Meeting discusses the ‘culture’ of other primates

The third meeting of the 'Conference Cycle on Humans and Animals: The Limits of Mankind' takes place on May 22 at 9.30 am at IEA’s Event Room. The topic to be discussed is 'Primatology, Not-human ‘Cultures’, New Otherness and Ethnography'. The exhibitor will be Anthropolgist Eliane Sebeika Rapchan, of the State University of Maringá.

At the conference, Rapchan will talk about the relationship between humans and other primates focused on ethnographic records. The researcher will discuss the controversial idea of the existence of specific ‘cultures’ among these animals and the consequent formation of a new otherness of non-human nature.

Rapchan studies the relationship between nature and culture and between sociocultural anthropology and life sciences, with emphasis on primatology, biological anthropology, and ethology. Her most recent research deals with the relationship between humans and animals based on the ethnography of the behavior of capuchin monkeys, as well as the possibility of a ‘culture’ among chimpanzees.

Cycle

The cycle covers the origins, legitimacy, and ethical-political consequences of differentiation of living beings in humans, animals and sub​​-humans (this last case defined by the prejudiced view of certain groups of individuals of certain ethnicities, body types or gender, considered inferior humans).

The aim is to discuss the most relevant philosophical and epistemological fundamentals to what is meant by human from an interdisciplinary approach, encompassing various perspectives, including those of anthropology, biology, and ethics.

The cycle comprises five meetings. The last two are scheduled for June and August. The organization is from IEA’s Philosophy, History, and Sociology of Science and Technology Research Group, the Philosophical Scientiae Studia Association and Fapesp’s Thematic Project ‘Genesis and Meaning of Technoscience: On the Relationship between Science, Technology, and Society’.