Saturday, 12 January 2013

alterIMAGE

We will be posting a picture of the day, as well as fun facts and life hacks on a regular basis!

Here's the first picture of the day:



And now some explanation to the picture:

It is not uncommon in nature for animals to take care of babies of a different species. Evolution has made it so that one's brain rewards itself just by merely looking at a baby. That why is we involuntarily smile and feel better just by looking at at one. So yes, in a way we get high by looking a baby. It also instinctively makes want to take care of a baby, as such behaviour is advantageous to the human species as a whole. This phenomenon however doesn't only work with human babies. Our brain (and of many other species) is wired in a specific way that lets us recognize the face of a baby straight away, even if it is of a monkey or other species. That is why Internet is full of pictures of puppies and other young animals. 

I'm pretty much tripping balls right now

It doesn't end just there. If we look at the modern representation of cuteness in the media, we see that almost everywhere, this phenomenon is applied. Take for example Tweety or Pikachu. Both have over-sized eyes, cute small ears and other characteristics of a baby. And it is not even necessary that the painters of comic books are aware of the biology behind it, it's that it comes at an instinctive level as it is wired into our brain through evolution. What is the first thing that comes into your mind if you try drawing something cute? Huge eyes. Exactly, we all knew that.

Here's a video of a Leopard befriending and taking care of a baby baboon after just literally killing it's mother:



Further reading:
http://tinyurl.com/aqmu9rn
http://tinyurl.com/ba5t8g4
http://tinyurl.com/b8w8nej
http://tinyurl.com/amlalo7

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