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APG 412 Syllabus - 1

February 24, 2020 - Books and Kingston schedule will not change. Anything else may change, but if so, Dr. Dunsworth will notify students.

APG 412 Primatology

6 credits: [5 credits (54 hrs instruction) + 1 credit lab (32 hrs of observations)]

5 week summer course (Summer I, May 18 – June 19, 2020)

Dr. Holly Dunsworth | 814-933-9382 | [email protected] Associate Professor of , Dept. of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Rhode Island

Office Hours: As this is a summer course, and because we will be spending so much time together, I will still hold office hours but will do so (in person or virtually) by appointment

Class Days/Times: These are mostly MWF 12:30-4:30, with one big exception of five consecutive full days at the zoo, June 8-12. See detailed schedule below.

URI Catalog Description: Investigation of the behavior of wild and captive prosimians, monkeys, and , and application of data for conservation and reconstructing origins.

Detailed course description: This is a Kingston-based course that includes fieldwork at the Child Development Center (at URI-Kingston) and Southwick’s Zoo (in nearby Mendon, Massachusetts). While this course is comparative across , our investigation will be slightly biased towards because of their close relation to us. We explore the significance of primates, and specifically chimpanzees, in a broad scholarly context, as sources of insight into human , and as intensive recipients of conservation efforts. Our primatology begins in the classroom and our first field experience takes place on our campus where we build observation and research skills with the young primates at the URI Child Development Center. Then we move off campus to a zoo- setting. We have a relationship with Southwick’s Zoo in Massachusetts where we will undertake observations of a wide variety of primates, including chimpanzees, strengthening our research skills as we design, perform, and carry out original, quantitative primatological research. By the end of the course we will better understand motivation for, and approaches to, primate conservation and appreciate the efforts of primatology and anthropology towards those ends.

Pre-requisites and permissions: APG 201 or permission of instructor. All majors welcome. Course cap = 10 students.

This course is a rigorous, 6-credit intensive study! We will be meeting frequently for long bouts, between which you will be reading many pages to prepare for the next class and/or working on your projects. In addition to covering the entire Order Primates in the classroom, we will be observing children and nonhuman primates, and analyzing and evaluating the implications of our results.

Physical requirements: This course is welcome to all students. We will be observing primates for hours at a time across five days. Depending on the species of study and the study design, students may need to be mobile, on their feet, for much of that observation time. So there is a degree of physical ability and endurance that contributes to participation in this course. On the other hand, it APG 412 Syllabus - 2

will be easy to co-create research projects with students who, for example, do not wish to stand for long periods of time, or at all. While performing their zoo studies, students will build short breaks into their sampling strategy as appropriate and will be permitted to eat and drink while they observe the primates. The zoo is very comfortable, with many restroom facilities located throughout that students will use at their discretion.

Costs that go above and beyond tuition

Lab fee, paid at registration: This course has a lab fee of $75 which covers each student’s entrance for five days to the zoo ($50 dollars per student). Remaining funds from lab fees will go towards equipment (like binoculars) to share among students and to be used by future students (if it is not used to rent a van for zoo transport, instead).

Textbooks (Dr. Dunsworth will order these through URI’s Bookstore) 1. Primates in Perspective, 2nd edition (2010) by CJ Campbell et al. (editors) Oxford University Press 2. Primate (2013) by Karen Strier (editor) Routledge

Five days of nutrition while working at zoo: Students will need to pack snacks and meals or bring their own funds to purchase food to fuel their research at the zoo from 8 am to 5 pm for five days.

Gear for data collection: Notebook (required), sun protection, waterproof jacket, water protection for time telling device, rite-in-the-rain (or other waterproof) data collection notebook and pencil (recommended if umbrella or other rain deterrent is too cumbersome), water bottle. Other non- required equipment includes cameras and binoculars, but they are encouraged. More information will be provided in class as we approach our days at the zoo.

