ArticlePrimates; journal of primatology2025
From stones to sketches: investigating tracing behaviours in Japanese macaques.
Article in Primates; journal of primatology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Can neural networks model the human perception of geometric shapes?PLoS computational biology · 2026Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The use of complex technologies by humans (Homo sapiens) and their ancestors is a key feature of our evolution, marked by the appearance of stone tools 3.3-million years ago. These technologies reflect cognitive complexity and an advanced understanding of materials and mechanics. Studying current primates, especially those that use stones, offers insights into the evolution of human behaviours. In particular, stone manipulation by macaques suggests that some complex behaviours in humans, such as creation of cutting and biface tools, could have emerged unintentionally. The Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) of Shodoshima were observed to leave marks on the ground with stones and chalk. By analysing this manipulation of stones, I suggest that drawing in humans could have appeared unintentionally; these unintentional origins of mark-making behaviours may represent early precursors to human drawing.
Indexed as
Identifiers
39776024What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.