Sex, evolution and rock'n'roll: vocal culture in animals, including humans

elective courses

(in Polish) English level B2, written and spoken

Recommended: Human evolution (3700-KON40-AL), Primatology (3700-WYK15-AZ)

The class will focus on the origin of social learning based on vocal transmission (language and musicality) in different species with a particular attention to primates, including humans.

Why do animals vocalize? To communicate knowledge, make sounds or express emotions? How do language and musicality develop in children? This course will draw on culture, vocalization, social learning, creativity and evolution.

Among its many purposes, vocalization may be a tool in mating, coordinating group behaviors, warning of danger, or even estimating population size or serving an aesthetic purpose. Animals may not only communicate through vocal use with their relatives and within their species, but also with animals who do not belong to their species. This and many other facets of the development of vocal culture in humans and other animals will be the subject of the seminars.

The course will draw on such branches of science as: biology, primatology, ethology, evolutionary and development psychology, musicology, in order to provide knowledge about vocal cultures in animals, including humans.

The course will be divided into 3 major sections: introduction to culture and evolution, animal vocal culture, and human vocal culture. The animal section will deal with different aspects and approaches of vocalization, creativity and animal communication with particular attention to evolutionary aspects of language. The human section will delve into different aspects of musical and linguistic development. In the two parts, the continuity between animals and humans will be highlighted.

Each class will include a presentation by a teacher or a guest lecturer, followed by a debate in which students will be encouraged to share their conclusions from obligatory associated readings (book chapters, scholarly articles, but also video recorded lectures of renowned experts in the subject). Students will be required to show familiarity with the scientific texts in order to participate in the debate in class. They will develop basic scholarly skills such as analyzing sources, comparing different approaches, assessing the methodologies of different scholars, writing a text with individual conclusions, and finding additional sources. The approximate amount of work required for the course (in class and individual, including quiz preparation or writing depending on the student's choice) is 100 hours / semester.

Chosen chapters:

Altenmüller, E., Schmidt, S., & Zimmermann, E. (Eds.). (2013). The evolution of emotional communication: From sounds in nonhuman mammals to speech and music in man. OUP Oxford.

Laland, K. N. (2018). Darwin's unfinished symphony: how culture made the human mind. Princeton University Press.

Patel, A. D. (2010). Music, language, and the brain. Oxford university press.

Pina M., Gontier N. (2014) The evolution of social communication in Primates: a multidisciplinary approach. Springer International Publishing.

Searcy W.A., Nowiki S. (2005) The evolution of animal communication: reliability and deception in signaling systems. Princeton University Press.

Wallin, N. L., Merker, B., & Brown, S. (Eds.). (2001). The origins of music. MIT press.

Wiley, R. H. (2015). Noise matters. Harvard University Press.

Students will gain improved knowledge on the similarities and differences between animals and humans (K_W08), as well as a comprehensive understanding of social learning, musicality, communication and culture in animals and in humans from an evolutionary perspective (K_W02, K_W03, K_W04). Students will understand methods used to analyze vocalizations and cognitive skills both in laboratory and in the natural environment (K_W03). Students will hone selecting and interpreting information (K_U12, K_U13), analyzing scientific writings (K_U01) and creating short scientific text (K_U06, K_U07, K_U04, K_K05). They will master social competences by learning to participate in a scientific discussion (K_W08, K_U09, K_U05).

Active participation in classes

Choice between: an essay (on a topic related to the subjects presented in class, chosen by the student and accepted by the lecturers) or quiz (open-ended questions).

In both cases, the work will be evaluated in terms of: composition of work, originality of thought, bibliographic references.

Grade on the basis of the two above (participation + essay / quiz)