Assessment

Grade Scale A = 93.5 – 100%; A- = 89.5 – 93.4%; B+ = 87.5 – 89.4%; B = 83.5 – 87.4%; B- = 79.5 – 83.4%; C+ = 77.5 – 79.4%; C = 73.5 – 77.4%; C- = 69.5 – 73.4%; D+ = 67.5 – 69.4%; D = 59.5 – 67.4%; F = below 59.5%

Course grade 50% Reading quizzes (top 5 of 7) 5% Pre-zoo prep work and lightning talk 5% Primate Ethnographies Discussion leader 5% Post-zoo draft work 25% Zoo research project and presentation 10% Participation (including class project on chimpanzees) 100%

Reading Quizzes - These are seven in-class quizzes where students will demonstrate that they completed the reading assignment prior to class. They will be largely short answer and short essay. They will serve to help spark discussion of the material. Lowest two scores will be dropped.

APG 412 Syllabus - 3

Pre-zoo prep work – Students will perform scholarly research on a primate species housed at the zoo (unique to each individual student; chimpanzees are exempt because they will be the focus of our class project). Students will propose a study of a species at the zoo to test hypotheses, and will present their proposal as a 5-minute lightning talk to the class while standing at the zoo exhibit where they will be performing the research. More information, including how to perform excellent scholarly research, will be provided in class. Practice forming research questions and utilizing different observational methods will occur in the course prior to this task. Students will receive prompt feedback on this prep work to incorporate into their research, immediately, and that intense feedback will continue across the days they spend collecting data while immersed at the zoo.

Primate Ethnographies Discussion leader. While working intensely at the zoo, we’ll break midday to recharge our minds by discussing personal reflections on fieldwork by professional primatologists. Each student will be discussion leader for two chapters.

Post-zoo draft work – Students will present a preliminary assessment of the work they did at the zoo and propose plans for completing their project to the class. More information, including instruction on, and practice in, data analysis will be provided in class. Students will be guided through data analysis and visualization in either Excel or SPSS, but they are welcome to use other means if they are more comfortable.

Zoo research project, presentation, and participation in discussions of others’ – Students will submit a written research paper that explains the significance of the work they did, the data they collected, its analysis, and how it addresses or tests an hypothesis. The paper must include discussion of conservation even if it is not part of the project. (For example, if the project is about locomotion it still needs to include intellectual links to and/or consideration of conservation issues.) The paper must also make an explicit link to anthropological goals of reconstructing human origins, even if the study was not created with this goal in mind. Students will present their papers to the class with powerpoint slides (or another approved form of visualization) to illustrate their work within a 20 minute time frame, each. More information, including guidelines for writing scholarly research papers and presenting science professionally, will be provided in class.

Participation, class/group zoo project – Students will discuss readings and material in class. Students will practice primatological methods while observing human children’s gestural communication, collect data, analyze it, and evaluate whether it supported or refuted the class hypotheses. Students will provide professional feedback in discussing one another’s work in this setting and in the zoo projects to follow. As a class we will design and implement a study of the chimpanzees at the zoo. Days at the zoo will be spent studying individual primate species, according to individual research project, and also studying the chimpanzees to contribute to the class’s group research project. More information will be provided in class.

There is no final exam.

Schedule

DAY 1 – 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Monday May 18, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston – Parts 1 and 2: Background and an Overview of the Order Primates; QUIZ 1 Readings • Textbook Chapters 1-10 – pages 1-185 APG 412 Syllabus - 4

o Note: Get started on this reading assignment ahead of the start of class. Also, because it is a big reading assignment, be selective about what you focus on and skim what you do not focus on. Reflect on why you focused on what you did and be prepared to share that information about your choices, decision, and experience in class.

DAY 2 – 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Wednesday May 20, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston –cont’d; QUIZ 2 Readings • Textbook Chapters 11-19 – pages 186-344 o Note: Get started on this reading assignment ahead of the start of class. Also, because it is a big reading assignment, be selective about what you focus on and skim what you do not focus on. Reflect on why you focused on what you did and be prepared to share that information about your choices, decision, and experience in class.

