A mother and baby bonobo in the Kokolopori Bonobo Reserve in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The way human adults talk to young children is unique among primates, a new study has found. — Franziska Wegdell/Kokolopori Bonobo Research Project via The New York Times
IF you’ve ever cooed at a baby, you’ve participated in a special experience. Indeed, it’s an all but unique one: whereas humans constantly chatter to their infants, other apes hardly ever do so, a new study reveals.
“It’s a new feature that has evolved and massively expanded in our species,” said Johanna Schick, a linguist at the University of Zurich and an author of the study.
