanzees, too. 'That’s because both babies and chimps chuckle while inhaling and exhaling, unlike adult humans who laugh mainly during exhalation', says cognitive psychologist Mariska Kret on Techregister.
Techregister
'The breathy, squeaky sound may happen because, like apes, babies do not have great control of their vocal tracts, so laugh as they inhale. But as we age, our laughter becomes less chimp-like and more human, the team of Dutch researchers with Mariska Kret said.
BABIES LAUGH LIKE CHIMPS BY CHORTLING WHEN THEY INHALE AND EXHALE BEFORE THE TECHNIQUE CHANGES AS THEY GET OLDER
CNN
'Human adults primarily laugh while exhaling, whereas infants and great apes laugh during both inhalation and exhalation. First adults inhale, then produce "ha-ha-ha" sounds in short bursts, starting loud and then fading away, Kret said. 'The ape-type is more difficult to describe but there is an alternation huh-ha-huh-ha.'
The laughing patterns of human infants match those of another species (31 August 2021)
Mariska Kret investigates emotions and social choices in primates, including humans. She is particularly interested in emotion and behavior that occurs automatically. She talks about this in various media.
Dutch media
Read more on Mariska Kret's media appearances in the Dutch media.
Previously in the media
Researchers of the National University of Singapore and Leiden University have discovered that chimpanzees and bonobos share the contrasting colour pattern seen in human eyes, which makes it easy for them to detect the direction of someone’s gaze from a distance.
- Chimps and bonobos 'track eye gaze like humans' in major scientific breakthrough, Daily Star 5 September 2019
- Chimps and bonobos may track eye gaze like humans, Science Blog 4 September 2019