DAY 3 – 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Friday May 22, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston- Part 3: Methods; prep for CDC observations of primate gestural communication; QUIZ 3 Readings • Textbook chapters 20-22 – pages 345-394 Resources • “They really are little monkeys! Toddlers share 96% of the same gestures as chimpanzees to communicate day-to-day requests” https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article- 6155945/Toddlers-share-96-gestures-chimpanzees-communicate-day-day-requests.html • Kersken et al. 2018. A gestural repertoire of 1- to 2-year-old human children: in search of the gestures. Cognition https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-018-1213-z • Whiten, Goodall, et al. 1999. Cultures in chimpanzees. Nature • Altmann J. 1974. Observational Study of Behavior: Sampling Methods. Behavior 49(3/4): 227- 267 • Seyfarth R. 1976. Social relationships among adult female baboons. Animal Behaviour 24(4): 917-938.

Monday May 25 – NO CLASS, MEMORIAL DAY

DAY 4 – 2 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break, 1 hour observation Wednesday May 27, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston - Child Development Center (CDC) observations of primate gestural communication: practicing different methods of primatological data collection, testing hypotheses, and discussing results

DAY 5 – 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Friday May 29, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston– Part 4: Reproduction; Professional behavior and ethics in lab- and field-based sciences; QUIZ 4 Readings • Textbook Chapters 23-27 – pages 395-464 • Clancy K, Nelson RG, Rutherford J, and K Hinde. 2013. Survey of Academic Field Experiences (SAFE): Trainees Report Harassment and Assault. PLoS ONE 9(7): e102172

DAY 6 – 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Monday June 1, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston – Part 5: ; Quiz 5 Readings APG 412 Syllabus - 5

• Textbook Chapters 28-33 – pages 465-560 Resources • Holekamp KE and ED Strauss. 2016. Aggression and dominance: an interdisciplinary overview. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences 12: 44–51. • Thompson ME. 2013. Comparative Reproductive Energetics of Human and Nonhuman Primates. Annual Review of Anthropology 42:1-378. DOI: 10.1146/annurev-anthro-092412-155530 • Pontzer H, et al. 2016. Metabolic acceleration and the evolution of human brain size and life history. Nature 533: 390–392. • Pontzer H, et al. 2014. Primate energy expenditure and life history. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 111(4): 1433–1437.

DAY 7 – 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Wednesday June 3, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston - Part 6: Social Behavior and Intelligence; Conservation; QUIZ 6 Readings • Textbook Chapters 34-39 – pages 561-651 Resources • Pusey A, et al. 2007. The Contribution of Long‐Term Research at Gombe National Park to Chimpanzee Conservation. Conservation 21(3): 623-634 • Kaiser J. 2015. An end to U.S. chimp research. Science • Gagneaux P, et al. 2005. The ethics of research on great apes. Nature 437:27–29 • Ross SR, et al. 2011. Specific Image Characteristics Influence Attitudes about Chimpanzee Conservation and Use as Pets. PLoS One • Brent L. 2007. Life-Long Well Being: Applying Animal Welfare Science to Nonhuman Primates in Sanctuaries. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 10: 55-61 • Fultz A, et al. 2013. An Evaluation of Nest-Building Behavior by Sanctuary Chimpanzees with Access to Forested Habitats. 84:405-420

Day 8 – 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Friday June 5, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston - cont’d; QUIZ 7 Readings • Textbook chapters 40-44 –pages 652-706

Resources

• Bezanson M and A McNamara . 2019. The what and where of primate field research may be failing primate conservation. Evolutionary Anthropology 28(4) 166-178. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/evan.21790 • Fuentes A. 2012. Ethnoprimatology and the Anthropology of the Human-Primate Interface. Annual Review of Anthropology 41:101-117. • Lee PC. 2010. Sharing space: can ethnoprimatology contribute to the survival of nonhuman primates in human-dominated globalized landscapes? American Journal of Primatology 72( 10): 925–931. • Hockings KJ, et al. 2015. Apes in the Anthropocene: flexibility and survival. Trends in Ecology and evolution 30(4): 215–222. APG 412 Syllabus - 6

DAY 9 – 7 hours instruction, 2 hours observation Monday June 8, 8 am-5 pm, Southwick’s Zoo – RESEARCH DAY 1; Orientation at zoo; Presentations of zoo research project preparations (at each primate exhibit at Zoo); PRE- ZOO PREP WORK DUE; lunchtime together for sharing, learning, and strategizing; rest time together for reading discussion; Finalize research project plans by the end of the day, thanks to pilot work/data collection today and intense feedback from professor and classmates this afternoon Readings to discuss during rest time • Primate Ethnographies, chapters 1-4 (pages 1-45)

DAY 10– 2 hours instruction, 7 hours student observation Tuesday, June 9, 8 am-5 pm, Southwick’s Zoo – RESEARCH DAY 2; all day data collection; lunchtime together for sharing, learning, and strategizing; rest time together for reading discussion Readings to discuss during rest time • Primate Ethnographies, chapters 5-9 (pages 46-106)

DAY 11– 2 hours instruction, 7 hours student observation Wednesday June 10, 8 am-5 pm, Southwick’s Zoo – RESEARCH DAY 3; all day data collection; lunchtime together for sharing, learning, and strategizing; rest time together for reading discussion Readings to discuss during rest time • Primate Ethnographies, chapters 10-14 (pages 107-162)

DAY 12– 2 hours instruction, 7 hours student observation Thursday June 11, 8 am-5 pm, Southwick’s Zoo – RESEARCH DAY 4; all day data collection; lunchtime together for sharing, learning, and strategizing; rest time together for reading discussion Readings to discuss during rest time • Primate Ethnographies, chapters 15-18 (pages 163-206)

DAY 13– 2 hours instruction, 7 hours student observation Friday June 12, 8 am-5 pm, Southwick’s Zoo – RESEARCH DAY 5; all day data collection; lunchtime together for sharing, learning, and strategizing; rest time together for reading discussion Readings to discuss during rest time • Primate Ethnographies, chapters 19-21 (pages 207-237)

DAY 14– 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break Monday June 15, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston –POST-ZOO DRAFT WORK DUE; Workshop zoo projects as a class

Day 15– 2 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break, 1 hour observation Wednesday June 17, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston – Child Development Center (CDC) observations; Analyze, Discuss, Reflect on how this experience today and the insight it generated today differs compared to our first visit to the CDC and since working at the zoo with non human primates

DAY 16– 3 hrs, 45 mins instruction + 15 mins break APG 412 Syllabus - 7

Friday June 19, 12:30-4:30 pm, Kingston - PRESENTATIONS of students’ zoo projects and revelations from the results of our class zoo project on chimpanzees

APG 412 course objectives

1. Utilize an anthropological perspective to explain the complexity, inter-relatedness, and significance of primate biology, behavior, ecology, and social organization. 2. Describe the methods that primatologists use to explain primate behavior through selected readings and implement them by engaging in individual and group research. 3. Design research, collect data, analyze data, interpret the results, and communicate the outcomes and significance of it. 4. Apply primate models to understanding human behavior and evaluate the pros and cons to this practice. 5. Examine the value of primatological studies toward conservation efforts.

Anthropology program learning outcomes fulfilled in APG 412

1. Describe the historical development of anthropology and be able to characterize how each subfield contributes to the unified Introduced discipline.

2. Compare past and present cultures, including ecological adaptations, social organization, and belief systems, using a Introduced holistic, cross-cultural, relativistic, and scientific approach.

3. Explain biological and biocultural evolution, describe the evidence for human origins and evolution, and evaluate both Reinforced scientific debates and cultural controversies over genetic determinism, biological race, and evolution.

4. Describe the and importance of symbolic communication in the human condition, including the social Reinforced context of linguistic change.

5. Explain quantitative and qualitative methods in the analysis of anthropological data and critically evaluate the logic of Emphasized anthropological research.

6. Identify ethical principles used in anthropological research. Emphasized

7. Apply anthropological research to contemporary Emphasized environmental, social, or health issues worldwide. APG 412 Syllabus - 8

IDEA course objectives for APG 412

Essential 1. Gaining a basic understanding of the subject (e.g., factual knowledge, methods, principles, generalizations, ) 2. Developing specific skills, competencies, and points of view needed by professionals in the field most closely related to this course Important

1. Learning appropriate methods for collecting, analyzing, and interpreting numerical information 2. Developing knowledge and understanding of diverse perspectives, global awareness, or other cultures 3. Learning how to find, evaluate, and use resources to explore a topic in depth

Other Helpful Information

Your access in this course is important. Please send me your Disability Services for Students (DSS) accommodation letter early in the semester so that we have adequate time to discuss and arrange your approved academic accommodations. If you have not yet established services through DSS, please contact them to engage in a confidential conversation about the process for requesting reasonable accommodations in the classroom. DSS in Kingston is located in room 302 of the Memorial Union, 401-874-2098, uri.edu/disability/, [email protected]. DSS in Providence is located in room 239 of the Shepard Building, 401-277-5221. https://web.uri.edu/disability/providence/, [email protected]

This is a challenging course. Success requires that you keep pace with the work, understand course concepts, and study effectively. The Academic Enhancement Center helps URI students succeed through three services: Academic Coaching, Tutoring, and The Writing Center. To learn more about any of these services, please visit web.uri.edu/aec/ or call 401-874-2367 to speak with reception staff. In Providence, the Academic Skills Center (ASC) is at 239 Shepard Building, (401) 277-5221. Hours are posted each semester at http://web.uri.edu/ceps/academic-skills-center/

Students are expected to be honest in all academic work. URI’s Student Handbook (http://web.uri.edu/studentconduct/student-handbook/) provides guidelines concerning academic honesty in this regard. Additional assistance is available at the Writing Center and the Academic Enhancement Center. A student’s name on any written work, quiz or exam shall be regarded as assurance that the work is the result of the student’s own independent thought and study. Work should be stated in the student’s own words, properly attributed to its source. Students have an obligation to know how to quote, paraphrase, summarize, cite and reference the work of others with integrity. The following are examples of academic dishonesty.

• Using material, directly or paraphrasing, from published sources (print or electronic) without appropriate citation APG 412 Syllabus - 9

• Claiming disproportionate credit for work not done independently • Unauthorized possession or access to exams • Unauthorized communication during exams • Unauthorized use of another’s work or preparing work for another student • Taking an exam for another student • Altering or attempting to alter grades • The use of notes or electronic devices to gain an unauthorized advantage during exams • Fabricating or falsifying facts, data or references • Facilitating or aiding another’s academic dishonesty • Submitting the same paper for more than one course without prior approval from the instructors

About absences…

6.20.10 Policy on Religious Observance. No faculty or staff member, administrator or student shall be discriminated against because of religious beliefs or practices.

8.51.11 Students who plan to be absent from classes or examinations for religious holy days that traditionally preclude secular activity (see 6.20.11 for how such information is made available) shall discuss this with the appropriate instructor(s) in advance of the holy day. The instructor(s) shall then make one of the following options available: a. the same quiz, test, or examination to be administered either before or after the normally scheduled time; b. a comparable alternative quiz, test, or examination to be administered either before or after the scheduled time; c. an alternative weighting of the remaining evaluative components of the course which is mutually acceptable to the student and instructor(s). 8.51.12 Students who expect to be absent from classes or examinations for University sanctioned events shall discuss this with the appropriate instructor(s) at least one week in advance of the sanctioned event(s). The instructor(s) concerned shall then offer the student an alternative listed in section 8.51.11. For these purposes, University-sanctioned events shall be those events approved for class excuses by the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, a Vice President, a Dean, or the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. No event shall be regarded as University sanctioned until the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs has been notified. Disagreements over the validity of an event being categorized as University sanctioned shall be mediated by the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. If agreement cannot be reached, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs shall decide the matter and that decision shall be final.

The University Manual is available at http://www.uri.edu/facsen/